Patrick O'brian

Patrick O'Brian (born Richard Patrick Russ, 1914–2000) was a British author renowned for his Aubrey–Maturin series of historical naval novels set during the Napoleonic Wars. He was also a distinguished translator and biographer, having written acclaimed biographies of Pablo Picasso and Sir Joseph Banks. O'Brian's major literary success came late in life, and he was awarded the Heywood Hill Literary Prize in 1995 for his lifetime contribution to literature, as well as being appointed Commander of the British Empire (CBE) the same year.