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The Thomas More Foundation runs seminars for teachers as exemplars of liberal education in practice. Our seminars are themed around the 'history of ideas', which means we study together some of the most impactful texts in the history of philosophical, theological, and political thought. These seminars are opportunities for teachers to enrich their background knowledge and better understand the influence of past ideas on present times. We try to facilitate socratic discussions, modelling what we encourage teachers to facilitate for their own students in our Eudaemonia programme, whilst aiding them to think critically about the ideas under discussion.
Through these seminars, led by two postgraduates and aspiring educators in the humanities, we hope to build a strong community of educators in London who can bring the formation they receive into the classroom.
Seminars are held every other Monday 7pm-8pm at 51 Gower Street, Euston, London, WC1E 6HJ. Participants are invited to join us afterwards for drinks at the National Liberal Club.
Below you can find the programme for this term (September 2025 - November 2025). We encourage you to read as much of the materials in advance as you are able, typically 20 pages. To download these, visit our main website and select the relevant seminar, https://www.historyofideasnlc.co.uk/events.
To secure your ticket (£5 per person + small Eventbrite fee) visit our page on Eventbrite.
Any donations also welcome!
Autumn 2025: 'Heritage' Series
Autumn 2025: 'Heritage' Series
Developing our exploration of the themes of inheritance, justice and providence in Augustine's City of God, we turn now to two of the foremost French writers. Nearly three centuries between them, Michel de Montaigne and Joseph de Maistre offer timeless insights into the fragility of that heritage which binds generations together. We'll be discussing Montaigne's essay 'On Custom', reflecting on what he describes as the 'tyranny of custom' and its abuse in justifying vice, following which we shall tackle de Maistre's celebrated 'Seventh Dialogue' defending the providence of war.
Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France contains a powerful defence of hereditary government founded on an understanding of society as an indissolubly intergenerational project. We consider what influence these arguments had on the subsequent generation of English Romantic poets, in particular Wordsworth and Byron.
Heritage Series (5) Disraeli, Oakeshott, and One Nation Toryism
Heritage Series (5) Disraeli, Oakeshott, and One Nation Toryism
(description forthcoming)
Roger Scruton is remembered for his writings on an array of themes, but perhaps none so compellingly as art and architecture. Scruton's aesthetics are rooted in deep convictions about the nature of the human person. We study a chapter of his book The Soul of the World that connects traditional architecture to the religious and moral imperatives that drove the first human settlements.
Previous Seminars
Previous Seminars
Heritage Series (1): Plato's Republic
Heritage Series (1): Plato's Republic
We commence our Spring seminar series on heritage with Plato's Republic, particularly the chapters dealing with the relationship between art and morality and how this informs Plato's view of the formation that the ideal citizens should receive.
Heritage Series (2): Augustine's City of God
Heritage Series (2): Augustine's City of God
St Augustine's City of God defends his fellow Christians against accusations that they were responsible for the fall of Rome to the Visigoths in 410, attributing it instead to moral decay. What follows is an impressive survey of Rome's history, her own poets and historians marshalled to the defence of Augustine's thesis, followed by an equally impressive survey of the Old Testament and the derivation of an ideal city in heaven that contrasts with those across the earth. We consider the dependence of society on strong moral formation and how this squares with the concept of providence.
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