Gandalf: the Unilateral Coalition Builder

[Lhunardawen]

Originally Posted by Eruanna

So why didn't Saruman try to take it from him when he had Gandalf locked up in Orthanc?

I'm thinking - and I could be wrong - that this is another manifestation of Saruman's pride. Yes, it hurt him and made him jealous to know that people in Middle Earth (at least Cirdan, and the rest of the White Council) trust Gandalf more than him (ouch! a double blow!), but I guess he was confident that his job could be done without the ring.