Lady Mary Wortley Montagu was an English aristocrat, letter writer, and poet who lived from 1689 to 1762. She is best known for her letters, which provide a vivid and insightful account of 18th-century life and society. Lady Mary is also celebrated for her pioneering advocacy of smallpox inoculation, a practice she observed during her travels in the Ottoman Empire and later introduced to England. She was a prominent figure in literary and social circles of her time and made significant contributions to English literature and public health.