Tolkien’s works are renowned for many elements, including his extraordinary world-building, his themes of good vs evil, and even for some of the ways that the LOTR trilogy has aged badly. But arguably more than any of these things, he is known for his strong and heroic characters, who are willing to go to extraordinary lengths of sacrifice in great battles to protect the things that they love.
There is a plethora of heroic characters that audiences have come to know and love in the on-screen adaptations of his books, and even more in the writing that are yet to be touched upon. So of all these, who is the ultimate Warrior for Middle Earth?
Gil-Galad and Elendil
Gil-Galad and Elendil go hand in hand, because they were equal counterparts as leaders of the armies of elves and men who fought against Sauron during the Last Alliance, the great battle fought on the Dead Marshes long ago. The recent Rings of Power series has introduced audiences to these two characters, Gil-galad being proud and formidable, Elendil being courageous and compassionate, and it is ultimately these two together who win the battle and create the opening for Sauron to be defeated.
Isildur
Isildur is an interesting one, because he undergoes many changes on his great journey from Rings of Power to LOTR. He is portrayed in the Amazon series as a brave young man with a good moral conscience, but he clearly feels he has something to prove. He grows to be the amazing warrior who cuts the ring from Sauron’s finger, but also ultimately becomes the person who fails to destroy it and dooms Middle Earth to the next thousand years of Sauron’s evil.
Witch King
This list wouldn’t be complete without the Witch-King of Angmar, who is Sauron’s most formidable ally during the War of the Ring. Leading the 9 Nazgul, this powerful being is a mystery with unknown origins, who strikes fear into the hearts of all who encounter him. He’s not afraid to get out onto the field, and even defeated Gandalf in their one-on-one battle in the movies. The weapon he wields is sharp and heavy, and could easily separate someone’s head from their shoulders, and he is also an ethereal being who is able to tap into the powers of the Unseen World, which makes him extra deadly. His reign of terror lasts thousands of years before he is finally defeated in Pelennor by Eowyn and Merry.
Aragorn
Isildur’s heir very quickly becomes a legend among men, because he is the most loyal, brave, noble and honorable man to live in the Third Age. He has all the traits of a great hero, and all the skills that an impeccable warrior needs on the battlefield. Although there are moments that may suggest Aragorn has a dishonorable side after all, he is, on the whole, an exemplar among the race of men who manages to resist the temptation of the one ring, and ushers in a new and unprecedented era of peace during the Fourth Age of the world.
Gandalf
The grey wizard is one of the most iconic characters in movie and book history. He is a wandering nomad who roams Middle Earth, making it a better place and guiding its people towards happiness. He has incredible magic as a maiar, and uses it for good unlike many of the other very powerful beings in the world, but he also tries not to get too directly involved in the affairs of the races, because each race of Middle Earth views magic differently. He does fight and turn the tables in many important battles, but could be argued as more of a guide than a warrior.
Galadriel
The lady of Lorin has become a prominent character in the Rings of Power series, and has been involved in most of the major events that have ever taken place in Middle Earth. She has incredible power and wisdom within her because she has been around since the dawn of the first sun, and has fought and survived many battles in that time. Although she never uses her sword skills in LOTR, she is adept and handling all manner of weapons, commanding armies, tapping into great elven powers, and also at resisting the one ring. Using her own ring of power she crafts one of the most famous elven realms ever known.
Hurin
Hurin was an amazing warrior among men during the First Age, and was instrumental in many of the battles around this time. Said to have incredible skills in both forging and wielding weapons, he was a valiant soldier who unfortunately twisted into terrible things by Morgoth by the end of his life. His son Turin was also a great warrior, who slayed many of the dragons of this era.
Sam Gamgee
A hobbit may seem like an unlikely candidate among the myriad of powerful elves and strapping men on the list, but it could be argued that hobbits are actually the strongest warriors of Middle Earth, due to their goodness of heart, their love of things that grow over power and wealth, and their ability to resist the one ring. Samwise was probably the most essential character in destroying the dark lord’s evil object, both because he had better survival skills than the other hobbits, but also because his fierce loyalty got Frodo all the way to Mordor here they were able to drop the ring into Mount Doom (with Gollum’s help of course).
Fingolfin
Fingolfin is another name that many won't recognize, because he has never appeared in any of the on-screen adaptations, but he was an incredible character in the books who lead armies of elves during the war of wrath, and was the only known mortal being to be able to physically wound the ainur Morgoth. This is why Morgoth was afraid of the elven craftsmith Feanor, because he feared the vengeance that would be taken upon him for stealing the Silmarils after Fingolfin showed him that he was not infallible. Although Fingolfin eventually fell in battle and died a hero's death, he was easily one of the greatest warriors that Middle Earth has ever seen.
Sauron
Finally, though, Sauron has got to be the ultimate warrior on Middle Earth, namely because he was able to almost corrupt the entire world that Illuvatar created. He was able to trick the wisest and most steadfast beings throughout history into serving him, into creating the most dreaded weapon ever known, and into becoming terrible beings like ring-wraiths and sorcerers controlled by evil power. There is a difference between spiritual and physical death in Middle Earth, and he was able to avoid absolute defeat and come back despite dying 3 times, and also kill many of the other important characters on this list, making him an exceptional warrior, even among the best warriors in history, Unfortunately for Middle Earth, he was on the wrong side of evil, and it took several thousand years before he was eventually brought down by 3 halflings.