Everyone knows about the Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit books written by J.R.R. Tolkien. We’ve all seen the Peter Jackson film adaptations of the same books. Most of us know about The Silmarillion and the many other books and letters published on the subject of Middle Earth.
What most people don’t know is that there are several things throughout his writings that he left unexplained. Here is a list of six things Tolkien didn’t explain in his books or letters.
1) Possibly Immortal Orcs.
We all remember the orcs of Middle Earth. These are the cruel, almost human looking creatures, used to make up most of the evil armies. They came in several shapes and sizes and usually didn’t last long in a battle against their man, elf, and dwarven counterparts. Aside from being pawns for the two Dark Lords, little is known about them.
Orcs were created from elves Morgoth tortured in the early years of the first age. It isn’t made clear how the orcs multiplied to become a self-sustaining race, nor is it said how long they live. Being created from elves though, it stands to reason that they would be immortal.
The best evidence for this is the orc Bolg, son of Azog. After the death of Azog in the year 2799 of the Third Age, Bolg took his father’s place ruling the orcs of the Misty Mountains until his death in 2941 of the Third Age. While most orcs die quickly in battle, Bolg lived for 150 years or more. Since there’s no proof of whether or not they’re immortal, we also can’t say they aren’t.
2) What Happened to the Ent Wives?
If you ever watched The Two Towers, or read the LOTR books, you have to remember Treebeard. He was the oldest surviving Ent, a race of humanoid trees, and maybe part of the inspiration for Groot.
Ents lived in the Fangorn Forest east of the Misty Mountains. They kept watch over the vast forest there, essentially serving as Shepherds of the trees. Where the Ents kept watching over the trees; their women preferred smaller garden type plants.
During the events of the Two Towers, TreeBeard told the hobbits, Merry and Pippen, that there would never be any more Endings, or Ent children because they lost their wives. This was because, during the second age, the Ent Wives left Fangorn Forest and moved east to what became the Brown Lands to grow and tend gardens.
Unfortunately for the race of Ents, this was around the time Sauron rose to power with the ring. It’s never explicitly said, but it seems they were destroyed by the Dark Lord when he turned that land to desert.
Tolkien even said as much in a letter, saying, “I think that in fact, the Entwives have disappeared for good, being destroyed with their gardens in the War of the Last Alliance.” If the man who wrote it said it’s likely, it must be. He didn’t say definitively though because he wanted it to be left a mystery.
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3) Where Did Ungoliant Come From
If you ever watched The Return of the King, you’re surely familiar with Shelob, the giant spider that nearly killed Frodo. Well, as big as Shelob was, her mother Ungoliant makes her look small.
For those who have read the events of The Silmarillion, you remember Ungoliant was the being who sucked the sap out of the Two Trees of Valinor, bringing an end to the Years of the Trees. After she had got her fill, she tried unsuccessfully to take the Silmarills from Morgoth. The Balrogs came to the aid of the first Dark Lord of Tolkien’s world, and her role was mostly done.
She later ran off to Nan Dungortheb and bred with great spiders in the area. Ungoliant went on to die by her hands, eventually devouring herself. Her demise isn’t the mystery, but rather her unknown origins.
Ungoliant was a primordial being, with a mysterious beginning. It’s suggested that she came from the darkness itself, or maybe from the music Melkor/Morgoth played before the creation of the world. What is certain is that the enigmatic spider played an important role in the early years and that not even the Valar know how she came to be.
4) Tom Bombadil
If you only ever watched the Peter Jackson movies, it’s likely you have never heard the name Tom Bombadil. For those who have read the works of Tolkien, you know who he is, but probably little about him. He lives in the woods near the Shire with his wife Goldberry and rules over a small area wearing a goofy hat and bright colored clothes. Tom is also older and more powerful than possibly anyone in Middle Earth.
On their way to Rivendell, Frodo and the other hobbits ran into Tom. He commanded a tree to release Merry and Pippen and invited them to his home. While there, he learned of the hobbit’s quest and about the ring. Frodo let him see the ring, which Bombadil immediately put on. What shocked the hobbits was that the ring had no effect on the old woodsman.
Tom didn’t disappear or try to keep the ring. When Frodo put it on after Tom gave it back to him, he could see Frodo. None of the ring’s powers had an effect on Bombadil.
He was then brought up again at the Council of Elrond. It was suggested that they give a ring to him for safe keeping. Gandalf then pointed out that Tom would probably lose the ring out of a lack of interest, and evil would endure.
What kind of creature could have this power over the Ring of Power? Nobody knows. He was older than the elves. He wasn’t one of the Valar, an order of almost lesser gods. It’s never said what he was.
There are theories that Tom Bombadil was the reader, as he felt there was no reason to fear anything around him. Some say he was Illuvitar, the supreme god of the Tolkien mythology, in a human form. Perhaps he was a “Father Nature” figure or a Maia like Gandalf and Sauron. What’s certain is that Tolkien never said, and we have no idea.
5)What happened to the Blue Wizards
For anyone who knows anything about Middle Earth, you know wizards played a huge role in the Third Age. Gandalf the Gray, then the White, was instrumental in bringing an end to evil in the world. Saruman, who was the head of the wizards, basically sold his soul to serve the evil that would eventually lose.
Radagast the Brown spoke with the animals and kept a watch over Mirkwood, the great forest in eastern Middle Earth. What about the other two?
In The Lord of the Rings, Gandalf and Saruman hint at the fact that there are five wizards but say no more. In The Rings of Power and the Third Age, Tolkien says there are five of them, but that two went to the far east and aren’t included in the stories. In Unfinished Tales, he names them. Alatar and Pallando went into the East and likely failed in their mission, possibly starting magic cults.
It wasn’t until the last couple years of his life that Tolkien wrote more about them. He gave alternate names, Morinehtar and Rómestámo, and said they arrived in Middle Earth in the second age, around the time the rings were forged. This text goes on to say that they were sent east to weaken the allies of Sauron, and were pivotal in the free people ultimately winning the war.
It seems Tolkien changed his mind on what the role of the Blue Wizards was. He contradicted his early writings late in life, and since a contradiction isn’t an explanation, the fate of the Blue Wizards remains an unexplained part of Tolkien lore.
6) Nameless Things
The Nameless Things were odd, bizarre creatures that lived in the deepest parts of the world. They are never described. They obviously aren’t named. All that is said is that they live below the Misty Mountains, and carved the tunnels that goblins expanded for their use. Their most relevant mention was when Gandalf chased the Balrog. He said they lived in the tunnels used in the pursuit, but what were they?
There are a few theories as to what Nameless things are, and where they came from. One suggests they were Ainur who entered the world before Dayton arrived. Another suggests they may be from the void, much like Ungoliant. Another theory says they could be creatures corrupted by the dark powers early in history, and another suggests they’re spirits of the same order as Tom Bombadil and his wife. The only certainty is that we have no idea what the Nameless Things are.
This is only a list of six items the father of fantasy fiction left unanswered. There are much more that could be on the list, so feel free to discuss what I missed in the comments section.