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Craig began contributing to Screen Rant in 2016 and has been ranting ever since, mostly to himself in a darkened room. After previously writing for various outlets, Craig's focus turned to TV and film, where a steady upbringing of science fiction and comic books finally became useful. Craig has previously been published by sites such as Den of Geek.
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Despite being The Lord of the Rings' main villain, Sauron was really a follower of the far mightier Morgoth. The First Age saw Sauron serving as Morgoth's faithful second-in-command, overseeing the forces of Angband, attacking elven settlements, and getting beaten by dogs. It was only after Morgoth's imprisonment at the hands of the Valar that Sauron slowly elevated himself to prime antagonist status - a position he maintained until two hobbits came along.
With Sauron considered Morgoth's most powerful follower and direct successor, it's natural to assume Sauron would come second to his master in a ranking of Middle-earth's most potent dark forces. In truth, Morgoth had an ally that could have overwhelmed Sauron with relative ease, making the Shadow of Mordor only the second most prized entry in Morgoth's contact list.
Ungoliant Joined Forces With Morgoth Long Before The Lord Of The Rings
Morgoth was apprehended by the Valar several times throughout The Lord of the Rings history. One of the early occasions came soon after the arrival of elves in Middle-earth, as the Valar, concerned for these new creations, dragged Morgoth back to Valinor as their prisoner while Sauron remained behind to carry on his master's work in Middle-earth's shadows.
Morgoth continued his machinations even under the Valar's watchful eye, and journeyed to the southern reaches of the Undying Lands. At this time, he came across the spirit Ungoliant - an entity of pure darkness and a consumer of light. Conspiring to destroy what the Valar loved most - the Two Trees of Valinor - Morgoth convinced Ungoliant to join his cause. Their sinister plan was enacted: Morgoth pierced the Two Trees, and Ungoliant drank their divine light.
Sensing the Valar wouldn't react well to this, Morgoth swiped the Silmarils and fled back to Middle-earth with Ungoliant by his side, but this tempestuous alliance quickly came to an end once Morgoth's aims were achieved. As The Lord of the Rings' big bad set to work preparing his next reign of terror, Ungoliant found a quiet corner of Middle-earth to breed before disappearing far to the south. By Frodo's time, Shelob is the last remaining descendant of Ungoliant.
How We Know Ungoliant Was More Powerful Than Sauron
J.R.R. Tolkien treated notions of individual power with ambiguity, but there is enough evidence to suggest Ungoliant surpassed Sauron in strength. The biggest clue is that Morgoth himself was genuinely fearful of his light-sucking friend.
After Ungoliant absorbed the light of Valinor's twin trees, Morgoth is described as being in awe of her frightening power. Morgoth subtly tried to give Ungoliant the slip at this point, but she was having none of it and tenaciously followed him all the way to Middle-earth. Tellingly, Morgoth showed no such concern over Sauron's abilities.
As their two-person band broke up, Morgoth and Ungoliant even came to blows, with the latter actually having the upper hand before a gang of Balrogs stepped in to protect their master. Had Sauron launched a similar assault upon Morgoth, he would have been put back in his place with much less trouble. Another feat of note is how Ungoliant used her power of "unlight" to hold off members of the Valar while escaping the Undying Lands. Sauron's tactic when faced with the Valar was typically begging for forgiveness or hiding.
Ungoliant's superiority over Sauron does come with two caveats. First, the giant spider monster apparently depended on light for sustenance. There are passages where Tolkien describes a hungry Ungoliant as being devoid of all strength, and it was only after draining the two trees that Morgoth beheld his ally's immense true power.
Secondly, Ungoliant was animalistic in her behavior, driven solely by a desire to feed with little capacity for tactics or strategy. If Sauron led his army against an unfed Ungoliant, he would have stood a chance of diminishing her spirit to the point of no return.
What Is Ungoliant In The Lord Of The Rings Mythology?
Like Tom Bombadil, Ungoliant is an entity that Tolkien deliberately left as an enigma. Fortunately, the author did provide a few more clues than with Old Tom.
Morgoth is the source of all darkness in The Lord of the Rings. Ungoliant exists as a spirit of complete and utter darkness, and Tolkien suggests Ungoliant was brought forth by Morgoth's burning hatred of creation. The key line is from The Silmarillion: "She descended from the darkness that lies about Arda, when Melkor [Morgoth] first looked down in envy upon the Kingdom of Manwë."
This could be interpreted as meaning that Morgoth inadvertently spawned Ungoliant through the power of his anger and jealousy, or that Ungoliant already existed somewhere beyond the world, and was attracted into Arda by Morgoth's evil. In a less obvious way, the line could also indicate that Ungoliant was, like Sauron, originally a maia that Morgoth corrupted into an absolute embodiment of darkness.
Accepting the idea that Ungoliant is some kind of primordial entity or a direct product of Morgoth's wrath would go a long way toward explaining just how she holds so much raw power in The Lord of the Rings' lore.
Created by J.R.R. Tolkien
Character(s) Frodo Baggins, Gandalf, Legolas, Boromir, Sauron, Gollum, Samwise Gamgee, Pippin Took, Celeborn, Aragorn, Galadriel, Bilbo Baggins, Saruman, Aldor, Wormtongue, Thorin Oakenshield, Balin Dwalin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Fili, Kili, Oin, Gloin, Nori, Dori, Ori, Tauriel, King Thranduil, Smaug, Radagast, Arondir, Nori Brandyfoot, Poppy Proudfellow, Marigold Brandyfoot, Queen Regent Míriel, Sadoc Burrows
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