J.R.R Tolkien/Lord Of The Rings and The Great War

[Brian]

Now, i've never really been into Tolkien/L.O.T.R or written fantasy books etc.
But today whilst surfing then net for WW1 history research I came across a site which has opened my eyes regarding Tolkien and his works.

I never knew how much of Lord Of The Rings was based around WW1 and Tolkiens experiences there, I didn't even know he served in WW1.
But now after seeing and reading the site in question i'm compelled to read his works.
I honestly didn't know much of his work was written on the front lines (it was his form of escaping the horror).

For example:
The Journey through the Dead Marshes (Two towers) was no-mans land
The Battle for Middle Earth can be seen as 'The Battle for middle Europe'
Some of the characters also originate directly from The Great War, even Frodo and the Gollum himself.
The wastelands created by Sauron and Sauruman, speaks for itself really.
Plus many other examples which relate 'directly' to Tolkiens experiences.

I just thought, i'd post my findings for fans of L.O.T.R and Tolkien in general, so people can read/see his works in a new light and learn a little more about the man himself.

***Warning***

The site/link below also has sections containing graphic black and white photographs taken 'unofficially' by soldiers at the front during WW1.
If you do not wish to see such photographs, then 'DO NOT' visit the "Bloody Picnic: Forbidden War Pictures" section of the site as well as any other photograph section/s of the site.
Though if you do, it'll help you understand the hell that Tolkien (and countless millions of men/women/children) witnessed and like I said will shed a new light on the Lord Of The Rings trilogy.

http://www.greatwar.nl/tolkien/tolkiene.html

Bri

[Ol Boc]

Good post - thank you.

For a non-horrific, but extremely sobering moment, go to Ypres (Ieper) and stand in the Menin Gate at dusk as buglers from the local fire brigade play the Last Post.

Surrounded by marble walls, with the names of 55,000 people whose bodies were never found (and that's just the British and Commonwealth forces), it is truly a hair-stand-on-end few minutes.

[K]

Another interesting snippet - Christopher Lee was given the personal recommendation from JRR to play Gandalf if he got the chance, and he also served with the SOE in WWII. He's a very tall, scary and tough ol' man! ;)

[Kinvig]

Another interesting snippet - Christopher Lee was given the personal recommendation from JRR to play Gandalf if he got the chance, and he also served with the SOE in WWII. He's a very tall, scary and tough ol' man! ;)

Christopher Lee trivia I came across on imdb.com a while back:

While filming Saruman's death scene (now on the extended DVD), Peter Jackson (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001392/) tried to tell Christopher Lee (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000489/) how to react and breathe after he was stabbed in the back. Lee, a WWII veteran with British special forces, assured the director that he knew what a man sounded like when stabbed in the back.

[SteveH]

The better half had read the book so when she heard they were making the film, I got the full story of how he based things in the book on his real life,
the trees the horse that gandalf rode in the second film, the great wars. The link between the industrial age and the burning of the trees etc etc there really is alot