Galadriel
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Galadriel is a fictional character created by J. R. R. Tolkien, appearing in The Lord of the Rings. In Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, she was a royal Elf of both the Noldor and the Teleri, being a grandchild of both King Finwë and King Olwë. Towards the end of her stay in Middle-earth she was co-ruler of Lothlórien along with her husband Lord Celeborn, and referred to variously as The Lady of Lórien, The Lady of the Galadhrim, Lady of Light or The Lady of the Wood.
Galadriel was originally named Artanis (Q. 'ar'=noble, 'nis'=woman, a name common to royal women of the Elves, most prominently as in the form Arwen, Galadriel's granddaughter and Queen of Gondor to King Elessar) and Nerwen (Q. 'ner'=man, 'wen'=maiden, hence manly maiden), referring to her height and strength); Galadriel is the Sindarinized version of Telerin Quenya Alatáriel (Q. 'alatá'=radiance, 'riel'=maiden crowned with a garland), a name given her by Celeborn, referring to her silver-golden hair. The Elves of Tirion said it captured the radiance of the Two Trees Laurelin and Telperion themselves. It was greatly admired by Fëanor and may have inspired him to create the Silmarilli.
The name Galadhriel (S. 'galadh'=tree, 'riel'=crowned maiden) was used outside Lórien by the people who did not know the ancient days and Galadriel's history, confusing galad with the Sindarin word galadh and the name of the Galadhrim, the people of Lórien.
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[edit] Biography
Galadriel was the only daughter and youngest child of Finarfin, prince of the Noldor, and of Eärwen, who was cousin to Lúthien. Her elder brothers were Finrod Felagund, Angrod and Aegnor. She was born in Valinor during the Years of the Trees.
Much of Galadriel's story is confusing, and there are several distinct tales told about her, collected in the Unfinished Tales. According to the older account, used in the published The Silmarillion, Galadriel is an eager participant and leader in the rebellion of the Noldor and their flight from Valinor, however completely separate from Fëanor and his kin, and did not participate in the kinslaying. Once in Beleriand, she lived nominally with one of her brothers, Finrod Felagund of Nargothrond mainly, but spent much time at the court of Thingol and Melian in Menegroth, where she was welcomed because of her family relationship to Thingol's brother Olwë (Galadriel's maternal grandfather). She met Celeborn, a kinsman of Thingol, in Doriath.
Both in The Silmarillion and the movies, Galadriel is portrayed with supreme mental powers. In The Silmarillion, she is actually described as having been "blessed with the ability to peer into the minds of others and she judged them so fairly. But in Fëanor, she only saw darkness". As one of the members of the royal house of Finwë and having the blood of the Vanyar from her paternal grandmother, Indis, she was often called the fairest of all Elves, be it on the shores of Aman or of Middle-Earth.
According to later accounts, Galadriel was living with her mother's kindred in the Telerin port of Alqualondë when she met Teleporno (later known as Celeborn), who would be her husband and co-ruler. During the great perturbations at the end of that period, she and Teleporno sailed from Valinor and came to Beleriand separately from most of the Noldor. Galadriel was not directly involved in the revolt of the Noldorin princes and fought in defence of Alqualondë during the Kinslaying, but she fell under the Ban of the Valar because she left without permission (at a time when it would certainly not have been granted). Once in Beleriand she and Celeborn were welcomed by Thingol and lived in Doriath. Celeborn, by this account, was a grandson of Olwë, and would have been especially welcomed for that reason. Once the Noldor arrived Galadriel reestablished contact with her brothers, although she was likely an enemy of her half-cousins, the sons of Fëanor: in these later accounts Galadriel and Fëanor are described as great enemies even in Aman.
In both accounts Celeborn played no important role in the Battles of Beleriand. Both Celeborn and Galadriel had left Beleriand before the War of Wrath, but refused the pardon offered by the Valar. Galadriel refused out of pride and therefore remained under the Ban.
Celeborn and Galadriel travelled first to Lindon, where they ruled over a group of Elves, probably as a fiefdom under Gil-galad. Later they moved eastward and established (or were welcomed in) the realm of Eregion or Hollin. At this time they made contact with a Nandorin settlement in the valley of the Anduin, then later Lothlórien. Later they removed from Eregion by way of the mines of Khazad-dûm and became lords of Lothlórien. Celebrimbor now ruled over Eregion. In Lórien Galadriel and Celeborn had a daughter, Celebrían, who later married Elrond Half-elven of Rivendell.
During the Second Age, when the Rings of Power were forged, Galadriel distrusted Annatar, the loremaster who guided Celebrimbor and the other Noldor of Eregion. It later turned out that this distrust was justified, as he was finally revealed to be Sauron, pretending to be an emissary from the Valar Aulë. When Eregion was attacked, Galadriel was entrusted with one of the Three Rings of the Elves. Her Ring was Nenya, the Ring of Water, which has been suggested to be the chief of the Three, although Vilya is said to be the most potent of the three elven rings. Conscious of Sauron's power, and wishing to thwart it, she did not use the Ring as long as the One Ring was in Sauron's hands. However, during the Third Age, when the One Ring was lost, she put it to use. Its power might have been related to the Mirror of Galadriel, a large bowl of water in which visions of the past, present, and future could be seen. She may also have used it in the defence of Lórien and the ring may have assisted her in making Lórien a fair refuge for the Nandor. Galadriel maintained constant vigilance against Sauron and often strove with him in thought. Sauron is said to have greatly desired to see into her mind, but so long as he did not have the One Ring, it was impossible.
In The Fellowship of the Ring, Galadriel hosted the titular characters after their escape from Moria. When she met them in her tree dwelling at Caras Galadhon, she gave each member of the fellowship a searching look, testing their resolve, while Boromir regarded this test as a temptation. She, in turn, was tested when Frodo Baggins later offered to place the Ring in her keeping. Knowing that its corrupting influence would make her "great and terrible", and recalling the ambitions that had once brought her to Middle-earth, she refused the Ring, accepting as her fate that she would diminish to make way for the dominion of Men and return at last to Valinor. When the Fellowship left, she gave each member a gift and an Elven cloak and outfitted the party with boats and supplies.
On the very same day that the Fellowship left Lórien, Gandalf arrived, carried by the eagle Gwaihir. There, Galadriel cured him of his wounds and reclothed him in white, signalling his new status as head of the Istari. During the last battles of the War of the Ring, Lórien was besieged three times by the armies of Dol Guldur. Appendix A of The Return of the King states that Lórien resisted the attacks thanks to the valour of its inhabitants, but most importantly, "the power that dwelt there was far too great for any to overcome, only if Sauron had come there himself". Such power was the Lady Galadriel herself, wearing the White Ring of the Elves, Nenya.
After Sauron perished, Celeborn led the Lórien host over the Anduin and captured Dol Guldur. Then, Galadriel came forth and "threw down its walls and laid bare its pits". To this point, and during all the Third Age of the World, Galadriel was considered the greatest of the Eldar. Accounts in The Silmarillion state her as being the greatest of the Eldalië, with Fëanor, though she was wiser than he.
She passed over the Great Sea on the Last Ship with Elrond, Gandalf, Círdan, and the Ringbearers Bilbo and Frodo Baggins, marking the end of the Third Age. She left her husband Celeborn behind until he finally set sail as well. (Tolkien's original account here differs from Peter Jackson's movie version, where Celeborn apparently follows her on the same ship.) It is her refusal of the One Ring that lifts the Ban (along with her services in the war against Sauron) and that is why she is finally allowed to return. Out of the Noldorian exiles, she is the only one of prominence to return to Valinor.
She was aged well over 7,000 years at that time, second only to Círdan the Shipwright.
[edit] Portrayal in adaptations
Galadriel was voiced by Annette Crosbie in Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated film of The Lord of the Rings, and by Marian Diamond in BBC Radio's 1981 serialisation.
In Peter Jackson's movie trilogy beginning with The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Galadriel is played by Cate Blanchett. In this adaptation, Galadriel narrates the Prologue, explaining the creation of the Rings of Power and the War of the Last Alliance. Earlier plans considered were to have either Frodo or Gandalf narrate the Prologue, but this was dropped: Frodo was not alive until thousands of years after these events happened, and Gandalf was not present in Middle-earth at the time; the Wizards came some one thousand years after the Prologue ends. Thus Galadriel narrates the Prologue, because she had first-hand knowledge of this history and actively participated in its events.
Later in the films, Galadriel frequently seems to be consulting telepathically with Elrond. There is some indication from the books that the two were able to communicate mentally, but in the book it takes place primarily when they are in each other's presence, and the specific instances in the movies, particularly the discussion with Elrond in The Two Towers, have no direct counterparts in the books. In the movie, she sends messages to Frodo; as the Fellowhip enters the woods of Lórien, Frodo hears a voice that says: "Frodo, your coming to us is as the footsteps of doom! You bring great evil here, ring-bearer." Later, while she is audibly speaking with the Fellowship, she telepathically says to Frodo, "Welcome, Frodo of the Shire... one who has seen the Eye!" Also, Boromir says that he heard her voice in his head telling him about his father and the fall of Gondor. Telepathically she told him, "Even now there is hope left."
On stage, Galadriel was portrayed by Rebecca Jackson Mendoza in the 3-hour-long Toronto stage musical production of The Lord of the Rings, which opened in 2006.
In the game The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II, Galadriel is available as a hero, costing 9,000 resources (the most expensive of Heroes, along with Sauron, and looks like her viewing of herself holding the Ring in the movies), after obtaining the Ring, when the custom option of "Ring heroes" is selected. It is only available to good factions (Dwarves, Elves and Men), however evil factions (Mordor, Goblins, the new faction Angmar, and probably one of the most disputed factions, Isengard) will be in control of Sauron if the ring is obtained and successfully returned to the Fortress, which, upon holdng of the Ring, will be surrounded by the language inscripted around the Ring. Both heroes are highly destructive, high in health points, have a special highly destructive power, and are not affected by heal. Sauron deals more damage to structures, but is much slower than Galadriel. Both can destroy a unit within 3 hits.
| House of Finarfin Cadet Branch of the House of Finwë Born: 1362 YT Died: ? – |
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|---|---|---|
| Preceded by None; Realm Established |
Lady of Eregion(with Lord Celeborn) | Succeeded by Celebrimbor |
| Preceded by Amroth |
Lady of Lórien(with Lord Celeborn) | Succeeded by None; Realm Abandoned |
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Galadriel at The Thain's Book
