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Birth of William Golding
Son of Alec Golding and Mildred, née Curnoe, William Golding was born at his maternal grandmother's house, 47 Mount Wise, Newquay, Cornwall. -
College
In 1930, Golding went to Brasenose College, Oxford, where he read Natural Sciences for two years before transferring to English for his final two years. -
Degree and published book
Golding took his B.A. degree with Second Class Honours in the summer of 1934, and later that year a book of his Poems was published by Macmillan & Co -
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Becoming a teacher
In 1935, he took a job teaching English at Michael Hall School, a Steiner-Waldorf school then in Streatham, South London, staying there for two years. After a year in Oxford studying for a Diploma of Education, he was a schoolmaster teaching English and music at Maidstone Grammar School 1938 – 1940, before moving to Bishop Wordsworth's School, Salisbury, in April 1940. There he taught English, Philosophy, Greek, and drama. -
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Family
Golding was engaged to Molly Evans, a woman from Marlborough, who was well-liked by both of his parents. However, he broke off the engagement and married Ann Brookfield, an analytical chemist, on 30 September 1939. They had two children, David (born September 1940) and Judith (born July 1945). -
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Williams Navy and armed forces experience
During World War II, Golding joined the Royal Navy in 1940. He served on a destroyer which was briefly involved in the pursuit and sinking of the German battleship Bismarck. Golding participated in the invasion of Normandy on D-Day, commanding a landing craft that fired salvoes of rockets onto the beaches. He was also in action at Walcheren in October and November 1944, during which time 10 out of 27 assault craft that went into the attack were sunk. Golding rose to the rank of lieutenant. -
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The Journal
Golding kept a personal journal for over 22 years from 1971 until the night before his death, it contained approximately 2.4 million words in total. Golding initially used the journal to record his dreams, but over time it began to function as a record of his life. The journals contained insights including retrospective thoughts about his novels and memories from his past. -
The death of William Golding
