Glamdring is Gandalf’s fabled one-handed sword. It is the second half of Gandalf’s fighting style and it handles much of Gandalf’s close-range attacks. It is known for its beauty, made with a very narrow sharp fine point, light in weight, making it easy to handle. Gandalf’s legendary sword has a whitish-blue glow when orcs are nearby, the brighter the glow the closer in distance orcs were. His sword was given the name, “The Foehammer” by the elves and “The Beater” by the goblins who saw most of the sword’s power.
Where was the Sword of Gandalf forged?
Glamdring was forged for Turgon, who was the elf king of Gondolin, during the first age. The sword itself was said to be white and gold. Additionally, the sword was sheathed in an ivory sheath. It isn’t mentioned how long Glamdring is but the movie sword is 47 inches long. The runes on the sword say, “Turgon, king of Gondolin, wields, has and holds the sword Glamdring, foe of Morgoth’s realm, hammer to the Orcs.” Although it is not mentioned what the runes say in the books the runes were made up by Peter Jackson’s movie team.
The Appearance of Gandalf’s Sword
This sword is double-edged with a cross hilt, which was not common among elven swords, which is how Elrond was able to pinpoint it being from the first age in The Hobbit. The elves supposedly had different swords then, according to J.R.R Tolkien as well.
The sword is most similar to historical bastard swords. Bastard swords were used in Europe to represent higher status versus the lower status weapons such as polearms and spears. A bastard sword can be used in one hand or two hands depending on the preference of the wielder. The bastard sword benefits in reach providing powerful leverage to the wielder. The bastard sword was found to be used by medieval European knights because common “men at arms” couldn’t afford to pay for a bastard sword. If you would like to own Glamdring, check it out here at the WB Shop.
The Hobbit
“It burned with a rage that made it gleam if goblins were about; now it was bright asblue flame for delight in the killing of the great lord of the cave. It made no trouble whatever of cutting through the goblin-chains and setting all the prisoners free as quickly as possible.”
Glamdring was known amongst all elves to be one of the most famous swords ever forged in the Lord of the Rings universe. The reason why this sword was made, was because they needed a weapon strong enough to defend against greater evils, such as the Balrog (Demon of Might) who is a creature of shadow and flame.
Notable events where Gandalf’s sword was used
The sword was used in two battles for Gondolin. The sword was used at the “fall of Gondolin” and “Nirnaeth Arnoediad,” in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears. The sword was wielded most likely by Turgon himself during these battles.
After this, there is very little known about what happened to the sword. The only thing that we know is that it ended up in the troll cave where Gandalf found it after turning the 3 trolls, Bill, Tom, and Bert, to stone. After that, the sword was wielded by Gandalf the Grey and Gandalf the White, effectively. The sword was worn by Gandalf for 80 years and was then stored at Minas Tirith in the vaults.
The sword was used to kill the Balrog at the bridge of Khazad-Dum, in “The Battle of the Peak.” After Gandalf and the Balrog fell from the bridge of Khazad-Dum, they fought for 10 days while Gandalf was burned and froze in the lake at the bottom. Gandalf finally killed the Balrog, as it fell and broke the mountainside. Afterward, Gandalf the Grey died. Afterward, Gandalf was resurrected by Eru, a supreme deity, after his body lay for 19 days, he was reborn and was then known as Gandalf the White, who was more powerful than Gandalf the Grey.
The sword also killed the Great Goblin in The Hobbit as well. The great goblin called the sword the “Beater” when he saw Gandalf. During the escape from the Great Goblin’s Hall at Mount Gundabad, Gandalf the Grey stabbed the Great Goblin King to his death. Gandalf saved his dwarven companions from captivity. They then escaped from the horde of goblins to safety.
How Beater came into Gandalf’s possession?
Gandalf found the sword in the cave treasury near the trolls as Bilbo Baggins heads out with his party towards Rivendell, the city of the elves. Gandalf found the sword along with Thorin’s sword Orcrist, and Bilbo’s sword, Sting amongst the troll loot. Orcrist was said to be Glamring’s “mate” or sister sword. These swords were forged so that it would alert the wielder to orcs nearby. The movie showed that Gandalf’s sword didn’t glow but in fact, his sword does glow when orcs are nearby, regardless of what the movie shows.
Gandalf’s fighting style with his sword
Gandalf dual-wields Glamdring along with his wizard’s staff. This suggests that his defense is his offense. This gives Gandalf some range with his staff, and some slicing power for close up enemies with Glamdring.
History of Glamdring
When the sword was found by Gandalf the sword was approximately 6900 years old. the sword was forged in the first age around the time Turgon built Gondolin. Later, Turgon died with the sword. Then the sword resurfaced in the troll’s layer to be found by Gandalf.
Speculation of how the Foe Hammer came to be found in the troll lair
Really anything could have happened in the years after the sword was lost but here is a possible scenario. After Turgon died with the sword in the “fall of Gondolin,” the sword could have been claimed by the enemy from Morgoth. It is most likely that someone on the opposing side claimed it, since it is found in a troll cave, which was associated with Morgoth. After claiming it, the sword could have been brought to many locations before appearing in the troll camp. Gandalf said that the trolls might have come down from the Ettenmoors before arriving at the cave in The Hobbit, so it could have been there before the troll cave.