Henry Treece (1911-1966) was born in the West Midlands. He went to Wednesbury High School and Birmingham University where he graduated in 1933. He began work as a teacher and then served as an intelligence officer with RAF Bomber Command during the Second World War. He began his literary career as a poet and writer, and is best known for his many historical novels for children, including the Roman books Legions of the Eagle and The Eagles Have Flown, and the Norse trilogy Viking's Dawn, The Road to Miklagard and Viking's Sunset.