Lord of the Valar

Manwë Súlimo was the chief of the Powers who dwelt in the Blessed Realm, and accounted the Elder King over the entire world of Arda. He had originated as one of the Ainur who made the Great Music that created the world, and he later entered into that newly-formed world as the greatest of its Powers. His seat was on the high mountain of Taniquetil, where he dwelt with his spouse Varda, the Queen of the Stars.

Manwë was unique among the Powers in that he was able to commune at times with Ilúvatar beyond the world, and so offer knowledge, guidance and judgement to the other Valar. He did this, for example, in the case of Beren and Lúthien, and it was through his intercession that these two were permitted to escape their ordained fates and return to life for a time.

In the closing years of the Second Age, Sauron succeeded in turning the Númenóreans against the Valar, and King Ar-Pharazôn sailed a great fleet into the West to invade the land of the Powers. At this time Manwë the Lord of the Valar called on Ilúvatar and gave up his own authority, the only time in history that this is recorded as happening. The result was dreadful: the forces of Ar-Pharazôn were buried beneath the hills of Aman, and the isle of Númenor itself was drowned beneath the waves of the Great Sea.

After that time, Manwë and the Valar remained in the West, seeing that direct involvement in the affairs of Middle-earth had led to disaster in the past. They did, however, send emissaries to Middle-earth to help kindle resistance against the second rise of Sauron. The being known as Gandalf was one of these emissaries, and indeed rumours later arose that Gandalf might himself have been the Lord of the Valar in mortal form, though it is doubtful that this was actually the case.¹