Lord Byron

Lord Byron (1788-1824), as his title would indicate, was born into an aristocratic English family; even so, he led the life of a vagabond; a "haughty and aristocratic genius" subject only to his own ruling passions. Byron spent most of his adult life on the continent, and during a trip to Greece, he wrote the first two cantos of "Childe Harold," which tells the story of his tour. On his return to England he arranged for its publication and it "took the town by storm; seven editions were sold in a month. Byron died in Greece, at the age of 36.