A general term used by the Orcs, at least those in Mordor, during the later years of the Third Age and the War of the Ring. The 'Big Bosses' included Sauron himself (the Biggest Boss), but also those commanders who served beneath him. Though not defined in detail, these Bosses presumably included the Nazgûl, and apparently also covered at least some important Orcs or Men.1
The control of the Big Bosses over the Orcs of Mordor was apparently a relatively recent development. The Orcs fondly remembered older times when there were no Bosses, so their command apparently dated back just a few decades at most. This perhaps relates to the events of III 2951 (sixty-seven years before the War of the Ring) when Sauron openly announced himself as Lord of Mordor (though the Orcs referred to their 'Big Bosses' so informally that a precise definition is probably impossible to achieve).
Notes
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In Mordor, Frodo and Sam overheard an Orc claiming that '...some of the bosses are going to lose their skins...' over mistakes in the War (The Return of the King VI 2, The Land of Shadow). Presumably this threat wouldn't meaningfully apply to the Nazgûl, which in turn implies that these bosses were Orcs or Men (such as the Mouth of Sauron, whose rank of Lieutenant of the Tower of Barad-dûr surely qualified him as one of the Big Bosses).
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- Updated 31 July 2022
- Updates planned: 1
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