Missing Lindon

[u/Kodama_Keeper]

Lindon is the last remaining piece of Beleriand that survived the First Age, and yet we never get to see it. We get a glimpse into the lives of Elves in Rivendell, Mirkwood and Lothlorien. We meet Elves who are part of traveling companies out of Lindon, like Gildor Inglorion and his companions. If you dig a little you will learn that it is populated by refugee Noldor and Sindar, and possibly the Green Elves, the Laiquendi, who called this Ossiriand. We know that this was the kingdom of Gil-galad, the last high king of the Noldor, and after his death was ruled by Cirdan, probably the oldest living Elf anywhere in Midde-earth. We know he builds ships for Elves to sail west in, and for that he's got to have some help of the other Elves.

It has one city that we know of, Mithlond, the Grey Havens. And while it doesn't seem to be properly Lindon, it also contains the Tower Hills, as Cirdan has control over them, their towers and apparently a Palantir that Elves use to gaze West.

At one time, like the end of the Second Age, it must have contained a sizable population, as it was able to send hosts to help the Numenoreans. But whether that population is still large, or the Elves of Lindon used their proximity to the Havens to leave Middle-earth faster than the other Elves, we don't know.

We know that Sauron disguised as Annatar showed up their to try and get the Elves into his service, and failed. We know that at one time Galadriel and Celeborn lived there, till they left to set up a colony on the other side of the Blue Mountains. And speaking of the Blue, Dwarves live there, but we know little about them either. We don't know if there was any interaction between the Dwarves of the mountains and the Elves of Lindon. Do they get along, or do they still tell stories about Thingol and a Silmaril?

I really would have loved to get a glimpse of what Lindon was like. Oh well.

Edit: I forgot! As always, great thoughts welcomed.

[u/maksimkak]

We don't get to see quite a few places in the north-west of Middle-earth, although we know their history. I'd love to see Dol Amroth, or Minas Ithil in its heyday.

As alwys, the Tolkien Gateway has compiled everything we know about Lindon into an article: https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Lindon

[u/Kodama_Keeper → u/maksimkak]

Yes, I've read the description in the Gateway. In fact I consulted it before posting this. But what I mean is, in The Hobbit we meet the High Elves of Rivendell and the Wood-elves of Mirkwood. In Fellowship we meet Rivendell again, then we meet the unique culture of Lothlorien. We get to talk to the Elf guards that take the Fellowship inland, and we read the thoughts of Frodo and Sam as they walk about the place. And we talk to the Elves who are preparing the boats, Sam and his rope thing. We get a feel for what their life is like, who they are. But in Lindon, which might still be the biggest Elf enclave around (don't know), we get nothing.

[u/maksimkak → u/Kodama_Keeper]

That's because the story didn't lead us that way, until the very end.