Barahir
Encyclopedia
Barahir is a fictional character
in the fantasy
-world Middle-earth
of the English author J. R. R. Tolkien
. He appears in The Silmarillion
, the epic poem
The Lay of Leithian
and the Grey Annals.
's legendarium
, Barahir was a Man
of Ladros, heir to the House of Bëor
in the First Age
. He was the son of Bregor, husband of Emeldir, and most famous as the father of Beren Erchamion, who later was to marry Lúthien Tinúviel and result in the first union of Elves
and Men.
, in which the armies of the enemy Morgoth
defeated the Elves
and Men of the northern realms of Beleriand
, including Barahir's land Ladros. His elder brother and Lord of the House Bregolas was slain together with the majority of warriors, but Barahir was battling further westward nigh the Pass of Sirion. There he saved the Elven-lord Finrod Felagund
, but with great loss. Finrod swore an oath of friendship to Barahir and his kin, and as a token for this he gave Barahir a ring which became known as the "Ring of Barahir", and was handed down the family line.
After the ruin of this battle most of his people fled from their land, but Barahir took the Lordship of the House on himself now and remained defending the land. Morgoth pursued his folk until few remained, and the forest of Dorthonion
was turned to mazes of shadow and dread, Taur-nu-Fuin. Then Barahir's wife Emeldir gathered the remaining women and children and departed to Brethil.
They made their lair by the Tarn Aeluin in south-eastern Dorthonion. They were betrayed to Sauron
by Gorlim, who longed to see his wife again and submitted to the lies of Sauron. Their secret lair was then discovered and Barahir's men were slain. Only his son Beren escaped the slaughter, hunting alone in the wilds. He raised a cairn over his father's bones, and creeping into the Orcs
' camp, slew their chieftain and recovered Barahir's hand and Ring.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the fantasy
High fantasy
High fantasy or epic fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy that is set in invented or parallel worlds. High fantasy was brought to fruition through the work of authors such as J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, whose major fantasy works were published in the 1950s...
-world Middle-earth
Middle-earth
Middle-earth is the fictional setting of the majority of author J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings take place entirely in Middle-earth, as does much of The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales....
of the English author J. R. R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
. He appears in The Silmarillion
The Silmarillion
The Silmarillion is a collection of J. R. R. Tolkien's mythopoeic works, edited and published posthumously by his son Christopher Tolkien in 1977, with assistance from Guy Gavriel Kay, who later became a noted fantasy writer. The Silmarillion, along with J. R. R...
, the epic poem
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
The Lay of Leithian
The Lay of Leithian
The Lay of Leithian is an unfinished poem written by J. R. R. Tolkien. It tells the Tale of Beren and Lúthien, the story of the love of the mortal Man Beren and the immortal Elf maiden Lúthien. The poem consists of over 4200 verses. It was published after Tolkien's death in The Lays of Beleriand...
and the Grey Annals.
Character overview
In J. R. R. TolkienJ. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
's legendarium
Legendarium
Legendary may refer to:*A hagiography, or study of the lives of saints and other religious figures**The South English Legendary, a Middle English legendary*A legend-Entertainment:*Legendary, an album by Kaysha*Legendary...
, Barahir was a Man
Man (Middle-earth)
The race of Men in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth books, such as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, refers to humanity and does not denote gender...
of Ladros, heir to the House of Bëor
House of Bëor
In J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium, the House of Bëor were the family of Men who ruled over the eldest of the Three Houses of the Edain that had allied with the Elves in the First Age.-The Folk of Bëor:...
in the First Age
First Age
In the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, the First Age, or First Age of the Children of Ilúvatar is the heroic period in which most of Tolkien's early legends are set...
. He was the son of Bregor, husband of Emeldir, and most famous as the father of Beren Erchamion, who later was to marry Lúthien Tinúviel and result in the first union of Elves
Elf (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Elves are one of the races that inhabit a fictional Earth, often called Middle-earth, and set in the remote past. They appear in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, but their complex history is described more fully in The Silmarillion...
and Men.
Biography
Barahir fought at the Dagor BragollachDagor Bragollach
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth, the Dagor Bragollach was the fourth battle of the Wars of Beleriand...
, in which the armies of the enemy Morgoth
Morgoth
Morgoth Bauglir is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth legendarium. He is the main antagonist of The Silmarillion, figures in The Children of Húrin, and is mentioned briefly in The Lord of the Rings.Melkor was the most powerful of the Ainur, but turned to darkness and became...
defeated the Elves
Elf (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Elves are one of the races that inhabit a fictional Earth, often called Middle-earth, and set in the remote past. They appear in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, but their complex history is described more fully in The Silmarillion...
and Men of the northern realms of Beleriand
Beleriand
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional legendarium, Beleriand was a region in northwestern Middle-earth during the First Age. Events in Beleriand are described chiefly in his work The Silmarillion, which tells the story of the early ages of Middle-earth in a style similar to the epic hero tales of Nordic...
, including Barahir's land Ladros. His elder brother and Lord of the House Bregolas was slain together with the majority of warriors, but Barahir was battling further westward nigh the Pass of Sirion. There he saved the Elven-lord Finrod Felagund
Finrod Felagund
Finrod Felagund is a fictional character in the fantasy-world Middle-earth of the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. He appears in The Silmarillion, the epic poem The Lay of Leithian and the Grey Annals, as well as other material....
, but with great loss. Finrod swore an oath of friendship to Barahir and his kin, and as a token for this he gave Barahir a ring which became known as the "Ring of Barahir", and was handed down the family line.
After the ruin of this battle most of his people fled from their land, but Barahir took the Lordship of the House on himself now and remained defending the land. Morgoth pursued his folk until few remained, and the forest of Dorthonion
Dorthonion
In the fictional world of J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, Dorthonion , later Taur-nu-Fuin, was a highland region of the First Age, lying immediately to the north of Beleriand, and south of the plains of Ard-galen that extended north to Morgoth's stronghold of Thangorodrim...
was turned to mazes of shadow and dread, Taur-nu-Fuin. Then Barahir's wife Emeldir gathered the remaining women and children and departed to Brethil.
They made their lair by the Tarn Aeluin in south-eastern Dorthonion. They were betrayed to Sauron
Sauron
Sauron is the primary antagonist and titular character of the epic fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien.In the same work, he is revealed to be the same character as "the Necromancer" from Tolkien's earlier novel The Hobbit...
by Gorlim, who longed to see his wife again and submitted to the lies of Sauron. Their secret lair was then discovered and Barahir's men were slain. Only his son Beren escaped the slaughter, hunting alone in the wilds. He raised a cairn over his father's bones, and creeping into the Orcs
Orc (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings, Orcs or Orks are a race of creatures who are used as soldiers and henchmen by both the greater and lesser villains of The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings — Morgoth, Sauron and Saruman...
' camp, slew their chieftain and recovered Barahir's hand and Ring.