J.R.R. TOLKIEN CONNECTION
he rolling hills and countryside of rural Worcestershire where J.R.R. Tolkien lived and worked for many years are thought to have had a significant influence on his writing, especially in ‘The Hobbit’.
According to Tolkien biographers he often visited his aunt’s, Jane Neave’s, farm, called ‘Bag End’ in Dormston, and was fascinated by the small, cosy rooms and winding staircases which he later incorporated in his writing.
He named the house of his hero, Bilbo Baggins, ‘Bag End’ after his aunt’s farm and his creation of ‘The Shire’, a sheltered tranquil region of Middle-Earth, is thought to be inspired, in part, by the view from the real-life ‘Bag End’.
In Tolkien’s fiction, ‘The Shire’ is described as a small but beautiful, idyllic and fruitful land, beloved by its inhabitants. They had agriculture but were not industrialised. Indeed, the first edition of The Hobbit published in 1937 includes a painting by Tolkien of the view from Bag End farm towards RoundHill Wood, Inkberrow and Chaston Hill.
To this day, the view from Bag End farm is one of fertile farmland with fields of wheat and oil-seed rape, woodlands and ancient trees. This landscape is now under threat from industrialisation.
"IT [BAG END] WAS THE LOCAL NAME FOR MY AUNT'S [JANE NEAVE] FARM IN WORCESTERSHIRE, WHICH WAS AT THE END OF A LANE LEADING TO IT AND NO FURTHER…”
J.R.R. Tolkien
Tolkien identified himself with his mother’s family, the Suffields, who originated around the town of Evesham in Worcestershire.
“WORCESTERSHIRE WAS MORE LIKE HOME TO ME THAN ANY OTHER PART OF THE WORLD.”
The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 44, (18 March 1941), ed. H.Carpenter & C.Tolkien (1981)
