For much of his career, Conan the Barbarian displayed a vigour and strength far exceeding anyone of his own age, and even of much younger men. Yet in time, of course, even he grew old, and had to make up for with cunning and skill what he had lost in sheer physical strength and endurance.…

Dorwinion is a land first mentioned in The Hobbit, the source of a heady wine much favoured by the Wood Elves of Mirkwood and no doubt other lands besides. It sits at the southern end of a trade route from Long Lake Esgaroth and the Iron Hills in the north, to the Sea of Rhun…

It was long a paradox in the latter history of Middle Earth that Gondor was a Kingdom without a King, while in Arnor there could be found a King without his Kingdom. Yet how did this strange turn of events come to pass? Was it folly on the part of Aranarth, eldest son of the…

In the Third Age, Sauron is well known by this title, at least amongst his many enemies. Yet we do not actually see him engage in an extraordinary degree of deception in The Lord of the Rings. Brute force seems more his style by this time. Yet, it was not always so. How did Sauron…

We all know Saruman the traitor as depicted in the Lord of the Rings. But even Gandalf speaks of Saruman with respect as having been great once, before his fall. Why was Saruman so well-regarded, simply for his position as head of the Order of the Istari, or because he earned his status as the…

No doubt many of us have watched The Rings of Power series on Amazon Prime, a controversial take on the backstory of the Lord of the Rings in the Second Age. The series is controversial, but their portrayal of Sauron as Annular, giver of gifts, has been well-received. We haven’t yet seen where they are…