TCG Letter #602 / Carpenter Letter #226

Writing to L.W. Forster,^{Leonard Wilson Forster was a British Professor of German. He was a Fellow at Selwyn College, Cambridge, lecturer in German at Cambridge University, and Professor of German at University College London. During World War Two he worked as an intelligence assessor, translating German communications for the Royal Naval Reserves at Bletchley Park.[1]} Tolkien states that The Lord of the Rings was not influenced by the two World Wars, except for the landscape.

Tolkien also writes that he wishes he had written more Children's books, gives a very detailed account of how 'religion' fits into The Lord of the Rings and affirms that the book is not an allegory.

The letter includes a brief paragraph mentioning the German roots of his family name, and he hopes he has not bored Forster.