William Makepeace ThackerayWilliam Makepeace Thackeray was a British novelist, author, and illustrator. He was born on July 18, 1811, and died on December 24, 1863. He is known for his satirical works, like the novel Vanity Fair, which is a wide-ranging look at British society and the novel The Luck of Barry Lyndon, which Stanley Kubrick turned into a movie in 1975. Thackeray was born in Calcutta, British India. His father, Richmond Thackeray, worked for the East India Company as secretary to the Board of Revenue from September 1, 1781, to September 13, 1815. Anne Becher (1792–1864) was his mother. She was the second daughter of Harriet Becher and John Harman Becher, who both worked for the East India Company as secretaries (writers). When Richmond died in 1815, Anne sent her son to live in England while she stayed in India. The ship he was on stopped for a short time at Saint Helena, where he was shown where Napoleon was being held. Once he moved to England, he went to school in Southampton and Chiswick. He then went to Charterhouse School, where he met John Leech and became a close friend.  Read More Read Less