Barahir
the father of Beren; the hero of Dorthonion
Name and Lineage
Barahir — a lord of the House of Bëor, head of the lordship of Ladros in Dorthonion (the older kin of Beren), and father of Beren (the man of the greatest tale). His name is “the lofty hunter” — he is the hero of the first stand of the Edain in the North.
The Rescue and the Ring
- The rescue of Finrod: In the Dagor Bragollach, when the Noldor’s south-west — in the ruin, Finrod was rescued from Orc-hunters by Barahir’s hand — the deed: Barahir and his men saved Finrod’s life, and in gratitude Finrod gave Barahir the ring of his house — the Ring of Barahir (the great ring with the serpent-emblems) — “token of our friendship” — the famous oath-ring that passed to Beren, and in later ages to the heirs of the kings (even to Aragorn).
The Outlaw of Dorthonion
After the burning of the lands , Barahir and his small company held the pine-moors against Morgoth — he would not abandon the land. He was betrayed at last by the weakness of a servant (Gorlim, undone by the wiles of Sauron’s agents, who lied that his wife lived), and Barahir and his men were slain upon the hill — all save his company’s remnant; only his young son Beren escaped the slaughter, taking the ring, and so the Outlaw-kingship of Dorthonion passed to the father of the quest.
Significance
Barahir is the “first of the Edain’s heroes” — the man whose generosity to a prince of the Noldor won the eternal alliance (and the Ring), whose defiance in the ruined highlands founded the outlaw-tale of Beren, and whose memory (in the ring’s descent) runs through every later age as the token of Elf-friendship.