John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, also known as J.R.R. Tolkien, is best known for his novels The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. He was born in South Africa in 1892, and at the age of three his mother brought him to England with his younger brother. Sadly, his father died while they were visiting and as he had no independent income, his mother chose to remain in England and moved in with his parents in Kingsheath, Birmingham.
JRR Tolkien was home-schooled and an avid student, able to read and write by the age of four. After his mother died when he was just 34 years old, his guardianship was assigned to Father Francis, a priest, and he ended up living in Edgbaston and attending King Edward Grammar School. He studied English and English Literature at Oxford University, graduating with a first class degree.
He married at the age of 21 and went on to serve in World War I, fighting at the Somme. He contracted trench fever, which is caused by the harsh environment and bacteria carried by lice. JRR Tolkien returned home in 1916 and spent much of the remainder of the war recuperating in East Yorkshire.
He said much of the shire was based on the Worcestershire countryside where he spent his youth and the mountainous areas he spent time in Switzerland, but after his time on the front line during the war, he based the shire on the Holderness Coast. He also admitted that the calmness and quietness of the area left an impression on him. The eastern agricultural landscape was like “paradise” to ride in compared to when we were in the trenches.
During his rehabilitation in East Yorkshire, he visited local villages, walked through the countryside, wrote poetry, and developed two mythological languages that were used in his classic novels.
Tolkien was initially based at Surtle Bridge Camp, near the village of Ruth. According to Phil Mattison, author of Tolkien of East Yorkshire, his wife had come to East Yorkshire to be close to him and danced for him in a nearby hemlock glade. Since hemlock does not grow in this area, it is likely that the plant was similar in appearance. Cowparsley and the Tolkien Society believe they discovered the site in a forest called Dent's Garth, near a local churchyard.
This event later became the inspiration for the story of Beren and Rutherian, who fall in love with an elven princess in The Silmarillion. A similar story appears in The Lord of the Rings.
After falling ill again, he was transferred to an officer's hospital called Brooklands Hospital, near Hull on Cottingham Street, while his wife stayed for a time at Incy. The house is now a fish and chip shop and has a blue plaque.
Tolkien recovered and was sent on light surveying missions on the Holderness coast and further into the field, but continued to suffer from gastroenteritis and was readmitted to Brooklands Officer's Hospital several times before finishing his convalescence in Blackpool.
Tolkien had time to explore the landscapes of East Yorkshire and the famous Yorkshire Wolds with its dry chalk valleys during his healthy years, so he could not help but be influenced by his time back to nature. He actually features the world town of Wetwang in Fellowship of the Ring.
By 1918, Tolkien was thinking about the next stage of his life while his wife Edith was pregnant. He began applying for academic positions and in 1920 was appointed Reader in English at the University of Leeds, where he quickly became Professor and established the University as a British leader in Old Icelandic language and history.
While at Leeds, he created A Middle English Vocabulary and collaborated with another scholar to create the definitive version of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. This became the academic standard for this work for decades.
He spent five years in Leeds, the last two living at 2 Darnley Road, West Park, just north of Headingley. There was another blue plate at his previous home.
Tolkien often took his family to explore the Yorkshire Dales during his stay in Leeds, and is known to have loved hiking around Malamdale. His son recalled that his father later told him that Helm's Deep was inspired by the narrow V-shaped valley containing the famous waterfall known as Gordale Scar.
It is known that he visited Whitby twice, sketched the town, and was particularly interested in researching the town's Anglo-Saxon origins. In The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien makes many references to ruins and decaying evidence of once-thriving civilizations, perhaps with the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Strenhalsh (now Whitby) in mind. I wonder if it's there?
But not far from Tolkien's home in West Park, Leeds is home to a beautiful area of natural woodland known as the Hollies. Set on a steep slope on the side of Meanwood Valley, this is where I often walked the dog while my daughter was training for netball at Leeds Carnegie College of Sport. JRR Tolkien spent some of his free time exploring parks with towering oaks and beech trees, rows of alder trees, small wooden bridges, fern-lined paths, and large sandstone outcrops with moss and lichens growing on them. I admitted that I spent my time walking around.
The land was donated to Leeds City Council after the First World War by its owner, William Brown, in memory of his son who lost his life in the First World War. This is a truly magical place, and as you walk through the woods, you can't help but think that it must have left some small impression on Tolkien in inspiring his vision of Middle-earth.
JRR Tolkien left Leeds in 1925 to take up the post of Professor of Anglo-Saxon at the University of Oxford, which he then led for 25 years as Professor of English until 1959.
The Lord of the Rings was published in 1955 to critical acclaim, was named Britain's favorite novel in a recent poll, and inspired Peter Jackson's blockbuster film. .
Tolkien mentioned industrial Birmingham, which inspired Mordor, and other places in his life that inspired his mythical visions, but after the war he recuperated in the East Riding and then I can't help but believe in the time I spent in Yorkshire while living near Headingley. Working at the University of Leeds, he played small roles in the landscapes and locations featured in his great literal classics.
To find out more about East Yorkshire's Tolkien Triangle and the Hollies, click on the link below.
