Tolkien Wanted To Create An English Mythology

J.R.R. Tolkien did not just write fantasy stories for entertainment. He explicitly aimed to craft an entirely new, homegrown mythology specifically for England that was missing from its history.

While many assume his books were purely imaginative fiction, Tolkien viewed his work as a way to fill a cultural void. He drew heavily from ancient linguistic roots and northern European legends to give his invented world a sense of authentic antiquity. This scholarly ambition transformed his novels into a deeply layered legendarium. Even his smaller fairy tales were pieces of this grand puzzle intended to build a unified British cultural heritage.