hingol was of the Elves from the first awakening who did not go with his kin to Aman because he caught sight of Melian the Maia, and he was caught in a trance that held him for many years. His kin sought for him in vain and remained in Middle-earth, not wanting to leave their king. When he at last awoke from this trance, he married Melian and his people rejoiced to find their king. He shed the name of Elwë, and took the name Elu Thingol, or King Graymantle, and he founded the hidden kingdom of Doriath, protected by the power of Melian, and all his folk flocked to him, becoming the Sindarin, or Gray Elves.

From this match was born Lúthien, the fairest of all the Elves ever to be born on Earth. "Blue was her raiment as the unclouded heaven, but her eyes were grey as the starlit evening; her mantle was sewn with golden flowers, but her hair was dark as the shadows of twilight. As the light upon the leaves of trees, as the voice of clear waters, as the stars above the mists of the world, such was her glory and her loveliness; and in her face was a shining light." 4

Beren was the son of Barahir, a Man of Beleriand. After a long time in Middle-earth, the dominion of Morgoth spread and evil was everywhere. Men fought constant wars with Morgoth, and many were forced to flee their homes and seek safety in travel. Barahir was one of the outlaws of Dorthonion, and he would not forsake his home. Morgoth was relentless and pursued him to the death, until only twelve companions remained to him. Barahir and his companions were hidden from the sight of Morgoth for a time, but eventually Sauron, Morgoth's greatest servant, blackmailed one of the companions into telling him where they were all hiding. In this way, Morgoth found them and killed them all. At this time though, Beren had been sent away by his father to spy upon the ways of the enemy and he was not with the outlaws when they were slain. When he returned, he found the bones of his father, and he buried him and went away wandering into the wild until he finally came upon the borders of Doriath.

Beren came into Doriath, grey and bowed with the torment of his road, and wandering the woods of Neldoreth, he came upon Lúthien dancing in the grass in the glades of Esgalduin. After seeing her, all memory of pain and torment left him and he fell into an enchantment. As he watched, she all of a sudden vanished from his sight, and he stayed in the wood seeking for sight of her again, calling her Tinúviel in his heart, Nightingale, daughter of twilight. He saw her from afar, but there was a chain on his limbs and he could not go to her.

As spring came near and Beren remained in the wood, seeking for Tinúviel, there came a day when she came again singing and dancing on the green hill. "Keen, heart-piercing was her song as the song of the lark that rises from the gates of night and pours its voice among the dying stars, seeing the sun behind the walls of the world; and the song of Lúthien released the bonds of winter, and the frozen waters spoke, and the flowers sprang from the cold earth where her feet had passed. Then the spell of silence fell from Beren, and he called to her, crying Tinúviel; and the woods echoed the name." 5 Then she halted, and Beren came to her, and she loved him and a doom fell upon her. But she fled from him and Beren fell in anguish. From that day forward, though, her fate was caught up in his, and her anguish no one of the Elves has ever known.

She came again to him, and they roamed the woods together hand in hand, until they were seen by Daeron the minstrel who betrayed them to her father, Thingol the King. Thingol was angered and demanded Beren be brought to him, but Lúthien would not bring him unless her father swore not to kill or imprison him. Finally, Beren came before Thingol and declared his love for Lúthien, causing Thingol to repent of his hasty vow. However, he decided that if Beren wanted his jewel, he would have to get for him another jewel, a Silmaril that Morgoth had placed in his crown and dwelled in the terror of Angband, Morgoth's realm. In this way, he knew Beren would die without his having to kill him. He did not think that Beren could ever return alive.

So Beren left Doriath and came to the halls of King Finrod Felegund of Nargothrond, who had great friendship with the house of Bëor to which Beren belonged. And Felegund was afraid, for Celegorm and Curufin, sons of Fëanor were living in his halls, and they were driven by the oath of the Silmarils. They would not allow anyone to claim the Silmarils, and Beren would have a difficult time getting past them if they found out his quest. Beren left Nargothrond with Felegund and ten companions, and on their way they slew a company of orcs, taking their gear and disguising themselves in their form. However, Sauron was not fooled, and he waylaid them; when they would not tell him who they were he cast them into a pit, letting the wolves devour them one by one.

At this time, Lúthien felt the horror of Beren's imprisonment, and went to flee Doriath to save her love. Thingol caused her to be kept in a house in the trees where she could not escape. To escape, she used all her enchantments and caused her hair to grow to great length, and of that hair, she made a cloak of shadow around her. With the remaining hair she made a long rope, and as it dangled down among the guards they were overcome with sleep, so she was able to climb down and escape from Doriath unseen.

On her way, she was seen by Huan, a great hound of Celegorm, and he took her back to his master. When she found out who he was, she declared herself, and he promised to help her, but there was evil in his heart, for he was enamored of her and wanted to stay her in her quest. They held Lúthien captive, and Huan was grieved, and he came often to her chamber. He could understand all speech, so she talked to him of her loneliness and her love. Three times only in his lifetime was Huan allowed to use human speech, and soon after she was held captive, he spoke for the first time, helping her to escape upon his back.

At that time, Beren and Felegund were the last two remaining in the pits of Sauron. A wolf came to kill Beren, but Felegund wrestled with it, killing it; in the process he was fatally wounded. Beren was then alone, and he mourned beside his friend in despair. In that hour Lúthien came, and sang a song that no walls could hinder, and Beren heard though he thought it a dream, and he answered her song, but weakness overtook him and he fell silent. She heard his voice and sang a song of greater power, and Sauron heard and he smiled, hoping to take the daughter of Melian captive. He sent wolves after her, but Huan slew them all until Sauron found out who the hound was, and he knew Huan's fate, that he should not die except by the greatest wolf ever to exist. So Sauron took the form of a wolf to kill Huan, but Huan had the mastery, and Lúthien took control of the isle, setting a spell that loosed stone from stone and threw down the gates. Then she found Beren and rescued him from the pits of Sauron.

He returned with her to Doriath, but he had an oath to fulfill, so he left her there one morning in sadness. But she would not be stayed. Huan came to her again and bore her hard on Beren's trail until they found him, and she told him she would go with him even under the shadow of Morgoth. They came in the disguise of the wolf-hame Draugluin and the bat-fell of Thuringwethil, servants of Sauron. In those disguises, the two left for Angband to get the Silmaril from Morgoth's crown. At the Gate of Angband sat Carcharoth, a wolf of greatest power and evil that ever walked the earth. He saw them from afar, and as they approached the gate, a power overcame Lúthien, and she stood radiant and terrible in front of him and commanded him to sleep, and he was felled, so Beren and Lúthien could pass through.

When they came before Morgoth, Beren was still disguised, but Lúthien was stripped of her disguise and she offered herself as a minstrel to Morgoth, and he was ensnared in his own lust and evil thoughts. As she sang, he watched her until she went from his sight, and was blinded in searching for her. The Silmarils in his crown blazed forth with great power, and the head of Morgoth was bowed under their weight until he was cast from his throne and fell in sleep upon the floor. The crown rolled away, and Beren cut a Silmaril from the crown. He then thought to take the remaining Silmarils, but when he tried to cut them from the crown, his knife broke and a splinter hit Morgoth, awakening him from his slumber. Then Beren and Lúthien fled back to the gate; by this time Carcharoth had awoken and he went to spring at them. Beren held aloft the Silmaril, but Carcharoth was undaunted and he bit the hand off of Beren that held the jewel. Instantly, his evil insides were on fire and tormented by the holy jewel. Howling, he fled away into the wild, an evil spirit of more terror than before.

Beren swooned in pain, and it seemed that the quest would end in disaster. But then Thorondor King of Eagles spied them below and carried them away from Angband and set them down on the borders of Doriath. Lúthien was sure Beren would die, for he said not a word, and she wept for his fate. Huan came again to Lúthien, and together they tended Beren until, when all hope was spent, he woke again. From then on he was named Erchamion, or One-handed.

Then they returned to the kingdom of Thingol, and Beren told him that the Silmaril was in his hand. When Thingol saw that his right hand was gone, he softened his mood to him, and Beren sat before Thingol's throne and told him of the quest. Then Thingol knew that Beren was not like other Men of the world, and he allowed Beren and Lúthien to wed.

Soon they learned that Carcharoth was coming ever nearer to Doriath, and the Silmaril lay still inside him. The people of Doriath then went on the hunt for the fell beast. Huan was with them, and he went in search of Carcharoth who was hiding in the bushes. The wolf avoided him and instead sprang for Thingol, but Beren attacked him and was sorely hurt. Huan then slew Carcharoth, but his doom fell upon him, and he was mortally wounded and died. They then cut open the belly of the wolf, and the Silmaril lay still in Beren's hand, shining and strong.

They bore Beren back to Doriath. "There she [Lúthien] set her arms about Beren, and kissed him bidding him await her beyond the Western Sea; and he looked upon her eyes ere the spirit left him. But the starlight was quenched and darkness had fallen even upon Lúthien Tinúviel." 6 And Beren's spirit tarried in the halls of Mandos, not wanting to leave the world until Lúthien came to bid her final farewell. Finally, Lúthien came to the halls of Mandos, and she knelt before Mandos and sang to him. She sang of two themes: of the sorrow of the Eldar and the grief of Men, and as she sang, her tears fell at the feet of Mandos, and he was moved to pity as he never was before or after. Mandos summoned Beren and went to Manwë for counsel, and Lúthien was given two choices. She could go to Valimar without Beren, or she could return to Middle-earth with him, taking the fate of Men upon her. She chose the latter, and they returned to Middle-earth, and after many long years she alone of all the Eldar has died indeed, never to return in likeness to Middle-earth.

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The story of Beren and Lúthien is the second longest of all the tales in The Silmarillion, but it is a story of great beauty, love and determination. It is one of the greatest love stories I have ever known. The choices Lúthien made before Manwë joined forever the fates of Elves and Men, and without her and Beren, the great kings of Men would never have been, and many great tales would never have occurred.

One of the greatest tales that comes of the marriage of Beren and Lúthien is that of Eärendil the Mariner, who's wife is descended from them, and without whom Morgoth would never have been overthrown, nor would the line of Kings from whom Aragorn is descended ever have come into being.

 

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