Bagehot, Walter

Bagehot, Walter (1826-1877), British economist and journalist, born in Langport, Somerset, and educated at the University of London. In 1858 he married a daughter of the British economist James Wilson, founder of the Economist, and from 1860 until his death Bagehot was editor of that journal. Bagehot was active in high political and financial circles, and his writings, which treat politics and business in a scientific manner, were based on his own observations. He wrote The English Constitution (1867), which was translated into several languages; Physics and Politics (1875); Lombard Street (1873), a study of the money market; and essays on history, economics, and literature.