Arthur Conan Doyle A Brief Biography Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created one of the most enduring literary characters of all time, the master detective, Sherlock Holmes. Although he wrote many other novels and stories as well as working as a war correspondent and a medical doctor, he is most well known for the creation of his famous sleuth. Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, on May 22, 1859. He was one of ten children born to a family of Irish Catholic extraction and modest means. Mary Doyle, Arthur’s mother had a passion for books, was a master storyteller and instilled this passion in Arthur. When Arthur was nine he was sent to spend the next seven years at a Jesuit boarding school in England These were grueling years for Conan yet he found enjoyment writing letters to his mother, playing sports, mainly cricket, and developing his skills at storytelling to his friends. Conan then pursued a medical degree at Edinburgh University. While attending medical school, he met a number of future authors including Robert Louis Stevenson. But the man who most impressed and influenced him was one of his teachers, Dr. Joseph Bell. He was a master at observation, logic, deduction and diagnosis. All these qualities were later to be found in the persona of the celebrated Sherlock Holmes character. When Conan was 20 years old and in his third year of medical studies he was offered the job of a ship’s surgeon on the Hope, a whaling boat leaving for the Artic Circle. He took the job and later said that the Artic had “awakened the soul of a born wander”. He returned to medical school and upon graduation was the medical officer on several ships which sailed between Liverpool and the West African Coast. He eventually set up a medical practice in Southsea, England. During the next few years, the young man divided his time between trying to be a good doctor and struggling to become a recognized author.
Sherlock Holmes and the Clocktower Mystery: Educator’s Guide
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