Francis Marion Crawford

Francis Marion Crawford (1854–1909) was an American novelist known for prolific late-19th-century fiction. Born in Bagni di Lucca, Italy, to American parents, he was educated in the United States and Europe. After studying in India, he began writing and achieved early success with *Mr. Isaacs* (1882). Crawford went on to publish numerous novels, including the Italian-set Saracinesca trilogy—*Saracinesca* (1887), *Sant’ Ilario* (1889), and *Don Orsino* (1892). He also wrote popular supernatural stories, notably “The Upper Berth” (1886). Crawford spent much of his life in Italy and died in Sorrento.