Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc (1870-1953) was one of the most prolific writers in England during the early twentieth century. His best travel writing has secured a permanent following. The Path to Rome (1902), an account of a walking pilgrimage he made from central France across the Alps and down to Rome, has remained continuously in print. More than a mere travelogue, The Path to Rome contains descriptions of the people and places he encountered, his drawings in pencil and in ink of the route, humour, poesy, and the reflections of a large mind turned to the events of his time as he marches along his solitary way. At every turn, Belloc shows himself to be profoundly in love with Europe and with the Faith that he claims has produced it. Two of his best known non-fiction works are The Servile State (1912) and Europe and Faith (1920). Among his other works are: Avril: Being Essays on the Poetry of the French Renaissance (1904), The Historic Thames (1907), On Nothing and Kindred Subjects (1908), Hills and the Sea (1913), A General Sketch of the European War (1915), and The Free Press (1917).
