Profile of the Day: William Golding

On this day in 1911, British novelist and poet William Golding was born.

Image: William Golding / Wikimedia Commons, Nationaal Archief (CC BY-SA 3.0 NL, cropped)

Golding was born on September 19, 1911 to Alec Golding and Mildred Curnoe in his maternal grandmother’s house in Newquay, Cornwall, England. His father worked as a school master and his mother was a suffragette and actively fought for the women’s right to vote. Golding worked as a teacher before joining the Royal Navy in 1940. During World War II, he fought in several battles and even took part in the action that saw the sinking of the German battleship Bismarck. He also participated in the invasion of Normandy on D-Day.

After the war, Golding returned to teaching. He published his first novel, Lord of the Flies, in 1954. The book became widely popular in schools and to this day, is frequently included on lists of the top young adult books of all time. The story has since been adapted for the stage and film.

In 1983, Golding was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Five years later, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for his contributions to literature.

Golding died on June 19, 1993 at the age of 81.

Explore William Golding’s family tree on Geni and discover how you’re related.