The greatest example of this comes from Balin, one of the members of Thorin’s company in The Hobbit. The films put him off to the side to spotlight characters like Kili and Fili in his stead. However, he plays a major role in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, once again proving that there is no such thing as a small character in Middle-earth.
Who is Balin?
The Lonely Mountain first came into the possession of the Dwarves during the Second Age.
The riches found in Erebor were the origin of the rivalry between the Dwarves and Elves, which began when Thror refused to give his potential ally Thranduil the White Gems he found.
This time in exile came to an end when he took up arms in the War of the Dwarves and Orcs, a vicious conflict fought from TA 2793-99 in the area surrounding the Misty Mountains. It broke out after Azog the Defiler, one of the fiercest Orcs to ever plague Middle-earth, slew Thror, the heir of Durin and leader of the exiled Dwarves when he tried to reclaim the overrun realm of Moria. When he tossed Thror’s body out for his companion to see, Azog proclaimed himself ruler of Moria and warned that anyone who tried to enter the realm would meet the same fate as the once-mighty king of the Dwarves.
Of course, the Dwarves didn’t take this loss lying down. A fierce war breaks out as soon as Thrain hears about what happened to his beloved father. He sends out a message to the other Dwarven groups, and, once they’re all gathered together, they advance on Moria to take back what is rightfully theirs. Together, the Dwarves advanced toward Moria, slaying any enemy they encountered along the way as they sought out Azog. All this culminated in the Battle of Azanulbizar, which took place in the valley near the gates to Moria. It was one of the fiercest conflicts Middle-earth had seen up to that point. Balin fought alongside his people in this battle, including Thorin Oakenshield, which is perhaps how he was selected to take part in the journey to reclaim Erebor in the first place. Balin’s father, Fundin, died during this fight – which could have motivated his decision later in life to return to Moria and work to restore it to its initial glory, as it would be doing right by his father’s memory.
What Was Balin’s Role in The Hobbit?
Balin and Dwalin’s headbutt when they first get to Bilbo’s is a reference to a tradition of the Middle-earth saga’s stuntmen.
In the original book, Balin is actually seventeen years younger than Thorin – something the movie changed drastically.
As previously mentioned, Balin journeys alongside Thorin Oakenshield to retake the Lonely Mountain during the events of The Hobbit. Thorin selected the members of his company by hand, which suggests that he recalled Balin’s bravery at the Battle of Azanulbizar and decided to bring him along. Not only that, but he knew more about Erebor than most of the other, younger members of the group would, which allowed him to have unique insight into what directions the group should take. He had a more discerning eye than some of the other members of the Company, making him particularly useful as a lookout. He never let his age limit him. He was the only Dwarf to accompany Bilbo into the Lonely Mountain when he went to steal the Arkenstone, reflecting just how much he cared for his newfound friend.
Thorin respected Balin enough that he became a sort of unofficial deputy leader to him, and the rest of the team viewed him with similar deference. For example, it was he who led the Dwarves away from the spiders in Mirkwood. Nobody questioned why he was taking command of them rather than Thorin, which shows just how much they respected him. He was also the one who, alongside Thorin, found the raven Roac, who let them know about Smaug’s demise at the hands of Bard the Bowman. The fact that he was one of the two who the raven appeared to suggests once again that he was one of the most important figures embarking on this journey. He then fought in the Battle of the Five Armies, and, upon the Dwarves’ victory, took up residence in the Lonely Mountain alongside the surviving members of Thorin’s group.
What Was Balin’s Role in The Lord of the Rings?
IMDb Ratings of The Lord of the Rings
The Fellowship of the Ring – 8.9
The Two Towers – 8.8
The Return of the King – 9.0
In the aftermath of the Battle of the Five Armies, Balin took Bilbo up on his offer to come around for tea at Bag End (the only Dwarf to do so, it’s worth noting). During one of his trips, he met Frodo and gave him a bit more information on his uncle’s escapades before he settled back down in Bag End. He and Gandalf provided Bilbo with news of the events unfolding across the rest of Middle-earth, which he may otherwise have never gotten to know, since the Shire was so isolated from the rest of the world. This reflects just how close the two got during their journey, and Balin was one of Bilbo’s most trusted friends for a few years after his return to the Shire.
About forty years after the Battle of the Five Armies, Balin found a new purpose. Perhaps still aching from the loss of his father at the Battle of Azanulzibar all those years ago, he gathered a group with the sole intention of reclaiming Moria. There, he would re-establish the great Dwarf kingdom that was once based there and hopefully reclaim the lost Ring of Power given to his race as well. Against the king’s will, he took a group that included fellow members of Thorin’s Company, Oin and Ori, and ventured out to the long-abandoned mine. Though he wasn’t able to find the Ring of Power, as it had been reclaimed by Sauron long before Balin’s return to Moria, he did find Durin’s Axe (a very significant heirloom to the Dwarves) and a Mithril helm that could have been traced back to Durin I. Balin then proclaimed himself the Lord of Moria, citing his descent from the Line of Durin as a reason that he should get to hold that power.
For five years, Balin held dominion over Moria with very little trouble. However, problems broke out in TA 2994. Balin made the mistake of traveling down to the Mirrormere, a small lake, and encountered a legion of Orcs. They slew him, just as they did his father all those years ago. When the rest of the Dwarves encountered his body, they entombed him in the Chamber of Mazarbul. After his death, the expedition to retake Moria failed. The other Dwarves just didn’t have the propensity for leadership that he did, nor did they have his skill in battle. They got trapped in Moria and met untimely ends at the hands of the forces of evil that had overrun the area so long ago. Twenty-five years later, when the Fellowship ventured into Moria, they unearthed the truth about what happened. The Book of Mazarbul, which lay with Balin’s body, was the only warning about what awaited them down there. Had Balin not gone to retake Moria, Gimli wouldn’t have thought there would have been a warm welcome waiting for them when they got there – and one of the Fellowship’s greatest tragedies, the loss of Gandalf, would never have happened. Balin inadvertently catalyzed one of the most significant moments in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and therefore plays a much greater role in the grander scale of Middle-earth than anyone anticipated.
