Which publisher first published J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings?

George Allen & Unwin first published J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings.

The British publishing house released the novel in three volumes: The Fellowship of the Ring in 1954, followed by The Two Towers and The Return of the King in 1955. Tolkien had originally conceived the work as a sequel to The Hobbit, but it grew into a much longer and more complex story.

George Allen & Unwin had also published The Hobbit in 1937. Stanley Unwin, the company’s chairman, supported Tolkien’s work despite concerns about the book’s length and production cost. The publisher’s continuing relationship with Tolkien was central to bringing Middle-earth to a wide readership.

The American edition was later published by Houghton Mifflin, which is why that name is sometimes incorrectly given as the original publisher. Collins also considered publishing the work, but George Allen & Unwin issued the first British editions.