The Marquis de Sade was born in Paris, France in 1740. He fought in the French Army during the Seven Years War before he was tried and sentenced to death in 1772 for a series of sexual crimes. He escaped to Italy, but upon his return to France in 1777, he was recaptured and thrown into the prison at Vincennes. De Sade spent six years at Vincennes before being transferred to the Bastille, then to Charenton, a lunatic asylum, in 1789. He was released from the asylum a year later but was arrested again in 1801. He was moved from prison to prison before returning to Charenton in 1803, where he later died in 1814. A French novelist and playwright, de Sade is largely known for his pathological sexual views and ethical nihilism. His works include Justine, Philosophy in the Bedroom, Juliette, and Aline and Valcourt, Or The Philosophic Novel.