Francis Marion Crawford

Francis Marion Crawford (1854-1909) was an American novelist. Born in Tuscany, he was the son of sculptor Thomas Crawford and Louisa Cutler Ward. The nephew of Julia Ward Howe, who wrote "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," Crawford was raise in a distinguished family of artists and intellectuals. In 1879, after studying at Cambridge University, the University of Heidelberg, and the University of Rome, Crawford travelled to India. He learned Sanskrit and edited The Indian Herald in Allahabad before returning to the United States to study at Harvard University. In 1882, he published Mr. Isaacs, his first novel. Crawford moved to Italy in 1883 and commenced his career as a bestselling author of historical and romance fiction. He earned critical acclaim for his Saracinesca series, an epic story of family, religion, politics, crime, and desire set in nineteenth century Rome. Crawford was also a pioneer of the horror and fantasy genres-his tales of ghosts and genies are frequently anthologized and remain popular to this day. His works have been adapted for the cinema more than a dozen times in Italy, the United Kingdom, and Mexico.