The Flight of the Noldoli from Valinor

The Flight of the Noldoli from Valinor was an alliterative poem written by J.R.R. Tolkien, and contained within the second chapter of The Lays of Beleriand. The fact that Tolkien made a poem on it perhaps means that he thought of it as a 'Great Tale', and would have been among the ranks of Beren and Lúthien, The Fall of Gondolin, and The Children of Húrin, had it been continued. It is a poem that was swiftly abandoned after little work on three manuscripts. It was dated by Christopher Tolkien to have been written in early 1925.The History of Middle-earth, Vol. III: The Lays of Beleriand, II: "Poems Early Abandoned", "(i) The Flight of the Noldorli"
==Excerpt of the lyrics==
(Colons inserted to preserve correct spacing)
:Ah! The Trees of Light, : tall and shapely,
:gold and silver, : more glorious than the sun,
:than the Moon more magical, : o'er meads of the Gods
:their fragrant frith : and flowerladen
:gardens gleaming : once gladly shone.
:In death they are darkened, : they drop their leaves
:from blackened branches : bled by Morgoth
:and Ungoliant the grim, : the Gloomweaver.
:In spider's form : despair and shadow
:a shuddering fear : and shapeless night
:she weaves a web : of winding venom
:that is black and breathless. : Their branches fail,
:the light and laughter : of their leaves are quenched.
:Mirk goes marching, : mists of blackness, 
:through the halls of the Mighty : hushed and empty,
:the gates of the Gods : are in gloom mantled.
:Lo! the Elves murmur : in mourning anguish
:but no more shall be kindled : the mirth of Côr
:in the winding ways : of their walled city,
:towercrownëd Tûn, : whose twinkling lamps(...)
(End of excerpt)
== In other versions ==
The first manuscript of the poem was entitled The Flight of the Gnomes as sung in the Halls of Thingol. The second was given the brief title Flight of the Gnomes. The third and final manuscript was named The Flight of the Noldoli from Valinor.
==References==
Category:Poems in The Lays of Beleriand