| Ancalagon | |
|---|---|
| The Silmarillion character | |
| Created by | J. R. R. Tolkien |
| In-universe information | |
| Alias | The Black |
| Species | Dragon |
Ancalagon, orAncalagon the Black, is adragon that appears in thelegends of British writerJ. R. R. Tolkien, and particularly in his novelThe Silmarillion.
Bred byMorgoth in the depths of his fortress ofAngband, Ancalagon is present at thelast battle of the First Age, which sees the battle between the armies of theValar and Morgoth to freeMiddle-earth from the latter's yoke. Morgoth, seeing his armies in disarray, unveils, as a last resort, the winged dragons led by Ancalagon the Black.Eärendil andThorondor are confronted by Ancalagon in an aerial battle in which the dragon is shot down, bringing down the peaks ofThangorodrim and defeating its master. This story was probably inspired by the battle between thebiblical dragonSatan and theArchangelMichael in theBook of Revelation.[1]
The first flying dragon to appear in the story, it also marks a turning point in Tolkien's physical evolution of this species.
The name "Ancalagon" is explained inThe Lost Road and Other Writings as "impetuous jaws" or "biting storm", fromSindarinanc(a) "jaw, bite" and alag "impetuous" or alagos "windstorm".[2] In his English-language version of theQuenta, Tolkien translates Ancalagon asAnddraca, fromand-, an oppositional prefix, anddraca "dragon". As with othernames he has "translated" intoOld English, Tolkien does not seek identity of meaning, but rather to achieve sounds close to those of the original names.[3]
The description of Ancalagon is kept to a minimum. Considered "the greatest of all dragons",[4] Ancalagon is the first of the winged dragons. Black in color, its name suggests an impressive jaw. Despite its power, inThe Lord of the Rings,Gandalf tellsFrodo that Ancalagon would not have been able to destroy theOne Ring:[5]
"It has been said that dragon fire was able to melt and consume the Rings of Power, but there is no dragon left on earth now whose old flame is hot enough; and there was never any, not even Ancalagon the Black, who could have done harm to the One Ring, the Sovereign Ring, for that one had been made by Sauron himself."
— J. R. R. Tolkien, "The Shadow of the Past"
At the end of the First Age, in the year 587, a few years after the fall ofGondolin and the destruction of the kingdom ofDoriath,Eärendil and Elwing set sail forValinor to convince theValar to saveMiddle-earth from the yoke ofMorgoth. Thanks to their intervention, the armies of theValar led byEönwë, the herald ofManwë,Finarfin king of theÑoldor ofAman, Ingwë king of the Vanyar, and Eärendil flying in Vingilot, march towards Thangorodrim, beneath which lies Morgoth's fortress, where they are joined by the armies of theEdain.[4]
Morgoth brings most of his armies out ofAngband, but they are quickly routed by the Valar forces. Sensing that victory was slipping from his grasp, he called in his reserve forces, the first winged dragons, led by Ancalagon the Black. So terrible was the force of the attack that "the armies of the Valar retreated before the thunder, lightning and hurricane of flames that preceded the dragons". However, Eärendil on his ship Vingilot, accompanied byThorondor leading an armada of birds, battled Ancalagon and the other dragons for "a whole day and night of doubt", before piercing the dragon. Ancalagon, shot out of the sky, falls on the peaks of Thangorodrim, causing their destruction and ending the War of the Great Wrath. Angband is opened and Morgoth imprisoned by the Valar, sounding the end of the First Age ofMiddle-earth.[4]
Tolkien makes no mention of Ancalagon in the 1926Sketch of Mythology and the first version of theQuenta, in the 1930s. There is a draft of the attack of the flying dragons, but Ancalagon does not yet exist.[6] Ancalagon appears in the second version of theQuenta, in the role it will play in the rest of the legendarium.[7] In this version, as well as in its later rewriting, the pre-1937Quenta Silmarillion, Ancalagon has wings of steel.[8]
In later versions, notably in the 1969 essayThe Problem of Ros, Tolkien suggests that Ancalagon may have been felled byTúrin, who returned after its death from the outer void ofArda to fight in the Final Battle, according to a prophecy of Andreth.[9] However, it is not clear whether Tolkien is talking about the War of the Great Wrath (Christopher Tolkien's hypothesis[9]) or theDagor Dagorath, the battle that marks the end of the world (John D. Rateliff's hypothesis).[10]
The figure of Ancalagon is compared with the dragonMiðgarðsormr, who confrontsThor atRagnarök,[10] as well as with its biblical counterpart, the dragon representing Satan, who is confronted by theArchangel Michael according to a prophecy told in the story of theApocalypse in theBook of Revelation.[11] The reference to Tolkien's linguistic essay,Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth, published inMorgoth's Ring, which brings Andreth's prophecy into play, enhances "Ancalagon's mythological importance within the legendarium", as does the parallel withMiðgarðsormr.[10]
Despite its limited role, the character is of paramount importance, both for its role in its master's downfall, but also for the evolution of the dragon race, as the first flying dragon.[12] Rateliff regrets that the fight between Ancalagon and Eärendil is not more detailed.[13] According to Kristin Larsen, this confrontation is aeuhemeric rendering of ameteor shower falling onVenus, the star corresponding to Eärendil in Tolkien's mythology.[14] The battle is described by Evans as "titanic" and Ancalagon's fall as "cataclysmic".[15]
The battle between Ancalagon the Black and Eärendil has been illustrated byTed Nasmith.[16]Jenny Dolfen also drew the dragon.[17]
The Ancalagon name was adopted by a Frenchpagan metal band formed in 2000.[18]
