While studying for the priesthood in Rome in early 1904, Benson found several manuscripts which survived the exodus from England to Italy over three centuries earlier. He was drawn to one such manuscript and, being enthralled with the story, undertook its translation resulting in this often lyrical novel of English spiritual life prior to the Reformation. From Benson's introduction: "It is the story of the life of one of that large body of English hermits who flourished from about the beginning of the fourteenth century to the middle of the sixteenth; and was written, apparently for the sake of the villagers, by his parish-priest."

Author Biography

Robert Hugh Benson (1871 - 1914) was an English Anglican priest who in 1903 was received into the Roman Catholic Church in which he was ordained priest in 1904. He was a prolific writer of fiction and wrote the notable dystopian novel Lord of the World (1907). His output encompassed historical, horror and science fiction, contemporary fiction, children's stories, plays, apologetics, devotional works and articles. He continued his writing career at the same time as he progressed through the hierarchy to become a Chamberlain to the Pope in 1911 and subsequently titled Monsignor.