Ciryatur which is
Sindarin for Ship-Lord, was an admiral in the
Númenórean navy sent by
Tar-Minastir in S.A. 1700 to aid
Gil-galad against the armies of
Sauron. In the War of the
Elves and
Sauron in the Second Age, the Dark Lord's forces overran the lands of
Eriador, and
Sauron threatened to conquer all of Middle-earth. High King Gil-galad sent to
Númenor for help, and Tar-Minastir responded by sending an immense fleet to the aid of the Elves. The Númenórean fleet was led by the great admiral Ciryatur, who cunningly divided his forces, sending some into the south while his main fleet landed in Lindon. Ciryatur's Númenórean warriors proved more than equal to Sauron's armies, and forced them southwards out of
Eriador. At the decisive
Battle of the Gwathló, Sauron was trapped between the two Númenórean armies, and almost captured. Though he escaped in the end and returned to
Mordor, he swore vengeance on the victorious Númenóreans. More than 1,600 years later, he accomplished his aim and Númenor was destroyed, so that Ciryatur's great victory can be seen as the first seed of the
Downfall of his home.