Did Sauron Make All The Rings? Explained
J.R.R. Tolkien introduced us to the amazing fictional world that we get to experience in The Lord of the Rings and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. The creation of the Rings was part of Sauron’s plan to bestow his dominion upon Middle-earth. Sauron forged the One Ring by himself in Mount Doom and that Ring had the power to rule over other Rings. But, did Sauron make all the Rings of Power?
Sauron did not make all the Rings. The only ring Sauron made by himself was the One Ring forged in the fires of Mount Doom. The Elves made nineteen other rings. However, Sauron had a direct hand in creating 16 Rings of Power, while the three remaining Elven rings were made by Celebrimbor alone.
When Sauron forged the One Ring and put it on his finger, The Elves could sense Sauron’s presence and realized that he planned to control them through the Rings. So they took their Rings off and hid them away from Sauron. The Elven Rings were different from the rest because Sauron didn’t make them. But let’s see why Sauron still had power over them and how other Rings were made, also.
The crafting of the Rings of Power
Over different periods, Sauron had many different names and forms. Around S.A. 1200, Sauron presented himself to the Elves of Eregion as Annatar, the Lord of Gifts, and an emissary from the Valar. His goal was to seduce the Elves into his service and to do so, and he offered the Elves knowledge they could use to transform Middle-Earth.
The Elves of Eregion trusted Annatar as he provided the Elven smiths with the knowledge of how to create the Rings. A master smith and the ruler of Eregion, Celebrimbor, was amazed by the new knowledge and skills Annatar had provided to him and his smiths. He believed that the cause for making the Rings was right, so the forging began. The Rings of Power were not forged immediately. First, some other lesser rings were made, and they were merely an instrument for the smith to perfect their skills.
Around S.A. 1500, sixteen Rings of Power were forged by Celebrimbor and his smiths under the mentorship of Annatar. After they were forged, Annatar departed from Eregion, and Celebrimbor crafted the remaining three Rings of Power. The main difference between these three Rings and others was that they were meant to heal and preserve and to keep magic from fading in Middle-earth. The three Elven Rings weren’t imbued with Sauron’s malice, making them the most powerful among the Rings of Power. However, they were still forged by the craft taught by Annatar, so that is why they, too, were bound to the One Ring.
The three Elven Rings were finished around S.A. 1590, and their names were Narya, the Ring of Fire; Nenya, the Ring of Water; and Vilya, the Ring of Air. Ten years later, around S.A. 1600, Sauron himself forged the One Ring. The ring was forged in the heart of Mount Doom, and his purpose was to rule over all the other Rings and their bearers.
As soon as Sauron put the One Ring on his finger, The Elves could sense his presence, and they immediately realized that they had been betrayed and that Sauron used them for his own goals. So, the Elves took their Rings off, hid them from Sauron, and did not use them. However, Sauron demanded that the Elves give him the three Elven rings because he was the one that provided them with the knowledge for their creation. The Elves refused to do so, and Sauron declared war against the Elves.
The War between the Elves and Sauron began in S.A. 1693 and caused the destruction of Eregion and bloodshed where Celebrimbor was slaughtered. When the war ended, Sauron’s forces were weakened, and he felt betrayed by the Elves. So he decided to distribute the remaining sixteen Rings elsewhere. So, let’s see what happened to the other sixteen Rings of Power.
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone, Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die
As Sauron’s plans didn’t go as planned and the Elves refused to submit under his will, he decided to distribute the remaining sixteen Rings of Power among Men and Dwarves, as he thought they would be easier to control.
Sauron used the Nine Rings to corrupt Men to his service. The Rings were initially kept locked in one of the safes of Eregion, but Sauron captured all. He gave them to nine kings of Men, granting them very long life, but the wearers began to feel worn out and eventually faded into a ghoul. The owners of the nine eventually became the Nazgûl.
Seven Rings of Power Sauron gave to seven Dwarf Lords who were the Kings of the Seven Houses: Durin’s Folk, Firebeards, Broadbeams, Ironfists, Stiffbeards, Blacklocks, and Stonefoots. Sauron came to possession of the Seven Rings after he tortured Celebrimbor to obtain them from him. The Dwarf Lords proved resistant to the rings’ malevolent magic, and Sauron did not easily tame them. However, they became more greedy and possessive toward gold and treasure, so their souls were somewhat corrupted by the Rings.
All of the Rings of Power were connected with the One Ring, which had the power to rule and control them. However, with the destruction of the One Ring, the Rings of Power were also destroyed.
