Heath of the Sky-roof

The Heath of the Sky-roof, also known as the High Heath or Heaven Roof, was a plateau of Leithian.
==Geography==
This region was an upland heath whose two main cities were Tavrobel and Kôrtirion. The land was crossed by the Brook of Glass, a river passing near Tavrobel, and the River Glinding, the stream that crossed Kortirion.The History of Middle-earth, Vol. II: The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, chapter VI: "The History of Eriol or Ælfwine and the End of the Tales"The History of Middle-earth, Vol. I: The Book of Lost Tales Part One, chapter I: "The Cottage of Lost Play"
==History==
After the Faring Forth, the Elves were utterly defeated in battle here by the wicked Men of the Great Lands who had invaded Leithian. Due to the destruction of this battle, the upland was later renamed the Withered Heath.
==Etymology==
In Gnomish, the region was named Ladwen-na-Dhaideloth ("Heath of the Sky-roof") or Dor-na-Dhaideloth ("Land of the Heaven Roof").
==Other versions==
According to another account, the Elves traveled to the Great Lands on Tol Eressëa, which was dragged by Uin, whale servant of the Vala Ulmo. A magic bridge was cast between the island and the promontory of Rôs, in front of which it was anchored. However, the Vala Ossë was angered by the uprooting of the island he had placed in front of Valinor long before, and he tried to drag it back. This broke off the western portion of Tol Eressëa, forming a second smaller island. In this account Ælfwine/Eriol witnessed the battle and in its aftermath, escaped from the battlefield through the valley of the Brook of Glass, but found the waters "fouled with the war of men and grime of strife". Thus, the larger island was renamed Leithian, while the smaller one became the Isle of Íverin. Thus, in this version the Heath of the Sky-roof was located in Tol Eressëa.
==Background==
For the conception of the Heath of the Sky-roof, Tolkien may have been inspired by heaths found in the . In particular, , where a battle of the Civil War was fought in 1643,The History of Middle-earth, Vol. V: The Lost Road and Other Writings, Appendix, chapter III, "The Second Silmarillion Map" or may have provided Tolkien the inspiration for the battlefield. According to this hypothesis, the Brook of Glass could be interpreted as the , a stream passing near , and the Glinding Water as the river , flowing through .John Garth, Tolkien and the Great War
==References==
Category:Precanonical locations