How Churchill and Mosley tried to involve the author of The Hobbit (and later The Lord of the Rings) in their delusions of Aryan superior race

How Churchill and Mosley tried to involve the author of The Hobbit (and later The Lord of the Rings) in their delusions of Aryan superior race.

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was certainly a monarchical and religious personality, but in any case pragmatic and indifferent to certain racial-political issues.

Despite everything during the civil war in the Home Islands and until the 1930s (1936), J. R. R. Tolkien found himself disturbed by various letters.

Letters from offices related to the All British Party (the Social Aristocracy, led by men like the Prime Minister himself) and the big national companies (publishers and newspapers like the Daily Mail).

In addition to the usual paperwork, questions about next jobs and so on, they asked Tolkien… documentation to prove him as Aryan.

Tolkien spoke with his friend, a publisher with only 8 years of experience at the time, Sir Stanley Unwin (who progressively had his hands more and more tied by the difficult situations in which the country was living at that time).

Tolkien's responses to these letters include:

"I have to say that the attached letter from the Daily Mail is a bit harsh.

Do I suffer from this impertinence because of the possession of a German name, or do your lunatic laws require a certificate of Aryan origin for all people in all countries?

Personally, I would be inclined to refuse to make any statement, although I can make such statement.

In any case, I am strongly opposed to any such statement appearing in print.

I do not consider the (probable) absence of all Jewish or other racial blood to be necessarily honorable.

I have friends of other races, and I would be sorry to imply in any way that I have subscribed to this totally pernicious and unscientific racist doctrine. "

The question was not a whim of the time or the owners, it was an ideological whim and to a certain extent, governmental.

The laws in the British Empire were being reinforced around the British Social Aristocracy, that bastard product of human barbarism.

To some extent there was influence from 'scientific racism' that had existed as a current for years, the idea of white superiority (European-Germanic in particular), British imperialism and other products of racism before the time (such as the laws by Jim Cow, from the United States).

J.R.R. Tolkien openly opposed being considered a writer of "Aryan purity", but sadly many sane men found themselves progressively turned or surrounded by lunatics.

Politicians, military, the upper class and all kinds of British personalities of the time were stuck in the ideological bag that was dominating the political situation in the Imperial Federation (the war was about to end and the winner was clear).

And in this, was the conviction that Aryan racial purity was the pillar that would sustain the victory and existence of the British Empire in the long term (the truth is that some later economic-administrative and military reforms helped much more ...).

Conviction that came from what we consider modernly, pseudo-science and according to the branch, there could also be elements that mixed esotericism, mythology, paganism, ancient legends and mysticism.

By reading Tolkien's fantastic tales and finding out that he had knowledge of at least twenty-four languages, they elevated him to the category of "chosen one."

Someone, a connoisseur, who could thoroughly trace Aryan legends (Germanic and Norse), to put them at the service of the designs of the British Empire.

Tolkien made similar judgments to other personalities, notably Oswald Mosley, Churchill's disciple and future architect of the British terror.

First letter: "I'm sorry, but it is not clear to me what do you mean by Aryan.

I am not of Aryan descent: Aryan means to be part of the Indo-Iranian civilization; and as far as I know, none of my ancestors spoke Hindustani, Persian, Gypsy, or any related dialect.

But if I must understand that you want to know if I am of Jewish origin, I can only answer that unfortunately it does not seem that I have ancestors of that talented people."

Second letter: "My great-great-grandfather came from Germany to England in the 18th century.

Therefore, most of my ancestry is purely English, and I am a loyal English subject, which should suffice.

I have grown accustomed, however, to regard my German surname with pride, and I have continued to do so during the regrettable periods our country has experienced, in which I served in His Majesty's Army.

However, I cannot refrain from commenting that if irrelevant and impertinent requests of this type are to become the norm in matters of literature, then the time is not far off when this loyalty is no longer a source of pride."

* These "regrettable periods" refer to WW2.

J. R.R. Tolkien therefore remained generally pragmatic and for years off the radar of politics.

His son Michael, in a 1943 letter, said: "I loathe these wretches for ruining, perverting, misusing and cursing that noble Norse spirit forever.

A supreme contribution to Europe that I have always loved and tried to present in its true light. "

The idea of supremacism did not particularly appeal to the Tolkiens, although like all people of the time, they had certain moments that today are troublesome to modern sensibilities.

For most of his life, J. R. R. Tolkien remained in the Imperial Federation and his letters caused no trouble for him, until more than 10 years later.

When he started having problems with the authorities in 1937-1938.

The resentment of various groups could may well extend itself over long periods of time. The British services were a example.