Gwaihir

Gwaihir
Biographical information
Other names	The Windlord, Gwaihir the Windlord
Birth	Possibly First Age
Weapon	Claws, beak
Physical description
Race	Great Eagles
Gender	Male
Eyes	Gold
Culture	Eagles of Valinor

Gwaihir, also known as Gwaihir the Windlord, was the greatest of the Great Eagles during the the Third Age. He is best known for his deeds during the events of The Hobbit and the War of the Ring.

Biography

Gwaihir was descended from Thorondor, the greatest Eagle who ever lived. It was said that he and his brother Landroval aided Thorondor in rescuing Beren and Luthien from Angband.

Great Eagles with Thorin & his company

At some point in his life Gandalf the Grey saved him from a poisoned arrow, probably Orcish. In TA 2941, Gwaihir saved Thorin and Company from Wargs and Orcs. He later arrived in the Lonely Mountain and fought in the Battle of Five Armies.

However it is up for debate if Gwaihir was one of the eagles that saved Thorin and Company, as it is said by Gandalf in Return of the King that Gwaihir has carried him twice, while the proper counting would be three if Gwaihir was Lord of the Eagles.

War of the Ring

In the summer of TA 3018, Gandalf the Grey asked Radagast the Brown to send word among his friends the birds to learn what they could of the Enemy's plans. The Great Eagles flew far and wide and gathered news of the Nazgûl and the mustering of Orcs and Wargs and the escape of Gollum from Mirkwood.

Gwaihir rescues Gandalf from Orthanc

Gwaihir went to Isengard to bring this news to Gandalf. In the early hours of September 18, he found Gandalf imprisoned by Saruman on the pinnacle of Orthanc. Gwaihir bore Gandalf away, and when the Wizard said that he needed a horse, Gwaihir set him down in the land of Rohan.

On February 17, 3019, Gwaihir was searching for Gandalf at the request of Galadriel when he found the Wizard atop the Silvertine. Gandalf had vanquished the Balrog in the Battle of the Peak, but the entrance to the Endless Stair had been blocked and he had been unable to escape from the mountaintop. Gwaihir once again bore Gandalf and he found his burden to be as light as a feather, for Gandalf's old life had been burned away and he had been reborn as Gandalf the White.

The Eagle brought Gandalf to Lothlórien and then at the Wizard's request he flew to seek news of the Fellowship. Aragorn and Legolas both saw him circling above the Emyn Muil. Gwaihir returned to Gandalf with the news that Merry and Pippin had been captured by Saruman's Uruk-hai.

Gwaihir against a fell beast

Gwaihir and his brother Landroval led a great company of Eagles to the Battle of the Morannon on March 25, 3019. They swooped in to attack the Winged Nazgûl, but the Nazgul fled when Sauron summoned them to fly to Mount Doom where Frodo Baggins stood at the Cracks of Doom with the Ring. After the Ring was destroyed, Mount Doom erupted and Frodo and Sam were stranded on a hill amid flowing lava and falling ash. Gandalf asked Gwaihir to bear him a final time. Accompanied by Landroval and Meneldor, Gwaihir raced swiftly to Mount Doom and with his keen sight, he spotted the Hobbits through the fumes. The Eagles lifted Frodo and Sam and bore them away to safety.

Etymology

The name Gwaihir comes from the Sindarin terms gwaew ("storm, wind") and hîr ("lord, master"), translating his name to "Windlord".

The earlier form of his name was Gwaewar.

Abilities

Gwaihir had keen eyesight and was the swiftest of the Great Eagles. He was large and strong enough to carry a grown man. Gwaihir was intelligent and was capable of speech.

Appearances in the Books and Films

Gwaihir appears in all books and films listed below:

• The Hobbit
• The Fellowship of the Ring
• The Two Towers
• The Return of the King

Portrayal in adaptations

The Lord of the Rings film trilogy

In The Fellowship of the Ring, Gwaihir arrives at Isengard to rescue Gandalf. Later in The Return of the King, Gwaihir, Landroval, and the other Great Eagles arrive at the Battle of Morannon and attack the Nazgûl and their fell beasts. After the destruction of the One Ring, Gwaihir bears Gandalf and rescues Frodo and Sam from the rocks of Mount Doom.

The Hobbit film trilogy

Gwaihir and his Eagles make a reappearance in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit film trilogy. During the An Unexpected Journey, soon after the confrontation in Goblin Town, Thorin and Company are pursued by Azog and his Warg-riders. Gwaihir and his Eagles arrive to rescue Gandalf. Thirteen eagles arrived in total, one for each member of the Company. The Eagles drop the Company off at Carrock.

Gwaihir and his Eagles are expected to return for the third installment, The Battle of the Five Armies, wherein they will fight during the Battle of Five Armies.

Video games

• Gwaihir makes a brief appearance in the video game The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age as a special power available to Berethor's Company.
• Gwaihir also makes an unnamed appearance in The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth as a power to use when playing as either Gondor or Rohan. Although he is unnamed - just called an eagle - it is possible that one of the eagles would be Gwaihir.

Controversy

It has been pointed out by several observers that the entire War of the Ring could have been over almost as quickly as it began if only Gandalf had requested that Gwaihir simply take the ring himself and delivered it to Mount Doom to have it destroyed. Whether or not this is a reasonable possibility is debatable, however, using logic, you can conclude that Sauron would have seen the ring and sent armies and the Nazgûl after him, thus eventually overpowering Gwaihir and ultimately giving Sauron the ring. This also is debatable because it is unknown how the wearing of the Ring on a claw or other appendage would affect an animal and Sauron's ability to see it with his Eye.

It should also be understood that the mission to bring the One Ring to Mordor was appointed to Frodo by the Council of Elrond. Only Frodo alone should risk holding the Ring, thus it was not Gwaihir's mission, nor was it his burden, to carry either the Ring or the Ring Bearer. This is addressed in the video game Lord of the Rings: War In The North, when this is suggested by the party to Gandalf.  Also, since a single poison arrow had nearly brought him down in the past, it would be reasonable to assume Gwaihir and the other eagles would be reluctant to fly over orc archers.

 

External link

• Gwaihir at Tolkien Gateway