The Gathering of the Hosts: The Alliance of the Free

In the waning years of the Second Age, when the shadow of Sauron grew long over the lands of Middle-earth, there arose a defiance born of necessity and ancient kinship. Following the ruin of Númenor and the escape of the Faithful to the shores of the East, Elendil the Tall, High King of the Dúnedain, established the realms of Arnor and Gondor. Yet, the Dark Lord had returned to Mordor, and his malice sought to extinguish the light of the West before it could take root. Thus was struck the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, a union of the kindreds of the West such as had not been seen since the wars against Morgoth in the Elder Days. It was a covenant sealed in the shadow of the Orodruin, wherein Gil-galad, the last High King of the Noldor, joined his strength with that of Elendil, uniting the power of the Eldar of Lindon and the Dúnedain of the South and North.

The March upon the Black Gate

The host of the Alliance was a sight to stir the hearts of the free and strike terror into the servants of the Enemy. From the havens of the West and the fortresses of the Dúnedain, the armies marched, passing through the vales of the Anduin and gathering the strength of the Silvan Elves under Oropher and the folk of Lothlórien led by Amdir. They crossed the Misty Mountains and descended upon the plains of Dagorlad, the Field of Victory. There, a great battle was joined, and the sheer might of the free peoples broke the forces of the Shadow, driving them back behind the ramparts of the Black Gate. Yet, the cost was grievous; the flower of the Elven-hosts, including King Oropher and King Amdir, perished in the initial onslaught, their blood staining the marshes that would forever after be known as the Dead Marshes.

The Siege of Barad-dûr and the Fall of Kings

For seven long years, the Alliance laid siege to the fortress of Barad-dûr, the Dark Tower of Sauron. It was a time of unending woe and trial, for the Enemy was entrenched behind walls of impossible strength, and his sorcery sought to wither the spirit of the besiegers. During this vigil, Anárion, the son of Elendil, fell by a stone cast from the battlements, leaving the burden of command solely to his father and the High King. At the last, when hope seemed all but extinguished, Sauron himself emerged, clad in his malice and wielding the terrible power of the One Ring. Upon the slopes of Mount Doom, he contended with Gil-galad and Elendil. The High King of the Noldor was consumed by the heat of the Enemy’s touch, and Elendil the Tall was hewn down, his great sword Narsil breaking beneath him as he fell.

The Severing of the Ring and the End of an Age

Though the kings were slain, the victory was secured by the hand of Isildur, son of Elendil. In a moment of desperate defiance, he seized the hilt-shard of his father’s blade and hewed the One Ring from the finger of the Dark Lord. With the loss of the Ruling Ring, the shadow of Sauron was rent, his spirit cast out, and his armies scattered in terror. Yet, the triumph was hollowed by the corruption of the prize, for Isildur, failing to cast the Ring into the fires of the mountain, claimed it as a weregild for his kin. Thus, the Second Age drew to a close in blood and shadow, and the Last Alliance, though it had broken the power of the Enemy for a time, left the world diminished. The Elves began their slow fading, and the Dúnedain, though they held the scepter of kingship, were destined to witness the long decline of their glory, until the day when the heir of Isildur should return to claim the crown of the united kingdoms.