The Watkin Path: An Approach to Belief Book

"Watkin was the only child of Emmeline Paxton Ingram, one of the daughters of Herbert Ingram, the founder of the Illustrated London News. His father was the nephew of Sir Edward Watkin, the Liberal MP and railway magnate, who started to build the first Channel Tunnel and later a tower to rival Eiffel's where Wembley Stadium now stands." "At birth Watkin was handed over to his Ingram grandmother, an old lady who lived alone in a mansion by the river at Walton-on-Thames. When he was four he sat on Mrs. Gladstone's lap at the ceremonial opening of the Watkin Path up Snowdon. He met few other children, and his strange childhood may account for some of his eccentricities." "Watkin became a Roman Catholic in 1908 when he was at Oxford and despite many obstacles, remained one. His experience as one of the inner circle of Catholic writers is revealing. He was allowed to publish his books on philosophy, history or literature, but when it came to the interpretation of the Catholic faith he was persistently harassed by the censors. Although Watkin was one of the foremost precursors of the Second Vatican Council, he deeply deplored some of its consequences." Watkin met Helena Shepheard in 1912 and they were engaged to be married within ten days. The story of that marriage and his involvement in so many crucial issues of a turbulent century make for a biography of a most gifted and unusual man.