Balrog
| House / Order | |
|---|---|
| Race / Culture | Maia (corrupted) |
| Status | Various |
| Origin | Angband; Moria |
| Born | |
| Died | |
| Weapon | |
| Fate | Servants of Morgoth; few survived into the Third Age |
| Portrayed by |
A Balrog (also called Valaraukar, "demons of might") was a being of fire and shadow, one of the most terrible servants of Morgoth in the Elder Days. The Balrogs were Maiar, spirits of the same order as the Ainur, who had been corrupted by Morgoth in the beginning and bound to his service.
Nature
The Balrogs appeared as great man-shaped forms wreathed in flame and darkness, wielding whips of fire and swords or maces. They were beings of terror, and even the mighty quailed before them. As fallen Maiar they were spirits of fire, akin in origin to the Wizards and to Sauron himself, though twisted to cruelty and ruin.
History
In the First Age the Balrogs formed part of the host of Angband, Morgoth's fortress in the north of Beleriand. Their captain was Gothmog, Lord of Balrogs, who slew the Elven kings Fëanor and Fingon, and was himself slain at the fall of Gondolin by Ecthelion of the Fountain. The Balrogs played a great part in the wars against the Noldor, and most were destroyed in the War of Wrath that ended the First Age.
Durin's Bane
One Balrog survived, hidden deep beneath the Misty Mountains. In the Third Age the Dwarves of Durin's Folk, delving too greedily and too deep beneath Moria, roused it. This was Durin's Bane, which destroyed the Dwarf-kingdom and slew its kings.
During the War of the Ring, the wizard Gandalf confronted this Balrog upon the Bridge of Khazad-dûm. The two fell together into the abyss, and after a long battle Gandalf cast it down upon the mountainside, perishing himself in the deed before being sent back.