The Author - JRR Tolkien: Most people are truly amazed at the wealth of information that forms Tolkien's life's work. The amount of care and attention that he put into creating the "Secondary World", as he called it, is staggering! Many people regard The Lord of the Rings as Tolkien's masterpiece, yet it barely scratches the surface of this mythical world. It is remarkable that Tolkien spent most of his life creating this environment, crafting languages, histories, and landscapes. One might even ask why. One suggestion is that Tolkien felt so strongly that England should have one that he tried to invent one of his own. A classic example is the tale of King Arthur. Many people think of this as truly English, however it is mostly French in origin!   Tolkien's Childhood: John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born on the 3rd January, 1892, in South Africa to English parents (Mabel Suffiel and Arthur Reuel Tolkien) who had emigrated to seek a better life in South Africa. At the time, they were living in Bloemfontein, where Arthur Tolkien had accepted a position as a manager of an English Bank. Whilst visiting his grandparents in England when he was just 4 years old, his father died of rheumatic fever on February 15th, 1896. The devastated family settles at Sarehole, on the southeastern edge of Birmingham. Ronald spent many happy months there with his younger brother, Hilary, and his mother.   Tolkien's Education: After Tolkien had managed to gain a place at King Edward VI School in Birmingham in September 1900, they moved to Moseley to be closer to the school. However, the family was forced into poverty, and as such, John was enrolled at a cheaper school. However, he persevered and won a scholarship for King Edward's in 1903: allowing him to return! In 1904, Mabel died from complications arising from diabetes. Following this, John and his brother became wards of a kindly priest at the Birmingham Oratory. Click to see a larger view of the school John had always been encouraged by his mother to take an interest in language, and once his mother died, he found that school provided a stable refuge away from his disrupted and distressing home-life. He soon showed a lot of interest in languages, and encountered Anglo-Saxon and Middle English. To develop his linguistic abilities, he started to invent languages which he related to 'elvish' people. In addition, with 3 close friends, he formed the TeaClubBarrovianSociety, a small club based on their love for legends and sagas. In 1911, he gained entry to the University of Oxford to study both English Language and Literature. However, his love for ancient languages continued. He graduated with a First in English Language and Literature at Exeter College in 1915.   Tolkien's Family: Tolkien married Edith Bratt, whom he had first met many years before while living in the same lodging-house as Edith in Birmingham. They married 22nd March 1916, and later that year, he went to fight in the First World War. He signed up as a lieutenant in the Lancashire Fusiliers, and was sent to France in June 1916, where, in quiet moments he would scribble short stories down. These later formed the basis of The Silmarillion. He served his country at the Battle of the Somme serving as Second Lieutenant, and returned to England suffering from shell shock. Although he survived, two of his three closest friends were killed in action. He spent the remainder of the war in England, with his wife. In 1917, his first son, John Francis Reuel Tolkien was born. Despite his work commitments, Edith and John managed to have three other children, Michael Hilary Reuel (1920), Christopher Reuel (1924), and Priscilla Anne Reuel (1929).   Tolkien's Working Life: Following his discharge from the army after the war, he got a job as a staff member working on the New English Dictionary, which lasted from 1918 to 1920. In 1920, Tolkien was appointed as Reader in the English Language at the University of Leeds, a post that was converted to a Professorship a few years later. He distinguished himself through lively lessons, and in 1925 was appointed as Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford. CS Lewis It was in 1926 that JRR. Tolkien met CS. Lewis, author of The Chronicles of Narnia. The two had a lot in common, and they became good friends. Clive Staples Lewis (1898-1963) was a tutor at Oxford University, and later the chair of Medieval and Renaissance English Literature at Cambridge University. And, in 1945, he was appointed Merton Professor of English Language and Literature. He fulfilled all of his posts with great skill and enthusiasm for many years, giving inspiring lectures and transforming the view of Middle English and Anglo-Saxon writings.   Tolkien's Work: John had begun to write the mythological and legendary cycle called The Book of Lost Tales from the short, scribbled tales that he had written during the First World War. Later, this became known as The Silmarillion. 1946 Copy of The Hobbit He told his children the story of a hobbit called Bilbo Baggins. Pressured by his family, he wrote this down as The Hobbit, which was later published in 1937 by Stanley Unwin. The demand was so high, Tolkien felt himself pressurised to write a 'sequel'. This sequel, intended as another book for children, grew into The Lord of the Rings. This was more of a sequel to the Silmarillion than to the Hobbit. This huge undertaking took twelve years to complete, and was not published until Tolkien was approaching retirement. It was met with huge success, which rather dazzled Tolkien. He followed these books with The Adventures of Tom Bombadil in 1962 and Smith of Wotton Major and The Roads Goes Ever On in 1967. Following his retirement, Tolkien and his wife first lived in Headington, in Oxford, then moved to Poole, for the quiet environment that if offered. Edith Tolkien, who had been ill for some time, died in 1971. Tolkien felt this loss greatly Tolkien returned to Oxford. Shortly after receiving an OBE from the Queen, he died following a brief illness, on 2nd September 1973. His last words to his daughter were "I feel on top of the world!" The Silmarillion, the forefather of Lord of the Rings was yet to be published, and the huge task of editing it was left to his son Christopher.   Tolkien's Inspiration: The manner in which Tolkien wrote could be better compared to the way in which a textbook would be written. He spent many hours ensuring that the languages, topography, etc was realistic. He produced many maps of Middle Earth, but where would be have got the inspiration for the landscapes? Click here to read more about this.