Forums:Galdor of the ????
If you are not farmiliar with the name, Galdor of the Havens was present at the Council of Elrond representing Círdan the Shipwright and the elves of Mithlond. Though it is doubted by some, I believe Galdor of the Havens to also be Galdor of the Trees. Galdor of the trees was leader of the House of the Trees in Gondolin and was known to be the second bravest Elf in Gondolin save King Turgon, the original weilder of Glamdring. He was most dangerous wielding a club or a spear (and, for practical purposes during the Fall of Gondolin, a bow). Galdor escaped the Fall of Gondolin with Tour and Indril as one of the few surviving lords of the houses. He later left Beriland for Valinor. Yet, what if he was sent back? Like Glorfindel of Rivendell, Galdor of the Havens may have been one of the few to actually make the journy from Aman to Middle Earth. He may have had a mission from the Valar to help in those troubled times. He could have been sent to help ferry the Elves from the dangers of Middle Earth, or to be present during the Council of Elrond. The fact that he was even sent to represent Mithlond during the council shows that he may be more powerful then we credit to him. He may have made the trip across the sea many times, seeing that he is one of the relatively few Mithlond Elves. During these trips, he may have transported elves and tidings to Valinor and information and gifts back. That is my opinion on the matter. Any others?--Galdor of the Havens 21:23, 10 December 2009 (UTC)
- Tolkien had this to say about it [PME 3 XIII note 1]:
and [PME 3 XIII note 3]:It may be noted that Galdor is another name of similar sort and period of origin, but he appears as a messenger from Círdan and is called Galdor of the Havens. Galdor also appeared in The Fall of Gondolin, but the name is of a more simple and usual form [than Glorfindel] and might be repeated. But unless he is said in The Fall of Gondolin to have been slain, he can reasonably be supposed to be the same person, one of the Ñoldor who escaped from the siege and destruction, but fled west to the Havens, and not southwards to the mouths of Sirion, as did most of the remnant of the people of Gondolin together with Tuor, Idril, and Earendil. He is represented in The Council of Elrond as less powerful and much less wise than Glorfindel; and so evidently had not returned to Valinor, and been purged, and reincarnated.
To which Christopher adds [ibidem, note 1]:Galdor in contrast, even in the brief glimpses we have in the Council, is seen clearly as an inferior person, and much less wise. He, whether he appears in The Silmarillion or not, must be either (as his name suggests) a Sindarin Elf who had never left Middle-earth and seen the Blessed Realm, or one of the Ñoldor who had been exiled for rebellion, and had also remained in Middle-earth, and had not, or not yet, accepted the pardon of the Valar and returned to the home prepared for them in the West, in reward for their valour against Melkor.
and [ibidem, note 3]:[See note 3. - The words ‘the name [Galdor] is of a more simple and usual form [than Glorfindel] and might be repeated’ show that on the lost first page my father had discussed (as he would do in the following text) the possibility that there were two distinct persons named Glorfindel, and had concluded that it was too improbable to be entertained. - ‘But unless he is said in The Fall of Gondolin to have been slain’: my father would probably have been hard put to it to lay his hand on The Fall of Gondolin, and without consulting it he could not say for certain what had been Galdor’s fate (this, I take it, is his meaning). In fact, Galdor was not slain, but led the fugitives over the pass of Cristhorn while Glorfindel came up at the rear (II.191 - 2), and in the ‘Name-list to The Fall of Gondolin’ (II.215) it is said that he went to Sirion’s mouth, and that ‘he dwelleth yet in Tol Eressea’. He was the lord of the people of the Tree in Gondolin, and of him it was said in the old tale that he ‘was held the most valiant of all the Gondothlim save Turgon alone’ (II.173).]
The conclusion from what Tolkien wrote here is that either Galdor of the Havens was not identical to Galdor of the Trees, or he was and had not been back to the Undying Lands (not to Valinor - the returning Noldor were not permitted to settle there). In the latter case the information from BLT2 that ‘he dwelleth yet in Tol Eressea’ would have been superseded, as so much from the Lost Tales was. -- Mithrennaith 18:01, 11 December 2009 (UTC)[The view of Galdor expressed in this note and in note 1 seems hardly justified by the report of his contributions to the Council of Elrond; and if he were indeed Galdor of Gondolin he had had long ages in which to acquire wisdom in the hard world of Middle-earth. But there is no reason to suppose that when my father wrote the chapter The Council of Elrond he associated Galdor of the Havens with Galdor of Gondolin.]
I had no knowledge of these notations, and I am very impressed! Though this does lead me to wonder why Tolkien has not been able to impose any other name on the two elves. It seems that Tolkien's work has escaped his grasp even during his life. The world he created may have been, even subconsiosly, liked with connections beyond our, or his, understanding. I still wonder why it was Galdor, not Círdan, who represented the people of Mithlond. I think that two possibilities exist. Either Círdan was busy ferrying Elves away to Aman and sent his second in command, Galdor, to this pivotal meeting, or Círdan supposed that Galdor was better up to the task, even to the point of delivering the Ring, than he was. Both possibilities show that Galdor must have been a powerful Elf. Maybe many Mithlond Elves make the Straight Road back to Middle Earth. I do not know what Tolkien intended, but it seems that there is more to this Elf than we think.--Galdor of the Havens 17:39, 13 December 2009 (UTC)
