Michel de Nostredame was born in December 1503 in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France. He was a French physician, a professional healer, and a renowned seer. He practised horoscope and made prophecies. He wrote and published his first almanac in 1550. It was an instant success. Nostradamus began working further on the prophecies. The first edition of the collection of prophetic quatrains in French called Les Propheties (The Prophecies) was published in 1555. It contained 353 quatrains divided into four centuries and a preface addressed to his eldest son. A second edition containing 642 quatrains appeared in 1557. The third edition with around hundred quatrains was published in 1558. Though the book received mixed reactions at the time of publication, Nostradamus became famous when some of his prophecies started coming true. His prophecies are believed to have predicted the Great Fire of London, the rise of Hitler, and the terrorist attack on Twin Towers. The book has never gone out of print.