Why Didn't Sauron Recruit Smaug? Middle-Earth Lore

There's a version of the War of the Ring that almost happened. One where Erebor never gets reclaimed, where a red dragon patrols the skies over Mirkwood, and where the free peoples of the North simply don't exist anymore by the time Frodo leaves the Shire. Gandalf saw that future coming. He was terrified of it. And the only reason it never happened wasn't luck, and it wasn't Sauron losing interest. By the end of this, you'll know exactly why Sauron didn’t recruit Smaug, who almost made it happen, and why the timing came down to a matter of years that Middle-earth didn't actually have to spare. #tolkien #lordoftherings #sauron #frodo #gandalf