This document provides biographical information about the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. It notes that he was born in 1850 in Edinburgh to a wealthy family, was sickly as a child, and studied law but had a passion for writing. As an adult, he traveled extensively due to his poor health. He met his wife Fanny in France and moved with her to America. His most famous work, Treasure Island, was published in 1883 and brought him great success. He spent time in the Pacific islands for his health and eventually settled in Samoa, where he continued writing until his death in 1894 at age 44.

1. Robert Louis
Stevenson
Interesting Facts and Information

2. Basic Information
• Robert Louis Stevenson was a famous
Victorian author. He wrote mainly mystery and
adventure stories.
• He was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1850
and his family were very wealthy. He was raised
and looked after by his nanny.
• Robert Louis Stevenson was a sickly child and
was always getting ill. He was very thin and frail
and he suffered with coughs and fevers.
• When he was 12, he went on a 5 month holiday
around Europe visitng France, Switzerland,
Belgium, Germany and Italy. This was prehaps
the reason that his passion for adventure and
travel began.
• He went to Edinburgh University, He started to
study engineering but soon changed to study
law. He passed his legal exams but in his heart
he knew he wanted to be a writer.

3. Edinburgh, where Stevenson
lived and went to University.

4. • In 1876 he went on a canoeing trip to
Belguim and France with a friend. He kept a
jounal of his travels and used it to form the
basic storyline og his first book, An Island
Voyage.
• In France, Stevenson met a woman called
Fanny Osbourne. He fell in love with her.
• In 1879, Robert Louis Stevenson travelled all
the way from Britain to America to see Fanny
Osbourne. They married in 1880. They
decided to live in Britain and set up a home
with Fanny´s twelve year old son Lloyd.

6. Becoming Famous
• Treasure Island was first published as a book in 1883. It was
very successful and made Robert Louis Stevenson become a
well known and very famous writer.
• Robert Louis Stevenson continued to have very bad health
problems as an adult. He suffered with chest infections and
was that ill he couldn´t leave his bed.
• In 1886 he wrote both ´The Strange Case of Dr Jekll and Mr
Hyde´and ´Kidnapped´. Much of his writing was completed
from his sickbed.

7. Life and Death of Stevenson
• From 1888 to 1890, the Stevenson family spent two years
sailing round the Pacific Ocean Islands.
The island
where
Stevenson
built a
house

8. Robert Louis Stevenson decided to build a house on the island
of Upolu, in Western Samoa. He carried on writing but found
it very difficult with his illness.
In December 1894, Robert Lewis Stevenson
died. He was only 44 years old. His body was
buried on Mount Vaea, Upolu.

9. Due to his health problems,Stevenson and his family
spent their time away from Edinburgh´s cold and
polluted skies. While living in Samoa, he discovered
that 12 year old Annie, the daughter of the
Commissioner of Samoa was very unhappy because
her birthday was on Christmas Day. In a witty and
generous way, Stevenson tried to solve the probelm by
writing a long legal letter giving his birthday to the
girl.
Random Fact!

10. I, Robert Louis Stevenson, Advocate
of the Scots Bar, author of The Master
of Ballantrae and Moral
Emblems, stuck civil engineer, sole
owner and patentee of the Palace and
Plantation known as Vailima in the
island of Upolu, Samoa, a British
Subject, being in sound mind and
pretty well I thank you in body...Have
transferred, and do hereby transfer to
the said A. H. Ide, All and Whole of
my rights and privileges in the 13th
day of November, formerly my
birthday, now, hereby, and
henceforth, the birthday of the said A.
H. Ide, to have, hold, exercise and
enjoy....

11. The Black Arrow: A Brief Overview
• This tale is set in 15th century England during the
War of the Roses.
• It is a coming of age tale about a boy named Dick
Shelton.
• Dick has been living under the care of Sir Daniel
Brackley, who became his guardian after the
mysterious death of Dick's father.
• At the start of the story Dick Shelton is preparing
to go to his first battle. However during the
preparations, Appleyard, an archer who was to
defend the house of Brackley is shot through the
heart with a black arrow.
• The note on the arrow says that four men shall
have a black arrow through their hearts and
Dick is suprised to find that the four men include
his guardian and his friends.
• Dick also leans that one or more of the men may
have been involved in his father´s mysterious
death. This knowledge is very unsettling to him.

12. Part One Animation of ´The Black
Arrow´
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76oY653RT3E
Happy Reading! 