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  • Updated 29 March 2021
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Great Haven

The port city of Lond Daer

Map of the Great Haven

The Great Haven at the mouth of the river Gwathló dated back to the earliest Númenórean explorations of Middle-earth. It was founded by Aldarion, heir to King Tar-Meneldur, who sought to establish a haven on the shores of Middle-earth where he could repair his vessels and build new ones. The heavily forested lands around Gwathló's mouth made it an ideal place for his haven. Thus the port - originally called Vinyalondë, the 'New Haven' - came into being sometime during the period between II 806 and II 813.

The haven had a turbulent history in its early times, suffering destruction by the force of the Sea, as well as invasion by the peoples of surrounding lands. Nonetheless it survived, and played an important part in the War of the Elves and Sauron, when the Númenórean admiral Ciryatur landed a force at the Great Haven that would go on to surprise and defeat Sauron at the Battle of the Gwathló.

Aldarion's old haven became established as one of the three great havens on the coasts of Middle-earth, between Mithlond to the north and Pelargir to the south. It thus came to be known as Lond Daer Enedh, the 'Great Middle Haven', a name commonly shortened to simply Lond Daer, the 'Great Haven'. Across the Second Age, it lay at the heart of the Númenóreans' operations in Middle-earth, shipping huge quantities of timber and goods back to Númenor across the Great Sea.

The history of the Great Haven after the Downfall of Númenor is less clear. During the earlier part of the Third Age, it lay on the southern coasts of Arnor, and later of the land of Cardolan. During this time it may have been maintained by the Dúnedain of the North, though if so, it is never mentioned in records. After the fall of Cardolan in III 1409 the port lay far from any civilised land, and it seems inevitable that it would have decayed over the long years that followed. Though we are not told its fate, it seems most likely that the Great Haven lay in ruins by the end of the Third Age. After the War of the Ring, however, the Kingdoms of the Dúnedain were re-established, and so it is possible that the Great Haven might have been brought back into use during the Fourth Age.


See also...

Lond Daer Enedh

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About this entry:

  • Updated 29 March 2021
  • Updates planned: 1

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