Barad-dûr

Barad-dûr
J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium location
Other name(s)	the Dark Tower (of Mordor) Lugbúrz (Black Speech)
Type	Vast fortress and tower of Sauron
Ruler	Sauron
Location	At the end of an offshoot of the Ash Mountains in Mordor
Lifespan	Second Age c. 1600 to Third Age 3019
Founder	Sauron

Barad-dûr, the “Dark Tower,” is a fictional place in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth writings and is described in The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, and other works. It is an enormous fortress of the Dark Lord Sauron, whence he rules the volcanic and barren land of Mordor. Located in northwest Mordor, near Mount Doom, the Eye of Sauron keeps watch over Middle-earth from its highest tower. The name is pronounced "Ba'rad doorr" with emphasis placed on the "rr." The Lieutenant of Barad-dûr is the Mouth of Sauron, who acts as an ambassador and herald for Mordor and Sauron.

Barad-dûr was completed by Sauron in 1600 of the Second Age. It was destroyed following the victory of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men at the end of the age. Rebuilding began in the Third Age, 67 years before the War of the Ring. As the Dark Tower is held together by Sauron's magic, it collapses upon the destruction of the One Ring.

In the Elvish language Sindarin, Barad-dûr translates Barad = Tower and Dûr = Dark, this is rendered into English as the “Dark Tower.” Barad-dûr was called "Lugbúrz" in the Black Speech of Mordor, which also translates as "Dark Tower"; it is composed of Lug = Tower and Búrz = Dark. The Black Speech (created by Sauron) was one of the languages used in Barad-dûr. The soldiers there used a debased form of the tongue. In The Lord of the Rings "Barad-dûr," "Lugbúrz," and the "Dark Tower" are occasionally utilized as metonyms for Sauron.

The Dark Tower was at the end of a south-western offshoot of the Ash Mountains, the mountain range that ran eastwards from the Black Gate of Mordor. Barad-dûr was above the arid valley of Gorgoroth, and lay south-east of Udûn and the Black Gate.

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