Bilbo Baggins, a remarkably old and eccentric hobbit, throws a spectacular all-day party to celebrate his 111th birthday and his cousin Frodo's 33rd. Although old, Bilbo has the appearance and energy of someone half his age, while Frodo is now legally able to inherit Bilbo's estate. During his after-dinner speech, Bilbo announces that he is leaving, slips on his magic ring, and disappears in front of his guests' astonished eyes. Back in his hobbit hole, Bag End, he meets with his old friend the wizard Gandalf, and they discuss his plan to leave everything — including the ring — to Frodo. Bilbo becomes agitated and suspicious, and he nearly keeps the ring, but he finally leaves it behind. After he commits to the decision, he feels relieved, as though a heavy burden has been lifted.
Frodo, who knew the plan, settles in to live respectably. For seventeen years, little happens except that Frodo does not age, much like his vanished cousin. Travelers' stories of danger beyond the Shire start to arrive, followed soon by Gandalf. He has come to realize that Frodo's ring is, in fact, the One Ring, created long ago by the Dark Lord Sauron. Sauron is unspeakably evil, and he needs to recover the Ring in order to enslave all the peoples of Middle-earth. He has learned from Gollum that the Ring has been found, and he has begun to search for it. Frodo must leave the Shire soon, before Sauron finds him, to keep the Ring safe.
