The Path of Peace - Walking the Western Front Way

A talk by Sir Anthony Seldon OT

 for the Tennant Lecture Series

Tuesday 28 November 2023

Drinks in the Theatre Foyer from 7.15pm

Lecture i the E M Forster Theatre at 8pm

The route of Sir Anthony Seldon’s 1,000-kilometre journey, The Path of Peace, was inspired by a young British soldier of the First World War, Alexander Douglas Gillespie, who dreamed of creating a 'Via Sacra' that the men, women and children of Europe could walk to honour the fallen. Tragically, Gillespie was killed in action, his vision forgotten for a hundred years, until a chance discovery in a school archive galvanised Sir Anthony into seeing the Via Sacra permanently established.

Tracing the historic route of the Western Front and touching on grief, loss and the legacy of war, The Path of Peace is the extraordinary story of Anthony's epic walk, an unforgettable act of remembrance and a reflection of what matters most in life. Michael Morpurgo described it as a ‘remarkable book by a remarkable man’.

Anthony has written over forty books, the most recent on Boris Johnson. He is now on his third headmastership, he is a governor of the RSC as well as being on the board of countless other charities and he is President of the Old Tonbridgian Society. Amongst his many other achievements he founded the Tonbridge School Parents’ Arts Society. Do come and join us for what promises to be an inspiring and deeply moving talk.

This event is fully accessible.