J.R.R. Tolkien was born in Bloemfontein, Orange Free State. His parents, Mabel and Arthur Tolkien, were British but worked in a bank in South Africa. He was a sickly child, so he and his mother and brother (Hilary, born 1894) went back to England for a change of climate in 1895. His father stayed behind, but died suddenly in February 1896.
eventREF E-0011144Revised
3 January 1892
JRR Tolkien born in Bloemfontein
- Updated
- 30 Sep 2019
How we know this
- 01J.R.R. Tolkien, [online], Available at: tolkientrail.com [Accessed: 02 January 2010]
Last updated · 30 Sep 2019
South African History Online. (2011, March 16). JRR Tolkien born in Bloemfontein. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011144
South African History Online (2011) 'JRR Tolkien born in Bloemfontein', South African History Online, 16 March. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011144 (Accessed: 22 October 2026).
South African History Online, JRR Tolkien born in Bloemfontein [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011144, (accessed 22 October 2026).
"JRR Tolkien born in Bloemfontein." South African History Online, 16 Mar. 2011, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011144. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.
South African History Online. "JRR Tolkien born in Bloemfontein." South African History Online. March 16, 2011. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011144.
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