The Shaping of Middle-earth. Christopher Tolkien

goes Finn who loves Fëanor best of his sons, and many of the Gnomes. They build a treasury Northward in Valinor in the hills near Mandos’ halls. Fingolfin rules the Gnomes that are left in Tûn. Thus Morgoth’s words seem justified and the bitterness he sowed goes on after his words are disproved.

      Tulcas is sent to put Morgoth in chains once more, but he escapes through the pass of Côr into the dark region beneath the feet of Timbrenting called Arvalin, where the shadow is thickest in all the world. There he finds Ungoliant, Gloomweaver, who dwells in a cleft of the mountains, and sucks up light or shining things to spin them out again in webs of black and choking darkness, fog, and gloom. With her he plots revenge. Only a terrible reward will bring her to dare the dangers of Valinor or the sight of the Gods. She weaves a dense gloom about her to protect her and swings on cords from pinnacle to pinnacle till she has scaled the highest peak of the mountains in the south of Valinor (little guarded because of their height and their distance from the old fortress of Morgoth). She makes a ladder that Morgoth can scale. They creep into Valinor. Morgoth stabs the Trees and Ungoliant sucks up their juices, belching forth clouds of blackness. The Trees succumb slowly to the poisoned sword, and to the venomous lips of Ungoliant.

      The Gods are dismayed by a twilight at midday, and vapours of black float in about the ways of the city. They are too late. The Trees die while they wail about them. But Tulcas and Oromë and many others hunt on horseback in the gathering gloom for Morgoth. Wherever Morgoth goes there the confusing darkness is greatest owing to the webs of Ungoliant. Gnomes from the treasury of Finn come in and report that Morgoth is assisted by a spider of darkness. They had seen them making for the North. Morgoth had stayed his flight at the Treasury, slain Finn and many of his men, and carried off the Silmarils and a vast hoard of the most splendid jewels of the Elves.

      In the meanwhile Morgoth escapes by Ungoliant’s aid northward and crosses the Grinding Ice. When he has regained the northern regions of the world Ungoliant summons him to pay the other half of her reward. The first half was the sap of the Trees of Light. Now she claims one half of the jewels. Morgoth yields them up and she devours them. She is now become monstrous, but he will not give her any share in the Silmarils. She enmeshes him in a black web, but he is rescued by the Balrogs with whips of flame, and the hosts of the Orcs; and Ungoliant goes away into the uttermost South.

      Morgoth returns to Angband, and his power and the numbers of his demons and Orcs becomes countless. He forges an iron crown and sets therein the Silmarils, though his hands are burned black by them, and he is never again free from the pain of the burning. The crown he never leaves off for a moment, and he never leaves the deep dungeons of his fortress, governing his vast armies from his deep throne.

      1 Added here:

      which Morgoth flatters. The Gods knew also of the coming of mortals or Men that was to be. They had not yet told the Elves, for the time was not near, nor explained what was to be the realm of each race, and their relations. Morgoth tells of Men, and suggests that the Gods are keeping the Elves captive, so that weaker Men shall be controlled more easily by the Gods, and the Elves defrauded of their kingdoms.

      This was an early addition, probably not materially later than the writing of the manuscript.

5

      When it became clear that Morgoth had escaped the Gods assemble about the dead Trees and sit in the darkness stricken and dumb for a long while, caring about nothing. The day which Morgoth chose for his attack was a day of festival throughout Valinor. Upon this day it was the custom of the chief Valar and many of the Elves, especially the people of Ing (the Quendi), to climb the long winding paths in endless procession to Manwë’s halls upon Timbrenting. All the Quendi and some of the Noldoli (who under Fingolfin dwelt still in Tûn) had gone to Timbrenting, and were singing upon its topmost height when the watchers from afar descried the fading of the Trees. Most of the Noldoli were in the plain, and the Teleri upon the shore. The fogs and darkness drift in now off the seas through the pass of Côr as the Trees die. Fëanor summons the Gnomes to Tûn (rebelling against his banishment).¹

      There is a vast concourse on the square on the summit of Côr about the tower of Ing, lit by torches. Fëanor makes a violent speech, and though his wrath is for Morgoth his words are in part the fruit of Morgoth’s lies.² He bids the Gnomes fly in the darkness while the Gods are wrapped in mourning, to seek freedom in the world and to seek out Morgoth, now Valinor is no more blissful than the earth outside.³ Fingolfin and Finweg speak against him.⁴ The assembled Gnomes vote for flight, and Fingolfin and Finweg yield; they will not desert their people, but they retain command over a half of the people of the Noldoli.⁵

      The flight begins.⁶ The Teleri will not join. The Gnomes cannot escape without boats, and do not dare to cross the Grinding Ice. They attempt to seize the swan-ships in Swanhaven, and a fight ensues (the first between the races of the Earth) in which many Teleri are slain, and their ships carried off. A curse is pronounced upon the Gnomes, that they shall after suffer often from treachery and the fear of treachery among their own kindred in punishment for the blood spilled at Swanhaven.⁷ They sail North along the coast of Valinor. Mandos sends an emissary, who speaking from a high cliff hails them as they sail by, and warns them to return, and when they will not speaks the ‘Prophecy of Mandos’ concerning the fate of after days.⁸

      The Gnomes come to the narrowing of the seas, and prepare to sail. While they are encamped upon the shore Fëanor and his sons and people sail off taking with them all the boats, and leave Fingolfin on the far shore treacherously, thus beginning the Curse of Swanhaven. They burn the boats as soon as they land in the East of the world, and Fingolfin’s people see the light in the sky. The same light also tells the Orcs of the landing.

      Fingolfin’s people wander miserably. Some under Fingolfin return to Valinor⁹ to seek the Gods’ pardon. Finweg leads the main host North, and over the Grinding Ice. Many are lost.

      1 As originally written, this sentence began Finn and Fëanor summon &c. This was a mere slip, since Finn’s death has already been mentioned in the text as first written (§4), and my father later struck out Finn and. He left the plural verb summon and their banishment; this I have changed to his banishment, since it is not said of the Gnomes who accompanied Fëanor that they left Tûn under banishment (though this is not said of Finn either). The Quenta has his banishment in this passage (p. 94).

      2 Added here hastily in pencil:

      He claims the lordship as eldest son now Finn is dead, in spite of the Gods’ decree.

      [Except for the later pencilled alteration given in note 5, all the changes noted below, mostly concerned to introduce the part of Finrod in the events, were made at the same time, in red ink. Finrod, the third son of Finn/Finwë, appears in the interpolated passage given in §3 note 2.]

      3 Added here:

Fëanor and his sons take the unbreakable oath by Timbrenting and the names of Manwë and Briðil to pursue anyone, Elf, Mortal, or Orc, who holds the Silmarils.

      4 Added here:

      Finrod tries to calm their conflicting anger, but his sons Orodreth, Anrod, and Egnor side with the sons of Fëanor.

      5 a half of the people of the Noldoli > a half of the Noldoli of Tûn (later pencilled change).

      6 Added here but then struck out (see note 7):

      Finrod does not go, but bids Felagoth (and his other sons) go and cherish the Gnomes of his [?house].

      7 Added here:

      Finrod is slain at Swanhaven