The Coming of Men...

I shall now turn my attention to The Silmarillion, which for one reason or another I have neglected for ages. Not since I started writing this absurdly long ''synopsis'' did I realise exactly how succinct the tales in The Silmarillion are presented. I much prefer the lengthy and poetic The History of Middle-earth, especially the Lost Tales, to what we have in The Silmarillion, but that is beyond the scope of this blog, not just this post (unless readers would like me to write something on The History of Middle-earth?)

We have seen how by the guidance of Aradhel, Maeglin came to Gondolin and was there shown honour as kin of the King. Also how secret and unknown (until too late) the Dark Elf Eöl had followed them and so, as foreseen by Curufin, met his doom. Our attention must now be drawn away from the Encircling Mountains and towards the rest of the wide lands of Beleriand. When about three hundred years had passed since the return of the Noldor to Middle-earth, in the days of the Long Peace, Finrod Felagund journeyed east of the river Sirion and went hunting with the sons of Fëanor, Maglor and Maedhros. But he wearied of the chase and he rode by way of the old Dwarf-road into the north of Ossiriand.

At evening, he came into a valley of the Ered Lindon and saw far away a light among the trees, as of a fire burning far away, and he heard the sound of singing. At this he wondered much, for the Laiquendi of that land kindled no fires and moreover they did not sing by night. And so, thinking that a raid of Orcs had broke the leaguer of the North, he crept towards the encampment, and standing in the night-shadows of the trees, he beheld a strange people.

These were indeed Men, the kin of a chieftain among them called Bëor the Old. After many generations of wandering out of the dark lands of the East, they had at last scaled the Blue Mountains and came into a land of peace (at least they deemed it to be so, and they sang for this reason). Long the Elven-king watched them, and he loved them, until they were all fast asleep, then, entering their camp, he picked up a rude harp that had been set aside, and he began to play music upon it such as the untutored ears of Men had never heard. And the men of the camp each awoke as Felagund harped and sang, and each thought that he had wandered into some beautiful dream, until they looked around and noticed that all others of the camp were also awake and were intent upon the music. Felagund sang to them of many things little known among Men, of the Creation of the World, of the land of Aman over Sea, and these fair things came as clear visions to their minds.

Since the Men of Bëor's people had had contact and little tuition from the Dark Elves in the wild lands of Eriador, the tongue of these Men resembled the Elven-tongue of Beleriand in many words and devices. And so, Felagund learned much of these Men, for he spent much time among them. Of Men, he learned somewhat of their history (but of that they had little to tell), and he perceived that some shadow of fear lay on the fathers of Men, and concerning the lands of the origins of Men, Bëor said nothing. With after-knowledge, the Wise have declared that Morgoth, whose spies and spells stretched out like a great shadow over all Middle-earth, was first aware of the coming of Men, and so great a matter did this seem to him that secretly he himself left his dark throne in the North and went forth into Middle-earth, leaving to Sauron the command of the War. The History of Middle-earth has some very interesting material about Morgoth's dealings with the fathers of the fathers of Men, but since that stuff isn't canonical or even reliable in some respects, we must leave that alone. It was Morgoth's primary intent, no doubt, to conceal the knowledge of God from Men, and to bring them out of the East in war against the Eldar.

Finrod Felagund learned from Bëor that other kindreds of Men had also been seen along the western marches of the Mountains, and in the valleys and foothills. The Green Elves of Ossiriand, however, were troubled by the coming of Men, for they felled trees and kindled fires and moreover were hunters of beasts. And beseeching Felagund to dissuade others of the kindreds of Men to enter Ossiriand and to persuade the Men of Bëor's following to depart, they threatened to afflict Men by any means if they did not do so swiftly. You must understand that since the death of their lord Denethor in the First Battle of the War, the Green Elves maintained their lives from the terror of the North by secrecy, and they saw that Men would ruin that. And so by the advice of Felagund, Bëor gathered all his people and departed from the land of Seven Rivers and led his people to the east banks of the river Celon, south of Nan Elmoth. After a year with the Men of Bëor's following, Felagund desired to return to Nargothrond, but Bëor went with him, so great was his love and reverence for the Elven-king (indeed, on their first meeting, he had mistook him for one of the Valar). Leaving, therefore, the leadership to his son Baran, he went into the service of the Elven-king, and was never seen in Estolad (that is, Encampment) again.

Appreciating that all these ''strange names'' are rather difficult to understand without a map, I think that from now on I shall include a link to a map for the convenience both of myself and my readers. Here is the link. The above painting is by Ted Nasmith and depicts the singing of Felagund among Bëor's Men, first of the Eldar to see and love Men. It is a touching story, I have often found.