Glamdring

Glamdring
Location	Gondolin, various
Appearance	Sword with gemstones and runes
Gallery	Images of Glamdring

	Glamdring.mp3
	By Ardamir. (Help; more articles)

"This, Gandalf, was Glamdring, Foe-hammer that the king of Gondolin once wore."

― Elrond, A Short Rest

Glamdring was a sword, said to have belonged to Turgon, but best known as the sword of Gandalf during the War of the Ring.

History

Beater

Glamdring was originally borne by Turgon, the King of GondolinTemplate:Ref. He must have wielded it with strength during the Nírnaeth Arnoediad or the Fall of Gondolin, for the Orcs named it "Beater", and fled before it. Up until the late Third Age, orcs of the Misty Mountains knew of this legendary sword, so it must have done some damageTemplate:Ref.

The name most likely originated in the Nírnaeth Arnoediad, where it is said that Turgon "hewed his way to the side of his brother"Template:Ref. No other tales mention the actions of the sword, and it is unknown what happened to it during the Fall of Gondolin. Turgon perished as the Tower of the King fell on top of him, but of the fate of Glamdring nothing is toldTemplate:Ref.

Survival

The sword miraculously survived roughly 6500 years from the Fall of Gondolin in F.A. 510 to its eventual rediscovery in T.A. 2941. In that period, it traveled from Gondolin to a Troll's cave in the Trollshaws. Most likely, it was plunderded from other plunderers, or carried off to the Misty Mountains soon after the Fall of GondolinTemplate:Ref.

At Gandalf's side

In May T.A. 2941, Gandalf, Bilbo Baggins and a group of dwarves encountered three trolls in the Trollshaws - William, Bert and Tom. The Trolls captured Bilbo and the Dwarves, but Gandalf destroyed them by exposing them to sunlight. Glamdring, along with Orcrist and Sting, were found in a cave nearbyTemplate:Ref. Gandalf claimed the weapon as his own, amazed by its appearance and inscription. The inscription was set in a script of runes Gandalf did not know; he needed the knowledge of Elrond for that. Elrond translated the runes, and called it by its Mannish name: "Foe-hammer"Template:Ref.

Gandalf wielding Glamdring, by Donato Giancola.

Gandalf would use the sword well; its first victim was the Great Goblin. Other Orcs fled as they recognized the sword as "Beater". This means that either some Orcs were at the Fall of Gondolin, or that they had legends about two glowing swords - Beater and BiterTemplate:Ref. Whether Gandalf used the sword again during the Quest for Erebor is uncertain, though it is likely that he wielded it in the Battle of Five Armies.

Gandalf bore Glamdring at his side when the Fellowship of the Ring left Rivendell in T.A. 3018Template:Ref. He used the blade during the Battle of the Chamber of Mazarbul, and a short time thereafter in the standoff with the BalrogTemplate:Ref. After the collapse of the bridge, Gandalf and the Balrog fought on to the Endless Stair and Durin's Tower, but he does not tell whether he used Glamdring or his staff in the Battle of the PeakTemplate:Ref.

Gandalf's spirit perished there, but was sent back because his task was not yet complete. He had Glamdring with him when he met the Three Hunters; he gave it to Háma at EdorasTemplate:Ref. Gandalf would continue to bear it throughout the War of the Ring, but it is not mentioned again until Gandalf, Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin arrive at the Prancing Pony in Bree. Gandalf and the Hobbits had seen so much war at the time that wearing a weapon did not seem oddTemplate:Ref.

Fate

On September 29, T.A. 3021, Gandalf left Middle-earth and sailed into the WestTemplate:Ref. It is very likely that he took Glamdring with him. In a letter to a Miss Northey, J.R.R. Tolkien tells of Shadowfax' fate. He went with Gandalf across the sea, but the chronicler (Sam) was too overcome with grief to noticeTemplate:Ref. In this light, it is inconceivable that Gandalf for some reason left Glamdring behind.

Appearance

Glamdring and Orcrist are described in The Hobbit as having "beautiful scabbards and jeweled hilts"Template:Ref. They would glow blue in the presence of Orcs. The sword of Turgon (whether or not this is Glamdring remains open to debate) is described as "a white and gold sword in a ruel-bone (ivory) sheath"Template:Ref.

Rune inscription

When he took the sword, Gandalf said he could not read the runes. Elrond did, however. This could be considered strange, because in The Lord of the Rings, Gandalf is portrayed as a person of at least equal wisdom and knowledge to Elrond.

A fitting explanation of this problem would be the "Gondolinic Runes", devised by Tolkien in either 1924 or 1930. This set of Runes was first published in 1992Template:Ref. In this script, an inscription "GLAMDRING" would read "MZ(unknown)ŪNRI(unknown)M" in Angerthas Moria. The actual inscription remains unclear, however.

Etymology

The word Glamdring is comprised of two elements. The first element is glam, literally meaning "noisy", but poetically used as "Orc". The second element is dring, said to mean "hammer"Template:Ref. Its Common Speech name was Foe-hammerTemplate:Ref.

Portrayal in adaptations

File:Bakshi-lotr.jpg

Glamdring in Ralph Bakshi's The Lord of the Rings.

In David T. Wenzel's The Hobbit, Glamdring appears to be an arming sword. There are no gemstones on its hilt or scabbard, and unintelligable runes are seen on the fuller. It glows red, rather than blue, in the presence of orcs, who call it by all three names: Glamdring, Foe-hammer and Beater.

In Rankin/Bass' The Hobbit, Gandalf acquires Glamdring in the trolls' cave. Elrond recognizes the sword at first glance; perhaps he simply deduces the fact that it was Glamdring because he had identified its mate Orcrist just before. After leaving Rivendell, Gandalf does not use Glamdring again.

In Ralph Bakshi's The Lord of the Rings, Glamdring is portrayed as an ordinary longsword, with no inscription visible. It is featured as the centerpiece of most posters, although it does not feature so prominently in the movie.

In Rankin/Bass' The Return of the King, Gandalf does not use a sword, only his staff.

In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings, Glamdring is a longsword that does not glow blue in the presence of Orcs. The sword is, according to most replicas, 47 inches (approximately 120 centimeters) longTemplate:Ref.

The rune inscription is engraved in the cross-guard, and adds power to the sword. With this extra power Gandalf was able to defeat Durin's BaneTemplate:Ref. The actual inscription reads as thus: "Turgon aran Gondolin tortha gar a matha i vegil Glamdring gûd daedheloth, dam an Glamhoth".
This is Sindarin, and translates to "Turgon, king of Gondolin, wields, has, and holds the sword Glamdring, Foe of Morgoth's realm, Hammer of the Orcs"Template:Ref.

See also

• Images of Glamdring

References

1. Template:Note The Hobbit, A Short Rest.
2. Template:Note The Hobbit, Over Hill and Under Hill.
3. Template:Note The Silmarillion, Of the Fifth Battle.
4. Template:Note The Silmarillion, Of Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin.
5. Template:Note The Hobbit, A Short Rest.
6. Template:Note The Hobbit, Roast Mutton.
7. Template:Note The Hobbit, A Short Rest.
8. Template:Note The Hobbit, Over Hill and Under Hill.
9. Template:Note The Fellowship of the Ring, The Ring Goes South.
10. Template:Note The Fellowship of the Ring, The Bridge of Khazad-dûm.
11. Template:Note The Two Towers, The White Rider.
12. Template:Note The Two Towers, The King of the Golden Hall.
13. Template:Note The Return of the King, Homeward Bound.
14. Template:Note The Return of the King, The Grey Havens.
15. Template:Note The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 268 (dated January 19, 1965)
16. Template:Note The Hobbit, Roast Mutton.
17. Template:Note Unfinished Tales, Of Tuor and his Coming to Gondolin, note 31.
18. Template:Note First published in Mythlore 69, pages 20-25 (by Paul Nolan Hyde), analysed in issue 70, pages 23-24, by Carl F. Hostetter. See also "Gondolinic Runes" by J.R.R. Tolkien, Parma Eldalamberon 15, page 111-113. A reproduction of the runes by Lisa Star: "Runes of Gondolin"
19. Template:Note The Lost Road and Other Writings, The Etymologies, roots GLAM- and DRING-.
20. Template:Note The Hobbit, A Short Rest.
21. Template:Note The Noble Collection Glamdring, Weaponmasters.com
22. Template:Note The Lord of the Rings: Weapons and Warfare by Chris Smith.
23. Template:Note "Sword Inscriptions" by Ryszard Derdzinski, Gwaith i-Phethdain.