Dior Eluchíl
Encyclopedia
Dior Eluchíl is a fictional character
in J. R. R. Tolkien
's Middle-earth
legendarium
. He is a character in The Silmarillion
, which was published posthumously in 1977. The material in The Silmarillion was written over a period of many years, from the 1920s to the early 1970s.
and Lúthien
, and the heir to the throne of Elu Thingol
as King of Doriath
. He was born in the year 470 of the Years of the Sun in the green land of Ossiriand. Dior was the first of the Half-elven
, though he was also part Maia
, Melian
being his grandmother. He was also called Eluchíl which means "Heir of Elu", Ausir, "The Wealthy", and Aranel, "The Noble Elf". His name probably means "Successor". Furthermore he was hailed as "Dior the beautiful" apparently since his mother had been the most beautiful of all Elves
and Men
. Dior is remembered as a crucial character of the Elder Days
, since not only was he the only son of Beren and Lúthien Tinúviel and the first Half-elf ever, but also the father of Elwing
who married Eärendil
and brought about the War of Wrath
in which Morgoth
was defeated. It was she who gave birth to Elrond
and Elros, both of whom had a major impact on the later ages of Middle-earth. His story revolves around the Ruin of Doriath
.
of Middle-earth, first in East Beleriand
where he was born, and later in Doriath as Thingol's heir-apparent. He married Nimloth
(otherwise known as Lindis), a kinswoman of Celeborn
of Doriath, and together they had three children: two sons, Eluréd and Elurín, and a daughter Elwing
, which means "star-spray" in Sindarin
since she was born on a night of stars. When the dwarf
-host entered Ossiriand from the west, after they had attacked Doriath and murdered Dior's grandfather King Thingol in search of the Nauglamír, Dior and his father Beren gathered an army of Laiquendi
(Green-elves) and Ent
s that ambushed and completely annihilated the Dwarves in a battle that was to be Beren's last before he died. Afterwards they left all of the dwarf treasure sunken in the waters of a lake, since the dwarf-lord had cursed all of it with his dying breath, save the Silmaril
that was contained in the Nauglamír, the Necklace of the Dwarves. This was one of the coveted Jewels of Fëanor
, which years before Dior's parents Lúthien and Beren had stolen from the iron crown of the Dark Lord Morgoth. They gave it to Lúthien to wear, and with her beauty and the light of the Silmaril Ossiriand became the most glorious of all lands outside the Blessed Realm of Valinor
that are or ever were after. Later Dior left Ossiriand with his family and bade farewell to his parents, and came to Doriath as its new king, to once more give back its former glory. Soon after the necklace containing the Silmaril was presented to Dior by a Green-elf messenger from Ossiriand and Dior knew that it was a sign and token of his parents' death. He gazed long in grief at the jewel, before wearing it and revealing himself as the most beautiful of all the children of the world, of threefold race: the Edain
(Men), the Eldar (Elves) and the Maiar
(Ainur) of the Blessed Realm.
During Y.S. 504 – 505, the Sons of Fëanor
learned of the possession of the Silmaril recovered by Beren and Lúthien that was now in the hands of Dior, the new King of Doriath. Whilst Lúthien had worn the necklace no one had dared to assail her, but now the situation had changed. Maedhros
restrained his brothers’ urge to attack, and instead, sent a message to Dior demanding that he yield the Silmaril to them, but Dior ignored it. Celegorm
’s words convinced the Fëanorians to launch an assault. Thus Doriath was destroyed and Dior was killed and the brothers emerged victorious, but the brothers Celegorm, Curufin
and Caranthir
were slain and the Silmaril was not recovered. In this battle Nimloth had been murdered and Dior was slain.
Upon learning that Celegorm’s servants had cruelly sent Dior’s twin sons, Eluréd and Elurín
, to starve in a dark forest, Maedhros filled with righteous anger and pity went on a long and perilous search for them, but it proved to be fruitless.
Elwing, Dior's only daughter, however, escaped with the remnant of the Elves of Doriath to the Havens of Sirion, where she later wedded Eärendil
the Mariner and they together sought pardon and aid from the Valar
, which resulted in the War of Wrath and the overthrow of Morgoth and his dominion.
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 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,...
'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....
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...
. He is a character 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...
, which was published posthumously in 1977. The material in The Silmarillion was written over a period of many years, from the 1920s to the early 1970s.
Character overview
Dior was the son of BerenBeren
Beren is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He appears in The Silmarillion. Huan spoke to him.-Character overview:...
and Lúthien
Lúthien
Lúthien Tinúviel is a fictional character in the fantasy-world Middle-earth of the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. She appears in The Silmarillion, the epic poem The Lay of Leithian, The Lord of the Rings and the Grey Annals, as well as in other material.-Character overview:Lúthien is a Telerin ...
, and the heir to the throne of Elu Thingol
Thingol
Elu Thingol is a fictional character in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He appears in The Silmarillion, The Lays of Beleriand and Children of Húrin as well as in numerous stories in the many volumes of The History of Middle-earth...
as King of Doriath
Doriath
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth, Doriath is the realm of the Sindar, the Grey Elves of King Thingol in Beleriand. Along with the other great forests of Tolkien's legendarium such as Mirkwood, Fangorn and Lothlórien it serves as the central stage in the theatre of its time, the First Age...
. He was born in the year 470 of the Years of the Sun in the green land of Ossiriand. Dior was the first of the Half-elven
Half-elven
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, the Half-elven are the children of the union of Elves and Men. The Half-elven are not a distinct race from Elves and Men, and must ultimately choose to which race they belong...
, though he was also part Maia
Maia (Middle-earth)
The Maiar are beings from J. R. R. Tolkien's high fantasy legendarium. They are lesser Ainur who entered Eä in the beginning of time. Tolkien uses the term Valar to refer both to all the Ainur who entered Eä, and specifically to the greatest among them, the fourteen Lords and Queens of the Valar...
, Melian
Melian
Melian the Maia is a fictional character in the fantasy-world Middle-earth of the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. She appears in The Silmarillion, the epic poem The Lay of Leithian, The Children of Húrin, the Annals of Aman and the Grey Annals....
being his grandmother. He was also called Eluchíl which means "Heir of Elu", Ausir, "The Wealthy", and Aranel, "The Noble Elf". His name probably means "Successor". Furthermore he was hailed as "Dior the beautiful" apparently since his mother had been the most beautiful of all 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
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...
. Dior is remembered as a crucial character 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...
, since not only was he the only son of Beren and Lúthien Tinúviel and the first Half-elf ever, but also the father of Elwing
Elwing
Elwing is a character of Middle-earth, created by J. R. R. Tolkien. She is Half-elven but counted among the Elves, notable for saving a Silmaril from the destruction of the Havens of Sirion and, with her husband Eärendil, going to the Valar to ask their help for the people of Middle-earth...
who married 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:...
and brought about 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....
in which 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...
was defeated. It was she who gave birth to Elrond
Elrond
Elrond Half-elven is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He is introduced in The Hobbit, and plays a supporting role in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion.-Character overview:...
and Elros, both of whom had a major impact on the later ages of Middle-earth. His story revolves around the Ruin of Doriath
Doriath
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth, Doriath is the realm of the Sindar, the Grey Elves of King Thingol in Beleriand. Along with the other great forests of Tolkien's legendarium such as Mirkwood, Fangorn and Lothlórien it serves as the central stage in the theatre of its time, the First Age...
.
Biography
Dior lived during the First AgeFirst 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...
of Middle-earth, first in East 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...
where he was born, and later in Doriath as Thingol's heir-apparent. He married Nimloth
Nimloth
In the fantasy world of J. R. R. Tolkien, Nimloth, Sindarin for "white blossom", was the name of the White Tree of Númenor. Nimloth was a seedling of Celeborn, which was a seedling of Galathilion, which was created by Yavanna in the image of Telperion, one of the Two Trees of Valinor.When the...
(otherwise known as Lindis), a kinswoman of Celeborn
Celeborn
Celeborn is a fictional character in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He appears in The Lord of the Rings as the Elven husband of Galadriel, Lord of the Galadhrim; and co-ruler along with Galadriel of Lothlórien. He was the father of Celebrían — the wife of Elrond — and thus the...
of Doriath, and together they had three children: two sons, Eluréd and Elurín, and a daughter Elwing
Elwing
Elwing is a character of Middle-earth, created by J. R. R. Tolkien. She is Half-elven but counted among the Elves, notable for saving a Silmaril from the destruction of the Havens of Sirion and, with her husband Eärendil, going to the Valar to ask their help for the people of Middle-earth...
, which means "star-spray" in 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....
since she was born on a night of stars. When the dwarf
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....
-host entered Ossiriand from the west, after they had attacked Doriath and murdered Dior's grandfather King Thingol in search of the Nauglamír, Dior and his father Beren gathered an army of Laiquendi
Laiquendi
In the fictional works of J. R. R. Tolkien the Laiquendi are an ethnic group of Elves, so named because their attire was often green.-History and origin:...
(Green-elves) and Ent
Ent
Ents are a race of beings in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world Middle-earth who closely resemble trees. They are similar to the talking trees in folklore around the world. Their name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word for giant....
s that ambushed and completely annihilated the Dwarves in a battle that was to be Beren's last before he died. Afterwards they left all of the dwarf treasure sunken in the waters of a lake, since the dwarf-lord had cursed all of it with his dying breath, save the 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...
that was contained in the Nauglamír, the Necklace of the Dwarves. This was one of the coveted Jewels of 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...
, which years before Dior's parents Lúthien and Beren had stolen from the iron crown of the Dark Lord Morgoth. They gave it to Lúthien to wear, and with her beauty and the light of the Silmaril Ossiriand became the most glorious of all lands outside the Blessed Realm 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,...
that are or ever were after. Later Dior left Ossiriand with his family and bade farewell to his parents, and came to Doriath as its new king, to once more give back its former glory. Soon after the necklace containing the Silmaril was presented to Dior by a Green-elf messenger from Ossiriand and Dior knew that it was a sign and token of his parents' death. He gazed long in grief at the jewel, before wearing it and revealing himself as the most beautiful of all the children of the world, of threefold race: the Edain
Edain
In the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, the Edain were men who made their way into Beleriand in the First Age, and were friendly to the Elves....
(Men), the Eldar (Elves) and the Maiar
Maia (Middle-earth)
The Maiar are beings from J. R. R. Tolkien's high fantasy legendarium. They are lesser Ainur who entered Eä in the beginning of time. Tolkien uses the term Valar to refer both to all the Ainur who entered Eä, and specifically to the greatest among them, the fourteen Lords and Queens of the Valar...
(Ainur) of the Blessed Realm.
During Y.S. 504 – 505, the Sons of Fëanor
Sons of Fëanor
In J. R. R. Tolkien's world of Middle-earth, the seven sons of Fëanor, the eldest prince of the Noldor, led their people from Valinor to rule over kingdoms in the Northeast of Beleriand:...
learned of the possession of the Silmaril recovered by Beren and Lúthien that was now in the hands of Dior, the new King of Doriath. Whilst Lúthien had worn the necklace no one had dared to assail her, but now the situation had changed. Maedhros
Maedhros
Maedhros is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. First introduced in The Silmarillion and later mentioned in Unfinished Tales and The Children of Húrin, he is one of the most enduring characters in The Silmarillion, and has been the subject of paintings by artists such as Jenny...
restrained his brothers’ urge to attack, and instead, sent a message to Dior demanding that he yield the Silmaril to them, but Dior ignored it. Celegorm
Celegorm
Celegorm is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium, appearing in The Silmarillion.He was the third son of Fëanor and Nerdanel, most closely associated with another brother, Curufin. Celegorm is described as "the fair," which could mean either that Celegorm had fairer...
’s words convinced the Fëanorians to launch an assault. Thus Doriath was destroyed and Dior was killed and the brothers emerged victorious, but the brothers Celegorm, Curufin
Curufin
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Curufin is a fictional character, a prince of the Noldor of the race of Elves, the fifth of the seven sons of Fëanor and Nerdanel...
and Caranthir
Caranthir
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Caranthir is a fictional character, the fourth of the sons of Fëanor, was also the harshest, and the quickest to anger; he was also called "Caranthir the Dark". His Quenya name was Morifinwë "The Dark Finwë"...
were slain and the Silmaril was not recovered. In this battle Nimloth had been murdered and Dior was slain.
Upon learning that Celegorm’s servants had cruelly sent Dior’s twin sons, Eluréd and Elurín
Eluréd and Elurín
Eluréd and Elurín are fictional characters in the works of J. R. R. Tolkien. They were the twin sons of Dior Eluchíl, son of Beren and Lúthien, and Dior's Elven wife, Nimloth....
, to starve in a dark forest, Maedhros filled with righteous anger and pity went on a long and perilous search for them, but it proved to be fruitless.
Elwing, Dior's only daughter, however, escaped with the remnant of the Elves of Doriath to the Havens of Sirion, where she later wedded 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 and they together sought pardon and aid from 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...
, which resulted in the War of Wrath and the overthrow of Morgoth and his dominion.
See also
- Oath of Fëanor
- War of WrathWar of WrathThe 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....