John Galsworthy was born on August 14, 1867, in Surrey and came from an established, wealthy family. Called to the Bar in 1890, he soon decided to abandon law and turn to writing. THE FORSYTE SAGA is his most celebrated work, but he was also a successful dramatist. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1932. In 1891 Galsworthy met his cousin's wife Ada Nemesis Pearson and they embarked on a scandalous affair, eventually marrying after Ada's divorce in 1905. John Galsworthy died on January 31, 1933.