Was Sherlock Holmes Based on a Real Person?

Created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes is one of the most famous detectives of fiction. Often paired with his sidekick, Doctor John Watson, Holmes is noted for being a genius with strong deductive powers. Originally appearing in a series of books and short stories, Holmes has also appeared in a variety of stage, film, and television adaptations.

However, Holmes had to come from somewhere, and various figures inspired Conan Doyle. While there have been a few fictional characters that likely influenced Holmes, there might have even been a real person or even multiple people, that helped to inspire the character. If this is true, this means there was a real great mind with strong powers of deduction, just like Sherlock Holmes. In fact, the inspiration for Holmes might have been a person, or people, that Conan Doyle might have known personally, something the author may have confirmed in his lifetime.

Was There a Real-Life Sherlock Holmes?

The iconic Sherlock Holmes might have had his start when Conan Doyle started studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh Medical School. It was during this period he began writing stories, with his first published piece, The Mystery of Sasassa Valley, coming out in 1879. During this time, he also encountered two figures that would greatly influence his work: Joseph Bell and Henry Littlejohn.

Both Bell and Littlejohn were leading figures in the school’s medical faculty at the time. Bell was noted for his skills of inductive reasoning, being able to figure out aspects of patients’ lives just through simple details, from the state of someone’s shoes to the way they wore their hat. Conan Doyle studied under Bell and even worked as his medical assistant for a time. In 1892, Conan Doyle wrote to Bell (via Publishers Weekly), telling him, “It is most certainly to you that I owe Sherlock Holmes,” later being named as the character’s inspiration by the press that same year.

During Conan Doyle’s studies, Littlejohn became a leading forensic expert in the country, often being the first contact the police used when investigating a suspicious death. Unlike Bell, Conan Doyle revealed Littlejohn’s influence posthumously. During a time in Kenya, Conan Doyle revealed that Bell and Littlejohn inspired the idea of writing a detective story through a scientifically minded lens.

Both figures were also notably tied to the famous Ardlamont case, in which Alfred Monson, a private tutor, was put on trial for the murder of his pupil, Cecil Hambrough, who had been living with his family. Hambrough had been fatally shot during a hunting trip with Monson and another figure, Edward Scott. However, suspicions arose when it came to light that Monson and his wife had taken out life insurance on their ward.

Bell served as a witness for the prosecution and believed Monson had killed his charge. Littlejohn and Scottish surgeon Patrick Heron Watson also believed the shot could not have been self-induced. Ultimately, however, Monson, who had been charged with murder, was set free with a verdict of “not proven.” Interestingly, during the Ardlamont trial, Bell claimed in an interview that he and Littlejohn had worked on police cases over the years, often serving as Littlejohn’s “second.” In a way, this makes him something of a real-life Watson figure, too.

Did Any Fictional Characters Inspire Sherlock Holmes?

Writers are also influenced by the works of other writers they enjoy. After all, Sherlock Holmes himself is often cited as an inspiration for various fictional characters. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle isn’t an exception to this, as there are a few literary characters that are often suspected to have been influences on Sherlock Holmes as well. Edgar Allan Poe’s character, C. Auguste Dupin, is frequently seen as fiction’s first detective character, having been the prototype for other similar characters, which naturally includes Holmes. In fact, Conan Doyle acknowledged Poe’s contributions to the genre, once writing (via Smithsonian Magazine), “Where was the detective story until Poe breathed the breath of life into it?”

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Émile Gaboriau’s fictional detective, Monsieur Lecoq, was also popular at the time Conan Doyle started writing his own detective character. These influences are actually acknowledged in A Study in Scarlet, the story that marks Sherlock Holmes’ debut, in which Watson compares Holmes to Dupin upon meeting him. However, Holmes reveals he isn’t too fond of Dupin, referring to him as “inferior.” Holmes also brings up Lecoq, describing him as “miserable.”

A few other figures have been suspected to be possible inspirations for Holmes, but Doyle didn’t acknowledge them in his lifetime or in his work. French author Henry Cauvain, for example, wrote about a similar smoking, antisocial detective in Paris in the book Maximilien Heller. The book came out around 16 years before Holmes was introduced, though it’s unknown if Conan Doyle had read it, although he was fluent in French.

Who Was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle?

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, gave the character life through four novels and over 50 short stories. Though he began his career as a physician, Conan Doyle found much greater notoriety through this writing. While best known for his contributions to crime fiction, he also wrote in other genres, including science fiction, fantasy, humor, and historical pieces.

Conan Doyle had other notable pursuits. He was interested in architecture, aiding with the preservation of historical places, and even developing a design used for the Lyndhurst Park Hotel. He was also known as an advocate for spiritualism, something that is reflected in his science fiction character, Professor Challenger. That said, the rational Sherlock Holmes didn’t advocate for the paranormal, often discounting it in his investigations. He would famously be a supporter of the Cottingley Fairies photographs, a series of photos allegedly showcasing fairies.

As an iconic figure in the world of fiction, Conan Doyle has also been portrayed in various media, both in historical pieces and more fantastic works. Notably, he was portrayed by Peter O’Toole in FairyTale: A True Story, Tom Fisher in Shanghai Knights, a sequel to the Western comedy Shanghai Noon, and Ian Hart in Finding Neverland. There is also surviving footage of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself from a 1920s newsreel, where he discusses the origins of his Sherlock Holmes character. The latest iteration of Holmes in a feature film, portrayed by Henry Cavill, can be found in the Enola Holmes franchise starring Millie Bobby Brown on Netflix.