The Path of Peace: Walking the Western Front Way

Anthony Seldon walked 1,000 kilometers from the French-Swiss border to the English Channel, inspired by a young British soldier of the First World War who dreamed of creating a Via Sacra to honor the fallen. He traversed some of Europe's most beautiful and evocative scenery, wrestling with heat exhaustion, dog bites, and blisters, and searching for inner peace and renewed purpose. The Path of Peace is an unforgettable act of remembrance and a triumphant rediscovery of what matters most in life.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 368 pages
Publication date: 02 November 2023
Publisher: Atlantic Books

A formidable achievement, Rory Stewart's Thoughtful [and] heartfelt Observer Profound [and] compelling Spectator A noble endeavour, New Statesman Without a permanent home, a wife, or a job, and with no clear sense of where his life was going, Anthony Seldon set out on a 35-day pilgrimage from the French-Swiss border to the English Channel. The route of his 1,000-kilometer journey 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 honor the fallen. Tragically, Gillespie was killed in action, his vision forgotten for a hundred years, until a chance discovery in the archive of one of England's oldest schools galvanized Anthony into seeing the Via Sacra permanently established. Tracing the historic route of the Western Front, he traversed some of Europe's most beautiful and evocative scenery, from the Vosges, Argonne, and Champagne to the haunting trenches of Arras, the Somme, and Ypres. Along the way, he wrestled with heat exhaustion, dog bites, and blisters as well as a deeper search for inner peace and renewed purpose. 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 triumphant rediscovery of what matters most in life.

*** A WATERSTONES BEST BOOKS OF 2022 PICK ***

Weight: 324g
Dimension: 127 x 198 x 29 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781838957421
Edition number: Main