Joseph Rudyard Kipling was born in Bombay, India on December 30, 1865, to John and Alice Kipling. Rudyard's father was an architectural sculptor who worked at the Jeejebhoy School of Art. Rudyard was related to Stanley Baldwin, the future Tory prime minister of England. Rudyard's mother was Stanley's aunt. Rudyard was brought up by Indian native amahs (tutors) and he spoke Hindi and English. However, his childhood in India would be short-lived.
In 1871, Rudyard moved to England with his sister and stayed with his parent's friends who lived in Southsea. He stayed there for three years feeling alone and abandoned. His parents never told him and his sister about the arrangement. While living there he met a girl named Florence Garrad. They were engaged but he broke it off. In 1878 Rudyard moved to the United Services College at Westward Hol in North Devonshire, England. The headmaster there knew Rudyard's parents. Rudyard was a very apt student and accomplished a lot in the time he spent at the United Services College. He was very gifted and wrote many works in derivative verse and was the editor of the school's newspaper. After his schooling Rudyard went back to his parents.
In 1882 Rudyard returned to India and worked as a journalism apprentice in Lahore, Simla, and Allahabad. He started writing sketches and eventually he began composing stories. Kipling became a very successful author due to his tales of army men and residents of Indian stations. He published Plain Tales from the Hills and Soldiers Three and some cockney poetry. After these accomplishments Rudyard decided to take time to see the world.
In 1889, Rudyard left India and traversed across the Far East, Canada, and America in order to get to London. After his treks he became famous and was reviewed by many famous authors and poets including Oscar Wilde, Edmund Gosse, and W.E. Henley. During this time he met a man named Wolcott Balestier who was a representative of a publishing house in America.