Guglielmo Marconi was born in 1874 into a wealthy family in Bologna, Italy, and educated by private tutors. He developed an interest in science, particularly the work of German physicist Heinrich Hertz on the transmission of electromagnetic waves through the air. Though he failed the entrance exam at the University of Bologna, Marconi began experimenting with wireless telegraphy on his own in 1894. He discovered that by connecting his transmitter and receiver to the earth (grounding them), and then increasing the height of the antenna, he could extend the range of the signal. Despite this important technical breakthrough, the Italian government declined to sponsor his work.
Marconi moved to Great Britain where his work received greater support. In 1896 he patented his first device for wireless telegraphy and in 1897 found investors for his Wireless Telegraph and Signal Company, which began manufacturing radio sets that were able to transmit and receive messages in Morse Code.
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