Formenos
Drawing Of The Sword, by Jenny Dolfen
Who was the greatest Eldar?
This has been a question of some debate for decades and there is no way for us to guarantee a right answer, because The Great Maker is no longer with us to settle the debate. But he has given us plenty of clues as to his thoughts on the matter, with some that might be seen as contradictory, or as near as damn it. This inevitably leads many readers to be selective in terms of the text they use to support their belief of how their favourite Eldar is the greatest. But more often than not, other text is given short shrift, or simply ignored, in order for the reader to justify their position.
Which of the Eldar was greatest, hinges on the meaning of the word greatest. Which I accept is a word that is open to interpretation. Nevertheless, in its most basic form, I personally don’t believe it should be too difficult to understand Mr T’s meaning and purpose in using such language and its association with an individual Eldar. However, this does lead many readers to engage in the most unedifying verbal gymnastics to justify supporting their own favourite Eldar as the greatest, but as I hope to show, such efforts are fruitless and doomed to failure.
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What does the word greatest mean?
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Multiple dictionary definitions point towards the word speaking to the quality of a thing, that it is superior in quality, magnitude, importance, talent, etc. It does not necessarily mean in terms of personal power and might, but it could, particularly in the context of a country or organisation. For example, if one were to say the British Empire was the greatest Empire in the history of the world, one could well be speaking of its military strength and power.
Manwë, King of the World, by DymondStar
So, using the word in the context of an individual, it could also be speaking of their personal strength and power. But it might just as easily be speaking of their social status, or their ethics, or their beauty. Because it is not a word that has clear meaning in isolation it should not be surprising that use of the word, without additional context, leads to widespread disagreement as to what Tolkien meant in the use of the word greatest.
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The key point here, is that without such additional context as to the purpose of the word’s use, when attached to any one individual in Tolkien’s works, then it is a very poor guide for trying to determine who is the most powerful Eldar, physically and/or mentally, which is almost always what is actually being asked when the question Who is the greatest Eldar? is asked.
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To this end, the term greatest is just not good enough, and we need to search for other terms that help us conclude which of the Elder is, in fact, the greatest.
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Another word that is often used by Tolkien in describing individual characters is mightiest. What does this word mean?
Again, multiple dictionary definitions pretty much always connect the word mightiest to power, strength, and size. It seems to me that this word is a much more trustworthy and reliable word to help describe the relative position of an Eldar’s physical and mental attributes among their peers. Much more so than the word greatest.
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The point of all this pedantry, is that Tolkien was a master of words. He knew what he was writing, he considered ever word. It took him years to write his books, and I don’t believe he would have used a word without fully appreciating the reason why he was using it and the context in which it was used in.
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Clearly, none of the stories that we all rely on to draw our conclusions were officially published during Tolkien’s life, so he might have changed things. But I do not find that a satisfactory argument and is another attempt to dodge and deflect the conversation away from the obviously conclusion, towards their favourite Eldar. We have what we have, and in the absence of any directly contradictory text, then we just have to take any non-contradictory text, especially if supported by additional text, at face value. Honestly, where would be the logic in taking it in any other way.
Tulkas & Morgoth, by Ralph Damiani
Having bored you with such long preamble, I’ll cut straight to it.
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Fëanor is the greatest Eldar ever. There is no point in arguing. If you disagree, then your view is at variance to the available evidence. No amount of verbal gymnastics that fans of one Eldar or another bounce around, can contradict this.
It is the case, that all too frequently, a fans love for a particular Eldar does this discussion no favours at all, and it leads to Eldar, who are clearly inferior to other Eldar, rise up a notch or two in these subjective rankings, because fans are incapable of excluding their love of their favourite Eldar from a discussion that demands objective reasoning and an objective answer.
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So again, Fëanor is the greatest Eldar ever. No ifs or buts. It is Fëanor, and everyone should get used to it and put aside their irrational favouritism for a different Eldar. He may not be the nicest character (indeed he is a bit of a tosser sometimes), but that is irrelevant, because that is never the question is it.
Fëanor holding a Silmaril, by Rylyn84
Why is Fëanor the “greatest”?
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The Silmarillion
Chapter 11 - Of the Sun and Moon and the Hiding of Valinor
"...For Fëanor was made the mightiest in all parts of body and mind, in valour, in endurance, in beauty, in understanding, in skill, in strength and in subtlety alike, of all the Children of Ilúvatar, and a bright flame was in him..."
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Chapter 5 - Of Eldamar and the Princes of the Eldalië
"...Fëanor was the mightiest in skill of word and of hand, more learned than his brothers; his spirit burned as a flame. Fingolfin was the strongest, the most steadfast, and the most valiant. Finarfin was the fairest, and the most wise of heart..."
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Chapter 13 – Of the Return of the Noldor
…Thus ended the mightiest of the Noldor [Fëanor]…
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And so, now my reasons for going into the detail of the differences between greatest and mightiest should be clear.
Where else are these words used by Tolkien in the available texts, and what is the context, and who is Tolkien speaking of when he uses these words?
Melkor is named as the mightiest of the Ainur:
The Silmarillion
Ainulindalë
The Music of the Ainur
Then Ilúvatar spoke, and he said: 'Mighty are the Ainur, and mightiest among them is Melkor…
Valaquenta
Of the Valar
…The mightiest of those Ainur who came into the World was in his beginning Melkor…
Chapter 7 – Of the Silmarils and the Unrest of the Noldor
…And he [Fëanor] shut the doors of his house in the face of the mightiest of all the dwellers [Melkor] in Eä.
Melkor, by Stefan Meisl
Other beings that are termed “mightiest” are:
The Silmarillion
Earendil
Chapter 11 - Of the Sun and Moon and the Hiding of Valinor
…and of the many messengers that in after days sailed into the West none came ever to Valinor - save one only: the mightiest mariner of song.
Thorondor
Chapter 13 - Of the Return of the Noldor
…there flew down from the high airs Thorondor, King of Eagles, mightiest of all birds that have ever been…
Carcharoth
Chapter 19 - Of Beren and Lúthien
…and it was decreed that he [Huan] should meet death, but not until he encountered the mightiest wolf [Carcharoth] that would ever walk the world.
Húrin
Chapter 22 - Of the Ruin of Doriath
…But it is said that Húrin would not live thereafter, being bereft of all purpose and desire, and cast himself at last into the western sea; and so ended the mightiest of the warriors of mortal Men.
Ancalagon the Black
Chapter 24 - Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath
…Before the rising of the sun Eärendil slew Ancalagon the Black, the mightiest of the dragon-host…
Galadriel
Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age
…and she was the mightiest and fairest of all the Elves that remained in Middle-earth.
In all these examples, we know that use of the word mightiest means these individuals are the strongest and most powerful of their kind. Ancalagon was the most powerful and strongest dragon ever to exist. Húrin was individually the most potent and powerful human warrior ever. Carcharoth was the most powerful and strongest wolf to ever walk the Earth.
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We know what Tolkien means when he uses this word, and we know that when the question Who is the greatest Eldar? is asked, the questioner generally wants to know which Eldar is the strongest and most powerful.
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The only Eldar, for which there are any statements that supports them coming close to Fëanor, does, of course, relate to the Lady Galadriel. Indeed, it is canon that Galadriel is the greatest of Elven women:
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The Lord of the Rings
Appendix B
…his [Celeborn’s] wife was Galadriel, greatest of Elven women.
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So, there can be no question that Galadriel is the greatest female Eldar, as I would have thought that Tolkien would not go back on a statement in a published work. Additionally, there is plenty of supporting text in Unfinished Tales, such as:
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Unfinished Tales
The History of Galadriel and Celeborn
… Galadriel was the greatest of the Noldor, except Fëanor maybe…
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… These two kinsfolk, the greatest of the Eldar of Valinor, were unfriends for ever.
Galadriel, by Angus McBride
And in Christopher Tolkien’s words, in the later commentary in the same chapter:
…In this he emphasized the commanding stature of Galadriel already in Valinor, the equal if unlike endowments of Fëanor…
Which were notes written in the last month of Tolkien’s life. Tolkien may well have altered things had he been granted the time to publish a version of The Silmarillion with which he was wholly happy. But really, in the absence of anything contradictory, his last thoughts on a topic must be honoured. At least that is what I believe.
This does cause an issue in my view though, for the first of the two sentences I highlight from Unfinished Tales might easily be read that Galadriel was the greatest of the Noldor, and the “maybe” connected to Fëanor frames things in such a way that it is the case that Galadriel is in fact the greatest, and that it is Fëanor who is second.
The second sentence clearly makes out that both of them are greater than any other Eldar in Valinor, which must therefore include the likes of Ingwë, Finwë, and all their spawn. But the sentence in the notes, about these two having “…unlike endowments…”, tells me that they were different. They had different strengths and weaknesses.
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The Great Jewels, by Ralph Damiani
Therefore, as discussed, with “greatest” being word that requires more context to firm up exactly what is “greatest” about the subject matter, otherwise it is too open to interpretation; given that this is not the case with the adjective “mightiest”, all things considered, when faced with this statement:
The Silmarillion
Chapter 11 - Of the Sun and Moon and the Hiding of Valinor
"...For Fëanor was made the mightiest in all parts of body and mind, in valour, in endurance, in beauty, in understanding, in skill, in strength and in subtlety alike, of all the Children of Ilúvatar, and a bright flame was in him..."
Then it stretches all credibility, if the reader does not conclude and agree, with the position that Fëanor is the strongest, most powerful, most intelligent Eldar to have ever lived. Yes, he was nasty, spiteful, and unhinged at times, and in terms of personality traits that might make one “greatest” in a social context he was clearly lacking, he was, nevertheless, the most powerful, the mightiest, and therefore the greatest Eldar to have ever lived.
Star of Fëanor, by Kimberly80
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