What was the full name of J.R.R. Tolkien’s eldest son, who became a literary editor?

J.R.R. Tolkien’s eldest son was John Francis Reuel Tolkien.

John Francis Reuel Tolkien was born in 1917, the first of Tolkien’s four children with Edith Tolkien. He became a Roman Catholic priest and later served as a parish priest in England. His career differed from that of his younger brother Christopher, who became Tolkien’s principal literary executor and editor.

John also had an important connection with the Tolkien family’s publishing history. He edited and published material relating to his father, including the posthumous children’s work Father Christmas Letters in collaboration with the Tolkien estate’s publishing efforts.

The Tolkien sons are easy to confuse because several family members shared the name Reuel and because Christopher is the best-known editor of his father’s manuscripts. John was the eldest child; Christopher was the second son and the major editor of Middle-earth texts after Tolkien’s death.