Do you remember the sunrise that Sauron mentioned in his speech about forgiveness? It was not the same one that Galadriel referenced:

“I have pursued this foe since before the first sunrise bloodied the sky” (1×02).

She alluded to the time when the Noldor sailed from Valinor in pursuit of Morgoth, which was towards the beginning of the conflict between Morgoth and the Elves:

“But when at last the Valar learned that the Noldor had indeed passed out of Aman and were come back into Middle-earth, they arose and began to set forth in deeds those counsels which they had taken in thought for the redress of the evils of Melkor. […] Yet even as hope failed and [Yavanna’s] song faltered, Telperion bore at last upon a leafless bough one great flower of silver, and Laurelin a single fruit of gold. […]
Isil the Sheen the Vanyar of old named the Moon, flower of Telperion in Valinor; and Anar the Fire-golden, fruit of Laurelin, they named the Sun.”

Of the Sun and Moon and the Hiding of Valinor

Sauron, on the other hand, spoke about the end of the War:

“When Morgoth was defeated, it was as if a great, clenched fist had released its grasp from my neck. And in the stillness of that first sunrise, at last! I felt the light of the One again” (1×08).

There is a crucial difference between the first sunrise and that first sunrise. It so happens that that sunrise (when Morgoth was defeated—the sunrise Sauron fondly remembered) was emphasized in The Silmarillion.

“Before the rising of the sun Eärendil slew Ancalagon the Black, the mightiest of the dragon-host, and cast him from the sky; and he fell upon the towers of Thangorodrim, and they were broken in his ruin. Then the sun rose, and the host of the Valar prevailed, and well-nigh all the dragons were destroyed; and all the pits of Morgoth were broken and unroofed, and the might of the Valar descended into the deeps of the earth.”

Morgoth was bound by the Valar, the two remaining Silmarils were taken from his crown, and Eönwë guarded them.

“Thus an end was made of the power of Angband in the North, and the evil realm was brought to naught; and out of the deep prisons a multitude of slaves came forth beyond all hope into the light of day, and they looked upon a world that was changed.”

Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath

Of course, those slaves were not Orcs, Balrogs, or any servant of Morgoth. They were those (Elves and Men) who were captured and imprisoned, and sent deep into the mines to dig. But Sauron described his experience of the end of the War from their perspective.

Why?

Sauron | “When Morgoth was defeated, it was as if a great, clenched fist had released its grasp from my neck. And in the stillness of that first sunrise, at last! I felt the light of the One again. And I knew, if ever I was to be forgiven, that I had to heal everything that I had helped ruin” (1×08).

The Silmarillion | “Before the rising of the sun Eärendil slew Ancalagon the Black […] Then the sun rose, and the host of the Valar prevailed […]. Thus an end was made of the power of Angband in the North, and the evil realm was brought to naught; and out of the deep prisons a multitude of slaves came forth beyond all hope into the light of day, and they looked upon a world that was changed.“

First, remember who Sauron was talking to, and that the whole scene was filled with manipulation. Second, nothing had to be changed from the text, nor was there any need to add anything for the sake of a TV show.

Sauron adored Morgoth in the beginning; he was not forced to his allegiance; he was not turned evil against his will. So, what exactly was this trauma he experienced? Sure, he was aware of the dire consequences of crossing Morgoth, but he was still Morgoth’s most powerful and trusted servant. He would not achieve such a status by disobedience, rebellion, or any hint of sedition. The implication of his story was not that the “great, clenched fist” was just a general fear that lifted when Morgoth fell. Something happened.

Sauron made one mistake.

In the first season, he always told Galadriel the truth, for it would be easier to manipulate her with the truth than a pure fabrication. In speaking of the implications of the “great, clenched fist,” Charlie Vickers referenced the fight between Sauron, Lúthien and Huan.

Let’s examine that.

Before the encounter with Lúthien and Huan, Sauron was in an extremely fortunate position.

“At length Morgoth set a price upon [Beren’s] head […]; but the Orcs fled rather at the rumour of his approach than sought him out. Therefore an army was sent against him under the command of Sauron;”

A while after Morgoth set this price upon Beren’s head, Beren set out with Finrod and a company of ten Elves to retrieve a Silmaril from Morgoth’s crown. They disguised themselves, but were captured and brought to Sauron—the same Sauron who was commanded to retrieve Beren’s head. It was here that Sauron defeated Finrod in their contest of songs of power.

“Then Sauron stripped from them their disguise […] But though their kinds were revealed, Sauron could not discover their names or their purposes.”

Sauron possessed great power. But more importantly, he inadvertently imprisoned the Man upon whose head Morgoth put a price. Sauron did not know it, but everything was within his grasp.

Until he lost everything. Pride, greed, and ambition spelled his doom. In the hour that Finrod died, Sauron heard Lúthien sing songs of power to Beren.

“The wolves howled, and the isle trembled. Sauron stood in the high tower, wrapped in his black thought; but he smiled hearing [Lúthien’s] voice, for he knew that it was the daughter of Melian. […] and he thought to make her captive and hand her over to the power of Morgoth, for his reward would be great.”

One by one, Sauron sent servants to capture Lúthien, but Huan killed them all. Finally, the last servant died at Sauron’s feet, and said:

“‘Huan is there!’ Now Sauron knew well, as did all in that land, the fate that was decreed for the hound of Valinor, and it came into his thought that he himself would accomplish it.”

This decision resulted in what is widely considered Sauron’s most humiliating moment, in the jaws of Huan. This is the passage Charlie Vickers paraphrased:

“Ere his foul spirit left its dark house, Lúthien came to him, and said that he should be stripped of his raiment of flesh, and his ghost be sent quaking back to Morgoth; and she said: ‘There everlastingly thy naked self shall endure the torment of his scorn, pierced by his eyes, unless thou yield to me the mastery of thy tower.’”

Of Beren and Lúthien

Sauron had no choice but to yield to Huan and Lúthien, or else he would face Morgoth’s wrath; so he let them go. Beren and Lúthien entered Angband, cut a Silmaril from Morgoth’s crown, and escaped. Eärendil was able to 1) sail to Valinor unscathed, and 2) convince the Valar to aid the Elves, all thanks to that particular Silmaril.

Sauron’s actions directly led to Morgoth’s demise.

After he fled into Taur-nu-Fuin, he was never mentioned again in The Silmarillion between the time of his failure and the end of the War. Where did he go? Would Morgoth’s greatest and most powerful servant not be actively involved in the fight against the host of the Valar? He fled and dwelt in Taur-nu-Fuin for an undetermined period, but a lot of time passed between then and the end of the War. How long would it have taken Morgoth to discover that Sauron was the one who let Lúthien go? How long would it have taken armies to hunt Sauron as he fled?

Not long.

Sauron did not just flee from Lúthien and Huan. He fled from Morgoth. This is the last we read of Sauron in the book.

“And immediately he took the form of a vampire, great as a dark cloud across the moon, and he fled, dripping blood from his throat upon the trees, and came to Taur-nu-Fuin, and dwelt there, filling it with horror.”

Of Beren and Lúthien

Then, the War ended, and we see what Eönwë did as the multitude of enslaved Elves and Men came forth.

“…out of the deep prisons a multitude of slaves came forth beyond all hope into the light of day, and they looked upon a world that was changed. […]
Then Eönwë as herald of the Elder King summoned the Elves of Beleriand to depart from Middle-earth.”

Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath

Sauron would have approached Eönwë in the same scene, where he was also commanded to depart from Middle-earth.

“When Thangorodrim was broken and Morgoth overthrown, Sauron put on his fair hue again and did obeisance to Eönwë, the herald of Manwë, and abjured all his evil deeds. […] But it was not within the power of Eönwë to pardon those of his own order, and he commanded Sauron to return to Aman and there receive the judgement of Manwë.”

Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age

But Sauron knew that Manwë could perceive what was in his heart, and he was not about to go from one prison to another. So, he fled from yet another judgment, and fell back into evil.

It is no wonder Sauron described his experience from the perspective of those slaves who emerged “beyond all hope into the light of day;” reminiscing the stillness of the first sunrise after the overthrow of Thangorodrim, and the great, clenched fist that released its grasp from his neck as a result. In the Great War, Sauron did not sit in a tree or even a back-up tower to watch the literal world-changing battle of the gods, from the sidelines.

He failed Morgoth, miserably, and was punished for it.

“What do you know of darkness?” (Sauron, 1×05).

When Thangorodrim was broken and Morgoth overthrown—(When Morgoth was defeated)—Sauron emerged out of the deep prisons—(it was as if a great, clenched fist had released its grasp from my neck)—beyond all hope into the light of day—(And in the stillness of that first sunrise, at last! I felt the light of the One again). He looked upon a world that was changed, and everything that he had helped ruin.

“For so great was the fury of those adversaries that the northern regions of the western world were rent asunder, and the sea roared in through many chasms, and there was confusion and great noise; and rivers perished or found new paths, and the valleys were upheaved and the hills trod down; and Sirion was no more.”

Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath

He put on his fair hue again and did obeisance to Eönwë. And some hold that this was not at first falsely done, but that Sauron in truth repented, if only out of fear, being dismayed by the fall of Morgoth and the great wrath of the Lords of the West.

Then Sauron was ashamed, and he was unwilling to return in humiliation and to receive from the Valar a sentence.—(And I knew, if ever I was to be forgiven, that I had to heal everything that I had helped ruin.)—Therefore when Eönwë departed he hid himself in Middle-earth; and he fell back into evil, for the bonds that Morgoth had laid upon him were very strong.

TO BE CONTINUED

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