Thomas Hardy was born on June 2nd, 1840 in Higher Bockhampton. At the age of 8 he started attending Julia Martin's school in Bockhampton. At the age of 13 his education becomes more intense as he begins to study French and Latin and he begins to read a lot. At 22 he travels to London to study with Arthur Blomfield. While in London starts to write poetry. 3 years later he writes his first article "How I Built Myself a House". At 27 ,back in Dorset, he starts to write as a profession and wrote the unpublished novel: The Poor Man and the Lady. When he was thirty, he went to St. Juliot to work on the remaking of a church and it was here that he met his future wife Emma Lavinia Gifford. The next year Desperate Remedies is published and the year after Under the Greenwood Tree is published. In September 1874 Thomas Hardy marries Emma Gifford, sets up house in London but eventually ends up in Sturminster Newton. Over the next 6 years 5 books are published: The Hand of Ethelberta, The Return of the Native, The Trumpet-Major, A Laodicean, and Two on a Tower. In 1891 two books are published A Group of Noble Dames, and The Tess of the d'Ubervilles. In 1912 Emma suddenly dies on Nov. 27 which means the year ends on a sad note for Mr. Hardy, and in 1914 Hardy marries Florence Dugdale. In his later years Hardy is seen working on his Autobiography and after he dies, on January 11th it is published posthumously under the name of his new wife Florence. Thomas Hardy's ashes were buried in Poets Corner, Westminster Abbey, and his heart was buried in Emma's grave. In his lifetime he wrote approximately 35 published items. He wrote 18 novels that are well known, 2 sets of poetry, 3 sets of short stories and three non-fiction books. He also wrote a number of articles and an Autobiography in 2 parts: The Early Life of Thomas Hardy, and The Later Years of Thomas Hardy.
