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"Then something came into the chamber - I felt it through the door, and the Orcs themselves were afraid and fell silent. It laid hold of the iron ring, and then it perceived me and my spell."
The Lord of the Rings, "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm"

The Balrogs, or Valaraukar (singular Valarauko, Quenya for "Demon of power"[1]), were three to seven Maiar seduced and corrupted by Morgoth into his service, turning into dreadful Úmaiar and scourges of fire cloaked in shadow.[2]

History

Origins

Originally, the Balrogs were Maiar (lesser spirits serving Valar) that were persuaded by Melkor's might and splendor to join his cause, and corrupted by him into Úmaiar. Their first dwelling was in Utumno, the great fortress of the Iron Mountains, but after their master's defeat during the Battle of the Powers, the Balrogs and other creatures in Melkor's service escaped to Angband and hibernated there.[3]

The balrogs of morgoth by thylacinee-d5pl60x

"The balrogs of Morgoth" by Thylacinee

Years of the Trees

The Balrogs were present as early as the Years of the Trees when Melkor and Ungoliant destroyed the Two Trees of Valinor. By then, the Balrogs remained in the pits of Angband. After Morgoth fled Valinor with Ungoliant, he came to Lammoth near the ruins of Angband to renew his rule in Middle-earth. A disagreement with Ungoliant led to her attacking him, and Morgoth gave out a great cry that roused the Balrogs from their slumber. In a tempest of fire, they came and drove Ungoliant away, prepared to pursue her. However, they were halted by Morgoth and returned to Angband, which shortly thereafter was constructed anew.[4]

Balrog crop, WoW

Balrog crop of "War of Wrath" by Firat Solhan.

First Age

When the Ñoldor won the battle Dagor-nuin-Giliath, Fëanor furiously pressed on toward Angband. He came even within sight of Angband, but was ambushed by the Balrogs with few Ñoldor around him. Soon he stood alone, but long he fought on with the Balrogs alone as mightiest all the Children of Iluvatar even though he was wrapped in fire and wounded with many wounds. But finally Gothmog, the first Lord of Balrogs, felled and mortally wounded Fëanor.

Maedhros, Fëanor's son, persuaded the forces of Morgoth for a feigned treaty, but Morgoth sent the Balrogs. The entire company was slain, except for Maedhros, who was taken to Angband.[5]

Years later, during the Dagor Bragollach, the Balrogs, along with the Dragon Glaurung and an army of Orcs, issued forth from Angband to assault the fortresses of the Elves and to kill their allies, the Edain.[6] According to one account, Morgoth's chief agent, Sauron, led a "host of Balrogs" to conquer the Elvish isle of Tol Sirion in the battle's aftermath.[7]

BalrogByJustinGerard

Balrog crop of "Glorfindel and the Balrog" by Justin Gerard

The Balrogs fought in the Nírnaeth Arnoediad, where Gothmog led the invasion. He threw aside Húrin and Turgon, turned upon Fingon and killed him with the help of the second Balrog-lord named Lungorthin, securing the field for Morgoth's forces. He also captured Húrin, after Húrin was buried under a mountain of slain foes. He bound the human warrior and delivered him to Angband, whereupon Morgoth attempted unsuccessfully to pry the location of Gondolin from him,[8] even despite torture by Lungorthin.[citation needed]

Glorfindel and the Balrog by Eric Velhagen

"Glorfindel and the Balrog" by Eric Velhagen

In FA 510, on the day of the Fall of Gondolin, the Balrogs rode upon the backs of dragons to reach the hidden city. The Lord of the House of the Fountain, Ecthelion, managed to kill Gothmog at the cost of his own life. While attempting to escape the burning city, Glorfindel and his companions were blocked by a Balrog, which may have been Lungorthin. To save Tuor, Idril and their young son Eärendil, Glorfindel fought the Balrog on a cliff and cast it down, but he was pulled down with it to their deaths.[9]

The remaining Balrogs fought in the War of Wrath. While most were destroyed, at least one managed to escape and hide in deep caverns far away.[10]

Second Age

In the Second Age, Sauron gathered "all the evil things of the days of Morgoth that remained on earth and beneath it", starting the Accursed Years, however no Balrogs are explicitly mentioned as being active at this time.[citation needed]

Third Age

In TA 1980, the Balrog who fled the War of Wrath awoke beneath Khazad-dûm, roused by the Dwarves' mining for mithril or "by the malice of Sauron". It drove the Dwarves out of their home and slew the king at the time, Durin VI; this Balrog was thereafter called "Durin's Bane". Its presence made way for Sauron's creatures to infest the mines, while preventing Durin's Folk from reclaiming Moria.[11]

During the War of the Ring, the Fellowship of the Ring passed through Moria and encountered Durin's Bane, which pursued them to the Bridge of Khazad-dûm. Gandalf the Grey fought the Balrog, allowing the Fellowship to escape Moria.[12] Both fell into the abyss, but the battle continued at the peak of Zirakzigil. The duel between the two Ainur ended with the Balrog's death. While Gandalf also died, he was later "sent back" by the Valar, as Gandalf the White.[13]

Known Balrogs

Appearance

"It was like a great shadow, in the middle of which was a dark form, of man-shape maybe, yet greater; and a power and terror seemed to be in it and to go before it."
The Lord of the Rings, "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm"

The Balrogs generally had the form of menacing beings roughly humanoid in shape, at least twice the height of Men or Elves, and seemed to consist of or be surrounded by smoke and flame.[14] The Balrogs encapsulated or projected power and terror before them, perhaps meant to be a mockery of the majesty that the Valar radiate. Additionally, Tolkien refers to the Balrogs having hearts of fire, tongues like red stabbing blades, yellow eyes that glowed like furnaces, and long arms tipped with steel claws. They had hair described as streaming manes, which could be kindled to cause a blaze behind it.[15]

60470d782ba4aa31b370b48b460b6f81

Durin's Bane as envisioned for the films

It is disputed whether or not the Balrogs had wings, but Tolkien's only allusion to wings is that, in The Fellowship of the Ring, dark shadows "like two vast wings" appeared behind Durin's Bane at the Bridge of Khazad-dûm.[16] Durin's Bane, and the two Balrogs at the Fall of Gondolin each fell helplessly down from high places with no aerial recovery.

Powers & abilities

The Balrogs were exceptionally powerful creatures. It took at least three or at most seven Balrogs to drive away Ungoliant, a large spider powerful enough to devour the fruits of Telperion (the "Silver Tree of Valinor"), which produced the light for billions of stars.[citation needed]

They wielded swords coated in ever-burning fire, maces that appeared molten, and flaming whips that whistled with many thongs, while being attired with helms and armor made of iron. Gothmog, the Lord of Balrogs in the First Age, used a great black axe in battle, and Dúrin's Bane possessed a flaming whip and a molten sword. He managed to expell the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm from their ancient and supremely fortified home, which was the greatest kingdom of Dwarves that had ever been. He also contended with the wizard Gandalf, and each killed the other.

The Balrogs were fast and agile, able to leap or run vast distances in a short span of time. Their passing is once even described as a "tempest of fire".[citation needed]

Gothmog fought against and overcame Fëanor, an Elf who was considered the mightiest of the Children of Ilúvatar. Another, in the same battle, also spread chaos through Gondolin, a city filled with Elves of great power.

Etymology

In Sindarin, the word Balrog means "Demon of Might",[17] from the words bal ("power") and raug, rog ("demon").[18] Balrogs are called Valarauko or Valaraukar[note 1] in Quenya, from the words vala ("power") and rauco ("demon").[18][19]

In other versions

In earlier drafts, Balrog is derived from ñgwalaraukô ("demon").[18]

Durin's Bane

"Durin's Bane" by Markus Röncke

Background

In Tolkien's later writings, he noted that there were no more than three or seven Balrogs.[20]

In an early draft, there was a Lord of Balrogs named Lungorthin. According to Christopher Tolkien, it is likely that Lungorthin is not another name for Gothmog, as the name Gothmog was mentioned in the earliest Middle-earth writings, as well as the final version of Tolkien's mythology.[21]

Initially, the Balrogs were far less menacing in size, while being described as immense in numbers:

"A figure strode to the fissure, no more than man-high yet terror seemed to go before it."
The Treason of Isengard, X: "The Mines of Moria" (2): "The Bridge", pgs. 198-9

The early conception of Balrogs makes them less terrible, and certainly more destructible, than they afterwards became: they existed in 'hundreds' (p. 170), and were slain by Tuor and the Gondothlim in large numbers: "thus five fell before Tuor's great axe Dramborleg, three before Ecthelion's sword, and two score were slain by the warriors of the king's house.
The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, commentary by Christopher Tolkien on "The Fall of Gondolin"

In later writings, however, Christopher Tolkien notes that:

In the margin my father wrote: 'There should not be supposed more than say 3 or at most 7 ever existed.
Morgoth's Ring, Section 2 (AAm*): note 50

In adaptations

TRoP Balrog - first look

Durin's Bane as portrayed in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

Video games

Card games

  • A Balrog (named "Firelord Balrog") appears in the game The Legend of the Cryptids as a playable card.

Gallery

Gothmog the Balrog
Glorfindel and the Balrog
Gothmog the balrog's king
Haste of the Balrogs by Viking-Heart
Balrog vs Gandalf
Balrog - FOTR
Balrog
Summon Balrog
LEGO Balrog
Dragon, balrog2
A Balrog in The Battle for Middle-earth attacks
Screen Shot 2012-06-19 at 4.50.44 PM
Three Balrogs in BFME II

Trivia

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles.
  • Some fans of the Doom series claim that the Balrog of the movies looks similar to a cross between the Maledict and Cyberdemon from Doom 3, inheriting similar wings to the former and a similar overall shape to the latter.
  • A demonic monster in the popular 2D side-scrolling game Maplestory, bears many similar qualities and characteristics, and thus many believe the monster was represented on behalf of the fictitious one depicted in the Tolkien series.
  • A certain antagonist in the MMORPG Wartune, Merloch, is identical exactly to a Balrog, save for an additional two horns.
  • A demon in Dungeon Hunter: Alliance called the "Cremator" has the same head and fiery presence as a Balrog, but without wings.
  • Many fans claim that the Balrog inspired Games Workshop's Bloodthirster in Warhammer, which is known as the Greater Daemon of Khorne.
  • The main antagonist of Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, the Dahaka, strongly resembles the book rendition of Balrog (bigger than man but not a giant; seemingly comprised of shadow), but has one horn bent downward and one upward, and it does not have wings.
  • The Balor from Dungeons and Dragons is clearly based on the Balrog.
    • In early editions of the game, it was in fact referred to as the Balrog. The name was changed due to copyright claims made by the Tolkien Estate.
  • The hero named Hellbringer from the MOBA game Heroes of Newerth can summon Malphas, whose appearance is very similar to the cinematic rendering of the Balrog.
  • War, the first horseman and main playable character from the game Darksiders, has a chaos form that looks very similar to Durin's Bane.
  • "Balrog" was the name of a masked Spaniard who made his debut as the second boss in the original Japanese version of Street Fighter II. However, when the game was localized in the United States, the game's first boss, M. Bison, had his name changed out of fear of a lawsuit from boxer Mike Tyson. As a result, the character "Balrog" was changed to have the name of the game's final boss, Vega. The boxer M. Bison became known as Balrog, and the final boss Vega became known as M. Bison.
  • In the manga and anime series Saint Seiya, Balrog Rune (or Balron Lune) is a servant of Hades clad in armor modeled after Tolkien's monster.
  • The Juggernaut and its upgrade the Ravager in Heroes VI, also resembles the Balrog's looks, especially the head region. Whether this is on purpose or just a coincidence is not known.
  • The boss Fyrus from Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess bears a slight resemblance to the Balrog, in its height and black, fiery form.
  • The form of the character Chaos in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, Feral Chaos ("Desperado Chaos" in the Japanese version), bore a strong resemblance to the Balrog (particularly its depiction in Peter Jackson's films) due to his being massive, demonic, possessing horns, and being constantly wreathed in flame.
  • Various characters from the Diablo franchise are visually similar to the Balrog.
  • In Devil May Cry 5, one of the weapons Dante has access to is named Balrog, which uses the element of fire. A character named Balrog is also present in the Devil May Cry 5: Before the Nightmare manga, being a fire-based demon who is defeated by Dante, which grants him the weapon. In an interview with the developers, it was stated that the name of Balrog is a reference to the character present in Street Fighter.[22]

Translations

Foreign Language Translated name
Amharic ባልሮግ (Balrogs)

ቫላራኩራ (Valaraukar)

Arabic بالروجس
Armenian Բալրոգ
Belarusian Cyrillic Балрог (Balrogs)

Валараукар (Valaraukar)

Bengali বল্রোগ
Bulgarian Cyrillic Балрог
Catalan Bàlrogs (Balrogs)

Valaràucar (Valaraukar)

Chinese 炎魔
Georgian ბალროგი (Balrogs)

ვალარაუკარი (Valaraukar)

Greek Βαλρογ
Gujarati બલ્રોગ
Hebrew (Balrogs) באלרוגים

(Valaraukar) ואלאראוקאר

Hindi बल्रोग
Japanese バルログ (Balrogs)

ヴァララウカール (Valaraukar)

Kannada ಬಾಲ್ರೋಗ್ಸ್
Kazakh Балрог (Cyrillic) Balrog (Latin)
Korean 발록
Kyrgyz Cyrillic Балрог
Macedonian Cyrillic Балрог
Marathi बल्रोग
Mongolian Cyrillic Балрог
Nepalese बल्रोग
Pashto بالروګ
Persian بالروگ
Polish Balrogowie
Punjabi ਬਾਲਰੋਗ
Russian Балроги (Balrogs)

Валараукар (Valaraukar)

Sanskrit बल्रोग्
Serbian Балрог (Cyrillic) Balrog (Latin)
Sinhalese බල්‍රොග්
Tajik Cyrillic Балрог
Tamil பால்ராஹ்
Telugu బల్రొగ
Thai บัลร็อกส์ (Balrogs)

วาลาเราคาร์ (Valaraukar)

Ukrainian Cyrillic Балроґ
Urdu بالروگ
Uzbek Балрог (Cyrillic) Balrog (Latin)
Yiddish באַלראָג

References

  1. Parf Edhllen - valarauko
  2. The Silmarillion, Valaquenta: "Of the Maiar"
  3. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch. III: "Of the Coming of the Elves and the Captivity of Melkor"
  4. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch. IX: "Of the Flight of the Ñoldor"
  5. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch. XIII: "Of the Return of the Noldor"
  6. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch. XVIII: "Of the Ruin of Beleriand and the Fall of Fingolfin"
  7. The History of Middle-earth, Vol. V: The Lost Road and Other Writings, "Quenta Silmarillion"
  8. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch. XX: "Of the Fifth Battle: Nirnaeth Arnoediad"
  9. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch. XXIII: "Of Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin"
  10. The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch. XXIV: "Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath"
  11. The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A: Annals of the Kings and Rulers, III: Durin's Folk
  12. The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Ch. V: "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm"
  13. The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, Book Three, Ch. V: "The White Rider"
  14. The History of Middle-earth, Vol. II: The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, III: "The Fall of Gondolin"
  15. The History of Middle-earth, vol III: The Lays of Beleriand, III: "The Lay of Leithian"
  16. The Lord of the Rings, vol I: The Fellowship of the Ring, pg. 330
  17. The Silmarillion, Index of Names
  18. 18.0 18.1 18.2 The History of Middle-earth, Vol. V: The Lost Road and Other Writings, Part Three: "The Etymologies"
  19. Parma Eldalamberon 17, "Words, Phrases and Passages in Various Tongues in The Lord of the Rings"
  20. The History of Middle-earth, Vol. XI: The War of the Jewels, Part One: The Grey Annals, Notes
  21. The History of Middle-earth, Vol. III: The Lays of Beleriand, I: "The Lay of the Children of Húrin"
  22. GAME Watch - 「デビル メイ クライ 5」、「ダンテ」の武器や戦闘システムが明らかに

Notes

  1. Also spelled Valarauco and Valaraucar



External links

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