James Boswell, born in 1740 in Edinburgh, Scotland, was educated at Utrecht and Edinburgh University and, though a lawyer by profession, traveled widely in Europe and wrote of his journeys with skill and wit. His portrayals of royal courts, drawing rooms, and the lifestyles of his time won universal recognition for his command of words and phrases. Boswell became a friend of Dr. Samuel Johnson, a leading literary critic and scholar, and in 1763 joined Johnson's Literary Club, whose members included Burke, Reynolds, Garret, Goldsmith, and other 18th century luminaries. Johnson wrote the first comprehensive English dictionary, and after the two traveled extensively together, Boswell in 1785 wrote his greatest work, "The Life of Samuel Johnson L.L.D." He is still regarded by many as the greatest biographer in Western literature, and he died in 1795.