Durthang was a fortress located in the mountains of northern Mordor, and one of the many Orc-holds along the northern mountains there.
It stood in the northern Ephel Dúath, on the slopes above Udûn and the Isenmouthe, which it in part watched over.[1]
History[]
It was originally built by Gondor after the War of the Last Alliance to keep watch on Mordor and prevent evil from entering there again. At first Durthang was like the other fortresses and castles built to watch over Mordor, fully maintained and manned. However, as Gondor's power began to decline, the fortress began to be neglected from the reign of Atanatar II. It was finally abandoned after the Great Plague that vastly depopulated Gondor and evil began to re-enter the formerly desolate land. The ruined fortress was repaired by Sauron upon his return to Mordor and was garrisoned by his forces during the War of the Ring.[2]
Frodo and Sam passed this castle when they headed to Mount Doom as they had to go northwards and then south to avoid Barad-dûr, and they found this castle to be vigilant and hostile. The castle sent out Orc-forces to march to Udûn for the Battle of the Black Gate, the battle which ended the War of the Ring in the south-east. The exact fate of Durthang remains unknown.
In adaptations[]
Durthang appeared on a 2002 official licensed map by New Line Cinema cartographer, Daniel Reeve for Decipher.
Durthang is a playable area in Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor.
Durthang appears in The Lord of the Rings Online, where it was originally named "Durthand", The Black Shield
Etymology[]
Durthang is Sindarin, meaning 'Dark oppression'.
Translations[]
Foreign Language | Translated name |
Amharic | ዱርታንግ |
Arabic | دورثانج |
Armenian | Դուրթանգը |
Belarusian Cyrillic | Дуртанг |
Bengali | ডুর্থাঙ |
Bulgarian Cyrillic | Дуртанг |
Chinese | 德桑城堡 |
Danish | Durthang ("Undertrykkelsens Mørke Fort") |
Greek | Δορθανγ |
Gujarati | દુથાંંગ |
Hebrew | דורתאנג |
Hindi | डुर्थङ |
Kannada | ಡುರ್ಥಾಂಗ್ |
Kazakh | Дұртһанг (Cyrillic) Durthang (Latin) |
Korean | 두르탕 |
Kyrgyz Cyrillic | Дуртhанг |
Macedonian Cyrillic | Дуртханг |
Marathi | दुथांग |
Mongolian Cyrillic | Дуртhанг |
Nepalese | दुर्थाङ |
Persian | دورتانگ |
Russian | Дуртанг |
Sinhalese | ඩර්ටැන්ග් |
Tajik Cyrillic | Дуртанг |
Tamil | தூர்தங் |
Telugu | దుర్ధన్గ్ |
Thai | ดัวร์ธัง |
Ukrainian Cyrillic | Дуртганґ |
Urdu | دورٹحنگ |
Yiddish | דורהאַנג |
Realms of the Dark Lords | |
---|---|
Years of the Trees | Utumno |
First Age | Dor-na-Daerachas |
Second Age | Mount Gundabad • Mordor |
Third Age | Witch-realm of Angmar • Mordor |
Fortresses | |
Beleriand | Angband • Tol-in-Gaurhoth |
Middle-earth | Barad-dûr • Black Gate • Carn Dûm • Dol Guldur • Durthang • Minas Morgul • Tower of Cirith Ungol • Towers of the Teeth |
References[]
- ↑ The Atlas of Middle-earth, Regional Maps, "Mordor (and Adjacent Lands)"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, Book Six, Ch. II: "The Land of Shadow"