Rafael Sabatini was born in Jesi, Italy in 1875 to an English mother and Italian father, both renowned opera singers. At a young age, Rafael travelled frequently, and could speak six languages fluently by the age of seventeen. After a brief stint in the business world, Sabatini turned to writing. He worked prolifically, writing short stories in the 1890s, with his first novel published in 1902. i>Scaramouche /i>was published in 1921 to widespread acclaim, and was soon followed by the equally succesful i>Captain Blood /i>and i>The Sea Hawk/i>. He died on February 13, 1950 in Switzerland.