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The Lord of the Rings is an epic high fantasy novel written by philologist and Oxford University professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit (1937), but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in stages between 1937 and 1949, much of it during World War II.[1] Although generally known to readers as a trilogy, Tolkien initially intended it as one volume of a two-volume set along with The Silmarillion; however, the publisher decided to omit the second volume and instead released The Lord of the Rings in 1954-55 as three books rather than one, for economic reasons.[2] It has since been reprinted numerous times and translated into many languages, becoming one of the most popular and influential works in 20th-century literature. The title of the book refers to the story's main antagonist, the Dark Lord Sauron, who had in an earlier age created the One Ring to rule the other Rings of Power, as the ultimate weapon in his campaign to conquer and rule all of Middle-earth. From quiet beginnings in the Shire, a hobbit land not unlike the English countryside, the story ranges across Middle-earth following the course of the War of the Ring through the eyes of its characters, most notably the hobbits, Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gamgee (Sam), Meriadoc Brandybuck (Merry) and Peregrin Took (Pippin). Along with Tolkien's other works, The Lord of the Rings has been subjected to extensive analysis of its themes and origins. Although a major work in itself, the story was only the last movement of a larger work Tolkien had worked on since 1917, in a process he described as mythopoeia.[3] Influences on this earlier work, and on the story of The Lord of the Rings, include philology, mythology, religion and the author's distaste for the effects of industrialization, as well as earlier fantasy works and Tolkien's experiences in World War I.[4] The Lord of the Rings in its turn is considered to have had a great effect on modern fantasy; the impact of Tolkien's works is such that the use of the words "Tolkienian" and "Tolkienesque" has been recorded in the Oxford English Dictionary.[5] The enduring popularity of The Lord of the Rings has led to numerous references in popular culture, the founding of many societies by fans of Tolkien's works,[6] and the publication of many books about Tolkien and his works. The Lord of the Rings has inspired, and continues to inspire, artwork, music, films and television, video games, and subsequent literature. Award-winning adaptations of The Lord of the Rings have been made for radio, theatre, and film. The story takes place in the context of historical events in Middle-earth. In those histories, prior to the start of the novel and not known to the main characters, Sauron forges the Ruling Ring in Mordor. In battle, Isildur cuts off Sauron's ring and claims it for himself. Isildur is later killed by Orcs, and the Ring is lost in the river Anduin. Over two thousand years later, Gollum murderously obtains the Ring whilst fishing in the river. Gollum keeps the Ring for nearly five hundred years before losing it, whereupon Bilbo Baggins finds it. Meanwhile, Sauron, whose spirit was kept alive by the Ring, reoccupies Mordor. Gollum sets out in search of the Ring, but is captured near Mordor and interrogated by Sauron, who learns of its finding by Bilbo. Gollum is set loose but is caught by Aragorn, Isildur's heir, and imprisoned by the Elves in Mirkwood. Meanwhile, Sauron sends forth his fearsome servants, the Ringwraiths, to seize the Ring. The novel begins in the Shire, as Frodo Baggins inherits the Ring from Bilbo; both are unaware of its origins. Gandalf the Grey, a wizard, learns of the Ring's history and advises Frodo to take the Ring away from the Shire. Frodo leaves, taking his gardener and friend, Samwise ("Sam") Gamgee, and two cousins, Merry and Pippin, to help him. They encounter the Ringwraiths whilst still in the Shire, but shake off the pursuit by cutting through the Old Forest, where they are aided by the enigmatic and powerful character Tom Bombadil. After passing the Barrow-downs with Tom's help, they stop for a night in the town of Bree. There they meet Aragorn who calls himself "Strider" and joins them as guide and protector. They leave Bree after narrowly escaping an attack by the Ringwraiths. On the journey to Rivendell, Frodo is wounded by the Ringwraiths who continue in close pursuit. At the Ford of Bruinen, Frodo and the others are rescued, as flood waters controlled by Elrond, master of Rivendell, rise up and overwhelm the Ringwraiths, sweeping them away. Frodo recovers under the care of Elrond. The Council of Elrond reveals much significant history about Sauron and the Ring, and news of the escape of Gollum from Mirkwood and Sauron's corruption of the wizard Saruman. The Council decides that the threat of Sauron is too great and that the best course of action is to destroy the Ring. This can be done only by returning it to the Cracks of Doom in Mordor, where it was forged. Frodo volunteers to take the Ring, and a "Fellowship of the Ring" is chosen to accompany him. The company is forced to travel through the Mines of Moria, where they are attacked by Orcs. Gandalf fights a Balrog and falls into a deep chasm; the others escape, and take refuge in the Elven forest of Lothlórien. With boats and gifts from the Lady Galadriel, the company then travel down the great River Anduin to Amon Hen. There Boromir, heir to the current Steward of Gondor, succumbs to the lure of the Ring and attempts to take it from Frodo, who breaks from the Fellowship and continues the trek to Mordor accompanied only by Sam. Orcs sent by Saruman and Sauron attack, killing Boromir and kidnapping Merry and Pippin. Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas pursue the Orcs into Rohan. Merry and Pippin escape when the Orcs are slain by the Rohirrim and find themselves in Fangorn forest where they befriend the tree-like Ents. Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas encounter Gandalf, who is now "Gandalf the White", in Fangorn forest. Gandalf travels with them to rouse Théoden, King of Rohan, and the Rohirrim to take a stand against Saruman's armies. Théoden initially decides to fight Saruman's forces at the fords of the river Isen, but upon hearing that those who defended that area have retreated to the fortress of Helm's Deep, he decides to make his stand there. Gandalf rides to Isengard; while Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn travel with Théoden and his nephew Éomer. After much fighting at Helm's Deep, the Rohirrim mount a final charge and drive the Orcs into a forest of Huorns, where they disappear, just as Gandalf arrives. The Ents destroy Saruman's remaining forces in Isengard. Gandalf, Théoden and the others arrive at Isengard: but Saruman refuses to see the error of his ways, and Gandalf strips him of his rank and most of his powers, and the Ents imprison him there. Pippin looks into a palantír, a seeing-stone that Sauron had used to communicate with Saruman, unknowingly leading Sauron to think that Saruman has captured the Ring-bearer. Gandalf takes Pippin to Gondor to remove him from the temptation of the palantír. Frodo and Sam capture Gollum and force him to guide them to Mordor. They travel a long and hard road, briefly aided by Boromir's brother, Faramir. Gollum betrays Frodo by leading him to the great spider Shelob in the tunnels of Cirith Ungol. Frodo is left unconscious by Shelob's bite, but Sam fights her off using Sting and the vial of light from Ëarendil's star — one of the Lady Galadriel's gifts. Sam, believing Frodo dead, takes the Ring, and Frodo is carried to the tower of Cirith Ungol by Orcs. Sauron begins his military assault upon Gondor, with the Witch-king of Angmar, greatest of the nine Ringwraiths, commanding Sauron's armies in the battle. Gandalf arrives at the City of Minas Tirith in Gondor with Pippin, to alert the Steward to the impending attack. Pippin becomes one of the Guards of the Citadel of Minas Tirith, while Merry becomes esquire to the King of Rohan. Aragorn takes Gimli and Legolas through the Paths of the Dead where he raises an undead army of oath-breakers. These help him to defeat the armies of the Corsairs of Umbar in southern Gondor, enabling the region's forces to sail to the aid of Minas Tirith at the Siege of Minas Tirith. Denethor, Ruling Steward of Gondor, believing both his sons are dead, loses hope and commits suicide. But with the timely aid of Rohan's cavalry and Aragorn's reinforcements, a significant portion of Sauron's army is defeated. King Théoden dies in the battle, but the Lord of the Nazgûl, the Witch-king of Angmar, is slain by Éowyn and Merry. Sam rescues Frodo from captivity; and they make their way through Mordor. After many hardships, they reach Mount Doom. Meanwhile, in the climactic battle at the Black Gate of Mordor, the vastly-outnumbered alliance of Gondor and Rohan fight desperately against Sauron's armies, with the intent of diverting Sauron's attention away from Mount Doom, which Frodo must reach in order to destroy the Ring. At the edge of the Cracks of Doom, Frodo falls to the lure of the Ring, and claims it for himself. He puts the Ring on his finger. Gollum struggles with Frodo for the Ring, and bites off Frodo's finger, Ring and all; but in so doing he falls into the fire, taking the Ring with him. The Ring is thus unmade the only way it can be: in the same fire in which it was forged. In the instant of its destruction, Sauron perishes, his armies fall apart, the Dark Tower crumbles into dust, the Ringwraiths disintegrate, and the war of the Ring ends. Amid the victory celebrations, Aragorn is crowned King of Gondor, and he marries Arwen, the daughter of Elrond and his long time love. Saruman escapes his captivity in Orthanc and enslaves the Shire; but the returning Hobbits raise a rebellion and overthrow Saruman in The Battle of Bywater. Merry and Pippin are acclaimed as heroes. Sam uses his gifts from Galadriel to restore and beautify the Shire, and marries Rosie Cotton. Frodo remains wounded in body and spirit and, accompanied by Bilbo and Gandalf, sails from the Grey Havens west over the Sea to the Undying Lands to find peace. Sam returns home, and eventually becomes Mayor, and is made a Counsellor of the North-kingdom by Aragorn. After Rosie's death, Sam leaves the Red Book of Westmarch with his daughter, and crosses west over the Sea, the last of the Ring-bearers. A dispute with his publishers, George Allen & Unwin, led to the book being offered to Collins in 1950. He intended The Silmarillion (itself largely unrevised at this point) to be published along with The Lord of the Rings, but A&U were unwilling to do this. After his contact at Collins, Milton Waldman, expressed the belief that The Lord of the Rings itself "urgently needed cutting", he eventually demanded that they publish the book in 1952.[citation needed] They did not; and so Tolkien wrote to Allen and Unwin, saying, "I would gladly consider the publication of any part of the stuff."[8] For publication, due largely to post-war paper shortages, but also to keep the price down, the book was divided into three volumes: The Fellowship of the Ring (Books I, The Ring Sets Out, and II, The Ring Goes South,) The Two Towers (Books III, The Treason of Isengard, and IV, The Ring Goes East,), and The Return of the King (Books V, The War of the Ring, and VI, The End of the Third Age, plus six appendices). Delays in producing appendices, maps and especially indices led to the volumes being published later than originally hoped — on 21 July 1954, on 11 November 1954 and on 20 October 1955 respectively in the United Kingdom, and slightly later in the United States. The Return of the King was especially delayed. Tolkien, moreover, did not especially like the title The Return of the King, believing it gave away too much of the storyline. He had originally suggested The War of the Ring, which was dismissed by his publishers.[22] The books were published under a profit-sharing arrangement, whereby Tolkien would not receive an advance or royalties until the books had broken even, after which he would take a large share of the profits[23]. An index to the entire three-volume set at the end of third volume was promised in the first volume. However, this proved impractical to compile in a reasonable timescale. Later, in 1966, four indices, not compiled by Tolkien, were added to The Return of the King.[citation needed] Because the three-volume binding is so widely familiar, the work is often referred to as the Lord of the Rings trilogy even though that is not how Tolkien intended it. From 1988 to 1992 Christopher Tolkien published the surviving drafts of the Lord of The Rings chronicling and illuminating with commentary the development of the text, in his History of Middle-earth series. The four volumes, 6 to 9 in the larger series carry the titles The Return of the Shadow, The Treason of Isengard, The War of the Ring, and The End of the Third Age, the last three being alternative titles suggested by Tolkien for the original divisions. Three film adaptations have been made. The first was J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings (1978), by animator Ralph Bakshi, the first part of what was originally intended to be a two-part adaptation of the story, it covers The Fellowship of the Ring and part of The Two Towers. The second, The Return of the King (1980), was an animated television special by Rankin-Bass, who had produced a similar version of The Hobbit (1977). The third was director Peter Jackson's live action The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, produced by New Line Cinema and released in three instalments as The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002), and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003). All three parts received nearly universal acclaim and were each nominated for multiple Academy Awards, including consecutive Best Picture nominations. The final instalment of this trilogy was the second film to break the one-billion-dollar barrier and won a total of 11 Oscars, including "Best Picture", "Best Director", "Best Screenplay", and "Best Musical Score". The Hunt for Gollum, a fan film based on elements of the appendices to The Lord of the Rings, was released on the internet in May 2009 and has been covered in major media.[53] In 1965, songwriter Donald Swann, who was best known for his collaboration with Michael Flanders as Flanders & Swann, set six poems from The Lord of the Rings and one from The Adventures of Tom Bombadil ("Errantry") to music. When Swann met with Tolkien to play the songs for his approval, Tolkien suggested a different setting for "Namárië", which Swann accepted.[54] The songs were published in 1967 as The Road Goes Ever On: A Song Cycle,[55] and a recording of the songs performed by singer William Elvin with Swann on piano was issued that same year by Caedmon Records as Poems and Songs of Middle Earth.[56] In 1990, Recorded Books published an audio version of The Lord of the Rings,[57] with British actor Rob Inglis – who had previously starred in one-man stage productions of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings – reading. Inglis uses distinct voices for each character and reads the entire text, including performing the songs.[58] A large-scale musical theatre adaptation, The Lord of the Rings was first staged in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 2006 and opened in London in May 2007. Dungeons & Dragons, which popularized the role-playing game (RPG) genre in the 1970s, features many races found in The Lord of the Rings, most notably halflings (another term for hobbits), elves, dwarves, half-elves, orcs, and dragons. However, Gary Gygax, lead designer of the game, maintained that he was influenced very little by The Lord of the Rings, stating that he included these elements as a marketing move to draw on the popularity the work enjoyed at the time he was developing the game.[61] Because D&D has influenced many popular video games, the influence of The Lord of the Rings extends to many of them as well, with titles such as Ultima, EverQuest, the Warcraft series, and the 'Elder Scrolls" series of games[62] as well as, quite naturally, video games set in Middle-earth itself. The Danish Tolkien Ensemble have released a number of albums that have set the complete poems and songs of The Lord of the Rings to music, with some featuring recitation by Christopher Lee. Another band that makes use of the songs and poems featured in the stories is the Russian Caprice. Beyond setting Tolkien's verse to music, the book has influenced many musicians. Rock bands of the 1970s were musically and lyrically inspired by the fantasy embracing counter-culture of the time; British 70s rock band Led Zeppelin are arguably the most well-known group to be directly inspired by Tolkien, and have several songs that contain explicit references to The Lord of the Rings ("Ramble On," "The Battle of Evermore," "Over the Hills and Far Away," and "Misty Mountain Hop"). The songs "Rivendell" and "The Necromancer" by the progressive rock band Rush were inspired by Tolkien. And Styx also paid homage to Tolkien on their "Pieces of Eight" album with the song "Lords of the Ring," while Black Sabbath's song, "The Wizard", which appeared on their debut album, was influenced by Tolkien's hero, Gandalf. The heavy metal band Cirith Ungol, took their name from a fictional place in Middle-Earth, Cirith Ungol. Later, from the 1980s to the present day, many Heavy metal acts have been influenced by Tolkien. Blind Guardian has written many songs relating to Middle-earth, including the full concept album Nightfall in Middle Earth. Almost all of Summoning's songs and the entire discography of Battlelore are Tolkien-themed. Gorgoroth and Amon Amarth take their names from an area of Mordor, and Burzum take their name from the Black Speech of Mordor. Enya wrote an instrumental piece called "Lothlórien" in 1991, and composed two songs for the film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring—"May It Be" (sung in English and Quenya) and "Aníron" (sung in Sindarin). Swedish keyboardist Bo Hansson released an instrumental album entitled Music Inspired by Lord of the Rings in 1970. In 1969 Tolkien sold the merchandising rights to The Lord of The Rings (and The Hobbit) to United Artists under an agreement stipulating a lump sum payment of £10,000[68] plus a 7.5% royalty after costs, payable to Allen & Unwin and the author.[69] In 1976 (three years after the author's death) United Artists sold the rights to Saul Zaentz Company, who trade as Tolkien Enterprises. Since then all "authorised" merchandise has been signed-off by Tolkien Enterprises, although the intellectual property rights of the specific likenesses of characters and other imagery from various adaptations is generally held by the adaptors.[70] Outside any commercial exploitation from adaptations, from the late 1960s onwards there has been an increasing variety of original licensed merchandise, from posters and calendars created by illustrators such as Pauline Baynes and the Brothers Hildebrandt, to figurines and miniatures to computer, video, tabletop and role-playing games. Recent examples include the Spiel des Jahres award winning (for best use of literature in a game) board game The Lord of the Rings by Reiner Knizia and the Golden Joystick award winning massively multiplayer online role-playing game, The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar by Turbine, Inc. Frodo Baggins is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. He is a principal protagonist of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. He is also mentioned in The Silmarillion. He was a hobbit of the Shire who inherited Sauron's Ring from Bilbo Baggins and undertook the quest to destroy it in Mount Doom. Frodo, a Hobbit, is introduced in The Fellowship of the Ring as the son of Drogo Baggins and Primula Brandybuck. At the age of twelve, Frodo lost both his parents in a boating accident, and was taken in by his mother's family, the Brandybuck clan. At twenty-one, Frodo was adopted by Bilbo Baggins, whom he thought of as his uncle (though Frodo was actually his first and second cousin once removed). Bilbo chose Frodo as his adoptive heir, and brought him to live with him at Bag End. The two shared the same birthday (22 September). During the next twelve years, Bilbo taught Frodo much of the Elvish language, and they often shared long walking trips together. Frodo, a Hobbit, is introduced in The Fellowship of the Ring as the son of Drogo Baggins and Primula Brandybuck. At the age of twelve, Frodo lost both his parents in a boating accident, and was taken in by his mother's family, the Brandybuck clan. At twenty-one, Frodo was adopted by Bilbo Baggins, whom he thought of as his uncle (though Frodo was actually his first and second cousin once removed). Bilbo chose Frodo as his adoptive heir, and brought him to live with him at Bag End. The two shared the same birthday (22 September). During the next twelve years, Bilbo taught Frodo much of the Elvish language, and they often shared long walking trips together. [edit] The Fellowship of the Ring The Fellowship of the Ring opens as Frodo came of age and Bilbo left the Shire for good on his one hundred and eleventh birthday. Frodo inherited Bag End and Bilbo's magic ring that was introduced in The Hobbit. Gandalf, at this time, was not certain about the origin of the Ring, so he warned Frodo to avoid using it and to keep it secret. Frodo kept the Ring hidden for seventeen years, until Gandalf returned to tell him that it was the One Ring of the Dark Lord, Sauron, who lacked only this to become all-powerful again and to be able to establish a virtually unending rule of darkness over Middle-earth. Realizing that he was a danger to the Shire as long as he remained there with the Ring, Frodo decided to leave his home and take the Ring to Rivendell, home of Elrond, a mighty Elf lord. He sold his beloved Bag End, and left the Shire with three companions: his gardener Samwise Gamgee and his cousins Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took. They escaped just in time, for Sauron's most powerful servants, the Nine Nazgûl, had entered the Shire as Black Riders, looking for Bilbo and the Ring. They followed Frodo's trail across the Shire and nearly intercepted him. At the Inn of the Prancing Pony in the village of Bree, Frodo met Aragorn, a Ranger of the North, who became the hobbits' guide while journeying through the wilderness towards Rivendell. The One Ring slipped onto Frodo's finger inadvertently in the Prancing Pony's common room, turning Frodo invisible. This attracted the attention of Sauron's agents, who ransacked the hobbits' rooms in the night. The group, under Aragorn's guidance, quickly fled through the Midgewater Marshes and again escaped the Black Riders. While encamped at Amon Sûl, they were found and attacked by five Ringwraiths. The chief of the Nazgûl, known as the Witch-king of Angmar, stabbed Frodo with a Morgul-blade, before all five were routed by Aragorn. A piece of this blade remained in his shoulder and, working its way towards his heart, threatened to turn him into a wraith under the control of the Witch-king. With the help of his companions and Glorfindel, Frodo was able to evade the remaining Ringwraiths and reach Rivendell. Although almost overcome by his wound, once there he was healed over time by Elrond; although it was said and later seen that the wound would never completely heal, as it was as much spiritual as physical. In Rivendell, the Council of Elrond met and resolved to destroy the Ring by casting it into Mount Doom in Mordor, the realm of Sauron. Frodo, realizing that he was destined for this task, stepped forward to be the Ring-bearer. A Fellowship of nine companions was formed to guide and protect him and together they set out from Rivendell. Frodo was armed with Sting, Bilbo's Elvish knife, and wore Bilbo's coat of Dwarven mail made of mithril, which saved his life when he was stabbed by an Orc-spear in Moria. The company, seeking a way over the Misty Mountains, first tried the Pass of Caradhras but then abandoned it in favour of the mines of Moria. They were led by Gandalf, until he fell in Moria battling a Balrog, and then by Aragorn. Frodo and many others were heartbroken by Gandalf's apparent demise as the company reached Lothlórien. There Galadriel, the Lady of the Woods, gave him an Elven cloak and a phial carrying the Light of Eärendil to aid him on his dangerous quest. Having then travelled some miles down the Anduin by boat, the Fellowship reached Parth Galen. There, Boromir, having fallen to the lure of the Ring, tried to take it by force from Frodo. Frodo escaped only by donning the Ring, which (as it always did) rendered him invisible. This was therefore the breaking of the Fellowship; Boromir was later slain defending Merry and Pippin from invading Orcs, who captured the two hobbits. Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas gave him a hero's funeral before setting out after them. Frodo chose to continue the quest alone, but Sam followed his master, joining him on the journey to Mordor. [edit] The Two Towers Frodo and Sam made their way through Emyn Muil, followed by the creature Gollum, who had been tracking the Fellowship since Moria. He sought to reclaim the Ring he had possessed for centuries. After Gollum attacked the hobbits Frodo subdued him with Sting. He then took pity on him, and made the decision to spare his life (just as Bilbo had once done), instead binding him to a promise to help the hobbits. Frodo demanded he guide them through the Dead Marshes to the Black Gate, which Gollum did. It was then that he mentioned that there was "another way" into Mordor, and Frodo, over Sam's objections, allowed Gollum to lead them south into Ithilien. It was there that Frodo and Sam saw an Oliphaunt with a company of Haradrim. They met Faramir, younger brother of Boromir, who took them to Henneth Annûn. There Frodo allowed Gollum to be captured by Faramir, an act which in fact saved his life, but left Gollum feeling betrayed by his "master". After giving them provisions, Faramir allowed the two hobbits and Gollum to go on their way, but warned Frodo about Gollum's treacherous nature. The three of them passed near to Minas Morgul, where Frodo felt the pull of the Ring almost unbearably. After hiding they witnessed a great Orc army leave under the command of the Witch-king. They began the long climb up the Endless Stair, and then at the top entered the tunnel, not knowing it was the home of Shelob. Gollum, having never actually said whether the pass was inhabited or not, hoped to deliver the hobbits to her and retake the Ring from her leavings. Shelob stung Frodo, sedating him, but she was driven off by Sam using Sting and the Phial of Galadriel. After attempting unsuccessfully to wake Frodo, Sam concluded that he was dead. He took the Ring from him in order to continue the quest. However, Orcs from Cirith Ungol soon found Frodo's body and knew that he was only paralysed, not dead. Planning to interrogate him after his awakening, they carried him into the tower at the head of the pass. [edit] The Return of the King Sam rescued Frodo from the Orcs of Cirith Ungol, and restored to him Sting and the Ring. Frodo, who had woken naked in the tower and assumed the Orcs had taken the Ring to Sauron, was enormously relieved. The two of them, dressed in scavenged Orc-armour, set off for Mount Doom, trailed by Gollum. They witnessed the plains of Gorgoroth empty as a result of the Armies of the West, which helped them greatly. However, at one point they only just managed to escape being drafted into an Orc-band by the Orcs of Mordor. With the Ring getting closer to its creator Frodo became progressively weaker as its influence grew. The hobbits' water ran out and they ditched all of their unnecessary items such as frying pans. When they finally reached the summit of the fiery mountain, Gollum reappeared and attacked Frodo, who beat him back. He continued on while Sam fought with Gollum. Having finally reached the Sammath Naur, or Crack of Doom, Frodo found himself unable to destroy the Ring, instead putting it on and claiming it for himself. Gollum got past Sam and attacked the invisible Frodo, biting off his finger, and finally regained his "precious". As he danced around in elation, Gollum lost his balance and fell with the Ring into the fire. The Ring was thus destroyed, Sauron's power lost and his realm ended. Frodo and Sam were rescued by Great Eagles as Mount Doom erupted. After reuniting with the Fellowship and attending Aragorn's coronation, the four hobbits returned to the Shire to find it had been taken over by a gang of ruffians. Led initially by Frodo's cousin, Lotho Sackville-Baggins, and then by the fallen wizard Saruman, they had terrorised the Shire. The four travellers roused their fellow hobbits and led them in driving the ruffians out. There they witnessed the deaths of both Saruman and Gríma. Frodo's part in the fighting was mainly to ensure that the ruffians who surrendered were not killed. Frodo never completely recovered from the physical, emotional and psychological wounds he suffered during the War of the Ring. He was taken ill on the anniversaries of his wounding on Weathertop and his poisoning by Shelob. He briefly served as Deputy Mayor of the Shire, but spent most of his time writing the tale of his travels. Two years after the Ring was destroyed, Frodo and Bilbo as Ring-bearers were granted passage to Valinor — where Frodo might find peace. They boarded a ship at the Grey Havens and together with Gandalf, Elrond and Galadriel, the Keepers of the Three Rings, they passed over the sea and departed Middle-earth. Having no children of his own Frodo left his estate, along with the Red Book of Westmarch, to Sam. According to Appendix D of The Lord of the Rings, Frodo’s birthday was made a festival in Minas Tirith.

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