Author. He received notoriety at the turn of the 20 th century as an English author writing novels, short stories, poems, and plays along with being a literary critic. He wrote about subjects that were not easily mentioned in the time period of late Victorian to Edwardian England: adultery, divorce, domestic abuse, illegitimacy, infanticide, religious bigotry and women's right. Selling ten million books, he was the highest paid author of his day. Most of his novels were adapted into silent black and white films or performed on the stages of the West End of London or New York City's Broadway. Born Thomas Henry Hall Caine, he studied to become a Liverpool architect until Dante Gabriel Rosetti, the poet, painter, and leader of the Pre-Raphaelite artists in England, invited him to London and inspired him to become a writer. He became Rossetti's secretary from 1881 to Rossetti's death a year later. The same year, he published Rossetti's biography," Life and Art of Dante Gabriel Rossetti," which included letters between the two. After writing articles for various magazines, his first novel, "The Shadow of a Crime" was published in 1885 with several others following including in 1887 "The Deemster," in 1894 "Manxman," in 1901 "The Eternal City," in 1913 "The Woman Thou Gavest Me," and in 1923 "The Woman of Knockaloe." The 1897 novel, "Christian," successfully sold over 650,000 editions and was made into a movie in 1915. Of all of his novels, "The Scapegoat " is authoritatively described as his highest achievement as a story teller. In all, he published 20 novels, 18 plays, and 15 non-fictions in about 40 years. As a child, Thomas Henry Hall Caine had visited an uncle, who was a school teacher on the Isle of Man. Returning to the Isle of Man in 1895, he became involved in politics serving from 1901 to 1908 in the House of Keys, the lower house of legislature. He proposed Constitutional reforms su ch as the nationalization of all public transportation and banks, for the government to give financial aide to farmers and fishermen, and more independent self-rule. He was very active during World War I with his support to England. At the recommendation of the prime minister, he was knighted by George V in 1918 for service as an Allied propagandist in the United States. For his financial support for Belgian refugees, he was given the title of Officer of the Order of Leopold by King Albert I of Belgium. He traveled throughout the world lecturing and studying other cultures. After a trip to the Holy Lands, he started writing his last novel, "The Life of Christ," which he never finished, yet his two sons published it in 1938. He is buried with his wife, Mary Chandler, who died from pneumonia six months later. A towering slate obelisk designed by Archibald Knox was erected over their graves.