J. R. R Tolkien’s Life During World War I
J.R.R Tolkien was an English scholar and professor at Oxford University; he was an established author of multiple best-selling books; and a loving husband and father of his family. He served in World War I, most notably in the Battle of the Somme. This article will tell the reader about his time during the war, and it will share the many experiences he had.
1915
In July 1915, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, and World War I began. In August, the British Empire declared war on Germany; almost all able-bodied men enlisted in the war. But Tolkien was set on completing his education at Oxford University before enlisting in the army. Tolkien stayed at Oxford University, and almost a year later he took his final exams; there were only 24 other students in the exam room because of the war, but he passed. Everyone else had already entered the army, and Tolkien planned to do the same thing. Tolkien applied to the Oxford recruiting office and waited for further information. He became a second lieutenant appointed to the 13th Service Battalion of the Lancashire Fusiliers. Before his orders to go to France, he wrote many stories and poems; one of the poems was Goblin Feet, published in Oxford Poetry 1915.
Tolkien and Edith’s Love Story
On March 22, 1916, Tolkien and Edith finally married. They met in 1908 when Tolkien was only 16 years old and Edith was 19: Tolkien fell in love with Edith and wanted to marry her, but they were forbidden from marrying. Tolkien’s guardian, Priest Morgan, forbade them from marrying and would not let Tolkien see his future wife until his 21st birthday. During his time at war, he was separated from his wife for 5 months, Tolkien, when he had the chance, would often write to Edith. Edith was someone that Tolkien could confide in and inspired him, he would write stories and base characters off of his wife. They had four children together; their oldest was John Francis Reuel Tolkien and their youngest was Priscilla Tolkien. He wrote stories for his children and the book The Hobbit he had written for his children and then would later be published for children around the world to read. He was a very loving father and husband, he was married to his wife for fifty-five years.
1916
1916 was a very impactful year for J.R.R Tolkien, he experienced war, sickness, and inspiration. In June of 1916, Tolkien traveled to Étaples, France with the British army and became a Battalion Signaling Officer. He is stationed in France for about a month before The Battle of the Somme begins, and on June 27 Tolkien’s Battalion is sent to the Somme front. Tolkien is an active and resilient soldier, but unfortunately, he reports sick. On November 9 Tolkien is sent back to England to receive treatment for his trench fever, which is a typhus-like infection. Soldiers would get this because of the unsanitary living conditions in the trenches at war. The Battle of the Somme ends on November 18 and because Tolkien is inactive in his battalion, he is stricken off as a casualty. In early December Tolkien recovered from his trench fever, but he would continue to have complications with his health until his untimely death. His time at war did have an impact on his writing, but never directly wrote about war. He used his writing to escape and process what he had experienced at war, he would write about his experiences in a far, distant, mythical world that were his books.
1917
1917 was a very disappointing year for J. R. R. Tolkien, he was met with a lot of rejection and disappointment, but he still had his writing. After Tolkien became infected with trench fever he took a leave of absence, the 2 months he had to recuperate are up, but he is far from being fully recovered. He meets with the Briningham medical board to see if he is deemed fit for service again but is rejected; this happens a total of three times in the next month. During his wait to be deemed fit for service, he enjoys writing, he works on The Book of Lost Tales, the first version of The Cottage of Lost Play is completed on February 12, and The Fall of Gondolin is written before June. Early in the spring he posted to Yorkshire but is still having recurring ailments from his illness. On June 1 he was seen fit for service again, but he was not reassigned to the Lancashire Fusiliers. He gets posted to Brocton camp, yet he becomes ill once again and succumbs to gastritis. Tolkien and his wife had gone for a stroll around the hemlock glades and he was inspired by his wife’s dancing, he would go on to write the characters Lúthien and Beren after him and his wife. He once again met with the medical board and is still seen as unfit for service but; he is assigned a desk job. Later in the year on November 16, Tolkien’s eldest son John was born in Cheltenham, England.
1918 - 1919
In October of 1918, Tolkien was finally released from Brooklands Hospital in Birmingham. He is finally seen to be healthy enough to once again enjoy daily life as it is again. Because of this, he took up a job at the Oxford Dictionary and continued with his writing. October 1918, the war came to a cease-fire, and on June 28, 1919, the war officially came to an end, with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. Tolkien is released from service and is officially demobilized. He continues his writing and writes the early versions of The Chaining of Melko, The Coming of the Elves and the Making of Kôr, and The Theft of Melko and the Darkening of Valinor.
After the events of World War I Tolkien lived a happy, successful life. He had three more children, John, Christopher, Micheal, and Priscilla with his loving wife, Edith. He wrote many successful books; for example: The Hobbit (1937), The Lord of the Rings (1954 - 1955), The Silmarillion (1977), and many more. Tolkien also taught the English language and literature, specializing in Old and Middle English, at the Universities of Leeds (1920–25) and Oxford (1925–59). The war inspired his work and changed him as a person. Seeing so many of his friends die tragically at war; succumbing to illness time after time; being mentally tested daily by the events of war. What he experienced made him an already incredible writer, superior. His time at war made his writing emotional and connecting. The reader would get sucked into the pages of the book and almost experience it for themselves. J. R. R. Tolkien is an incredible writer who has accomplished so much in his lifetime. He was an extraordinary human being and author, one who should be looked up to.
Works Cited
Bratman, David. “Timeline – The Tolkien Society.” The Tolkien Society, https://www.tolkiensociety.org/author/timeline/. Accessed 18 September 2023.
Lewis, CS. “J.R.R. Tolkien summary.” Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/summary/J-R-R-Tolkien. Accessed 18 September 2023.
Lommerse, Tim, and David Bratman. “Tolkien as war-novelist: another way of dealing with trauma through writing.” The Tolkien Society, 13 September 2017, https://www.tolkiensociety.org/blog/2017/09/tolkien-as-war-novelist-another-way-of-dealing-with-trauma-through-writing/. Accessed 18 September 2023.
“World War I.” Tolkien Gateway, 22 December 2021, https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/World_War_I. Accessed 18 September 2023.
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