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Why Didn’t Elrond Force Isildur to Destroy the One Ring?

The Broken Sword

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Why didn’t Elrond stop Isildur from keeping the One Ring?
Many remember the famous film scene inside Mount Doom, where Isildur refuses to cast the Ring into the fire. But Tolkien’s version is more complicated, and far more tragic.
In this video, we explore what really happened after Sauron was overthrown, why Elrond and Círdan could only counsel Isildur, why forcing him would have meant turning on a grieving ally and king, and how that one refusal left a shadow over Middle-earth for thousands of years.

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Chapters:
00:00 – Chapter 1: Why Didn’t Elrond Stop Isildur?
00:41 – Chapter 2: The Movie Scene Is Misleading
03:07 – Chapter 3: Isildur Was Not the Villain Yet
05:36 – Chapter 4: Elrond’s Real Tragedy

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Art credits in order it first appears:
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy – New Line Cinema
Annatar Forges the One Ring - Giovanni Calore
Elrond - Lord of Rivendell - Andrea Piparo
Isildur vs Sauron – kalmahul
Elrond and Gil-galad - navy-locked
One Rings to Rule Them All - Austin Hartell
Isildur - John Monahan
The One Ring - Andrew Mabey
Elendil and his Sons – AbePapakhian
Isildur and the Ring – AbePapakhian
Elrond of the White Council - Javier Charro
Isildur sketch - Bohemian Weasel
The One Ring – mikenashillustration
One Ring to Rule Them All - Sara Bertoli
The Great Battle of the Last Alliance – eduardoleon
Last Alliance (Colour) - Abe Papakhian
Elrond - CK Goksoy
The fate of Isildur ( The Lord of the Rings ) – anatofinnstark
Lord of the Rings - Elrond – Hokunin
Sauron - As He Sat the One Ring Upon His Finger – IngvildSchageArt
Rivendell, the Last Homely House - Sara Lazzeroni
Mount Doom - Marta Nael
Elrond - Rene Gross
Elendil and Narsil - Leo Lujan
Elrond - Adam O'Donell
Middle earth – Klaradox

Disclaimer:
This video is for educational and entertainment purposes, following fair use guidelines. All artwork is credited to the respective artists. Please feel free to contact us for any credit or removal requests.

Tags:
#TheLordoftheRings #LordoftheRings #Lotr

20 Comments

@jpeterd92 2 months ago (edited)

When Isildur was killed he was actually on his way to go and seek Elrond's counsel about what to do with the ring because he realized he couldn't keep it at that point.

@TheCrazyCanuck420 2 months ago

It would make for a short story if Elrond just sparta kicked him off the ledge then claimed he "just fell in" to the others that ask questions. 😂

@noelstarchild 2 months ago (edited)

The evil and malice of Sauron would expand the "this is mine" element of Isildur's psyche immediately, the ring "knowing" it was not Isildur's, but Sauron's, it was enough to keep Isildur thinking that way.

Powerful eldarien might have understood it, but men of the Westernesse did not fully grasp it or Valinor.

Elrond would know more of that than me.

It amazes me the depth of Tolkien's thinking in creating the legends weaved into his great work.

@Snowshill 2 months ago

he didn’t stop him because if he had tried to do so he would have had to kill isiledur, if he had done that he would have instantly fallen under the rings power and to a very deep degree and become a new dark lord, and also made elves the enemy of men and started a new war just as they ended one

as for what happened specifically, in the books they didn’t go into the volcano he only saw isildur take something and guessed and felt it was the ring at most said "if you have taken anything isildur, then please cast it into the crack of doom, destroy it its not worth keeping" thats all

@forteanmobius3272 2 months ago

I'm reminded of Dumbledore shaking Harry and growling, "Harry! Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?"

@garycook5071 2 months ago

What annoys me about the movie is how it downplays Gil-Galed and Elendil and how they defeated Sauron and makes defeating Sauron was a mere accident

@icehockeylover189 2 months ago

This is a very wise and insightful dive into the heart and mind of Elrond. Well said!

@TarMody 1 month ago

Here is yet another example of the principle of respect for free will in Tolkien's works. Any action that overrides free will - even if undertaken with good intentions to defeat evil - gives rise to an alternative evil in place of the one it sought to overcome. In this context, it is significant that Elrond respected - however reluctantly - Isildur's choice, made of his own free will, not to destroy the One Ring.

@Luke-kj1rj 2 months ago

Love the dark souls-esque background music

@rodvr_ptEng 2 months ago

Free will is the key to this question, together with the Ring's power to deceive.

@ErikBjornSmith 2 months ago

Elrond would likely see Isildur as his kin as well, since he, Elendil and all their forefathers are descendants of his twin brother. At this point, he's very distantly removed from them, given the thousands of years, but he could be thinking of him as Elros' descendant.

@kennichols3992 2 months ago

The Ring made a bad decision by choosing to leave Gollum.

@davect01 2 months ago

As many things, it's much more complicated in the books.

The movie version works, especially as we have movie Aragorn struggling with his family heritage.

@KeiPalace 2 months ago

I believe that trying to wrest the ring would destroy Isildur's mind, so Elrond did not do so.

@edinscot56789 1 month ago

They did Isildur dirty in the films. In the books, Isildur was on his way to Rivendell to see Elrond to ask him about what to do with the Ring when he was killed by orcs.

@markkolmorgan7728 2 months ago

"For none now live who remember..."

@JCV1899 2 months ago (edited)

Well Elrond cant forcefully take it from Isildur because if he did then it would turn into an all out war between Men and Elves. But honestly we cant blame Isildur , we all would have done the same in his place. It shows the masterful storytelling of Tolkien. The movies cant replicate it