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Originally Posted by Gothmog, LoB
Perhaps I exaggerated a little bit there. What I meant to say is that Celeborn was the man and the Lord of Lórien. He wore the pants - at least publicly. How Galadrien and Celeborn's private arrangements were is another matter (as is what happened behind closed doors). I guess he deferred often to her and followed her counsel.
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Deferred often to her? He wore the pants? Do you actually think he did anything without her consent? I mean, really, think about Celeborn's situation. You are married to the most powerful Noldorin Elf left in Middle-earth, born before Ungoliant and the destruction of the Two Trees, who, by the way, learned arcane secrets at the feet of Melian the Maia, oh, and who just happened to wield one of the Three Rings of Power, and also had enough innate power to destroy Dol Guldur single-handedly - after the One Ring was destroyed and the Three lost their power. There is enough information in the books that implied coequal rule within Lothlorien, but outside the bounds of that land she was one of a handful known as the Wise and a leader of the Free Peoples. There are three Ringbearers, Gandalf, Elrond, Galadriel, who were the most prominent. No one gave a Ring to Celeborn.
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Originally Posted by Gothmog, LoB
As to the White Council - Celeborn himself is never mentioned as a member but one assumes he was part of it, too.
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Doesn't matter, Galadriel convened the Council. That Celeborn is barely mentioned speaks volumes as to who wielded the power in Middle-earth.
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Originally Posted by Gothmog, LoB
However, if you read how things are described in Appendix B then Celeborn is mentioned a lot more than Galadriel. He leads the army, he takes Dol Guldur, he meets with Thranduil and comes to a new agreement with him.
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He had to do something. Think how embarrassing his situation would be if Galadriel also led the armies, in addition to protecting Lothlorien under her mantle. There's a reason the Fellowship felt a drastic change in weather once they entered those enchanted woods.
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Originally Posted by Gothmog, LoB
Yes, Galadriel is mentioned as the one cleansing Dol Guldur, but nobody ever doubted she was strong and powerful with this kind of stuff.
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You make it sound like all she did was get out a scrub brush and a bucket to spiffy up Dol Guldur. The exact line is "threw down its walls and laid bare its pits, and the forest was cleansed."
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Originally Posted by Gothmog, LoB
The question is - is her power in that department (or her general wisdom and power) transferring into power in the political field and making her the official number one (i.e. a sort of Ruling Lady/Queen) instead of Celeborn. And I think the obvious answer to that is no.
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A king would have say so in regards to political alliances outside his realm, yes? Galadriel handled that, not Celeborn.
I will leave you with a quote from Galadriel:
“And now at last it comes. You will give me the Ring freely! In place of the Dark Lord you will set up a Queen. And I shall not be dark, but beautiful and terrible as the Morning and the Night! Fair as the Sea and the Sun and the Snow upon the Mountain! Dreadful as the Storm and the Lightning! Stronger than the foundations of the earth. All shall love me and despair!”
How does Celeborn fit in there? Is he mentioned? He's the "King" supposedly (they are referred to as Lord and Lady, which doesn't necessarily imply one has precedence over the other), shouldn't Galadriel dutifully hand her sovereign the Ring, since he "wears the pants"? What part would Celeborn play if Galadriel actually took the Ring? My guess would be a hasty divorce in Las Vegas, and if he survived, exile in the Dead Marshes.