William Ralph Inge

William Ralph Inge was an English author, Anglican priest, and scholar, born in 1860 in Crayke, Yorkshire, and later known for serving as Dean of St Paul's Cathedral in London. He also taught theology at Cambridge, and his reputation grew well beyond church circles because of his essays, reviews, and public commentary.

Inge was especially associated with Christian mysticism and Platonist thought, and he wrote widely on religion, ethics, culture, and modern society. His intelligence and pessimistic tone earned him the nickname "the Gloomy Dean," but that label only partly captures him: he was also a lively, prolific writer who enjoyed arguing with fashionable ideas.

For listeners coming to him as an author, the appeal is his mix of learning and plainspoken force. Even when his views are severe, he writes with clarity and conviction, making him an interesting guide to the spiritual and intellectual debates of late Victorian and early twentieth-century Britain.