The Return of Sauron and the Appearance of Wizards: A Third Age Deep Dive
When watching The Lord of the Rings, have you ever wondered why Aragorn, despite being a royal descendant, lived as a wandering Ranger in the wild? Or why Gandalf and Saruman, both sent by the divine powers to aid Middle-earth, chose such drastically different paths?
The movies give us the spectacle, but the true answers lie buried in the 3,000-year history of the Third Age. This wasn't just a quiet period before the war; it was an era of slow decay, political fragmentation, and the silent, creeping resurrection of the Dark Lord.
In this deep dive, we will explore the tragic fall of the Númenórean kingdoms, the subtle machinations of the Necromancer, and the hidden war of the Wizards (Istari). Let’s uncover the history that Tolkien meticulously crafted in The Silmarillion and the appendices.
📜 Table of Contents
The Return of Sauron and the Appearance of Wizards (The Silmarillion)
To understand the War of the Ring, we must first understand the power vacuum left after the Second Age. The defeat of Sauron by the Last Alliance of Elves and Men was a victory, but it was pyrrhic.
1. The Tragedy of Isildur and the Fragmentation of Arnor
Isildur, the hero who cut the Ring from Sauron's hand, became the architect of the North's undoing. By claiming the Ring as weregild (blood money) for his father’s death rather than destroying it, he allowed evil to endure.
The Disaster of the Gladden Fields
While marching north to take up the throne of Arnor, Isildur was ambushed by Orcs. The Ring betrayed him, slipping from his finger as he tried to escape across the Anduin River, exposing him to Orc arrows. With his death, the stability of the Northern Kingdom collapsed.
From Kingdom to Ruins: The Birth of the Rangers
Unlike the South (Gondor), the Northern Kingdom of Arnor did not survive intact. Due to internal strife among Isildur’s descendants, it split into three smaller, weaker kingdoms:
- Arthedain (The line of Isildur continued here)
- Cardolan
- Rhudaur
2. The Long Stewardship of Gondor
While Arnor fell, Gondor in the south survived, but at a great cost. The line of Kings failed not through conquest, but through childlessness and foolish challenges (like King Eärnur responding to the Witch-king's taunts and never returning).
This ushered in the era of the Ruling Stewards. For nearly a thousand years, Gondor was ruled by Stewards who swore to govern "until the King returns." This context is crucial for understanding Denethor in the movies; he isn't just a grumpy old man, but a ruler burdened by a millennium of tradition, terrified of losing his family's long-held power to a "ranger form the North."
3. The Return of Sauron and the Appearance of Wizards
As the strength of Men waned, a shadow returned to the forest of Greenwood, turning it into Mirkwood. The entity known as "The Necromancer" established a fortress at Dol Guldur. This was no mere sorcerer; it was Sauron, slowly reforming his physical shape.
The Arrival of the Istari (Wizards)
The Valar (archangels of Middle-earth) would not intervene directly as they did in the First Age. Instead, they sent emissaries: the Istari.
These were Maiar (angelic spirits of the same order as Sauron) clad in the bodies of old men. Their mission came with strict divine constraints:
- Constraint of Form: They possessed human frailty—they could feel hunger, fear, and could be killed.
- Constraint of Power: They were forbidden from matching Sauron power-for-power or ruling over the Free Peoples through force.
- The Mission: To unite Elves and Men and inspire them to fight for themselves.
4. The Failure of the White Council: Saruman’s Betrayal
The dynamic between Gandalf (Mithrandir) and Saruman (Curunír) defines the tragedy of the Wizards.
When they arrived at the Grey Havens, Círdan the Shipwright (an ancient Elf) saw deep into their souls. Though Saruman was the leader, Círdan perceived the humble spirit within Gandalf and secretly gifted him Narya, the Ring of Fire. This ring had the power to kindle courage in hearts that had grown cold.
This jealousy blossomed into treason within the White Council. When Gandalf urged an attack on Dol Guldur to banish the Necromancer, Saruman repeatedly overruled him. Why? Because Saruman wanted Sauron to grow strong enough for the One Ring to reveal itself. He gambled the fate of the world on his belief that he could find the Ring first and wield it.
By the time Saruman agreed to attack Dol Guldur, it was a calculated move only to prevent Sauron from finding the Ring in the river, not to save Middle-earth. This betrayal of his divine mission is what led to his ultimate downfall.
📝 Final Thoughts: The Weight of History
The events of The Lord of the Rings are not an isolated adventure but the climax of a millennium-long chess game. Aragorn’s struggle is the struggle of Arnor; Denethor’s despair is the despair of Gondor; and the war between Gandalf and Saruman is a spiritual battle over the definition of power.
Understanding this history transforms the story from a simple "Good vs. Evil" narrative into a rich saga of decline, stewardship, and the enduring hope that even when strength fails, courage can be rekindled.
