Gladden Fields
Encyclopedia
The Gladden Fields is a location in J. R. R. Tolkien
's Middle-earth
. In his works, the Gladden Fields are located where the Gladden river joins the Anduin
.
In the year , at the Gladden Fields, Isildur
and his three eldest sons (Ciryon
, Aratan
and Elendur) were ambushed by Orcs
. Isildur attempted to escape by jumping in to the Anduin, using the power of invisibility of the One Ring
, but the Ring slipped from Isildur's finger and sank to the bottom of the river. Isildur landed on the other bank of the river where he was killed by Orcs looking for survivors of the ambush. Isildur's squire Ohtar
saved the shards of Narsil
from the enemy horde; Isildur's sons were killed during the battle. This incident would become known as the Disaster of the Gladden Fields.
It was here, twenty-five centuries after the ambush, that the Stoor hobbit
, Déagol
, retrieved the One Ring from the Anduin and he was killed by his relative Sméagol, who became the creature who people called, and he adopted himself, Gollum
.
One of three passes through the Misty Mountains
is at the headwaters of the Gladden River, the other two being Redhorn Pass
and the High Pass
.
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
's Middle-earth
Middle-earth
Middle-earth is the fictional setting of the majority of author J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings take place entirely in Middle-earth, as does much of The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales....
. In his works, the Gladden Fields are located where the Gladden river joins the Anduin
Anduin
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth, Anduin is the Sindarin name for the Great River of Wilderland, the longest river in the Third Age . The ancestors of the Rohirrim called it Langflood. It flowed from its source in the Grey and Misty Mountains to the Mouths of Anduin in the Great Sea...
.
In the year , at the Gladden Fields, Isildur
Isildur
Isildur is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. He appears in the author's books The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, and Unfinished Tales....
and his three eldest sons (Ciryon
Ciryon
In J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, Ciryon was Isildur's third son. In the War of the Last Alliance he was sent with his older brother Aratan to garrison the city of Minas Ithil and the pass of Cirith Ungol on the borders of Mordor and Ithilien, in case Sauron tried to escape through the pass...
, Aratan
Aratan
In J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, Aratan was Isildur's second son and at the time of his death, Heir Presumptive to the High-Kingship of Arnor and Gondor. He was sent with his younger brother Ciryon to garrison the city of Minas Ithil and the pass of Cirith Ungol...
and Elendur) were ambushed by Orcs
Orc (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings, Orcs or Orks are a race of creatures who are used as soldiers and henchmen by both the greater and lesser villains of The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings — Morgoth, Sauron and Saruman...
. Isildur attempted to escape by jumping in to the Anduin, using the power of invisibility of the One Ring
One Ring
The One Ring is a fictional artifact that appears as the central plot element in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth fantasy novels. It is described in an earlier story, The Hobbit , as a magic ring of invisibility. The sequel The Lord of the Rings describes its powers as being more encompassing than...
, but the Ring slipped from Isildur's finger and sank to the bottom of the river. Isildur landed on the other bank of the river where he was killed by Orcs looking for survivors of the ambush. Isildur's squire Ohtar
Ohtar
Ohtar is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium.In the story "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields" found in Tolkien's Unfinished Tales, Ohtar was introduced as squire to Isildur, the Númenórean prince who cut the ruling ring from the hand of Sauron at the end of the Second Age...
saved the shards of Narsil
Narsil
Narsil is a fictional sword featured in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. It is introduced in The Lord of the Rings as having once belonged to King Elendil of the Dúnedain...
from the enemy horde; Isildur's sons were killed during the battle. This incident would become known as the Disaster of the Gladden Fields.
It was here, twenty-five centuries after the ambush, that the Stoor hobbit
Hobbit
Hobbits are a fictional diminutive race who inhabit the lands of Middle-earth in J. R. R. Tolkien's fiction.Hobbits first appeared in the novel The Hobbit, in which the main protagonist, Bilbo Baggins, is the titular hobbit...
, Déagol
Déagol
Déagol is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. His story is related in The Fellowship of the Ring, the first of three volumes comprising Tolkien's most famous novel, The Lord of the Rings, in the chapter "The Shadow of the Past"....
, retrieved the One Ring from the Anduin and he was killed by his relative Sméagol, who became the creature who people called, and he adopted himself, Gollum
Gollum
Gollum is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. He was introduced in the author's fantasy novel The Hobbit, and became an important supporting character in its sequel, The Lord of the Rings....
.
One of three passes through the Misty Mountains
Misty Mountains
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world of Middle-earth, the Misty Mountains is a mountain range, running for 795 miles from north to south, between Eriador and the valley of the Great River, Anduin, and...
is at the headwaters of the Gladden River, the other two being Redhorn Pass
Caradhras
In the fictional universe of J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, Caradhras, also called the Redhorn , and known in the Dwarves' language as Barazinbar, is one of the mightiest peaks in the Misty Mountains...
and the High Pass
Misty Mountains
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world of Middle-earth, the Misty Mountains is a mountain range, running for 795 miles from north to south, between Eriador and the valley of the Great River, Anduin, and...
.