From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, the eagles were immense flying birds that were sentient, and could speak.
The eagles are said in The Silmarillion to have been 'devised' by Manwë Súlimo, leader of the Valar. They were sent from Valinor to Middle-earth to keep an eye on the exiled Noldor, and on their foe the evil Vala Morgoth.
For a time the Lord of the Eagles, Thorondor, kept his eyries at the top of Thangorodrim, the volcano above Angband itself. While they lived there, Thorondor helped Fingon rescue Maedhros. Thorondor's folk later removed their eyries to the Crissaegrim, part of the Echoriath or Encircling Mountains about Gondolin. There they were friends of Turgon, and kept spies off the mountains.
Thorondor wounded Morgoth in the face after Morgoth's battle with Fingolfin, and he carried Fingolfin's corpse to the Echoriath, where he was buried by Fingon.
The Eagles fought alongside the army of the Valar, Elves and Edain during the War of Wrath at the end of the First Age.
In the Third Age, Thorondor's descendants Gwaihir and Landroval lived in an eyrie to the east of the Misty Mountains in Wilderland. They rescued Thorin and company from a band of Wargs and Goblins, flying them to the river Anduin.
They later were one of the armies in the Battle of Five Armies fought near Erebor, the Lonely Mountain.
Gwaihir became the Lord of all Birds at a later date.
Before and during the War of the Ring, one of Gwaihir's people rescued Gandalf the Grey from the top of Isengard, and others of his people rescued Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee from Mount Doom in Mordor after the One Ring had been destroyed.
In his last writings Tolkien speculated that these great Eagles were actually Maiar in bird-shape, as Tolkien felt it unlikely Ilúvatar would grant feär to animals.
