RİVENDELL

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IMLADIS

Rivendell ( house of Elrond)

“Elrond’s house was perfect, whether you liked food or sleep or story-telling or singing (or reading), or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all. Merely to be there was a cure for weariness. … Evil things did not come into the secret valley of Rivendell.”
Author: J.R.R. Tolkien

“O! Tril-lil-lil-lollythe valley is jolly,ha! ha!-Elves of Rivendell”

Map of Middle Earth

The peaceful, sheltered town of Rivendell was located at the edge of a narrow gorge of the river Bruinen (one of the main approaches to Rivendell comes from the nearby Ford of Bruinen), but well hidden in the moorlands and foothills of the Misty Mountains.

Rivendell, also known as Imladris, was an Elven town and the house of Elrond located in Middle-earth. It is described as “The Last Homely House East of the Sea” in reference to Valinor, which was west of the Great Sea in Aman.

During the War of the Elves and Sauron, and as Sauron was moving against Eriador, Elrond led an army of Elves of Lindon to the region. They arrived late but were joined by a detachment out of Eregion led by Celeborn. Despite this, Sauron’s armies overwhelmed the Elves, and Elrond was unable to reach Eregion. Forced northward toward the headwaters of Bruinen, Elrond established a stronghold.[5]

This became a refuge for those seeking shelter from Sauron’s onslaught in Eriador, and Elrond’s and Celeborn’s Elves were soon joined by many fleeing the Sack of Eregion. More came as Sauron ravaged Eriador on his march toward Lindon. By S.A. 1700, Sauron had overrun all of Eriador and Imladris was besieged. The siege ended when Gil-galad’s forces, strengthened by the armament sent by Tar-Minastir, routed Sauron’s armies and drove him out of Eriador.

A Council held at that time made Elrond Gil-galad’s vice-regent in Eriador, and Imladris his seat. Gil-galad bestowed Vilya upon Elrond in secret. Aided by the power of the Elven ring, Elrond made Imladris one of the chief seats of Elvish strength in the west in the latter part of the Second Age. Imladris remained an Elvish stronghold in Eriador to the end of the Second Age and into the Third. [6]

A HIDDEN BEAUTY

As explained, visual sorrundings in Lord of the Rings are a method to reflect the storytelling.

Rivendell in the books, described as a place surrounded by a beautiful valley filled with long and everlasting trees which their colors would never fade away. A strong and clean waterfall coming the high ups of misty mountains divaricating through the valley and creating smaller waterfalls and pure and calm little lakes around and inside of Rivendell grounds. 

Houses of Rivendell are mimicking the strong nature of an old forest. They are beautiful, majestic and strong but also humble and pleasant. Walls were in the shape of the long trees and their enfolding branches so that they looked as if were part of the forest rather than a part of a settlement.

In fact, those houses are in such an agreement with the nature around them, one could not tell whether it is an original part of the valley or something that was done later. 

details

Observation points where one can enjoy the stunning view of Rivendell, aqueducts where Great Waterfalls of Misty Mountains can slop around, walking paths which leads to inner gardens surrounded by wooden archways.

Observing Rivendell and looking at its architectural style is enough to have some opinions on the nature of Elves. Like the environment they live in, they were also such a race within a great agreement with nature. Elves respected nature and old being of the Middle Earth more than anything else. 

A HIDDEN VALLEY

Rivendell is beauty beyond imagining and filled with a out of world sensetion but all of these were hidden away in a place where normal people or anyone who is not elvish can not easily find. Why this beauty had to be hidden away like this? Why tolkien choose to place this magical place in a hidden valley?

It is beacuse that Tolkien does not believe that neither in Middle Earth or in our real world for that matter, real and pure beauty can not exist anymore. Darkness luring from Mordor and devastation of the new days will eventually defile everything and a virtue which did not preserve in a hidden box will ultimately fade away.

REFERENCE

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