Oliver Goldsmith

Born in Ireland in 1728, Oliver Goldsmith became one of the 18th century’s most adaptable writers. He studied at Trinity College Dublin and later in Edinburgh, but literary work eventually became his calling in London.

Goldsmith was known for his warmth, humor, and sharp observations of society. His best-known novel, The Vicar of Wakefield (1766), and his plays The Good-Natur’d Man and She Stoops to Conquer helped establish his reputation, while The Deserted Village remains one of his most admired poems.

He died in London on April 4, 1774, at the age of 45, and was buried at Temple Church. His work continued to influence later writers, including Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, George Eliot, and Mary Shelley.