Hísilómë

Hísilómë, the Sindarin name for the land known in Quenya as Hithlum, is one of the most significant and sorrowful regions of Beleriand in the First Age. Its name, meaning 'Mist-shadow', perfectly captures its defining character: a land of cool, grey air and frequent mists, lying between the towering barrier of the Ered Wethrin (Mountains of Shadow) to the south and east, and the cold shores of the Great Sea to the west. It was a realm of the Noldor in exile, a staging ground for the wars against Morgoth, and the first home of the Edain in Beleriand, yet its history is one of valiant struggle, bitter loss, and ultimate desolation.

Geography and Character

Hísilómë was a large, roughly triangular region in the northwest of Beleriand. Its southern and eastern borders were formed by the great mountain wall of the Ered Wethrin, which separated it from the lands of Nevrast to the south and the plains of Ard-galen (later Anfauglith) to the east. To the west, it was bounded by the Great Sea, and to the north by the icy wastes of the Helcaraxë. The land itself was a high, cool plateau, often shrouded in the mists that gave it its name. The climate was cool and wet, with frequent rain and cloud, a stark contrast to the sunnier lands to the south. The principal river was the Sirion, which rose in the Ered Wethrin and flowed south through the Pass of Sirion, but within Hísilomë itself, the land was drained by smaller streams like the Narog and the Teiglin, which also had their sources in the mountains. The most notable geographical feature was the lake of Mithrim, a large body of water in the eastern part of the region, around which the first settlements of the returning Noldor were established.

The Realm of the Noldor

After the disastrous Battle of the Lammoth, Fingolfin and his host of the Noldor crossed the Helcaraxë and entered Hísilómë. The land became the chief realm of the House of Fingolfin, with Fingolfin himself dwelling at the shores of Lake Mithrim. His son, Fingon, later ruled over the eastern part of the land, Dor-lómin. The region was heavily fortified against the forces of Morgoth, who held the fortress of Angband far to the north-east. The great watchtower of Barad Eithel was built at the source of the Sirion, guarding the Pass of Sirion, the main route into the heart of Beleriand. From Hísilómë, the Noldor launched their great offensives, most notably the assault on Angband during the Siege of Angband, and later the disastrous Battle of Unnumbered Tears (Nirnaeth Arnoediad). The land's strategic importance made it a primary target for Morgoth's vengeance.

The Arrival of Men and the Fate of the Edain

Hísilómë is also the land where the first Men to cross the Ered Luin into Beleriand settled. The people of the House of Hador, the Third House of the Edain, were granted the region of Dor-lómin by Fingon. They became loyal vassals of the Noldor, and their greatest lord, Húrin, and his son Túrin, were born and lived there. The tragic tale of Túrin Turambar is inextricably linked to the land of his birth, and his family's fate is a central part of the sorrowful history of Hísilómë. After the Nirnaeth Arnoediad, the Easterlings, who had betrayed the Elves and Men, were given Dor-lómin by Morgoth, and the remaining Edain were enslaved or driven out. The land fell under the shadow of the Enemy, and its people were scattered.

The End of Hísilómë

At the end of the First Age, during the War of Wrath, the great battle that overthrew Morgoth, the physical geography of Beleriand was broken and drowned. The Ered Wethrin were shattered, and the entire region of Hísilómë, along with most of the rest of Beleriand, sank beneath the waves of the Great Sea. The land of mist and shadow, once a bastion of Elven and human hope and a witness to their greatest sorrows, was lost forever, existing only in the memory and song of the survivors who journeyed into the West.