# Why did the elves leave Middle Earth?



## BalrogRingDestroyer (May 28, 2018)

One might think it was out of fear of Sauron. However, Elrond and Galadriel still left in the Fourth Age even after Sauron's defeat. So, I'm wondering, even if Isildur had done the right thing and destroyed the Ring at the end of the Second Age, would the Elves still have left anyway? 

Had they simply had enough after suffering first under Morgoth and then under Sauron and so decided to go back to Valinor? Was there some rule of the Valar keeping them from coming back sooner and they only stayed in Middle Earth in the first place against their own wills? Was it because of animosity with men, like those like the King's Men of Numenor that they felt that they could no longer reside in Middle Earth? Was it because they missed the Elder Days and once the Three Rings were gone, they were pretty much all that was left of the Elder Days so they decided to go back to Valinor, which sort of still was in the Elder Days?


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## Elthir (May 28, 2018)

Possible spoilers! And the following is a more general approach with respect to why the Elves might leave Middle-earth.
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My external answer: Tolkien's Elves had to leave, die, or fade, as Middle-earth is our earth, and you don't see them much anymore these days! So JRRT had to have a way, or ways, for them to not be here, or be here but in few numbers, and relatively unseen.

Internally: Elves who remained in Middle-earth "too long" would eventually fade in the body, their spirits consuming their bodies -- technically their _fear_ (plural of_ fea_) consuming their _hroar_.

Also, growth and change in Aman (Over Sea) better accorded with the Elvish longevity, so life there proved more suitable to Elves. Note the desire to slow decay and change among certain Eldar who remained in Middle-earth, especially with respect to the Elven Rings of Power.

After the War of Wrath (end of First Age) the Eldar (leaving the Avarin question aside for the moment) were once again summoned West. At this time there was no dominion of any major Dark Lord, like Morgoth or Sauron. And many Elves who lingered after this second summons, later died fighting Sauron when he rose again, in more than one battle in the Second Age.

In the Third Age there was a long time before anyone knew Sauron had returned, and by Frodo's day there were (relatively) very few Eldar left.

More could easily be said about this subject. And since I'm already generally speaking, I'll also add that not all Elves chose to leave Middle-earth. In posthumously published texts for example, Tolkien describes the Lingerers versus the Houseless.


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