J.R.R. Tolkien is a british author most well known for The Lord of the Rings trilogy of books. Originally born in South Africa he returned to England after the death of his father. From a young age Tolkien was exceptionally gifted with language, even making up several of his own. He would hold several positions at prestigious universities including Oxford, and published several academic pieces including Beowulf the Monster and the Critics. Eventually he published The Hobbit which was a resounding success. After several failed attempts to publish other stories Tolkien was eventually convinced to publish The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien died in 1973 after a brief return to Oxford.
Timeline
Table of Events
| Date | Event | Created by |
|---|---|---|
| 3 Jan 1892 | Tolkien's BirthJohn Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born to Mabel Tolkien and Arthur Tolkien on January 3, 1892. He was born in Bloemfontein, South Africa. His father worked as bank clerk and had moved to South Africa a few years before Tolkien's birth as it offered better prospects for promotion. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 15 Feb 1896 | Tolkien's Father DiesOn February 15th, 1896 Tolkien's father died. Tolkien, his mother, and his younger brother Hillary returned to England. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 1904 to Nov 1904 | Tolkien's Mother DiesAfter joining the Catholic Church and being ostracised by their family, Tolkien's mother was diagnosed with diabetes in 1904, dying in November of the same year. After this, Tolkien and his brother would be cared for by a priest from their church, Father Francis Morgan |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| Summer 1911 | Trip to SwitzerlandIn 1911, Tolkien was invited to a party on a walking holiday around Switzerland. It is believed that this trip inspired some locations in his books, including the Misty Mountains and Rivendell. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 22 Mar 1916 | Tolkien Marries Edith BrattTolkien and Edith had known each other for many years. By this point in time war had broken out and Tolkien was about to be shipped out to France. Before he departed he and Edith married. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| Jul 1916 to Oct 1916 | Tolkien and the WarAfter Tolkien was initially shipped to France he did not immediately go to the front lines. He eventually was sent to the front lines during the Somme Offensive. After four months he contracted "trench fever" and was sent back to England, where he made a full recovery. While there, he would learn of the death of one of his closest friends. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 1920 to 1925 | Sir Gawain and the Green KnightIn 1920 Tolkien took a position at the University of Leeds, where he collaborated with E. V. Gordon on a scholarly version of "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight". |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 1925 | Tolkien takes a job at OxfordTolkien successfully applies to the Rawlinson and Bosworth Professorship of Anglo-Saxon position at Oxford. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 1936 | Beowulf, the Monsters and the CriticsTolkien would give a lecture in 1936 addressing the criticism around the epic poem, Beowulf. It was published and is one of his more well known works outside the stories of Middle-Earth. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 1937 | The HobbitThe Hobbit was published after Tolkien had a stroke of inspiration years earlier while grading exam papers. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 1954 to 1955 | The Lord of the RingsAfter several failed publications, including an attempt at publishing "The Silmarillion" that never even made it to print, Tolkien was convinced to write a sequel to "The Hobbit" which was published under the title "The Lord of the Rings". The success of the books became so great that it eventually lead to Tolkien and his family having to change addresses and phone numbers to avoid obsessive fans. |
Jacob Rosenberg |
| 2 Sep 1973 | Tolkien's DeathTolkien would publish many more books during his lifetime. In 1971 Edith died and Tolkien returned to Oxford, he would die two years later. Even after his death books such as "The Silmarillion" and "Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-Earth" would be published by his son Christpoher Tolkien. |
Jacob Rosenberg |