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Gollum had a critical part to play in The Lord of the Rings, but his journey began long before the start of Frodo’s (or even Bilbo’s) adventures. The wretched creature lived for hundreds of years thanks to the power of the One Ring, and most of that time was filled with torment. Of course, before he came by Sauron’s mighty weapon, he had a regular life and family. This was shown briefly in the Lord of the Rings movies, but the books had much more to offer regarding Gollum’s story.
The Lord of the Rings books detailed what happened in Middle-earth both after and before Frodo’s adventure. In the case of Gollum, Gandalf explained most of the creature’s story before Frodo set out from the Shire. The wizard described how the creature had once been called Sméagol and had spent a better part of a century obsessed with the One Ring that he had found entirely by chance. It was a sad story, filled with despicable actions and bad luck—but it was ultimately the first step toward the end of Sauron and his Ring.
7 Sméagol Was Born A Stoorish Hobbit – TA 2430
Hundreds of years before the Hobbits had their cozy holes in the Shire, they were split into three different tribes—each unique and considered an individual species (‘Hobbits’ didn’t technically exist). These included the Fallohides, Stoors, and the Harfoots seen in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Sméagol was born to the Stoors, who lived in the marshy areas of the Vales of Anduin hundreds of years before they would, along with the other pre-hobbits, migrate and evolve into Frodo’s people.
As Sméagol was growing up, his race was led by a matriarch, his grandmother, and were known to be a fishing people. Their proximity to water made them excellent swimmers, and they had larger hands and feet than their halfling relatives. The Stoors lived in family caves, so Sméagol resided with his grandmother, who is thought to have inherited the rule after her husband died.
6 Sméagol Murdered His Cousin Déagol For The One Ring – TA 2463
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King showed Sméagol’s transformation into Gollum, which all started when he murdered his cousin, Déagol, and stole Sauron’s One Ring. The Ring had washed its way down the river to the Stoorish settlement over thousands of years, and Déagol was the lucky one to find it. The Ring’s beauty and power immediately influenced Sméagol, so he murdered his dear friend and cousin to gain its ownership.
After Déagol had been killed, Sméagol convinced himself that he had gotten the One Ring for his birthday. This indicates that he felt great shame over what he had done. This continued for hundreds of years after the crime occurred, and even after ‘Gollum’ had joined Frodo and Sam’s journey in Lord of the Rings, he still refused to admit what he had done. Likely, the action was that of the Ring, and the powerful object used the crime to torture Sméagol with guilt.
5 Sméagol Was Exiled By His Family & Settled In The Misty Mountains – TA 2470
Though the Lord of the Rings movies made it seem as if Sméagol set out on his own immediately after murdering his cousin, this wasn’t the case in the books. Gandalf told Frodo that the Stoors never found out what happened to Déagol. When Sméagol returned to his home, he told his people that his cousin had run off and not come back, and at that point, there was no reason not to believe him. However, the influence of the One Ring continued to grow, and Sméagol’s behavior began to change.
The Ring-bearer became jealous and cruel. He would use the Ring’s power to turn invisible and spy on the people of his community and use this knowledge to manipulate and blackmail. He also began to steal from his neighbors—but the more he committed crimes, the sloppier he got. His community grew to fear and despise him until finally, Sméagol’s grandma expelled him from their home and demanded that he never return. As an outcast, Sméagol was forced to find secluded caves to live with his One Ring—the Lord of the Rings’ Misty Mountains were just the place.
4 Bilbo Baggins Arrived At Gollum’s Cave – TA 2941
Sméagol lived in isolation in the deepest caves of the Misty Mountains for centuries until he had nearly forgotten the life he used to lead. He fed on orcs and other creatures that scurried the caves and fawned over his precious. Of course, this all ended during the events of The Hobbit, when Bilbo Baggins got lost in the caves, picked up the One Ring, and engaged in a riddle battle with Gollum.
The Ring seemed aware that Bilbo was the next step in its journey (though it believed this was a journey back to Sauron). It had escaped from Gollum, so he didn’t realize that Bilbo could have his precious hidden in his ‘pocketses.’ Similarly to Gollum, Bilbo lied about how he had come by the Ring, likely because he was ashamed of his dishonesty. Thankfully, Bilbo didn’t kill Gollum to get the Ring (like it had been influencing him to do), which ultimately contributed to Frodo’s victory in Lord of the Rings.
3 Gollum Was Captured & Tortured By Sauron – Year Unknown
After Bilbo stole his precious, Gollum sat and festered within his tunnels, cursing the Hobbit for stealing from him. After an unknown period, however, he left his cave in search of Bilbo. Unsure where to go, Gollum followed the pull of evil—which likely felt similar to the power of his Ring—and wound up on Sauron’s doorstep in Mordor. This was why, later in Lord of the Rings, Gollum knew where to take Frodo and Sam. He had had just enough time to explore the area and discover Shelob before he was taken captive and tortured by Sauron’s forces.
This was when Sauron learned all about ‘Baggins’ the hobbit (or Hobbits in general, for that matter). Hoping that the Ring’s pull would lead Gollum back to it, Sauron ordered him released. The creature had been through theft, mental torment, and, finally, physical torture—but Sauron was right, and the One Ring continued to pull on its connection with Gollum. He began to find his way back toward the Shire, but Gandalf had since learned of the previous Ring-bearer’s location and sent a trusted friend after him.
2 Aragorn Captured Gollum & Brought Him To Mirkwood – TA 3018
Though Aragorn had no connection to Gollum in the Lord of the Rings movies, he knew the creature very well in the books. Gandalf had requested that he use his skills as a Ranger to hunt Gollum down. Of course, the future King of Gondor succeeded, bringing Gollum to the Elves of Mirkwood. This would have been about 900 miles and took an estimated 50 days to complete.
Gandalf met Aragorn in Mirkwood, and the wizard used his powers to interrogate Sméagol. This was when he learned about the creature’s past with the Stoors (and understood just how long the beast had lived), the truth about the events between Gollum and Bilbo, and all that Sauron had learned from his captive. This was devastating news for Gandalf, who had hoped that Sauron would continue to be ignorant of the race of Hobbits. He left Gollum imprisoned with the Elves of Mirkwood and returned to the Shire to warn Frodo.
1 Gollum Escaped Mirkwood In Search Of The Ring – Circa TA 3019
Unfortunately, Mirkwood couldn’t contain a creature like Gollum, and he managed to escape. Sauron had been right about the One Ring’s pull on the tormented Ring-bearer. After Gollum disappeared, Thranduil sent his son, Legolas, to Rivendell to tell Elrond what had happened. This was how the familiar elf ended up at the Council of Elrond, where he reported his bad news (and later volunteered to join the Fellowship of the Ring).
Gollum’s escape allowed Gandalf to realize that destiny was at work and that there was no use in attempting to capture him again. The creature would never stop trying to get the Ring back, just as Sauron knew. So, for better or worse, he was sure to succeed eventually. Sauron hoped this would allow him to get the Ring back, but Gandalf trusted that destiny had better use of Gollum. Ultimately, the pitiful Sméagol’s hunt for the One Ring in The Lord of the Rings would ensure its destruction in the fires of Mount Doom.
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