Beren and Lúthien

Beren and Lúthien were the heroes of one of the central and most beloved tales of the First Age, a story of love between a mortal Man and an immortal Elf-maiden, and of their quest to recover a Silmaril from the iron crown of Morgoth. Their tale lies at the heart of J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium and prefigures the later union of Aragorn and Arwen.

The lovers

Beren was a mortal Man of the House of Bëor, son of Barahir, an outlaw who had long warred against the servants of Morgoth in the ruined lands of the North. Lúthien (called Tinúviel, "Nightingale") was the daughter of King Thingol and Queen Melian of Doriath, the fairest of all the Children of Eru Ilúvatar, for her mother was of the Ainur. When Beren came wandering into Doriath and beheld Lúthien dancing in the woods, the two fell in love.

The quest for the Silmaril

King Thingol, unwilling to give his daughter to a mortal, set Beren an impossible bride-price: a Silmaril from the crown of Morgoth himself. Beren took up the quest and was joined by Lúthien, who would not be parted from him. Together, aided by the great hound Huan, they passed many perils, overthrew Sauron in his tower, and came at last to Angband. There Lúthien cast Morgoth into enchanted sleep with her song, and Beren cut a Silmaril from the iron crown.

The end of the tale

In their flight the wolf Carcharoth bit off Beren's hand, which held the Silmaril, and the quest seemed to end in ruin. Beren was slain in the hunting of the wolf and the recovery of the jewel. Lúthien, in her grief, followed him in death and sang before Mandos in the Halls of the Dead. Moved by her song, the Valar granted that Beren return to life, on the condition that Lúthien become mortal and die in time as Men do. Thus the two were reunited and lived out a mortal span together.

Legacy

Beren and Lúthien were the ancestors of the line that joined Elf and Man, leading down through Eärendil to the kings of Númenor and to Aragorn. Their tale was held among the greatest of the Elder Days, and Tolkien himself had the names Beren and Lúthien inscribed on his and his wife Edith's gravestone.