J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring was published in 1954.
It was the first volume of The Lord of the Rings and appeared in the United Kingdom on 29 July 1954. The book follows Frodo Baggins after he inherits the One Ring and begins the journey to destroy it. Its title refers to the company formed at Rivendell to support the quest.
The other two volumes followed in 1954 and 1955: The Two Towers was published later in 1954, and The Return of the King appeared in 1955. The three-volume structure was a publishing arrangement rather than Tolkien’s original conception as three separate novels. This is why publication dates can be confused with the story’s continuous chronology.