Cinematically, viewers were first introduced to Elrond in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings, as a warrior in the Last Alliance of Elves and Men. From there, viewers know him as the Lord of Rivendell and plays a crucial role in forming The Fellowship of the Ring during the Council of Elrond and is also a foster father to Aragorn, heir of Isildur, who eventually marries his daughter, Arwen. He is also a crucial character in The Hobbit, where he translates the moon-writing which reveals the secret door into Erebor for Thorin Oakenshield and company.
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Yet, with the revelation of Elrond as a central character in The Rings of Power, viewers are faced with a series of new questions. How old is Elrond? Where was he before he became Lord of Rivendell? How does he have such a close relationship with the men of Númenor? What does he do in the Second Age?
To answer these questions, readers need to go all the way back to the First Age, at what is arguably the darkest time in Middle Earth. During this time Morgoth (Tolkiens premier villain and the source of all evil in the world) has dominion over the majority of Beleriand. It is also during this time that Elrond and his twin brother, Elros, are born in the Havens of Sirion to Eärendil and Elwing. The relationship between Eärendil and Elwing is unique in that Eärendil is mortal and Elwing is elfkind, which makes Elrond and Elros the first half-man-half-elf beings since the children of Beren and Lúthien (who are also ancestors of Elwing).
Elrond and Elros’s childhood, however, is anything but happy. When they were only six, their home was attacked by the Sons of Feanor who were in search of a Silmaril currently in the possession of their mother, Elwing. While unsuccessful in claiming the gem, the conflict cost Elrond and Elros both their parents were taken hostage, then abandoned in a cave by their captors. The tale doesn’t end entirely in tears, however, for after taking pity on Elrond and Elros, one of their captors, Maglor, fosters the brothers. The end of the First Age is marked by, due to their half-elf-half-man heritage, Elros choosing to become mortal and known as Elros Tar-Minyatur, the first King of Númenor. Elrond chooses to be immortal and stay in Lindon as a captain and herald of Gil-Galad, the High King of the Noldor.
Once Elros and Elrond separate as do their fates. However, because of their familial ties, Elrond remains a friend of the descendants of Númenor, likely in part to his kinship ties through Elros. It is at this point in the story where viewers come across the youthful Elrond in The Rings of Power; known as a healer, loremaster, and working on mending alliances between the elves the dwarves of Khazad-dûm, likely assisted in part through a supposed friendship between Elrond and Prince Durin IV.
These events will likely occur in Lindon, the elf capital in Middle Earth, from a pre-released image of Elrond and Galadriel embracing in the city. This photo means that Elrond will either meet or be reunited with Galadriel in Lindon, whose daughter, Celebrian, will become his wife. Regarding Elrond’s marriage to Celebrian, it is uncertain whether this occurs in Lindon or later in Rivendell, or if it will even be an event that occurs in The Rings of Power.
Elrond’s time in Lindon is a period of relative peace until the War of the Elves and Sauron. By this time, Sauron has returned and his true identity is known. He appears earlier in the timeline, not as Sauron but as the Maiar Annatar, but is denied entry into Lindon in part due to Elrond’s distrust of him. Sauron instead attacks Eregion, the home of Galadriel and her husband, Celeborn. Gil-galad sends Elrond with an army to Eregion to assist in the region’s defence, but Elrond is unsuccessful and flees North alongside Celeborn, thanks to the help of his friend, Durin IV, assaulting Sauron’s forces from the rear.
At this point in the story, Elrond founds Imladris (known to most as Rivendell), which is promptly besieged by Sauron’s forces. Elrond’s deliverance from the siege comes in the form of the descendants of his brother, Elros, the Númenóreans. Caught between the Númenóreans and the armies of Elrond and Gil-galad, Sauron’s forces are destroyed and peace is restored to Imladris.
In what will likely be later in The Rings of Power, viwers find Elrond in one of the most famous events of the Second Age; The Last Alliance of Elves and Men. There is a glimpse of this conflict in Peter Jackson’s prologue in The Fellowship of the Ring, when Isildur (descendant of Elros and kin to Elrond) cuts the One Ring from the hand of Sauron, spurring forward the events of The Lord of the Rings. Some details that are not revealed in this prologue, however, shape an understanding of Elrond fans don’t get a chance to see in the film.
One such detail is that Elrond rides into battle as Gil-galad’s herald and, after the Alliance emerges victorious, assumes the position of commander of the Elves. He also loses much in this battle, with the death of his King, Gil-galad and the deaths of his kinsman, Elendil, and Elendil’s son, Anárion. With this realization that Elrond is in mourning for much of kinsmen’s deaths, it makes his concession to Isildur to keep the One Ring rather than destroy it make more sense. Perhaps, Elrond is acting out of what he sees as kindness; an allowance to Isildur after the loss of his father and brother.
Regardless of Elrond’s motivation behind allowing Isildur to keep the Ring, it is clear through his history and kinship ties that Elrond has lost much in his many years on Middle Earth. First, with his separation from his parents and his brother’s choice to become mortal, then witnessing the slow decline and multiple deaths of the Elves because of Sauron’s onslaught. However, his connection to the race of Men through his father and brother, along with his friendship with Durin’s line, makes Elrond the primary diplomat of the Second and Third Ages. It will be interesting to see a younger, perhaps more optimistic, Elrond in The Rings of Power, as well as gain more understanding into how his perspective changes as time marches on.
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