Historian William Dalrymple Public Lecture

On Monday 9th June, St Peter’s was joined by historian and guest speaker William Dalrymple to discuss his new book The Golden Road – How Ancient India Transformed the World. Over 250 guests filled the Memorial Hall for an exciting evening where Mr Dalrymple brilliantly pieced together the world of ancient India and how it greatly contributed to society and culture today. The event was also joined in conversation by BBC Presenter Rajini Vaidyanathan who facilitated an exciting introduction and questions at the end.

Mr Dalrymple went into detail covering the fascinating method he used to trace Roman trade routes in the classical period by examining where hordes of Roman coins were discovered. He proved that rather than the ‘Silk Road’ being the forerunner for European trade into Asia, it was India which was the predominant exporter of many fine goods (including Gold) and enlightened ideas, hence his title the ‘Golden Road’. Ancient Indian influences which are still around today include the basis of our modern system of algebra and the number zero. A notable ancient set of ideas which also remains popular is the Buddhism, the world’s fourth largest religion. 

Mr Dalrymple’s talk was insightful and detailed, whilst simultaneously being an exceptionally accessible introduction to a rarely acknowledged giant of the ancient world. The audience was eager to ask questions and get their books signed after the presentation, and the environment in the room was one of excitement and a passion for learning which made for a wonderful end to a fantastic public lecture. It was a pleasure to have Mr Dalrymple and the Festival of Ideas, and we say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who attended.  

This was the final Public lecture in our 2024/2025 academic year. Please keep an eye out for a newsletter in the Autumn for information about the next round of events, and if you haven't already, sign up for our public lecture mailing list here. 

The talk was organised through York Festival of Ideas which puts on dozens of free events across the city all hosted in an effort to ‘educate, entertain and inspire’. Check out more of their events here: 2025 Festival , York Festival of Ideas 

The event was kindly joined by Fox Lane Books who sold more of Mr Dalrymple’s books for guests to purchase and get signed. If you are interested in ordering one for yourself, click here: The Golden Road - SIGNED | Fox Lane Books 

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