Which Oxford university held J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1945–1959 chair as Professor of English Language and Literature?

J.R.R. Tolkien held his 1945–1959 chair at the University of Oxford as Merton Professor of English Language and Literature.

Before taking that post, Tolkien had been Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford from 1925 to 1945. His academic career centered on historical language, medieval texts, and the development of English, subjects that also informed his fiction and invented languages.

Tolkien was associated with several Oxford colleges. He studied at Exeter College, taught at the university, and later became a fellow of Merton College. The chair named in this question was an Oxford university professorship, while Merton identifies the college connected with the position.

He retired from the chair in 1959, but continued revising and developing his legendarium. His academic work and creative writing were closely linked, although The Lord of the Rings was not an academic publication.