This article is about the daughter of Númenórean King Tar-Palantir. For the Elven mother of Fëanor, see Míriel. |
Tar-Míriel or Ar-Zimraphel was the daughter of King Tar-Palantir, and last rightful heir of Númenor. She would rule briefly as Queen Regnant while Ar-Pharazôn's armada defied the Ban of the Valar and incurred Númenor's destruction.
Biography[]
Zimraphel was born in SA 3117 to Inziladûn (or Tar-Palantir), and was called Míriel in Elvish. Upon a time, she may have been sought after by Elentir, Amandil's brother and Elendil's uncle,[3] but was herself enamored by Pharazôn, her cousin, who was wealthy and highly esteemed. A relationship could have easily arisen between them, as Pharazôn was often abroad, in Númenor's exploits on Middle-earth's coasts.[4]
As the only child of Tar-Palantir, Míriel should have been the Ruling Queen, Pharazôn usurped her throne in SA 3255, becoming Ar-Pharazôn, and married her against her will, reneming her Ar-Zimraphel (as Ruling Queen, she would have preferred the Quenya Tar- and been Tar-Míriel).
Ar-Pharazôn thereafter sailed to Middle-earth upon hearing of the conquests of Sauron, and defeating him, brought him back to Númenor. However, Sauron, in his fair form, corrupted the minds of many Númenóreans, including Ar-Pharazôn and his counselors. The culture of Númenor quickly became more evil, Sauron turning many towards worship of Melkor and the defilement of many good things in the hopes of evading death. Eventually, Ar-Pharazôn became desperate, and Sauron convinced the king to break the Ban of the Valar by sailing to Valinor, saying by this he could gain eternal life.[5] The king amassed the Great Armament in 3319, and embarked westward to attempt this, during which time Tar-Míriel ruled in his absence as Queen Regnant.[6]
For Ar-Pharazôn and his fleet's defiant action, and his setting foot in Valinor, Eru destroyed Ar-Pharazôn and his armada, and rent an enormous chasm under the Sea to destroy Númenor. Amid the tumults, Míriel sighted a giant wave approaching to engulf the city, and attempted to ascend Meneltarma, but was caught by the waters and drowned before reaching the summit, as all of Númenor slid into the depths.[1][5]
Appearance[]
She was "fairer than silver or ivory or pearls",[5] and "smaller" in body than most Númenórean women.[2]
Etymology[]
Tar-Míriel is Quenya for "High-Jewel-daughter", from the word mír ("jewel").[7] Ar-Zimraphel was the Adûnaic translation.[8]
In other versions[]
In another account, Míriel chose to marry Ar-Pharazôn voluntarily after being infatuated by his beauty and wealth.
Gallery[]
House of Elros[]
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Tar-Telperiën |
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| Tar-Ciryatan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Tar-Atanamir | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Tar-Ancalimon |
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| Tar-Telemmaitë | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Herucalmo |
| Tar-Vanimeldë | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Tar-Alcarin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Tar-Calmacil | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Tar-Ardamin |
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| Gimilzagar | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Ar-Adûnakhôr | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Ar-Zimrathôn | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Ar-Sakalthôr | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Ar-Gimilzôr | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tar-Palantir |
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| Gimilkhâd | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tar-Míriel |
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| Ar-Pharazôn | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In adaptations[]
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power[]
Míriel is portrayed by American actress Cynthia Addai-Robinson in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, in which she begins as the Queen-regent of Númenor in an alternate Second Age, presiding over the land in place of her dying father, Tar-Palantir.
Season One[]
Míriel is first seen in the King's Court with Pharazôn (who is given a different occupation in the series: Númenor's Chancellor) before a large crowd, when Elendil, having discovered Galadriel and Halbrand on the remnants of a raft at sea, brings the pair before the Queen-regent. Galadriel demands passage back to Middle-earth and nearly creates open hostility by her forceful manner before Halbrand interjects and brokers a tentative agreement for her request to be considered. Afterwards, Míriel summons Elendil back and questions him about his motives for bringing Galadriel to Númenor, though Elendil dismisses any suggestion he is friendly to the Elves. Míriel then orders him to keep watch over the Elf until a further decision can be made, though she visits her bedridden father, Tar-Palantir, to notify him of the perceived turning-point that has occurred.
Míriel dreams of the destruction of Númenor by a great wave, though she initially is unsure of its meaning. That day, she hosts Galadriel for an audience, in which the Elf demands military aid to go to the Southlands. Upon being denied this, Galadriel demands an audience with Tar-Palantir, which leads Míriel to throw Galadriel in prison. Míriel decides that Galadriel will be sent back to Middle-earth alone. On learning of this, Galadriel escapes her captors and breaks into the tower where Tar-Palantir dwells, though Míriel anticipated this and awaits her there. In order to show her the vision she herself has had, Míriel allows Galadriel to look into the palantír housed there.
Galadriel is soon escorted to the docks to depart, but just as she enters the boat, Míriel is the first to notice the white leaves of Nimloth falling. Alarmed, she changes her mind and announces her intent to accompany Galadriel to the Southlands with an army, for the dual purpose of rescuing its people and installing Halbrand as king. Amid uncertainty over Halbrand's willingness to go, Míriel is challenged by those in Númenor who oppose the action, namely Pharazôn's son Kemen, who burns two of the five ships set apart for the voyage. Míriel stays the course after Galadriel convinces Halbrand to return to Middle-earth, and sails with the small fleet.
After making landfall on the east bank of the Anduin, the Númenórean cavalry rides to Tirharad and vanquishes the contingent of Adar's army there, while Míriel and her personal guard observe from a distance. Afterwards, she partakes in celebrating with the Southlander survivors, and introduces Halbrand to them as their rightful king. Just then, all present is taken aback when Orodruin erupts, sending ash and fire over the surrounding lands. In the following chaos, Míriel attempts to help the survivors, but is caught in a burning structure and only just rescued by Isildur, son of Elendil. Isildur is presumed dead, but Míriel is rendered blind by the ash, though she initially tries to hide the fact as Elendil leads her back to the Númenórean camp. Once there, she pronounces a return to Númenor, but also that she will come back to Middle-earth with an even greater force. Elendil is grieved at this prospect, but reaffirms his loyalty to her and to the cause of the Faithful on the return voyage. In their absence, however, King Tar-Palantir has died.
Season 2[]
Míriel finds herself in a complex situation when she returns to Númenor. Thanks to her bracelet that allows her to access the tower where the palantír is, she discovers that it has disappeared. She was crowned shortly afterwards (becoming Tar-Míriel) wearing a white dress which, according to Pharazôn, was a symbol of Númenor's past glory. As the coronation has just begun, Elendil's daughter Eärien brings the palantír and reveals to the assembly in the room that Queen Míriel's choices are guided only by this vision stone, and that she is completely blinded. Tar-Míriel, although weakened, stands up in the face of Eärien's accusation, refusing to part with the palantír, symbol of her vision for Númenor.
The atmosphere became tense and the assembly was divided between those who supported the queen and those influenced by Ar-Pharazôn. The latter, a skilled manipulator, offers to take charge of the destruction of the artifact, playing on the fears of the assembly. Míriel, feeling her authority wavering, decides to protect the palantír at all costs, and alienates part of the assembly. Some rebelled and tried to attack the queen, who was hardly protected by the royal guards. It is then that a majestic eagle enters the throne room, causing an impressive silence among the assembly. The powerful symbol of the eagle is usually interpreted as a good omen, and many believe that it came to support Queen Míriel. However, to everyone's surprise, Pharazôn calmly approaches the bird, using its presence to bolster its authority. He lays his hand on the eagle, as if accepting it as a sign of his own legitimacy, thus turning the omen in his favor. This bold move tilted part of the assembly to his side, exacerbating tensions and leaving Míriel in an increasingly difficult position.
Ar-Pharazôn has become king and Míriel is in the King's Tower, along with Elendil. The latter supports her and is ready to carry out a coup d'état for her. She asks him what he saw in the Palantir. The captain is seen leaving the capital on horseback, as if lost. Míriel is relieved, the stone no longer shows the Downfall of Númenor as it has in recent years. She is willing to sacrifice herself and believes that her cousin's appointment to the throne has ended the threat. She asks Elendil to do nothing and to accept the new power without reacting.
Elendil receives a visit from his daughter in his cell. Eärien begs him to change his mind and swear loyalty to the king, forgetting his pride. The captain replied that it was out of honour and faith and that they had nothing more to say. She then brings in Míriel who begs him in turn, but Elendil is adamant in his choices. The Valar will decide the truth.
Elendil is brought before the sea to undergo his Trial by Abyss.[citation needed] Míriel then appears and asks to take her place, as he is accused because of her. This is his right according to the tradition of Númenor. Elendil doesn't want to, but she makes him understand that she must show the way to the Faithful and not him. She submits to the trial and the sea-worm does not devour her, but throws her back on the beach. She is innocent, a woman then chants the name of Tar-Míriel, Queen of the Sea, to the great disappointment of Ar-Pharazôn.
Ar-Pharazôn is in trouble. He accuses Míriel of having used the magic of her supposed ally Sauron to pass the Trial by Abyss. All of the Faithful are considered traitors and arrested by the guards. Elendil escapes them thanks to his daughter Eärien and goes to the queen regent to get her to leave the city. Míriel refuses to leave. She gives the captain of the sword Narsil as a gift and asks him to flee to the west of the island. After Elendil leaves, Míriel is arrested and taken in handcuffs before the king.
Translations[]
Foreign Language | Translated name |
Amharic | ጣር፡ሚሪኤል |
Arabic | طارء ميريل |
Armenian | Տար-Միրիել |
Assamese | টাৰ-মিৰিয়েল |
Belarusian Cyrillic | Тар-Мірыэль |
Bengali | টার-মিরিয়েল |
Bulgarian Cyrillic | Тар-Мириел |
Chinese | 塔爾-密瑞爾 |
Danish | Tar-Míriel (dronning) |
Dogri | तार-मिरीएल |
Georgian | ტარ-მირიელი |
Greek | Ταρ-Μίριελ |
Gujarati | તાર-મિરીલ |
Hebrew | טאר מיריאל |
Hindi | टर्-मिरियल |
Japanese | タル=ミーリエル |
Kannada | ತಾರ್-ಮಿರಿಯಲ್ |
Kazakh | Тар-Мириел (Cyrillic) Tar-Mïrïel (Latin) |
Konkani | तार-मिरीएल |
Korean | 타르 미 엘리 엘 |
Kurdish | تار-میریێل (Sorani) Tar-Mîrîl (Kurmanji) |
Kyrgyz Cyrillic | Тар-Мириэл |
Macedonian Cyrillic | Тар-Мириел |
Malayalam | ടാർ-മിറിയേൽ |
Marathi | टार-मिरिएल |
Mongolian Cyrillic | Тар-Мириэль |
Nepalese | टार-मिरिएल |
Persian | طار-میریل |
Punjabi | ਤਾਰ-ਮਿਰਿਅਲ |
Russian | Тар-Мириэль |
Sanskrit | टर्-मिरिएल् |
Serbian | Тар-Миријел (Cyrillic) Tar-Mirijel (Latin) |
Sindhi | تار-ميريل |
Sinhalese | ටාර්-මිරියෙල් |
Tamil | தார்-மிரியல் |
Tatar | Тар-Мириел |
Telugu | టార్-మిరియల్ |
Thai | ทาร์-มิเรียล |
Ukrainian Cyrillic | Тар-Міріель |
Urdu | طارء ماریل |
Yiddish | טאַר-מיריעל |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Unfinished Tales, Introduction, Part Two, III: The Line of Elros: Kings of Númenor
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The History of Middle-earth, Vol. XII: The Peoples of Middle-earth, pgs. 160-162
- ↑ The History of Middle-earth, Vol. XII: The Peoples of Middle-earth, chapter V: "The History of the Akallabêth"
- ↑ The Fall of Númenor, pgs. 167-8
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 The Silmarillion, Akallabêth (The Downfall of Númenor)
- ↑ The Fall of Númenor, pg. 169
- ↑ The Silmarillion, Appendix: Elements in Quenya and Sindarin names
- ↑ The Silmarillion, Index of Names