The Lays of Beleriand
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| The History of Middle-earth |
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| Volumes I and II |
| Volume III |
| Volume IV |
| Volume V |
| Volumes VI-IX |
| Volume X |
| Volume XI |
| Volume XII |
The Lays of Beleriand, published in 1985, is the third volume of Christopher Tolkien's 12-volume book series, The History of Middle-earth, in which he analyses the unpublished manuscripts of his father J. R. R. Tolkien.
The book contains the long "lays" or poems Tolkien wrote: these are The Lay of the Children of Húrin about the saga of Túrin Turambar, and The Lay of Leithian (also called Release from Bondage) about Beren and Lúthien. Although Tolkien abandoned them before their respective ends, they are both long enough to occupy many stanzas, each of which can last for over 10 pages. The first poem is in alliterative verse, and the second is in rhyming couplets. Both exist in two versions.
In addition to these two poems, the book also gives three short, soon-abandoned alliterative poems, which are The Flight of the Noldoli from Valinor, The Lay of Eärendel and The Lay of the Fall of Gondolin.
The first versions of the long lays fit chronologically in with Tolkien's earliest writings, as recounted in The Book of Lost Tales, but the later version of The Lay of Leithian is contemporary with the writing of The Lord of the Rings.
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| J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium | |
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| Published during his lifetime: | The Hobbit • The Lord of the Rings • The Adventures of Tom Bombadil • The Road Goes Ever On |
| Posthumous publications: | The Silmarillion • Unfinished Tales • The History of Middle-earth (12 volumes) • Bilbo's Last Song • The Children of Húrin • The History of The Hobbit |
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