Barbara Cartland (aka Mary Barbara Hamilton Cartland), a world-renowned novelist with over 700 books published, died on May 21, 2000. She was 98 years old. Barbara was born in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England to Major Bertram Cartland and Mary Scobell Cartland on July 9, 1901. She attended the Edgbaston High School, studied law at Gray’s Inn in London and was a student of Ballet and the Royal Academy of Music. She married a Captain Alexander George McCorquodale on February 27, 1927 and they had one son, Raine Spencer, Lady Hugh a.k.a Baroness Hailsham. Barbara served in World War II with the Auxiliary Territorial Service, and was the most popular romance novelist of the twentieth century. She was awarded the Order of the British Empire. In addition to her books, Barbara wrote historical plays, musicals, operettas, magazine and newspaper articles. Her legacy lives on through her widely-read books which are sold in over 100 countries.