Timeline Event
Nazgûl reoccupy Dol Guldur
Event Type: Military/Strategic
Age: 3rd Age - The Stewards
Year: 2951
Description:
2951
Sauron declares himself openly and gathers power in Mordor. He begins the rebuilding of Barad-dûr.... Sauron sends three of the Nazgûl to reoccupy Dol Guldur.
The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, The Tale of Years: The Third Age
Now [when Osgiliath was taken] the Chieftain of the Ringwraiths dwelt in Minas Morgul with six companions, while the second to the Chief, Khamûl the Shadow of the East, abode in Dol Guldur as Sauron's lieutenant, with one other 1 as his messenger.
Unfinished Tales, Part 3, Ch 4, The Hunt for the Ring: Of the Journey of the Black Riders
Notes
1 According to the entry in the Tale of Years for 2951 Sauron sent three, not two, of the Nazgûl to reoccupy Dol Guldur. The two statements can be reconciled on the assumption that one of the Ringwraiths of Dol Guldur returned afterwards to Minas Morgul but I think it more likely that the formulation of the present text was superseded when the Tale of Years was compiled; and it may be noted that in a rejected version of the present passage there was only one Nazgûl in Dol Guldur (not named as Khamûl, but referred to as "the Second Chief (the Black Easterling)"), while one remained with Sauron as his chief messenger.
Unfinished Tales, Part 3, Ch 4, The Hunt for the Ring: Notes, Note 1
Contributors:
Elena Tiriel 4Oct05