Glorfindel

Glorfindel is a character of the legendarium of J. R. R. Tolkien. He is the Lord of the House of the Golden Flower, an Elf from the Noldor of Gondolin.
== Biography ==
=== First Age ===
Little is known about Glorfindel's history after the Exodus of the Noldor. According to The Book of Lost Tales, as one of the chief and noble followers of Turgon, he was appointed head of the House of the Golden Flower, one of the twelve houses of Gondolin. Glorfindel was loved and revered by all the Gondolinians.
He took part in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, also known as Nirnaed Arnoediad in 472 F.A.
He was an eyewitness to the coming of Tuor and later to the fall of Gondolin. At the council of lords, which Lord Turgon calls before the battle, Glorfindel suggests leaving the besieged city, but Turgon refuses this offer and orders a defense to the last. During the battle for the city, Glorfindel and his detachment held the The Great Market from the advancing Orcs. He intended to attack them from the flank and take the enemy by surprise, but in the end he himself fell into a trap and was surrounded. The detachment of the House of the Golden Flower, thus cut off from their comrades, fought valiantly against the enemy for several hours until a fire-breathing dragon appeared and crushed their ranks. Glorfindel and several of his strongest followers cut their way through the encirclement, but there were very few survivors of this battle. The orcs rushed after them in pursuit and could have killed them all, but the detachment of the House of the Harp, who had arrived in time, after rebelling against their treacherous leader Salgant, unexpectedly attacked the pursuers from an ambush and saved Glorfindel's detachment. After that, the elves of the House of the Golden Flower went to the "King's Square" located in the center of the city.
With most of the chieftains absent (Ecthelion wounded, Galdor busy in battle, and Egalmoth not yet arrived), Glorfindel joined Tuor in managing the defences of the King's Square. When Egalmoth arrived, bringing many women and children, he relieved Glorfindel of his post and set about strengthening the defences. Glorfindel rushed into battle again, but even he was unable to do anything when a dragon descended from the Avenue of Roses and broke their defences. With the dragon came Orcs and Balrogs led by their lord Gothmog. Ecthelion, sacrificing himself, was able to slay Gothmog and buy the Gondolinians some time. While the people of the city fled and King Turgon was slain, Glorfindel and his company bravely held the rear, losing most of his House in the battle. After they fled Gondolin through the Secret Pass of Idril, Glorfindel again defended the rear with a small group of surviving warriors.
When one of the Balrogs with a group of Orcs attacked their weakened group, Glorfindel, having entered into a duel with the demon, performed a great feat and saved the lives of Tuor, Idril and all the remaining Gondolinians. This feat atoned for Glorfindel's participation in the rebellion of the Noldor. The duel was long and stubborn. According to the legend "The Fall of Gondolin", Glorfindel managed to hit his opponent in the belly, but as he fell, the Balrog grabbed the long blond hair of the Elf, pulling him into the abyss. Glorfindel died in the fall. Later, his body was raised from the bottom by Thorondor, the leader of the eagles of Manwe, and buried with honors in a stone mound. On this mound, despite the godforsaken location, yellow flowers grew (possibly celandine flowers).
=== Return to Middle-earth and the War of the Ring ===
In the middle of the Second Age, Glorfindel returned from the Halls of Mandos by order of Manwë and, as Tolkien wrote, was sent to Middle-earth by the will of the Valar around 1600 S.E., that is, exactly when Sauron forged the Ring of Omnipotence and erected Barad-dûr. At that time, Numenor, where King Tar-Minastir ruled, still maintained good neighborly relations with the Elves of Middle-earth. Due to Glorfindel's self-sacrifice, the power of his fëa increased many times over and he practically became equal to a Maia clad in flesh. According to one version, he was sent as a predecessor of the Istari magicians or (according to another version) even together with the Blue Wizards.
During the days of the war with Sauron, Glorfindel was one of the military leaders of Gil-galad, and after his death - Elrond. Leading the Elven army of Rivendell, in alliance with the Gondorian army of the last king of the dynasty of Anarion, Earnur, he routed and scattered the army of Angmar in the Battle of Fornost, driving the Witch-king himself from the battlefield. It was he who prophesied that the Witch-king could not be defeated by a mortal man.
During the War of the Ring, Glorfindel led the armed forces of Rivendell and took a direct part in accompanying Frodo on the approaches to Elrond's lands, meeting him near the Crossing of Bruinen. When the company led by Aragorn was attacked by nine Nazgûl, he did not hesitate to give Frodo his horse Asfaloth, who took Frodo to the border of Rivendell, and together with Aragorn he pushed the nine Nazgûl back to the river, where they fell under the magical attack of Lord Elrond.
Glorfindel subsequently participated in the Council of Elrond, where the fate of the Ring of Omnipotence was decided.
After the destruction of the One Ring, he attended the wedding of Aragorn II Elessar and Arwen Undómiel.
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