IHOP - The International House of Panacea

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by skip spence

Also, what did Rivendell look like? I suppose it was a well-manned stronghold, capable of withstanding an assault from a strong army, because it it wasn't, Sauron would no doubt have over-thrown it long ago. Sauron would have known more or less were Rivendell lay, wouldn't he? Since it's located in a deep valley, it seems like a siege should be fairly easy to stage, no?

I guess that's just the point. Gandalf himself in the Hobbit, and he must have been there many, many times, wasn't sure about the location of the valley itself and had to look around all the time - as Mith has already mentioned. I believe Mnemo's idea of "lesser Girdle of Melian" is also quite plausible and fits my mental image of the kind of defence surrounding Rivendell.

Let us not also forget that by the time of establishing, Rivendell was actually surrounded by Sauron's forces, but not defeated. Back then, though, I believe there were far more soldiers there than in the late Third Age. However, it's interesting to note that Rivendell was actually established as a temporary (or so it probably seemed back then) camp of defense against Sauron. (Elrond as a commander of a part of army was basically besieged there, being driven into wilderness, and he probably saw this nice hidden valley which was easy to protect, and so he did. Something along the lines of Helm's Deep.)