A title given to Sauron, the deviser of the Great Rings, and maker of the Ruling Ring in Orodruin.

This title gives its name to The Lord of the Rings but, perhaps curiously, it is used very rarely within the text, and only appears twice in the entire book. Because of this, we can only speculate on exactly which rings it refers to. Gandalf's use of the phrase 'the Nine Servants of the Lord of the Rings'¹ suggests that he intends specifically the Nine Rings of the Nazgûl. The title may not have been meant to include the Three Rings of the Elves, in whose making Sauron was said to have had no part (although they too fell under his control when he wore the One Ring).