Second Age

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The History of Arda
Valian Years Years of the Lamps Years of the Trees Years of the Sun
Ages of the Children of Ilúvatar First Age Second Age Third Age Fourth Age and later
Dagor Dagorath
Timeline of Arda

The Second Age is a fictional time period from J. R. R. Tolkien's universe of Middle-earth.

The Second Age began after the banishment of Morgoth into the Void by the Lords of the West led by Eönwë the Herald of Manwë.

It lasted for 3441 years, and ended with the downfall of Sauron, when he was defeated by the Last Alliance of Elves and Men following the downfall of Númenor.

This age was characterized by the rise of Númenor, the rise of Sauron in Middle-earth (which saw the creation of the Ringwraiths), and the early wars of the Rings between Sauron and the Elves.

The 3441 years of the Second Age are for the most part unchronicled, unlike the First Age which is largely recounted in the The Silmarillion, and the Third Age, which is the time period during which the The Lord of the Rings is set. Besides the hints about the Second Age found in The Lord of the Rings, several shorter writings fill in some of the gap between the downfall of Morgoth at the end of the First Age and the first downfall of Sauron which marked the beginning of the Third Age.

"The Tale of Years" in Appendix B of The Lord of the Rings outlines the major events of the Second Age, especially as they relate to the Rings of Power and the events and characters of The Lord of the Rings. Appendix A of The Lord of the Rings contains genealogies of the royal house of Númenor, and several sections of Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth deal extensively with Númenor and several of its kings. There are several other writings dealing with the Second Age, but because of the many stories only hinted at in the extant sources, the Second Age remains tantalizingly vague and mysterious.

See also: Timeline of the Second Age.