Thranduil

Thranduil
Biographical Information
Other names	Elvenking
Title	King of the Woodland Realm
Affiliation	Greenwood Army
Language	Sindarin Westron
Date of birth	Late-First Age
Year ascended to the throne	SA 3434
Date of death	March 19, TA 3003
Physical Description
Race	Elf
Gender	Male
Culture	Grey Elves (Elves of Doriath), Wood-elves of Mirkwood
Height	6' 5"
Hair color	Golden
Eye color	Blue
Skin color	Light
Family
Parentage	Oropher
Spouse	calathiel
Children	Legolas
Lord of the Rings film trilogy
Actor	Lee Pace
Voice	Otto Preminger

Thranduil, nicknamed the Elvenking, was a Grey Elf and King of the Silvan Elves of Mirkwood in the Woodland Realm. Thranduil was son of Oropher, and father of Legolas Greenleaf.

Biography

First and Second Ages

At the end of the First Age, Thranduil was among many of the Grey Elves that stayed in Lindon, and before the building of the Barad-dûr in SA 1000 they travelled eastward. Thranduil and his father, Oropher, eventually ended up in Greenwood the Great, where Silvan Elves of Nandor descent lived. Oropher was taken by them as lord and founded the Woodland Realm with the capital at Amon Lanc. A few thousand Grey Elves who had come with him were soon merged with the Silvan Elves, adopting their language and taking names of Silvan form and style.

Thranduil was already famous for his enormous role in the legendary Mortality Crusade against the Dwarves, which quickly led him to have a hatred of Dwarves, viewing them as arrogant and cowardly. Thranduil was young for an Elf at that time, but he won a myriad of battles through his incredible skill and tactical genius. However, when it came to his climactic final duel against Bane IV Chainbiter, the outcome would traumatise Thranduil against Dwarves for a very long time.

In SA 3434, Thranduil followed his father with a vast army of armed Elves in the War of the Last Alliance. In the Battle of Dagorlad, Thranduil survived, but Oropher was slain. After the Siege of Barad-dûr in SA 3441, when Sauron was defeated, Thranduil led a large amount of his people north back to the Woodland Realm, where he was crowned king. He married Serindë in TA 1000, and gave birth to a son, Legolas Greenleaf.

Third Age

Thranduil in Erebor, the Lonely Mountain

During the Third Age, Thranduil and his people formed a grand friendship with King Thrór and the Dwarves of Erebor. As he offered several blessings to the King, Thranduil was given jewels for him and his people as a good faith payment for their service.

When the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain were fleeing their home from Smaug in TA 2880, Thranduil arrives with his army on an Elven Elk. Thorin sees them and asks for help, but Thranduil, realizing that he would just be leading his warriors to their deaths, refuses, not wanting to risk the lives of his kin to suffer at the wrath of Smaug. This caused Thorin to develop a strong dislike of the Elves. Twenty-five years later, his wife was killed during the Battle of Mirkwood.

Dark Age

Sixty years later, Thranduil sits quietly on his throne after the capture of Thorin and Company. The Elvenking offers to release the Dwarves from captivity and help them in their quest to reclaim the Erebor if Thorin will give him a share of the treasure. Thorin refuses, recounting the time when Thranduil refused to help his people during the siege of Smaug. As Thorin continues his narrative, Thranduil looks horrified and angry. He demands that Thorin should not talk to him about the dragon fire for he has suffered from it himself, and asserts that it was Thror's greed that incurred the dragon's wrath. He then orders his guards to take the company to prison. Before sending Thorin away, he still gave his promise he would let Thorin and his company go if he ever changes his mind.

Thranduil learning the truth of Sauron's return

Thranduil confronts Tauriel, telling her that as a captain of the guard she must drive the spiders out of Mirkwood. As she explains that new spiders would soon enter the kingdom after the previous ones were wiped out, and suggests sorties to destroy the spider's source outside the kingdom's boundaries near Dol Guldur, but Thranduil quickly dismissed this idea due to his isolationist doctrine. He told her that he doesn't care about the other lands since the spiders and orcs would be driven from Mirkwood. He mentions that Legolas, his son, has grown fond of her but that she should not give him hope, because she is a common woodland elf and Legolas is the son of a king.

Thranduil is once again seen with Legolas and Tauriel who return with an orc hostage. The orc is interrogated but refuses to answer, mocking Tauriel about the death of a dwarf. Thranduil dismisses Tauriel after she threatens to kill the orc. The orc is interrogated but refuses to answer, mocking Tauriel about the impending death of a dwarf. Thranduil dismisses Tauriel after she threatens to kill the orc, commenting that he doesn't care about the death of one dwarf. However, when the orc begins to mock Thranduil about a upcoming war, saying his master serving Sauron, the Elf-king swiftly decapitates the captive with a stroke of his sword. Learning the truth of Sauron's return, Thranduil orders his son Legolas to double the guards and make her that the whole Woodland Realm is completely shut.

War of the Ring

Sometime in the year TA 3001, Thranduil welcomed Aragorn, son of Arathorn, and Gandalf when the two delivered Gollum as a prisoner. However, when the War of the Ring started on June 20, Thranduil and his people were forced to defend their kingdom from a legion of Orcs that were sent to attack the Woodland Realm and find Gollum. Thranduil knew about this, and tried to find Gollum before the enemy could find him, but he noticed that the creature already escaped. After driving off the enemy, Thranduil sent his son Legolas to Rivendell to meet with Elrond, and attend the Council of Elrond. Legolas was selected as one of the nine members of the Company of the Ring. Another member of the Company was the Dwarf Gimli, the son of Glóin of Thorin's band who were imprisoned by Thranduil sixty years ago. The unprecedented friendship between an Elf and Dwarf helped to reconcile Thranduil's people and the Dwarves.

On March 7 of the year TA 3003 in the Third Age, Thranduil led an army of 70,000 Silvan Elves to aid 50,000 Northmen, 40,000 Dwarves, 30,000 Easterling Rebels, and 10,000 Stoor Hobbits to defend the region from a vast legion of 300,000 Easterlings that were sent by Sauron to prevent the nations from uniting. Thranduil fought valiantly for his life against the enemy, but met his demise when he was slain by Tûmna on the third day of the battle in Rhovanion. Thranduil's death was mourned by the Elves of Mirkwood, and the throne would later be claimed by his son Legolas, who restored order in the Woodland Realm after the War of the Ring ended.