Edward John Trelawny (13 November 1792 – 13 August 1881) was a
biographer,
novelist and
adventurer who is best known for his friendship with the
Romantic poets Percy Bysshe Shelley and
Lord Byron. Trelawny was born in England to a family of modest income but extensive ancestral history. Though his father became wealthy while he was a child, Edward had an antagonistic relationship with him. After an unhappy childhood, he was sent away to a school. He was assigned as a volunteer in the
Royal Navy shortly before he turned thirteen.