Dagor Dagorath
Encyclopedia
The Dagor Dagorath is a fictional battle described in the legendarium
of J. R. R. Tolkien
. As Tolkien's works were conceived as a fictional "forgotten history" of the world, the Dagor Dagorath represents the coming End of the World, and is often referred to as simply "The End". As Tolkien originally wrote it, The Silmarillion
ends with a prophecy
by Mandos about the Dagor Dagorath. The published Silmarillion ends instead with the recounting of the voyage of Eärendil
the Mariner, but this is due to an editorial decision by Christopher Tolkien
. However, references to the final battle remain in the published Silmarillion, such as a statement at the end of the Akallabêth
that Ar-Pharazôn and his mortal warriors who had set foot on Aman
were buried by falling hills, imprisoned in the Caves of the Forgotten until the "Last Battle and Day of Doom". Christopher Tolkien sees the account as similar to the Nordic legend of Ragnarök
and J. R. R. Tolkien also made this connection in some of his letters.
and similar versions in later volumes of the History of Middle-earth series, Morgoth
(the source and personification of evil
in Tolkien's Middle-earth
universe
) will discover how to break the Door of Night
, and will destroy the Sun and the Moon. For the love of these, Eärendil will return from the sky and shall meet Tulkas, Eönwë
, and Túrin Turambar
on the plains of Valinor
.
There the forces of the Valar
shall fight against Morgoth. Tulkas will wrestle with him, but it will be by the hand of Túrin that finally death and destruction will be dealt to Melkor. Túrin will run his black sword Gurthang (Iron of Death) through Melkor's heart, thus avenging the Children of Húrin (Chîn Húrin, in Tolkien's invented language of Sindarin
) and all Men. Then the Pelóri Mountains will be levelled, the three Silmaril
s will be recovered from the Earth, sea, and sky, and Fëanor
's spirit shall be released from the halls of Mandos to give them to Yavanna, who will break them and rekindle the light of the Two Trees. The battle will end and renew Arda
's existence: all the Elves shall awake and the Powers will be young again. Also, according to Dwarven
legends, they will help their maker Aulë
recreate Arda in all its glory again. It is also thought that at that time, the substance that was used to create the Silmarils will be revealed.
Following this, there will be a Second Music of the Ainur. This song will sing into being a new world. The Children of Ilúvatar
(or, in the published Silmarillion, Men only) will sing it with the Ainur. It is unknown what the fate of the old races, or of the old world, will be in the new one. Even the Ainur do not know anything of the second world or the Second Music. All the Ainur know is that the Second Music will be greater than the First Music.
In some of his later writings Tolkien made changes which might indicate that no Vala had definite knowledge of what would happen at the end of the world, beyond that a Last Battle would be fought between the forces of Light and Darkness. However, other contemporaneous texts continue to show further updates to the Second Prophecy of Mandos and thus it is uncertain what Tolkien's final views on the matter may have been.
, Tom Bombadil
, when banishing the Barrow-wight
, refers to the time "Till the world is mended". This might be a reference to the times after Dagor Dagorath.
Christopher Tolkien removed the prophecy from The Silmarillion
based on a 1958 version of the Valaquenta
wherein his father wrote that none of Mandos' dooms had declared whether the Marring of Arda would ever be repaired (Christopher Tolkien adopted this passage and used it to close the Quenta Silmarillion
).
The published Silmarillion contradicts the Second Prophecy in places. Whereas the Second Prophecy explicitly states that the Elves and Valar shall be renewed after Dagor Dagorath and that the fate of Men is unknown, The Silmarillion states that Men will participate in singing the Second Music, and that it is the fate of the Elves that is unknown, and nothing is said of the fate of the Valar.
This fact occurred because the published Silmarillion uses later versions of the Quenta Silmarillion (included in Morgoth's Ring and The Peoples of Middle-earth).
There are also two references to the final battle in the text of the essay about the Istari included by Christopher in Unfinished Tales
. Explaining the insertion of the term in one poem included there Tolkien states that Manwë will "descend from Taniquetil" in order to confront Morgoth, an event that is foreshadowed in "Myths Transformed", one text published in Morgoth's Ring
.
It must be mentioned here that "Dagor Dagorath", the name properly said, was not used by Tolkien in The Lost Road or in The Shaping of Middle-earth. All the occurrences of the term in these books were in the editorial notes of his son. The canonical mentions of the name are only in Unfinished Tales. Christopher Tolkien included the name in The Shaping of Middle-earth because the first mention of the Second Prophecy of Mandos was placed there but Tolkien did not mention the existence of a Prophecy in the text published in Unfinished Tales. The manner with which the name appears in Unfinished Tales suggests that there are some kind of "foretelling" of The End but does not state that it comes from one of Mandos' prophecies.
In his last writings about Middle-earth Tolkien substituted the Prophecy of the Last Battle (Dagor Dagorath) by another prophecy made by Andreth, probably about a different "Last Battle", the War of Wrath
(the end of the Elder Days
). In this prophecy Túrin was the destroyer of Ancalagon, the dragon, instead of Eärendil
.
The next paragraph quotes Tolkien's words in The Problem of Ros, the others are the comments by Christopher Tolkien:
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...
of 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,...
. As Tolkien's works were conceived as a fictional "forgotten history" of the world, the Dagor Dagorath represents the coming End of the World, and is often referred to as simply "The End". As Tolkien originally wrote it, 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...
ends with a prophecy
Prophecy
Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a prophet are then communicated to others. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the...
by Mandos about the Dagor Dagorath. The published Silmarillion ends instead with the recounting of the voyage of Eärendil
Eärendil
Eärendil the Mariner is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He is depicted in The Silmarillion as a great seafarer who, on his brow, carried the morning star across the sky.-Etymology:...
the Mariner, but this is due to an editorial decision by Christopher Tolkien
Christopher Tolkien
Christopher Reuel Tolkien is the third and youngest son of the author J. R. R. Tolkien , and is best known as the editor of much of his father's posthumously published work. He drew the original maps for his father's The Lord of the Rings, which he signed C. J. R. T. The J...
. However, references to the final battle remain in the published Silmarillion, such as a statement at the end of the Akallabêth
Akallabêth
Akallabêth is the fourth part of the fantasy work The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien. It is relatively short, consisting of about thirty pages.-Synopsis:...
that Ar-Pharazôn and his mortal warriors who had set foot on Aman
Aman
-External links:*...
were buried by falling hills, imprisoned in the Caves of the Forgotten until the "Last Battle and Day of Doom". Christopher Tolkien sees the account as similar to the Nordic legend of Ragnarök
Ragnarök
In Norse mythology, Ragnarök is a series of future events, including a great battle foretold to ultimately result in the death of a number of major figures , the occurrence of various natural disasters, and the subsequent submersion of the world in water...
and J. R. R. Tolkien also made this connection in some of his letters.
The battle
According to the Second Prophecy of Mandos, included in The Shaping of Middle-earthThe Shaping of Middle-earth
The Shaping of Middle-earth is the fourth volume of Christopher Tolkien's 12-volume series The History of Middle-earth in which he analyses the unpublished manuscripts of his father J. R. R...
and similar versions in later volumes of the History of Middle-earth series, 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...
(the source and personification of evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
in Tolkien's 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....
universe
Fictional universe
A fictional universe is a self-consistent fictional setting with elements that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed or fictional realm ....
) will discover how to break the Door of Night
Door of Night
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, the Door of Night was a place set at the utmost West of Arda, near to Avakúma, the void. The Door was created by the Valar at the time of the making of the Sun and Moon...
, and will destroy the Sun and the Moon. For the love of these, Eärendil will return from the sky and shall meet Tulkas, Eönwë
Eönwë
Eönwë is a supporting character in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium. He first appears in print in the posthumously published The Silmarillion, though his character had existed long before its original publication in 1977.-Biography:...
, and Túrin Turambar
Túrin Turambar
Túrin Turambar is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. "Turambar and the Foalókë", begun in 1917, is the first appearance of Túrin in the legendarium. J.R.R...
on the plains of Valinor
Valinor
Valinor is a fictional location in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the realm of the Valar in Aman. It was also known as the Undying Lands, along with Tol Eressëa and the outliers of Aman. This is something of a misnomer; only immortal beings were allowed to reside there, but the land itself,...
.
There the forces of the Valar
Vala (Middle-earth)
The Valar are fictional characters in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. They are first mentioned in The Lord of the Rings, but The Silmarillion develops them into the Powers of Arda or the Powers of the World...
shall fight against Morgoth. Tulkas will wrestle with him, but it will be by the hand of Túrin that finally death and destruction will be dealt to Melkor. Túrin will run his black sword Gurthang (Iron of Death) through Melkor's heart, thus avenging the Children of Húrin (Chîn Húrin, in Tolkien's invented language of Sindarin
Sindarin
Sindarin is a fictional language devised by J. R. R. Tolkien, and used in his secondary world, often called Middle-earth.Sindarin is one of the many languages spoken by the immortal Elves, called the Eledhrim or Edhellim in Sindarin....
) and all Men. Then the Pelóri Mountains will be levelled, the three Silmaril
Silmaril
The Silmarils are three brilliant jewels which contained the unmarred light of the Two Trees in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. The Silmarils were made out of the crystalline substance silima by Fëanor, a Noldorin Elf, in Valinor during the Years of the Trees...
s will be recovered from the Earth, sea, and sky, and Fëanor
Fëanor
Fëanor is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium who plays an important part in The Silmarillion. He was the eldest son of Finwë, the High King of the Noldor, and his first wife Míriel Serindë...
's spirit shall be released from the halls of Mandos to give them to Yavanna, who will break them and rekindle the light of the Two Trees. The battle will end and renew Arda
Arda
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Arda is the name given to the Earth in a period of prehistory, wherein the places mentioned in The Lord of the Rings and related material once existed...
's existence: all the Elves shall awake and the Powers will be young again. Also, according to Dwarven
Dwarf (Middle-earth)
In the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, the Dwarves are a race inhabiting the world of Arda, a fictional prehistoric Earth which includes the continent Middle-earth....
legends, they will help their maker Aulë
Aulë
Aulë is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, who is primarily discussed in The Silmarillion, but appears also in Tolkien's other works. In Tolkien's pantheon of Middle-earth, Aulë is a knowledge deity, sometimes worshipped as a god by men, representing skill and craftsmanship,...
recreate Arda in all its glory again. It is also thought that at that time, the substance that was used to create the Silmarils will be revealed.
Following this, there will be a Second Music of the Ainur. This song will sing into being a new world. The Children of Ilúvatar
Children of Ilúvatar
The Children of Ilúvatar is the name given to the two races of Elves and Men in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium because they were created by Ilúvatar, the One God, without the help of the Ainur....
(or, in the published Silmarillion, Men only) will sing it with the Ainur. It is unknown what the fate of the old races, or of the old world, will be in the new one. Even the Ainur do not know anything of the second world or the Second Music. All the Ainur know is that the Second Music will be greater than the First Music.
In some of his later writings Tolkien made changes which might indicate that no Vala had definite knowledge of what would happen at the end of the world, beyond that a Last Battle would be fought between the forces of Light and Darkness. However, other contemporaneous texts continue to show further updates to the Second Prophecy of Mandos and thus it is uncertain what Tolkien's final views on the matter may have been.
Development and references in Tolkien's works
In The Lord of the RingsThe Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
, Tom Bombadil
Tom Bombadil
Tom Bombadil is a supporting character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. He appears in Tolkien's high fantasy epic The Lord of the Rings, published in 1954 and 1955. In the first volume, The Fellowship of the Ring, Frodo Baggins and company meet Bombadil in the Old Forest...
, when banishing the Barrow-wight
Barrow-wight
Barrow-wights are wraith-like creatures in J. R. R. Tolkien's world of Middle-earth, based on the Old Norse Draugr. Barrow refers to the burial mounds they inhabited and wight is a Middle English word for "living being" or "creature", especially "human being"...
, refers to the time "Till the world is mended". This might be a reference to the times after Dagor Dagorath.
Christopher Tolkien removed the prophecy from 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...
based on a 1958 version of the Valaquenta
Valaquenta
Valaquenta is the second section of The Silmarillion, a collection of J. R. R. Tolkien's mythopoeic works, edited and published posthumously by his son Christopher Tolkien in 1977.-Overview:...
wherein his father wrote that none of Mandos' dooms had declared whether the Marring of Arda would ever be repaired (Christopher Tolkien adopted this passage and used it to close the Quenta Silmarillion
Quenta Silmarillion
Quenta Silmarillion is a collection of fictional legends written by the high fantasy writer J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published after the author's death in The Silmarillion together with four shorter stories...
).
The published Silmarillion contradicts the Second Prophecy in places. Whereas the Second Prophecy explicitly states that the Elves and Valar shall be renewed after Dagor Dagorath and that the fate of Men is unknown, The Silmarillion states that Men will participate in singing the Second Music, and that it is the fate of the Elves that is unknown, and nothing is said of the fate of the Valar.
This fact occurred because the published Silmarillion uses later versions of the Quenta Silmarillion (included in Morgoth's Ring and The Peoples of Middle-earth).
There are also two references to the final battle in the text of the essay about the Istari included by Christopher in Unfinished Tales
Unfinished Tales
Unfinished Tales is a collection of stories and essays by J. R. R. Tolkien that were never completed during his lifetime, but were edited by his son Christopher Tolkien and published in 1980.Unlike The Silmarillion, for which the narrative fragments were modified to connect into a consistent and...
. Explaining the insertion of the term in one poem included there Tolkien states that Manwë will "descend from Taniquetil" in order to confront Morgoth, an event that is foreshadowed in "Myths Transformed", one text published in Morgoth's Ring
Morgoth's Ring
Morgoth's Ring is the tenth volume of Christopher Tolkien's 12-volume series The History of Middle-earth in which he analyses the unpublished manuscripts of his father J. R. R. Tolkien. This volume, along with the subsequent The War of the Jewels, provides detailed writings and editorial commentary...
.
It must be mentioned here that "Dagor Dagorath", the name properly said, was not used by Tolkien in The Lost Road or in The Shaping of Middle-earth. All the occurrences of the term in these books were in the editorial notes of his son. The canonical mentions of the name are only in Unfinished Tales. Christopher Tolkien included the name in The Shaping of Middle-earth because the first mention of the Second Prophecy of Mandos was placed there but Tolkien did not mention the existence of a Prophecy in the text published in Unfinished Tales. The manner with which the name appears in Unfinished Tales suggests that there are some kind of "foretelling" of The End but does not state that it comes from one of Mandos' prophecies.
In his last writings about Middle-earth Tolkien substituted the Prophecy of the Last Battle (Dagor Dagorath) by another prophecy made by Andreth, probably about a different "Last Battle", the War of Wrath
War of Wrath
The War of Wrath, or the Great Battle, is a key plot development in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium, portraying the final war against Morgoth at the end of the First Age....
(the end of the Elder Days
Elder Days
In the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, the Elder Days are the first Ages of Middle-earth.During the Second and Third Age, the term referred to the First Age and before, but in the Fourth Age the term began to be applied to all three ages which came before: a time before the dominance of Men and the...
). In this prophecy Túrin was the destroyer of Ancalagon, the dragon, instead of Eärendil
Eärendil
Eärendil the Mariner is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He is depicted in The Silmarillion as a great seafarer who, on his brow, carried the morning star across the sky.-Etymology:...
.
The next paragraph quotes Tolkien's words in The Problem of Ros, the others are the comments by Christopher Tolkien:
The language of the Folk of Haleth was not used, for they had perished and would not rise again. Nor would their tongue be heard again, unless the prophecy of Andreth the Wise-woman should prove true, that Túrin in the Last Battle should return from the Dead, and before he left the Circles of the World for ever should challenge the Great Dragon of Morgoth, Ancalagon the Black, and deal him the death-stroke.
This remarkable saying has long roots, extending back to the prophecy at the end of the old Tale of Turambar (II. 115-16),(...)
Another reference is found in the Annals of AmanAnnals of AmanThe Annals of Aman is a text written by J. R. R. Tolkien that serves as a chronology of fictional events taking place in his invented world of Middle-earth...
(X. 71, 76), where it is said of the constellation Menelmakar (Orion) that it 'was a sign of Túrin Turambar, who should come into the world, and a foreshowing of the Last Battle that shall be at the end of Days.
In this last reappearance of the mysterious and fluctuating idea the prophecy is put into the mouth of Andreth, the Wise-woman of the House of Bëor: Túrin will 'return from the Dead' before his final departure, and his last deed within the Circles of the World will be the slaying of the Great Dragon, Ancalagon the Black. Andreth prophesies of the Last Battle at the end of the Elder Days (the sense in which the term 'Last Battle' is used shortly afterwards in this text, p. 371); but in all the early texts (the Quenta, IV.160; the Annals of Beleriand, IV.309, V.144; the Quenta Silmarillion, V.329) it was Eärendil who destroyed Ancalagon.