From the Crowned Mountain

The Via Francigena is the ancient pilgrim route from
Canterbury to Rome - 1900 kms through some of the most beautiful and dramatic
scenery in England, France, Switzerland and Italy. Nick Dunne resumes his
walking pilgrimage at The Crowned Mountain, the medieval hilltop city of Laon
in Picardy, for a journey which takes him through the battlefields of the
Chemin des Dames to Besancon and Lausanne and along the route of Napoleon's
daring military expedition across the Alps to Aosta. The pilgrimage introduces
him to a Christian heritage lost in Britain and to questions of Faith that bemuse
believers and non-believers alike. The normal routines of life are disturbed on
this challenging journey where even small acts of kindness can illuminate a
pilgrim's day.



Nick Dunne has been a social and community worker for over 40
years and, until his retirement in 2021, was Director of the community charity,
Bede House, in south London. He is currently Chair of Trustees of the
Confraternity of Pilgrims to Rome, a charity that promotes the Via Francigena
to walkers and cyclists from across the world.