: Okay, but how did Sauron exert control over the Nazgul without the one? Did he wear the nine? Or was it just a mental influence type thing? And did the Nazgul retain the power the rings gave them after Sauron took them back, or what? How did they do this? Sauron didn't retain the power he put into the one, so how did they remain active?

And I would like to know why Gandalf or Elrond( I forget which if not both) thought that Sauron might not know that the ring was whole. You say that when the ring was destroyed Sauron was powerless (of course that was the whole point in destroying the ring) but why would Sauron not know this? Wouldn't the the one that made the ring know what the effects of it would be on himself? And wouldn't the fact that he still had power let him know that the ring was fine long before he found Gollum? For that matter why did all of Sauron's power disappear when the ring was destroyed? (I should also like to know if the destruction of the ring killed Sauron or simply made him helpless.) I know that there are passages that say he would be defeated if it was destroyed, but I don't know how and why.

Hello Josh, I am glad to meet a new person who likes to ask questions as much as I do. Half the things I post are questions that the members of this board are kind enough to answer.:-)
Dulcinea