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Dates
Probably dated back to the Second Age;1 the last King of Lórien was lost in III 1981, while the Elvenking of Mirkwood still ruled at the end of the Third Age
Location
Lórien and Greenwood the Great, the woodlands on either side of the Vales of Anduin
Race
Elves
Division
The Silvan Elves were descended from the Nandor, but their Kings were of the Sindar
Culture
The Kings ruled both the Galadhrim of Lórien, and the Wood-elves of Mirkwood
Settlements
The chief settlement of Lórien was at Caras Galadhon, while the Elvenking of Mirkwood, at least during the later Third Age, dwelt at the Elvenking's Halls in the Woodland Realm

Indexes:

About this entry:

  • Updated 6 September 2024
  • This entry is complete

King of the Silvan Elves

Ruler of the lands west or east of Anduin

Kings of Lórien

Elvenkings of Mirkwood
Amdír or
Malgalad
Amroth
Oropher
Thranduil
Legolas

The lines of the Kings of the Silvan Elves in the lands west and east of Anduin. Names shown in bold text are those known to have held one of these Kingships.

The title given to any of the rulers of the Silvan Elves of Lórien or the Woodland Realm. The earlier Kings of these lands, Amdír and Oropher, are little known, but it is recorded that each took an army to the War of the Last Alliance, and each was slain in that war, to be succeeded by his son. For most of the Third Age, Lórien was ruled by Amdír's successor Amroth, but he was lost at sea off the haven of Edhellond, and the line of Lórien's Kings came to an end. In Greenwood the Great (later called Mirkwood) Oropher's heir was Thranduil the Elvenking, who led his people through the troubles of the Third Age to the time of the War of the Ring and beyond.

Kings of the Silvan Elves west of Anduin
Amdír
(or Malgalad)		 (Slain near the end of the Second Age)
Almost nothing is known of the King who preceded Amroth. Even his name is uncertain (he was known variously as Amdír or Malgalad, though these may be alternative names for the same Elf). All sources agree, however, that he was lost in the War of the Last Alliance at the end of the Second Age, and succeeded by his son Amroth.
Amroth (Ruled from the turn of the Third Age to III 1981)
Amroth succeeded his father during or immediately after the War of the Last Alliance, and remained King in Lórien for some two thousand years. After the release of a Balrog in Moria, many of his people fled into the south, and he accompanied his beloved Nimrodel on that journey. Through a sequence of tragic circumstances, the two were separated, and Amroth was lost at sea. After his time Galadriel and Celeborn ruled the remnant of his people, but they did not take the titles 'Queen' or 'King'.

Kings of the Silvan Elves east of Anduin
Oropher (Slain near the end of the Second Age)
The father of Thranduil was a Sindarin Elf who travelled eastward and took over the rule of the Silvan Elves of Mirkwood. Like his contemporary Amdír, Oropher went to the War of the Last Alliance and was slain in battle.
Thranduil (Ruled during the Third Age and into the Fourth)
Oropher's heir became King after his father's loss. Following a thousand years of relative peace, a darkness fell on Thranduil's forest kingdom when Dol Guldur was established in its southern reaches. From that time Thranduil and his people were forced to move ever northwards, and by the close of the Third Age they dwelt on the northeastern fringes of Mirkwood. Thranduil survived the War of the Ring, and appears to have reigned on into the Fourth Age.

Notes

1

Though the Silvan Elves were descended from the Nandor, the royal lines of both Lórien and the Woodland Realm had their origins among the Sindar. In the case of the Wood-elves, their rulers were explicitly said to have travelled eastward out of Lindon to found a new realm before the raising of Barad-dûr (which was completed in c. II 1600). The history of the royal line of Lórien is less clear, but we are told that they, too, were of Sindarin descent, and were likely also among those Sindar who had originally set out from Lindon during the Second Age (and certainly they were established before the end of that Age).

Indexes:

About this entry:

  • Updated 6 September 2024
  • This entry is complete

For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page.

Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 2008, 2018, 2024. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ.

Website services kindly sponsored by myDISCprofile, the free online personality test.
How do your personal strengths fit in with career matching? How can you identify them? Try a free personality test from myDISCprofile.
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King of the Silvan Elves

Ruler of the lands west or east of Anduin

Dates
Probably dated back to the Second Age;1 the last King of Lórien was lost in III 1981, while the Elvenking of Mirkwood still ruled at the end of the Third Age
Location
Lórien and Greenwood the Great, the woodlands on either side of the Vales of Anduin
Race
Elves
Division
The Silvan Elves were descended from the Nandor, but their Kings were of the Sindar
Culture
The Kings ruled both the Galadhrim of Lórien, and the Wood-elves of Mirkwood
Settlements
The chief settlement of Lórien was at Caras Galadhon, while the Elvenking of Mirkwood, at least during the later Third Age, dwelt at the Elvenking's Halls in the Woodland Realm

Indexes:

About this entry:

  • Updated 6 September 2024
  • This entry is complete

King of the Silvan Elves

Ruler of the lands west or east of Anduin

Kings of Lórien

Elvenkings of Mirkwood
Amdír or
Malgalad
Amroth
Oropher
Thranduil
Legolas

The lines of the Kings of the Silvan Elves in the lands west and east of Anduin. Names shown in bold text are those known to have held one of these Kingships.

The lines of the Kings of the Silvan Elves in the lands west and east of Anduin. Names shown in bold text are those known to have held one of these Kingships.

The title given to any of the rulers of the Silvan Elves of Lórien or the Woodland Realm. The earlier Kings of these lands, Amdír and Oropher, are little known, but it is recorded that each took an army to the War of the Last Alliance, and each was slain in that war, to be succeeded by his son. For most of the Third Age, Lórien was ruled by Amdír's successor Amroth, but he was lost at sea off the haven of Edhellond, and the line of Lórien's Kings came to an end. In Greenwood the Great (later called Mirkwood) Oropher's heir was Thranduil the Elvenking, who led his people through the troubles of the Third Age to the time of the War of the Ring and beyond.

Kings of the Silvan Elves west of Anduin
Amdír
(or Malgalad)		 (Slain near the end of the Second Age)
Almost nothing is known of the King who preceded Amroth. Even his name is uncertain (he was known variously as Amdír or Malgalad, though these may be alternative names for the same Elf). All sources agree, however, that he was lost in the War of the Last Alliance at the end of the Second Age, and succeeded by his son Amroth.
Amroth (Ruled from the turn of the Third Age to III 1981)
Amroth succeeded his father during or immediately after the War of the Last Alliance, and remained King in Lórien for some two thousand years. After the release of a Balrog in Moria, many of his people fled into the south, and he accompanied his beloved Nimrodel on that journey. Through a sequence of tragic circumstances, the two were separated, and Amroth was lost at sea. After his time Galadriel and Celeborn ruled the remnant of his people, but they did not take the titles 'Queen' or 'King'.

Kings of the Silvan Elves east of Anduin
Oropher (Slain near the end of the Second Age)
The father of Thranduil was a Sindarin Elf who travelled eastward and took over the rule of the Silvan Elves of Mirkwood. Like his contemporary Amdír, Oropher went to the War of the Last Alliance and was slain in battle.
Thranduil (Ruled during the Third Age and into the Fourth)
Oropher's heir became King after his father's loss. Following a thousand years of relative peace, a darkness fell on Thranduil's forest kingdom when Dol Guldur was established in its southern reaches. From that time Thranduil and his people were forced to move ever northwards, and by the close of the Third Age they dwelt on the northeastern fringes of Mirkwood. Thranduil survived the War of the Ring, and appears to have reigned on into the Fourth Age.

Notes

1

Though the Silvan Elves were descended from the Nandor, the royal lines of both Lórien and the Woodland Realm had their origins among the Sindar. In the case of the Wood-elves, their rulers were explicitly said to have travelled eastward out of Lindon to found a new realm before the raising of Barad-dûr (which was completed in c. II 1600). The history of the royal line of Lórien is less clear, but we are told that they, too, were of Sindarin descent, and were likely also among those Sindar who had originally set out from Lindon during the Second Age (and certainly they were established before the end of that Age).

Indexes:

About this entry:

  • Updated 6 September 2024
  • This entry is complete

For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page.

Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 2008, 2018, 2024. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ.

Website services kindly sponsored by myDISCprofile, the free online personality test.
How do your personal strengths fit in with career matching? How can you identify them? Try a free personality test from myDISCprofile.