William Saville-Kent (10 July 1845 – 11 October 1908) was an English marine biologist and author. Early life Born in the town of Sidmouth in Devon, South West England on 10 July 1845, William Saville-Kent was the son of Samuel Saville Kent (7 July 1800 – 5 February 1872) and Mary Ann Windus (b. 1808 – May 1852), who was Samuel's first wife. William was the youngest of ten children from his father's first marriage. Samuel was employed as a "Factory Commissioner" for the Home Office, and inspected factories to ensure that they were properly implementing the worker safety measures regulated in the Factory Acts of 1833. As the acts sought to alleviate the harm done to children that were caused by unregulated working conditions in the factories, Samuel's “duties required him to inspect factories that employed women and children.” Despite having “ambitions for promotion,” Samuel “suffered from the effects of local gossip and disapproval,” as a consequence of him being a “known adulterer.” Samuel's salacious reputation caused the family to move fairly often. Saville-Kent's childhood was marred by several unfortunate events. First was the death of his mother, Mary Ann Windus, who died suddenly in May 1852. This was followed a few years later by the murder of his half-brother, Francis Saville-Kent, which led to national media coverage and great family upheaval; then, came the subsequent conviction of his elder sister, Constance, as a result of her confessing to the murder five years later. The Scotland Yard detective Detective Inspector Jack Whicher—who was responsible for the murder investigation of Saville-Kent's half-brother—had also suspected that William was an accomplice, as Constance and William shared a close sibling relationship. Constance had initially been detained and questioned, but was released as a result of her high social status. However, no charges were ever made against William. Constance was sentenced to life in prison, which at the time was twenty years. Education Saville-Kent was educated at King's College London, and then at the Royal School of Mines under T. H. Huxley. He held various jobs in Britain, including at the British Museum from 1866 to 1872. In 1869, he became a member of the Zoological Society of London and in 1873 of the Linnean Society. In 1870, Saville-Kent received a grant from the Royal Society to conduct a dredging survey off Portugal. He worked at the Brighton Aquarium (1872–1873), then at the Manchester