Balin

Balin was a Dwarf leader, the son of Fundin, and elder brother of Dwalin. He was one of the thirteen Dwarves who accompanied Thorin II Oakenshield on the quest to regain the Lonely Mountain.
A Dwarf Lord known for his wise counsel and willingness to listen, he was one of Thorin's closest friends and advisers. Balin was distantly related to him, and a descendant of the noble House of Durin.
He later went to re-establish the Dwarf presence in Moria, but within five years it was overcome once more by Orcs, and he was killed there along with the rest of his companions.
== Biography ==
=== Early life ===
Balin was likely born in the Lonely Mountain before the coming of the dragon Smaug. He had a younger brother named Dwalin, and was amongst those driven from their homes when Smaug attacked the Lonely Mountain. Afterwards, he may have lived in Dunland as a refugee, before fighting in the War of the Dwarves and Orcs which culminated in the Battle of Azanulbizar. Many years later, in approximately TA 2841, he accompanied Thráin II, the father of Thorin, when he attempted to go back to the Lonely Mountain himself, but Thráin was captured and lost.The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, Annals of the Kings and Rulers, III. "Durin's Folk"
=== Quest of Erebor ===
Balin was part of the company assembled by Thorin Oakenshield in TA 2941 that journeyed to the Lonely Mountain with Bilbo Baggins and Gandalf to defeat Smaug, and to retake the kingdom of Erebor. He was the second Dwarf to arrive at Bilbo's home, where, like his brother Dwalin, he played a viol as big as himself.The Hobbit, Ch. I: "An Unexpected Party" Following the meeting's conclusion and the company's initial departure to the Green Dragon Inn, Balin spotted Bilbo hurrying to reach them before they set out.The Hobbit, Ch. II: "Roast Mutton"
Balin, along with his companions, underwent the journey through the Trollshaws and Lone-lands to Rivendell, including the encounter with the trolls Tom, Bert, and William. The company rested in Rivendell for some time, and after setting out to cross the Misty Mountains, were captured by Orcs on the High Pass, after taking refuge from a thunderstorm.The Hobbit, Ch. IV: "Over Hill and Under Hill" With Gandalf's help, the Dwarves escaped, and subsequently Balin was posted as a lookout when Bilbo returned, having been separated from the company during their flight. Due to Bilbo's usage of the One Ring, which he had discovered in the Orc tunnels, the Hobbit crept by Balin unnoticed, puzzling the Dwarf a great deal. Soon afterwards, the company was beset by Wargs, which forced them to climb a number of pine trees until their rescue by the Great Eagles.The Hobbit, Ch. VI: "Out Of The Frying-Pan Into The Fire"
The Eagles took them to their eyrie, and then to the Carrock, from whence the company traveled to the Beorn's hall. Gandalf decided to introduce the Dwarves by pairs so as not to overwhelm Beorn, and Balin and Dwalin were chosen to come first. Having been welcomed by the skin-changer and given rest and provisions, the company set out to cross the forest of Mirkwood.The Hobbit, Ch. VII: "Queer Lodgings" Despite having been warned to the contrary, the Dwarves eventually left the path after running low on supplies, and were soon waylaid by great spiders, which intended to eat them. Bilbo used the Ring to escape notice, and returned to free them. Balin afterwards led the company in escaping from and fighting off the spiders, though the Dwarves were captured by Wood-elves, and taken to the hall of the Elvenking, Thranduil. It was here that Balin spoke for his companions, arguing for their release. Thranduil refused, and imprisoned the Dwarves, until Bilbo again rescued the company.The Hobbit, Ch. VIII: "Flies and Spiders"
The Dwarves came to Lake-town,The Hobbit, Ch. X: "A Warm Welcome" and then to the Lonely Mountain. After opening the Side-door to the mountain,The Hobbit, Ch. XI: "On the Doorstep" Balin was the only member of the company willing to go with Bilbo some way inside. The hobbit, after unintentionally disturbing the dragon Smaug, returned to the Dwarves, but Smaug left his lair and attempted to kill the Dwarves before turning to Lake-town, with the intent to destroy it.The Hobbit, Chapter XII: "Inside Information" The dragon was there slain by Bard, and the Dwarves took possession of the mountain.The Hobbit, Ch. XIII: "Not At Home" Thorin and Balin, not long after, came upon the raven Roäc, who brought word of the dragon's demise.The Hobbit, Ch. XIV: "The Gathering of the Clouds"
Balin fought in and survived the subsequent Battle of Five Armies, which was fought against Orcs led by Bolg, after tensions with the Lake-men and Wood-elves had run high, due to a disagreement about the division of Smaug's treasure.The Hobbit, Ch. XVII: "The Clouds Burst" He took up residence at the Lonely Mountain afterwards with the surviving members of the company.
=== Visiting Bilbo ===
Seven years after the Quest for Erebor, Balin accompanied Gandalf to visit Bilbo in the Shire in TA 2949, since the two had become good friends during their travels. He and Gandalf gave Bilbo the news of current happenings in Middle-earth.The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, The Tale of Years, "The Third Age"
Sometime afterward in the coming years before his expedition in TA 2989, Balin would visit Bilbo at least one more time. During this visit to the Shire, Balin met Bilbo's newly adopted heir of Bag End, Frodo, and the young Hobbit would come to learn of some of Balin and his Uncle's travels to the lonely mountain.
=== Expedition into Moria ===
In TA 2989, Balin led an expedition in an attempt to reclaim the ancient Dwarf kingdom of Moria, hoping to re-establish Dwarven rule and to reclaim the last of the Seven Rings of the Dwarves.The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I: The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Ch. I: "Many Meetings" Though his king did not give his consent, Balin and company went anyway. Among his numbers were fellow members of Thorin's company Óin and Ori. While in Moria, he discovered Durin's Axe and a Mithril helm (possibly the crown of Durin l) and claimed them as his own. After the discovery of these items Balin, being a descendant of the line of Durin, claimed rulership over the Dwarven realm, taking the title Lord of Moria (his colony being too small to be counted as a kingdom). Ultimately, the search for the ring, which conferred great wealth and a curse of greed on its owner, was in vain, as it had been taken from Thráin II by Sauron.
=== Death ===
After ruling as Moria's Lord for about five years, Balin was slain by Orcs on November 10 TA 2994, after going to look upon the Mirromere alone. His body was recovered after a battle, and entombed in the Chamber of Mazarbul. The attempt to retake Moria ultimately failed afterward, as the rest of his kin we're eventually trapped and killed.The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I: The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, Ch. V: "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm" Ironically he died in the same place and the same way as his father had been slain 195 years before in TA 2799.
=== Legacy ===
Some twenty-five years later in TA 3019, the Fellowship of the Ring passed through Moria and discovered Balin's tomb, and the truth of what happened to his expedition, which had not previously been known, in the Book of Mazarbul. The knowledge of this brought much grief to Balin's cousin Gimli, who was a member of the fellowship.
== Characteristics ==
Balin was a discerning character, being described as the company's "look-out man": He spotted Bilbo approaching the Green Dragon Inn at Bywater; he spotted the trolls' fire, and; he was the first to spot the Elves in Mirkwood. He noted that not even a mouse had ever passed him on watch, and wondered why he did not notice Bilbo (hidden by wearing the magic ring) when he was lookout for the company after escaping the Orcs in the Misty Mountains. Among the Dwarves of the company, Balin was the second-eldest dwarf, and loosely held the position of deputy leader.
Balin gained respect for Bilbo's abilities, and was the only dwarf who volunteered to accompany Bilbo down the secret passage to Smaug's chamber. Of all the Dwarves in the quest, Balin was the only one known to have visited Bilbo at Bag End after their quest for the Lonely Mountain.
== In other versions ==
In early drafts of The Lord of the Rings in the 1940s, Balin had a son called Burin, who accompanied Bilbo Baggins from Bag End along with his fellow dwarves Anar, Hannar, Lofar and Nar.The History of Middle-earth, Vol. VI: The Return of the ShadowThe History of Middle-earth, Vol. VII: The Treason of Isengard
== In adaptations ==
thumb|199x199px|Balin (1977)
=== Rankin/Bass films ===
In the 1977 animated version of The Hobbit, he was voiced by Don Messick. He is one of the few Dwarves to have a major role in the film. 
=== The Hobbit film trilogy ===
In Peter Jackson's The Hobbit film trilogy, he was portrayed by Scottish actor Ken Stott. The studio released the following statement regarding Balin in the films:
A descendant of nobility and a Dwarf Lord in his own right, Balin is one of the oldest members of The Company of Dwarves. Wise and gentle by nature, he has been forced to live a life fraught with war and the ongoing struggle for survival. Related to Thorin Oakenshield, Balin is one of his closest, most trusted advisers – but deep in his heart, this wisest and most loyal of Dwarves harbors troubling doubts about the wisdom of the Quest for the Lonely Mountain.
In The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Balin shows his wisdom when he tells Fíli and Kíli and Bilbo about Thorin’s dislike for Orcs.
In The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, Balin persuades Bard the Bowman to take them safely to Lake-town in return for a huge amount of money (double Bard's usual barge fare), an event that did not occur in the book.
In The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, Balin fights in and survives the battle, during which he helps to man a dwarven war chariot and transport Dwalin, Fíli, and Kíli to Ravenhill. He later personally bids Bilbo farewell at his leaving.
Balin fights with a weapon with similarities to a sword and a mace, which Ken Stott, asked for himself. While in the book, Balin is about twenty years younger than Thorin, in Peter Jackson's three-part adaptation, Balin is ranked as the oldest member of the company.
===Games===
In The Lord of the Rings Online, Young Balin makes a cameo appearance in a flashback sequence depicting the Battle of Azanulbizar. Older Balin makes another silent cameo during the Company's departure for the Quest of Erebor. In the present day, the fate of Balin's expedition in Moria is uncovered by the sons of Bifur and Bofur.
==== Personality ====
Balin is portrayed to be the wiser, more social and sceptical individual in Thorin and Company. He is kind, sly and brave, an excellent fighter. Thorin, at one point, notes Balin's skill as a fighter. He develops an essentially strong relationship with the other Dwarves he travels with and is willing to fight alongside them for any cause. He is sympathetic, sometimes cynical, towards Bilbo Baggins, remarking that the latter wasn't fit for the job they had set out to do. He got on brilliantly with Thorin, and seemed to share something of a grandfatherly view of the latter.
=== Voice dubbing actors ===
Foreign Language 	Voice dubbing artist
Japanese 	Takashi Inagaki (稲垣隆史)
French (France) 	Jean-Claude Donda
Spanish (Latin America) 	Jaime Vega
Spanish (Spain) 	Jordi Vila
German 	Alexander Pelz
Italian (Italy) 	Carlo Valli
Portuguese (Brazil) (Television/DVD)	Pádua Moreira / Isaac Schneider (AUJ)
Polish 	Zdzisław Wardejn
Czech 	Oldřich Vlach
Slovak 	Dušan Kaprálik
Hungarian 	Endre Botár
Russian 	Aleksei Borzunov (Борзунов, Алексей Алексеевич) † (AUJ)Boris Bystrov (Быстров, Борис Евгеньевич) (DOS)
Ukrainian 	Eugen Maluha (Євге́н Малу́ха)
Thai 	Suphap Chaiwisutthikun (สุภาพ ไชยวิสุทธิกุล)
== Appearances ==
=== Books ===
*The Hobbit
*The Fellowship of the Ring (Mentioned only)
=== Films ===
*The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
*The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
*The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
*The Hobbit (1977 animated film)
*The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Mentioned and Tomb only)
== Gallery ==
==Translations==
Foreign Language 	Translated name
Amharic 	ባሊን
Arabic 	بالين
Armenian 	Բալին
Belarusian Cyrillic	Балін
Bengali 	বলিং
Bulgarian Cyrillic 	Балин
Burmese 	ဘာလင်
Chinese (Hong Kong)	巴林
Georgian 	ბალინი
Greek 	Μπάλιν
Gujarati 	બલિન્
Hebrew 	באלין
Hindi 	बलिन्
Japanese 	バーリン
Kannada 	ಬಾಲಿನ್
Kazakh 	Балин (Cyrillic) Balïn (Latin)
Korean 	발린
Kyrgyz Cyrillic 	Балин
Macedonian Cyrillic	Балин
Marathi 	बॅलीन
Mongolian Cyrillic 	Балин
Nepalese 	बलिन्
Pashto 	بالین
Persian 	بالین
Punjabi 	ਬਾਲਿਨ
Russian 	Балин
Sanskrit 	बलिन्
Serbian 	Балин (Cyrillic) Balin (Latin)
Sinhalese 	බැලින්
Tajik Cyrillic 	Балин
Tamil 	பாலின்
Telugu 	బాలిం
Thai 	บาลิน
Ukrainian Cyrillic 	Балин
Urdu 	بالین
Uzbek 	Балин (Cyrillic) Balin (Latin)
Yiddish 	באַלין
==References==
Category:Dwarves
Category:Thorin and Company
Category:The Hobbit characters
Category:Characters in Unfinished Tales
Category:The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey characters
Category:The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug characters
Category:The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies characters
Category:The Fellowship of the Ring (film) characters
Category:Characters that have appeared in the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings
Category:Deaths in battle
Category:Durin's Folk
de:Balin
es:Balin
fr:Balin
he:באלין
it:Balin
nl:Balin
pl:Balin
pt-br:Balin
ru:Балин
sk:Balin
uk:Балін
zh:巴林