1925

27 June 1925

J.R.R. Tolkien to [University of Oxford Electors]

#7

 Carpenter #7

Tolkien applies for the position of 'Professorship of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford University'. He describes his schooling and his time at Leeds University as ...

22 July 1925

J.R.R. Tolkien to Vice Chancellor of Leeds University

#8

 Carpenter #8

Tolkien has been elected to the Rawlinson & Bosworth professorship at Oxford and must therefore resign his position at Leeds. His posting takes effect f...

1937

5 February 1937

J.R.R. Tolkien to Susan Dagnall

#11

 Carpenter #11

Tolkien replies to Susan Dagnall of GA&U on matters of the reproductions of some of his illustrations in The Hobbit. In the 2023 revised edition of Lett...

31 August 1937

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J.R.R. Tolkien to C.A. Furth (Allen & Unwin)

#15

 Carpenter #15

Tolkien sends the last two colour drawings for the American edition of The Hobbit and asks GA&U to send it on to Houghton Mifflin. he also asks about a ...

15 October 1937

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J.R.R. Tolkien to Stanley Unwin

#19

 Carpenter #17

Tolkien was pleased that The Hobbit was being well received, though he knows that the two glowing, unsigned reviews in The Times and the Times Literary ...

23 October 1937

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J.R.R. Tolkien to Stanley Unwin

#21

 Carpenter #18

Originally published as just a fragment of a thank you letter to Stanley Unwin who had written that Tolkien was "one of those rare people with genius." ...

16 December 1937

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J.R.R. Tolkien to Stanley Unwin

#22

 Carpenter #19

Tolkien has received a letter from Arthur Ransome, who wonders about the use of the word "man" in The Hobbit, as well as a few other letters from reader...

1938

1 February 1938

J.R.R. Tolkien to C.A. Furth (Allen & Unwin Ltd.)

#24

 Carpenter #21

Originally published as just a fragment of a letter, asking if Rayner Unwin was interested to read the "sequel to The Hobbit". In the revised 2023 editi...

4 February 1938

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J.R.R. Tolkien to C.A. Furth

#25

 Carpenter #22

Tolkien sends to his publisher, the first chapter of a new book, the sequel to The Hobbit. ‘A Long-expected Party’, the first chapter of this book, ...

12 March 1938

J.R.R. Tolkien to Houghton Mifflin Co.

#31

 Carpenter #27

Tolkien expresses reluctance to create drawings of hobbits and suggests leaving such tasks to someone with artistic skills. He provides a description of...

1941

6-8 March 1941

J.R.R. Tolkien to Michael Tolkien

#58

 Carpenter #43

In a comprehensive letter, J.R.R. Tolkien reflects on relationships between men and women, addressing physical, friendly, and romantic dimensions. He de...

18 March 1941

J.R.R. Tolkien to Michael Tolkien

#59

 Carpenter #44

Identifying more with his Suffield heritage than his Tolkien name, Tolkien expresses a deep connection to Worcestershire, considering it "home" due to h...

9 June 1941

J.R.R. Tolkien to Michael Tolkien

#60

 Carpenter #45

In a letter to his son Michael, Tolkien expresses his struggles with writing due to constant rain and increased responsibilities. He sympathizes with go...

26 November 1941

J.R.R. Tolkien to R.W. Chapman

#61

 Carpenter #46

Tolkien reflects on his time in Leeds from 1920 to 1925, associating it with Gordon and expressing gratitude for his kindness and encouragement. The aut...

1943

29 November 1943

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#86

 Carpenter #52

Tolkien reflects on the challenging and disheartening circumstances of the time, including the impact of war, propaganda, and the bleak conditions of li...

9 December 1943

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#87

 Carpenter #53

Writing to son Christopher, Tolkien reflects on the challenges and monotony of daily life during a turbulent period, expressing a sense of isolation due...

1944

8 January 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#88

 Carpenter #54

Tolkien offers Christopher advice on prayer and to remember his guardian angel. He reminds him to use "praises", and says of them "if you have these by ...

1 March 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#90

 Carpenter #56

Tolkien notes the lack of humorous anecdotes due to limited social interactions in recent weeks. He also mentions an encounter with Lewis, who is energe...

3 April 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#92

 Carpenter #58

Tolkien recounts recent events, including a cycle ride to Pembroke, a train journey to Birmingham, and a visit to his hometown. During the train journey...

6 May 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#100

 Carpenter #66

Tolkien responds to Christopher's letters and acknowledges the challenges and frustrations of life in the military camp during the war. He empathizes wi...

11 May 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#101

 Carpenter #67

Tolkien completed a fourth new chapter titled 'Faramir,' which received approval from C.S. Lewis and Charles Williams. He notes that he attended church ...

29 June 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Stanley Unwin

#145

 Carpenter #74

Stanley Unwin had sent Tolkien a large cheque as payment of royalties on The Hobbit, and mentions that Rayner is now at Oxford reading English. Tolkien ...

31 July 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#166

 Carpenter #77

Tolkien reports in a newly published portion that he had received Christopher's airletter of 24 July. He says that his day on Friday was “grim”, as ...

6 October 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#172

 Carpenter #83

In a newly published portion of this letter Tolkien remarks on what a wonderful week it has been for letters from Christopher. He hopes that letters fro...

24 November 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#179

 Carpenter #90

Tolkien expresses joy at receiving several letters from Christopher and comments on the amusing account of the Wings ceremony. He appreciates the mentio...

18 December 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#217

 Carpenter #92

In a newly published portion, Tolkien says that today is the last day for Christmas post arriving in time for Christmas and laments the way the holiday ...

28 December 1944

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#219

 Carpenter #94

Tolkien is happy to get so many letters from Christopher, and is very pleased that the third batch of Ring material has gotten to Christopher and that h...

1945

30 January 1945

J.R.R. Tolkien to Christopher Tolkien

#221

 Carpenter #96

Tolkien describes some domestic plumbing troubles that prevented him from meeting up with Lewis in the morning, but the eventually managed to make it to...

1950

5 February 1950

J.R.R. Tolkien to Milton Waldman

#275

 Carpenter #123

Tolkien had "dumped" the manuscript of The Lord of the Rings on Milton Waldman just as he was going on holiday, and Tolkien felt bad burdoning him with ...

10 March 1950

J.R.R. Tolkien to Milton Waldman

#293

 Carpenter #126

Unwin wants to break up Tolkien's "monstrous Saga", and Tolkien hopes Unwin will let the project go so Tolkien can publish The Lord of the Rings and The...

14 April 1950

J.R.R. Tolkien to Stanley Unwin

#294

 Carpenter #127

Relations between Tolkien and Allen & Unwin had begun to become strained as Tolkien felt that A&U were not open to publishing his work as he would have ...

1951

1951 (late)

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J.R.R. Tolkien to Milton Waldman

#152

 Carpenter #131

Tolkien wrote this letter to Milton Waldman. Tolkien wanted his publisher, George Allen & Unwin, to publish both The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarill...

1953

2 December 1953

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J.R.R. Tolkien to Father Robert Murray

#370

 Carpenter #142

Robert Murray had offered Tolkien some thought on The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien replied that The Lord of the Rings is a Catholic work, describing it as...

1954

7 August 1954

J.R.R. Tolkien to Katharine Farrer

#393

 Carpenter #148

Tolkien expresses concerns about misprints in The Fellowship of the Ring. He highlights a disagreement over a botanical term, corrected by the printers....

9 September 1954

J.R.R. Tolkien to Rayner Unwin

#394

 Carpenter #149

Tolkien expresses his relief that the critiques were better than feared. He acknowledges the disadvantage of issuing the work in three parts, with criti...

18 September 1954

J.R.R. Tolkien to Hugh Brogan

#398

 Carpenter #151

Tolkien shares thoughts on the fascination of The Lord of the Rings. The author hopes to include an upcoming note on translation. The letter ends with t...

23 September 1954

J.R.R. Tolkien to Rayner Heppenstall

#399

 Carpenter #152

Tolkien discusses the English dialogue in The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, Beorhthelm's Son that should be used in the BBC Radio programme. In the 2023 rev...

1955

10 November 1955

J.R.R. Tolkien to Lord Halsbury

#522

 Carpenter #174

Tolkien expresses gratitude for Lord Halsbury's approval and interest in his work. He discusses the surprising success of The Lord of the Rings and foll...

1956

16 April 1956

J.R.R. Tolkien to H [Humphrey]. Cotton Minchin

#243

 Carpenter #187

Tolkien describes himself as a philologist, and sometime calligrapher. An index of Elvish names was intended to be produced, noting that his 'specialist...

1957

21 March 1957

J.R.R. Tolkien to Katharine Farrer

#558

 Carpenter #196

Tolkien mentions Jack Lewis and acknowledges having limited knowledge of Lewis's troubles. In the 2023 revised edition of Letters, a brief introductory ...

7 September 1957

J.R.R. Tolkien to Rayner Unwin

#576

 Carpenter #201

Tolkien expresses dissatisfaction with the current script for the proposed film version of The Lord of the Rings. Previously, Wayne G. Hammond and Chris...

1960

31 December 1960

J.R.R. Tolkien to L.W. Forster

#602

 Carpenter #226

Writing to L.W. Forster, Tolkien states that The Lord of the Rings was not influenced by the two World Wars, except for the landscape. The 2023 revised ...

1962

18 July 1962

J.R.R. Tolkien to Jane Neave

#613

 Carpenter #238

Writing to his aunt, Jane Neave, and in a newly published From the original Letters, 1981. Tolkien had sent Jane a cheque, but she returned it suggestin...

20 July 1962

J.R.R. Tolkien to Alina Dadlez

#614

 Carpenter #239

Writing to Alina Dadlez, Tolkien explains his displeasure at the Spanish translation of 'Hobbit' and remarks back to the "private fancies" of the transl...

1965

12 September 1965

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J.R.R. Tolkien to Dick Plotz

#650

 Carpenter #276

Tolkien writes about The Silmarillion, the Númenórean legends, and his friendship with C.S. Lewis. He discusses the formation of the Tolkien Society o...

1971

29 November 1971

J.R.R. Tolkien to William Cater

#425

 Carpenter #331

Tolkien writes to William Cater about the death of his wife, "Edith Tolkien" and his utter bereavement. In the 2023 revised edition of Letters, a brief ...