James Anson Farrer

Called to the bar at the Inner Temple, he was an English barrister and writer born on July 24, 1849, and he later became best known for nonfiction that ranged across history, law, religion, and politics. He studied at Balliol College, Oxford, and wrote under the name James A. Farrer as well as James Anson Farrer.

His work shows a strong taste for unusual subjects and big cultural questions. Among the books associated with him are Primitive Manners and Customs, Books Condemned to be Burnt, Literary Forgeries, and Paganism and Christianity, titles that reflect his interest in belief, controversy, and the odd corners of intellectual history.

He died on June 21, 1925. Today he is remembered as a prolific late-Victorian and early-20th-century author whose writing combined legal training with curiosity about religion, society, and the history of ideas.