Frans G. Bengtsson was born in Tossjö, near Kristianstad, as the son of the manager of an estate in Skåne. In his childhood Bengtsson suffered from poor health - these problems later hindered his plans for an academic career. Such philosophers as Schopenhauer and Hartmann deeply influenced Bengtsson's thinking, a combination of a stoic world view with aestheticism. After graduating from a secondary school in 1912 he entered the University of Lund. Bengtsson did not hurry with his studies. While living in Lund, he read extensively and developed skills as an extemporaneous speaker and chess player. In 1930 he received his Licentiate in Philosophy. In 1939 Bengtsson married Gerda Fineman. During World War II he became known for his attacks on Nazism and the Swedish sympathizers of Germany. Bengtsson died in Ribbingsfors on December 19, 1954. Bengtsson had been considered nearly an atheist by his friends. He often criticized institutionalized Christianity, but on his death bed he read old Swedish psalms. As a side-effect of his long illness he gradually lost interest in books, which had been his dearest friends all his life.