In his earliest works, written under such pseudonyms as Charles James Yellowplush, Michael Angelo Titmarsh and George Savage Fitz-Boodle, W.M. Thackeray tended towards savagery in his attacks on high society, military prowess, and government.

It was “Mr. Michael Angelo Titmarsh” who wrote the infamous “The Paris Sketch Book” a farcical look at France shortly after the time of Napoleon.

WILLIAM MAKEPEACE THACKERAY (1811-1863) was an 19th century English novelist famous for his brilliant satirical works, particularly Vanity Fair, a sardonic portrait of English society, and Barry Lyndon, a novel about a rascal’s rise and fall. Today he is esteemed by many as second only to Charles Dickens in his mastery of the modern novel.