Glorfindel
| House / Order | House of the Golden Flower (of Gondolin) |
|---|---|
| Race / Culture | |
| Status | Alive in the Third Age (returned from death) |
| Origin | Rivendell; Gondolin in the Elder Days |
| Born | Years of the Trees / First Age |
| Died | First Age (slain in the Fall of Gondolin); later returned to life |
| Weapon | Sword; the white horse Asfaloth |
| Fate | Slain battling a Balrog at Gondolin; reembodied and sent back to Middle-earth, where he aided the Dúnedain and the Fellowship |
| Portrayed by |
Glorfindel was a mighty Elf-lord of the Noldor, renowned in the Elder Days as the Lord of the House of the Golden Flower in the hidden city of Gondolin, and present again in the Third Age as one of the great Elves of Rivendell. Golden-haired and valiant, he is one of very few who died in the wars of the First Age and were permitted to return, embodied, to Middle-earth.
Background
In the Elder Days, Glorfindel was a lord of Gondolin, the secret Elven city built by King Turgon, and headed one of its noble houses, that of the Golden Flower. When Gondolin was at last betrayed and overrun by the forces of Morgoth, Glorfindel was among the captains who fought to cover the escape of the fugitives, including the child Eärendil.
Death at the Fall of Gondolin
As the survivors fled through a high mountain pass, they were ambushed, and a Balrog fell upon them. Glorfindel gave battle to the demon of fire and shadow upon a narrow pinnacle of rock. In a duel of legendary fury, he slew the Balrog, casting it down into the abyss, but was himself dragged down to his death by the falling creature. His body was recovered and buried by the survivors, and ever after a green turf of yellow flowers grew upon the mound, though it stood amid barren stone.
Return to Middle-earth
For his valor and sacrifice, Glorfindel was among those Elves who, having died, dwelt in the Halls of Mandos and were afterward re-embodied and released. He returned across the Sea to Middle-earth in later ages, his spirit refined by his ordeal, becoming one of the mightiest of the Eldar still walking the world, able to stand openly against the powers of the Shadow.
The War of the Ring
In the Third Age, Glorfindel dwelt in Rivendell in the household of Elrond. When word came that Frodo Baggins and the One Ring were imperiled, fleeing the Black Riders, Elrond sent Glorfindel out to find and aid them. He met the company on the road and set the wounded Frodo upon his white horse Asfaloth. At the Ford of Bruinen, Glorfindel's presence, revealed in his full might as one of the High Elves who had dwelt in the Blessed Realm, helped drive the Ringwraiths into the flood that Elrond and Gandalf loosed upon them. It was foretold by Glorfindel that the Witch-king of Angmar would not fall by the hand of man, a prophecy fulfilled long after at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.
Character
Glorfindel is among the most luminous of Tolkien's Elves, a warrior of the Elder Days whose courage cost him his life and whose return marks him as a being of rare power and grace. In the books his might far exceeds his limited screen presence, for he stands among the few who could face the Nazgûl unafraid.
In the films
In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings films, Glorfindel does not appear; his role in rescuing Frodo and bringing him to the Ford is given instead to Arwen.
Appearances
- The Fellowship of the Ring
- The Silmarillion (the Fall of Gondolin)
- Unfinished Tales (mentioned)