In 1497 YT, the Battle under the Stars, or Dagor-nuin-Giliath, was fought in Middle Earth between the Noldor under Feanor and Celegorm against Angband under Morgoth and Gothmog during the Wars of Beleriand.
Why did it happen?
During the Years of the Trees, while Middle Earth lay in darkness under the stars, Valinor was illuminated by the Two Trees of the Valar: Telperion and Laurelin. In 1495 YT, the two trees were destroyed by the dark lord Melkor and the giant spider Ungoliant, which plunged Valinor into darkness. After stealing the Silmarils, Melkor then fled to Middle Earth where he renewed the fortress of Angband which had been abandoned after the Battle of the Powers in 1090 YT. In 1497 YT, Melkor, now renamed Morgoth, declared war on the Elves of Beleriand and although his forces were defeated at Amon Ereb, his forces had more success in the west where they besieged the Elves at the Havens of the Falas. At the same time, the Noldor under Feanor pursued Morgoth for the theft of the Silmarils and crossed the sea from Valinor to Middle Earth in a fleet of ships. After landing in Lammoth, the Noldor crossed the Ered Lomin into Hithlum where they encamped on the northern shore of Lake Mithrim. Upon hearing this, Morgoth sent a force of Orcs to attack the Noldor before they could establish themselves in Middle Earth.
Who was involved?
The Noldor army at the Dagor-nuin-Giliath numbered an estimated 5,000 Elves. The Elves had first awoken in 1050 YT and were known as the Firstborn of the Children of Iluvatar, who decreed that they, “shall be the fairest of all earthly creatures, and they shall have and shall conceive and bring forth more beauty than all my Children; and they shall have the greater bliss in this world” (Tolkien, 2013, p.35). Besides being immortal, they were also fierce warriors and were, “strong and swift, and deadly in anger, and their swords were long and terrible” (Tolkien, 2013, p.120). The Angband army at the Dagor-nuin-Giliath is estimated to have numbered 15,000 Orcs and 7 Balrogs. The Orcs were originally Elves who had been captured by Melkor in 1085 YT and twisted and distorted in mockery of what Iluvatar had created. The Balrogs were originally Maiar who had been created by Iluvatar but chose to join Melkor during the creation of Arda.
What happened?
After the Noldor encamped along the northern shore of Lake Mithrim, a host of Orcs from Angband ambushed the Elves before they could entrench themselves. Despite being outnumbered, the Noldor under Feanor quickly defeated and routed the Orcs in battle. As the Orcs retreated over the Ered Wethrin, they were met by a second army of Orcs that had previously been besieging the Elves at the Havens of Falas. The Noldor under Celegorm pursued them and engaged the Orc armies in battle near the Fen of Serech. After ten days, the Elves emerged victorious with only a handful of Orcs returning to Angband. At the same time, Feanor and his sons pursued the Orcs over the Ered Wethrin into the Plain of Ard-galen where outside Angband, Feanor led the vanguard of his army to confront Angband’s Orcs and Balrogs under Gothmog, Lord of the Balrogs. As Feanor advanced, his vanguard was surrounded by the Orcs and Balrogs who, after heavy fighting, mortally wounded Feanor, only for his sons to rescue him and drive the Orcs and Balrogs back into Angband.
What changed as a result?
The Battle under the Stars was a Noldor victory. In the aftermath of the battle, the sons of Feanor took their father to Ethel Sirion where Feanor made his sons swear an oath before he died to avenge his death and fight Morgoth until he was overthrown. After this, Morgoth invited Maedhros to meet with him to discuss terms and the surrender of a Silmaril. Maedhros was subsequently ambushed by Balrogs and imprisoned in Angband by Morgoth, who offered to release him on the condition that the Noldor forsake their war against him, leave Beleriand, and return to Valinor. Constrained by their oath, the Noldor refused and Maedhros was tied to a rock by the wrist of his right hand in a steel chain. At the same time, Fingolfin appeared in Beleriand with 10,000 followers after crossing the Helcaraxe, and when he marched into Mithrim to link up with the sons of Feanor, the Sun and the Moon were created by the Valar, thus ending the Years of the Trees, and marking the beginning of the First Age of the Sun.
Bibliography
Kieran. “Second Battle - Dagor-nuin-Giliath (The Battle-under-Stars).” 6mm Wargaming. Last revised July 2021. www.6mm.wargaming.info/FASecondBattle.shtml
Larsen, Merlin Douglas. “The wars of Beleriand – Battles from the Silmarillion.” Larsen Family. Accessed May 5, 2022. www.larsen-family.us/~1066/silbattles.html
Tolkien, J.R.R. & Tolkien, Christopher. The Silmarillion. London, Harper Collins Publishers, 2013.