The Rings of Power season 2 finale ends on an outdoor sequence filled with bright sunshine, epic mountainscapes, warm greenery, and gentle waterfalls. As Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) wakes to find herself in an unexpectedly peaceful environment, she asks, “What is this place?” to which Elrond (Robert Aramayo) says, “A sanctuary,” adding after a pause, “Protected by the Elven Rings.”
The scene goes on to address the dire straights that the Free People of Middle-earth find themselves in, but hold the phone. What is this place they’re suddenly resting in? Weren’t the Orc armies of the ascending Sauron just about to wipe them out? The answers lie in Tolkien’s lore, and while the finale doesn’t directly state it, one thing seems certain. We’re looking at the genesis of one of the most famous places in all Middle-earth: Rivendell.
For all intents and purposes, the final scene in season 2 is just another glade. Perfect for Elves? Sure. But still, nothing too special, right? What makes this, of all places, the top candidate for the famous Elven fortress?
Did We See Rivendell in The Rings of Power‘s Final Episode?
For one thing, The Silmarillion translates Rivendell (or its Elvish equivalent, “Imladris”) as “Deep Dale of the Cleft,” which matches the area we see at the end of the finale. For other reasons that we’ll see in a minute, the timing of this reveal points intensely toward the area being the location of the future Rivendell, too. To clear things up, Nerdist went straight to the source and asked Robert Aramayo his thoughts. Here’s how the (semi-helpful) conversation went:
Nerdist: It also looks like we’ve found nascent Rivendell at the end of episode eight of Rings of Power, season two.
Aramayo: Maybe…
Nerdist: Hrm, seems like Rivendell. And if it is Rivendell, how meaningful is it for Elrond and for you to arrive in that place?
Aramayo: Well, we never actually said that when we were shooting it, and there’s a lot of ambiguities as to where we are, and obviously, I asked those questions. But yeah, I think the thing is about Rivendell, and this is actually what I love about it, is we know how it begins. It begins as a strategic position. It doesn’t begin as something that means anything to anyone other than it’s a really good place to defend, and then it grows from there.
And that’s why I love so much about the development of that city. And what makes it so unique, actually, is that Elrond is able to slowly pour who he is, what he’s interested in, what he wants to preserve and project into the world, into this place that builds and builds and grows and then becomes a city. But it’s built from necessity. And if it were to be in the show, which I really hope it is, that’s where I’d love to begin. So, his relationship to it, if he was there, would be just, this is a cool place to stem the coming darkness.
The cryptic references to “knowing how it begins” and to Rivendell being a place of defense and safety are direct references to Tolkien’s source material. (Aramayo the confirmed Tolkien fanatic on set.) Let’s peel back the curtain on the source material and take a closer look at just how Rivendell came into being.
How Was Rivendell Founded in The Lord of the Rings Lore, and Who Founded It?
The best description of the genesis of Rivendell comes in the book Unfinished Tales. This is where we get the most detailed account of the siege of Eregion. It explains how Sauron’s armies attack the Elvish city (there’s no Adar in the original version), and the Dark Lord kills Celebrimbor and takes all of the Rings of Power except for the Three Elven Rings. In the proces of this pure and unstoppable display of power, Sauron confronts an army led by Elrond (sent by Gil-galad, but not with the High king present).
Elrond loses the battle, and the book says, “Elrond had gathered such few of the Elves of Eregion as had escaped, but he had no force to withstand the onset.” At this point, the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm help distract Sauron’s armies, and the text says, “Elrond was able to extricate himself, but he was forced away northwards, and it was at that time […] that he established a refuge and stronghold at Imladris (Rivendell).”
So there you have it, folks. The founding of Rivendell comes directly in the wake of Elrond’s defeat outside the walls of Eregion — which is precisely where we are in the Rings of Power story. Between the setting, the emphasis on Elrond, and the timing in the story, it’s hard to argue with the fact that we are, indeed, looking at the origin story for the Elf’s future home.
Rivendell’s Importance in The Lord of the Rings World
Rivendell’s founding is a cool story, and it’s barely the opening salvo of a story that will last for millennia. In the wake of its founding, Elrond uses Rivendell as a gathering point for those resisting Sauron. Eventually, the Elves and Men form the Last Alliance, and The Silmarillion says, “They marched east into Middle-earth gathering a great host of Elves and Men; and they halted for a while at Imladris.” When Tolkien says “a while,” he means it, too. A timeline in the appendices of “The Lord of the Rings” shows that they camp out there for three years before marching on Mordor.
After Sauron’s defeat at the end of the Second Age, Rivendell becomes a critical spot for the preservation of lore — and we don’t just mean a glorified library. Rivendell is the one place on Middle-earth where the history of Isildur’s regal family line (and the broken pieces of his father’s sword) are remembered and maintained until a certain young fella named Aragorn shows up to fulfill his destiny.
Elrond lives in Rivendell for all of the Third Age. He gathers Elves and other good folks, dispenses exceptional advice, and preserves important knowledge and heirlooms. The Silmarillion summarizes this by saying, “The house of Elrond was a refuge for the weary and the oppressed, and a treasure of good counsel and wise lore.” In the end, after the One Ring is destroyed, Rivendell remains one of the last Elven havens before the last leaders of the immortal folk dwell until, one by one, they sail away to the Undying Lands in the West.
Rings, Elven Realms, and Rivendell
One key element of Rivendell’s history is that it is the home of one of the Three Elven Rings. The Silmarillion explains that Sauron’s first defeat, the Three Rings are always at work. “[W]here they abode there mirth also dwelt and all things were unstained by the griefs of time.” The book adds, “The Elves perceived that the Ring of Sapphire was with Elrond, in the fair valley of Rivendell, upon whose house the stars of heaven most brightly shone.”
Galadriel keeps her Ring, Nenya, in Lothlórien. We see how the Three Rings play critical roles in protecting and preserving these areas when, in The Fellowship of the Ring book, right before Galadriel reveals her Ring to Frodo, she says:
“Do not think that only by singing amid the trees, nor even by the slender arrows of elven-bows, is this land of Lothlórien maintained and defended against its Enemy.”
Tolkien makes it clear that both Rivendell and Lothlórien are preserved largely by the Rings of Power wielded by their leaders. The brief exchange between Elrond and Galadriel in the Rings of Power finale indicates that showrunners JD Payne and Patrick McKay are angling in that same direction in their adaptation.
Rivendell in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
So, what will the role of Rivendell be in The Rings of Power then? Assuming we’ve already seen it, it makes sense that heading into Season 3, the future fastness of Elrond will play a major role in catalyzing the Elven resistance to the resurgent Sauron. Gil-galad (Benjamin Walker) was already talking in sword or shield terminology as the credits rolled for season 2. Will they attack and bring the fight to Sauron, or fall back and play defense?
The source material actually does both. (First, they defend, and then they attack with the Last Alliance.) However, with the show’s condensed timeline, they might skip the first part of that process. Either way, there is little doubt that Rivendell will be at the center of the action for a long while to come — and Elrond Peredhel’s fascinating story arc will doubtless continue to unfold alongside it.
