Ford of Bruinen

The Ford of Bruinen, known in the Common Tongue as the Ford of Rivendell, is the crossing of the Loudwater River that lies at the eastern approach to the hidden valley of Imladris. It is the point where the East Road, after descending from the Trollshaws, passes through a deep cutting of red stone and then runs out into the open, crossing a long flat mile before reaching the steep brown bank on the far side. Beyond that bank, a winding path climbs toward the Last Homely House, which lies under the shadow of the Misty Mountains. The Ford is not merely a geographical landmark; it is a boundary between the hunted wilderness and the sanctuary of Elrond, and it becomes the stage for the climactic rescue of Frodo Baggins from the Nine Riders.

The Flight and the Pursuit

After the attack on their camp at Weathertop, Frodo, wounded by a Morgul-knife, was carried by Glorfindel on his white horse, Asfaloth, in a desperate race to reach the Ford before the Ringwraiths could cut him off. The Company had been traveling for days, and on the final approach, as they emerged from a dark tunnel-like cutting in the road, they saw the Ford before them. At that moment, the pursuing Riders appeared from the gate in the trees behind them, and four more Riders, who had been lying in ambush, flew out from the rocks on the left to intercept Frodo. Glorfindel urged Frodo forward, crying "Ride on!" and then commanded the horse in the Elvish tongue: "noro lim, noro lim, Asfaloth!" The white horse sprang away, speeding like the wind, while the black horses of the Riders leaped down the hill in pursuit. Frodo, looking back, saw the Riders behind him falling back, their great steeds no match for the speed of the elf-horse. But the four Riders ahead were converging on him, and he saw them clearly, robed in white and grey, with naked swords and helms on their heads, their cold eyes glittering as they called to him with fell voices.

The Crossing and the Flood

As Frodo clung to the horse's mane, the elf-horse, speeding as if on wings, passed right before the face of the foremost Rider. Frodo heard the splash of water as the horse entered the river, and he felt the quick heave and surge as it left the river and struggled up the stony path on the far bank. He was across the Ford. But the pursuers were close behind. At the top of the bank, the horse halted and turned about, neighing fiercely. Nine Riders stood at the water's edge below, and Frodo's spirit quailed before the threat of their uplifted faces. He felt commanded to halt. The foremost Rider spurred his horse forward, and it checked at the water and reared up. With a great effort, Frodo sat upright and brandished his sword, crying, "Go back! Go back to the Land of Mordor, and follow me no more!" The Riders laughed, and their leader urged his horse into the water, followed by two others. Frodo, with a last effort, lifted his sword and cried, "By Elbereth and Lúthien the Fair, you shall have neither the Ring nor me!" The leader, now half across the Ford, stood up menacingly and raised his hand. Frodo was stricken dumb, his sword broke and fell from his hand, and the elf-horse reared. At that moment, a roaring and rushing noise filled the air. The river below him rose, and down along its course came a plumed cavalry of waves. White flames seemed to flicker on their crests, and Frodo half fancied he saw amid the water white riders upon white horses with frothing manes. The three Riders still in the midst of the Ford were overwhelmed, disappearing under the angry foam. Those behind drew back in dismay.

The Aftermath and Significance

The flood was not a natural event. Elrond commanded it, for the river of the valley is under his power and will rise in anger when he has great need to bar the Ford. Gandalf, who had arrived at Rivendell before the Company, added his own touches to the flood, causing some of the waves to take the form of great white horses with shining white riders, and there were many rolling and grinding boulders. The flood swept away the Riders' horses, crippling them, though the Ringwraiths themselves could not be so easily destroyed. Frodo was found lying on his face at the top of the bank, with a broken sword under him, pale and cold, and was carried slowly towards Rivendell. The crossing of the Ford of Bruinen thus ends the first, desperate flight from the Shire and delivers the Ring-bearer into the hands of Elrond, where he can be healed and where the fate of the Ring can be debated at the Council of Elrond. The Ford itself becomes a symbol of the boundary between the mortal peril of the open world and the protected, ancient power of Rivendell, a threshold that the servants of the Enemy cannot cross.