Tolkien's Christmas Letters to His Children
Inside the magical world created by the author of The Lord of the Rings...
In December 1920, Tolkien’s three-year-old son, John, received his first Father Christmas letter at the family’s home in Oxford, marking the beginning of a tradition that would continue for more than two decades…
It all began as a response to a child’s curiosity.
When John asked where Father Christmas lived, Tolkien replied in character, with a letter which carried a North Pole stamp priced at “2 kisses”:
The card from Father Christmas read:
I heard you ask daddy what I was like and where I lived. I have drawn me and my house for you. Take care of the picture. I am just off now for Oxford with my bundle of toys - some for you. Hope I shall arrive in time: the snow is very thick at the North Pole tonight. Your loving Father Christmas.
Each Christmas Eve, Tolkien would write to his children — John, Michael, Christopher, and Priscilla — as if from Father Christmas himself, sending messages brimming with stories, illustrations, and lovable characters.
Over the years, the letters grew longer and more intricate, matching the children’s growing imaginations. Delivered either by a cooperative postman or mysteriously appearing on the hearth, this correspondence became a cherished part of the Tolkien family’s Christmas celebrations.
These letters not only brought joy to his family but also foreshadowed the imaginative richness that would later define Middle-earth…
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Adventures at the North Pole: Characters and Stories
Tolkien’s letters transformed the North Pole into an enchanting world.
Father Christmas chronicled daily life at his frozen home, while the clumsy North Polar Bear frequently caused delightful chaos, often leaving notes such as, “Excuse thick writing. I have a fat paw.” In a 1926 letter, Tolkien wrote:
Isn’t the North Polar Bear silly? He turned on all the Northern Lights for two years in one go. You have never heard or seen anything like it. I have tried to draw a picture of it: but I am too shaky to do it properly, and you can’t paint fizzing light, can you?
Two years later, he recounted how a forgotten stair bar sent the North Polar Bear tumbling from top to bottom, landing squarely on his nose and sending Christmas decorations flying in every direction.
Red Gnomes — also called Red Elves — helped in the workshop, occasionally defending it from mischievous goblins. Even languages were carefully crafted by the philologist: Father Christmas’s secretary sent messages in a script reminiscent of Tolkien’s Elvish Tengwar, while Polar Bear’s Arctic dialect drew on Finnish, a major influence on his invented language, Quenya.
As the years passed, the letters grew more complex, weaving in darker undertones that subtly reflected the wider world: stolen presents, perilous cave expeditions, and echoes of the anxieties of wartime.
Letters as Art
These were far more than mere correspondence — they were extraordinary works of art… just look at this:
Bursting with watercolors and whimsical illustrations, they brought Tolkien’s imagination to life: from fireworks that danced across the night sky to the icy, snow‑blanketed landscapes of the North Pole.
Each of these masterpieces reflects Tolkien’s dual gifts as both a storyteller and an artist. While he was known professionally as a scholar and philologist — and later celebrated as one of the most influential authors of all time — his children discovered a different side of him. To them, he was a conjurer of magic, a man who could transform ink and paper into entire worlds.
Some of the letters were written while Tolkien was working on The Hobbit, and their depictions of goblins, caves, and hazardous adventures have been noted to echo — and perhaps even influence — elements of his Middle‑earth legendarium.
Hope, Family, and the Spirit of Christmas
In 1943, Tolkien wrote his final Father Christmas letter to his youngest child, Priscilla, ending on a hopeful note even amid the shadows of World War II:
I am still very much alive, and shall come back again soon, as merry as ever.
These handwritten treasures also reveal a side of Tolkien often overshadowed by his academic and literary fame: the devoted, tender-hearted father. Despite the pressures of his university work and his writing, he took the time each year to craft these intricate letters, painting scenes, inventing adventures, and delighting in the small joys of his children’s wonder.
They testify to the centrality of family in his life — a life that had begun with early loss, after his mother died when he was just 12, and years of living in boarding houses. It was in this context that he met Edith, his future wife, and together they built a home and family that became his true anchor.
After Tolkien’s death, the letters were collected and published as a book, edited by Baillie Tolkien, the second wife of his son Christopher. Today, the originals are preserved at the Bodleian Libraries in Oxford and have been showcased in exhibitions celebrating Tolkien’s creative genius.
Nearly a century later, the Father Christmas letters remain a lesser-known but profoundly delightful part of Tolkien’s legacy. They are a bridge between imagination and love, between father and child, and between story and reader — a gift to his children, and to all who seek beauty…
I chose this topic this week because, to me, it perfectly embodies the true spirit of Christmas — generosity, connection, and a sense of wonder. I am deeply grateful for your support and for having you as part of this community; it is a genuine privilege to share these pieces with you. From the bottom of my heart, I wish you a joyful, peaceful, and very Merry Christmas, filled with warmth, laughter, and moments that truly matter.
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So very beautiful and thank you so much for delightfully sharing this. 💝 😊
This is so sweet. And it's such a great reminder that a story can be a gift to our loved ones. Thanks for sharing!