The Life of Smaug & the Dragons of the North | Tolkien Explained

Today we cover the life of Smaug - the greatest dragon of the Third Age. We also cover his ancestors - the dragons of the North - and their wars with the dwarves of the Grey Mountains - including the ancestors of Thorin Oakenshield. From Scatha and Cold Drakes to Smaug and the dragons that may have existed after him, we talk about them all!

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Conversation with Smaug - JRR Tolkien
Bilbo and Smaug - Diego Gisbert Llorens
Ancalagon the Black - Caglayan Kaya Goksoy
On the Doorstep - Chris Rahn
Erebor - Alan Lee
Fram Slays Scatha the Long Worm - Kip Rasmussen
Gandalf at Bag End - Myles Pinkney
Gandalf vs the Balrog - Daniel Govar
Red Dragon - Kenny Gonzalo
Old Friends - Momofukuu
The Teeth of Scatha - Matthew Stewart
The Slaying of Scatha - Lynton Levengood
Tom Bombadil - Borja Pindado
Smaug - Al Lukehart
The Cold Drake - Alvaro Calvo Escudero
Smaug - Anato Finnstark
Bard Faces Smaug - Kip Rasmussen
Bones of Smaug - Steamey
Dragon Bones - Stefan Koidl
A Conversation with Smaug - Ted Nasmith
Esgaroth is Burning - Moonxels
Smaug Destroys Laketown - Greg Hildebrandt
Dragons - Grzegorz Rutkowski
I Am Death - Tai91
Smaug Chasing Bilbo - Iken
Laketown - Toby Carr
Laketown - Nate Hallinan
Smaug - Nicolo Rigobello
The Hobbit - Bilbo & Smaug - Pablo Olivera
Black Arrow - Paolo Puggioni
Red Dragon - Mazanedo
Scatha - Lynton Levengood
Smaug and His Treasure - Shockbolt
Smaug - Ckgoksoy
Smaug - Mike Azevedo
Smaug - The Rising Soul
Smaug & Bilbo - The Rising Soul
Smaug Destroys Esgaroth - Gaius Duke
Smaug - David Demaret
Smaug's Arrival - Frerin Hagsolb
Smaug the Destroyer - Ted Nasmith
The Draconic War - Pietro Bouvier
Thief - Raoul Vitale
Scouring the Mountain - Ted Nasmith
Smaug Atop Erebor - Ted Nasmith
White Dragon - Vince L Falcone

Check out these resources for this and more info about Smaug, the Dragons of the North, and the War of Dwarves and Dragon:
The Hobbit
The Lord of the Rings Appendix A - Durin’s Folk
The Encyclopedia of Arda
Tolkien Gateway

#smaug #thehobbit #tolkien

[NerdoftheRings]

Happy New Year, my friends! What videos would you like to see in 2021? And do you think we will see any dragons in LOTR on Prime?

[thegamingpigeon]

The thing I always loved about Smaug, his conversation with Bilbo and his downfall: it all could have been easily prevented. Not for a single moment did Bilbo fool him. He knew exactly what was going on. But he gave in to his arrogance and humored Bilbo, which in turn led to his own demise.

[karlmarxjr]

I always loved it when Bilbo riddles with the dragon. It's absolutely genuis writing

[nealmaxwell]

I love how Smaug is one of the smallest dragons. As if JRR was like “oh you think he’s bad!? See a dragon the size of a mountain!”

[perry]

Cumberbatch truly and wholly nailed this role in the movie.

[tiagodagostini]

We rule under the mountian, our only enemy are giant flying lizards 50 ft tall. Err lets be sure our front doors are at least 55 feet tall!

[PM-edxd]

I always assumed dragon sickness was just a metaphor for greed.

[michaelfranklin]

Smaug had another illness. With all his power and wealth, evil as he was, he suffered from isolation. It seems he relished Bilbo's conversation, and was ambivalent about finishing him off. Likewise, it seems that Bilbo wondered if it would've been better if Smaug maintained possession of the cursed hoard when the battle of the five armies started.

[ImperialKnight]

Smaug was actually a juvenile when he took Erebor so his scales were softer and more easily dislodged back then but still a force to be reckoned with.

[viking]

Interesting how Toliken created a whole world with a detailed history.

[bitterzombie]

I really like how tolkien presents the dragons in his stories as so egotistical that they almost cant be reasoned with. Like they were made by the dark lord to be the most powerful creatures on arda but they became so arrogant as a result that they dont really take orders or serve anyone except their own desires.

[Typhoonatlas]

So a Tolkien dragon goes from young to old after 171 years. Seems quite short but morgoth did hold the first dragon back for 200 years until it grew to full size. Maybe that's what old is meant to mean ... full sized. Makes more sense when you consider the lifespan of elves, dwarves and some long-lived humans

[vadapartyannapurna]

I can’t believe a dragon has better manners than most of today’s people

[inisipisTV]

Your son has good taste for a favorite character.☺

[trouts]

It was always my impression that Smaug was the last dragon, which adds a sort of sadness to his death. After all, Smaug was no more evil than many Men. So when you said that Gandalf implied there were more dragons, it stumped me. I always figured that what Gandalf meant was that there were no more dragons, and even if there were then their fire wouldn't be hot enough.

[doyouremebervodka]

I like how smaug was so amused with bilbo and wanted to spite the dwarfs so much that he was willing to let bilbo go just to go insult the dwarves.

[swabrianwar]

"my wings are a hurricaneeee" Ancalagon: sooo cute

[benglazier]

In a letter from 1954 Tolkien says about Dragons after Smaug - “They had not stopped; since they were active in far later times, close to our own.” As Middle-earth is Earth set in the far past then ‘real life’ mythological Dragons such as Fafnir and the Beowulf Dragon could be viewed as ‘Middle-Earth’ dragons from far later ages which is what I think Tolkien is referring to here.

[reyesluis]

You truly have the most entertaining and comprehensive detailed explanations of Middle-earth and all of Tolkien's worlds.
Thanks for spending the time doing this.

[edselgreaves]

Man, Benedict Cumberbatch killed it with this role. His voice was just perfect to carry out the lines in Smaug & Bilbo's conversation. He sounded menacing and enticing in the best way possible.