The Second Age was the time-period of Arda that began after the climactic banishment of Morgoth into the Void by the Lords of the West (the Valar), led by Eönwë, the Herald of Manwë. The Noldor, on the other hand, particularly the Sons of Fëanor, had come with the express purpose of defeating Morgoth. There had been elves in Beleriand for uncounted millennia, but they sought merely to exist, and Morgoth had little to do with them. The wars had actually begun during the Years of the Trees, but began again with renewed fury after the arrival of the Ñoldor in Beleriand. These were centered on a series of wars waged by the Sindar, the Ñoldor and the Three Houses of the Edain, against the armies of Angband and the evil Men.
Tolkien describes primarily the events that occurred in Beleriand.
