The Path to Rome

Belloc walked “two and a half hundred leagues” to Rome, over twenty-two days, and arrived in time to hear Mass on the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul. As he walks, he quickly discovers the difficulty of keeping every vow he made before starting, as the days are long, the mountains steep, and his finances stressed. But the book is far more than a simple travelogue; alongside the narrative of the journey, Belloc wanders into topics as varied as the art of writing, life in the military, his Catholic faith, the middle class, literary criticism, music, poetry, and more. His unique politics and personality shine in his many digressions and asides.

The Path to Rome sold very well, and many critics have viewed it as the book that made Belloc’s name. His great friend G. K. Chesterton said of it in The World: “The Path to Rome is the product of the actual and genuine buoyancy and thoughtlessness of a rich intellect. …”

This book is part of the Standard Ebooks project, which produces free public domain ebooks.