Ada Lovelace, born Augusta Ada Byron in 1815, was the only legitimate child of the famous poet Lord Byron. Lord Byron's marriage to Lovelace's mother, ended only weeks after their daughter was born. Lord Byron left England, and Lovelace never saw her father again. 

Lovelace had an unusual upbringing. At her mother's insistence, tutors taught her mathematics and science, which were usually only studied by boys. From early on, Lovelace showed a talent for numbers and language.

Around the age of 17, Lovelace met Charles Babbage, a mathematician and inventor, known as the 'Father of the Computer'. Lovelace was fascinated by Babbage's ideas. Through Babbage, Lovelace began studying advanced mathematics at the University of London. 

Lovelace was later asked to translate an article on Babbage's analytical engine. She not only translated the original French text into English but also added her own thoughts and ideas, describing how codes could be created for the device to handle letters and symbols along with numbers and how the engine could repeat a series of instructions, a process known as looping that computers use today. For her work, Lovelace is often considered to be the first computer programmer.