I just discovered something I didn't know. 
Anyone who's read LOTR is probably familiar with the Sackville-Baggins family, a generally nasty family of hobbits. They're wealthy, greedy, and can't wait to get their hands on Bag End, Bilbo's and Frodo's house.
I was aware that the Sackville family is very real, but I wasn't aware that they were also involved in three distinct and famous scandals:
1. The cowardice of George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville (during the Seven Years War, in the mid-1700s);
2. The illegitimacy case that shocked and titillated 19th-century London; and
3. The Murchison letter, which led to the downfall of Grover Cleveland.
So, did Tolkien 'borrow' the Sackville name to create the Sackville-Bagginses? It seems likely to me -- after all, he'd probably have been familiar with at least the latter two scandals, if not all three. What do you think?
Anyone who's read LOTR is probably familiar with the Sackville-Baggins family, a generally nasty family of hobbits. They're wealthy, greedy, and can't wait to get their hands on Bag End, Bilbo's and Frodo's house.I was aware that the Sackville family is very real, but I wasn't aware that they were also involved in three distinct and famous scandals:
1. The cowardice of George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville (during the Seven Years War, in the mid-1700s);
2. The illegitimacy case that shocked and titillated 19th-century London; and
3. The Murchison letter, which led to the downfall of Grover Cleveland.
So, did Tolkien 'borrow' the Sackville name to create the Sackville-Bagginses?
It seems likely to me -- after all, he'd probably have been familiar with at least the latter two scandals, if not all three. What do you think?
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