Holding a distinct place in Victorian society, Walter Bagehot wrote on a wide variety of subjects including economics, education, history, law, literature, politics, and religion. Although he was only 51 years old when he died, Bagehot produced a body of work that filled fifteen volumes. His writing style, described as fresh, witty, vivid, and akin to good conversation, earned him respect and admiration.

Bagehot was born in the small Somerset town of Langport on February 3, 1826, to Thomas Watson and Edith Stuckey Bagehot. His mother, a beautiful widow with three sons when she married Bagehot's father, was the niece of the founder of Langport bank, and his father, ten years her junior, was a partner in the bank. Initially, Bagehot had a happy childhood, marked by a good relationship with both his parents. Later, however, Walter, the youngest in the family, witnessed his mother's mental health deteriorate when his only...