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Before my great-uncle, (Alexander) Douglas Gillespie, was killed at the Battle of Loos in September 1915, he wrote to his old headmaster proposing that one day a European war memorial, a tree-shaded via sacra (sacred road) should run between the trench lines from Switzerland to the English Channel. The letter was published in the national press and the idea discussed at the time, but nothing came of it.

Of this imaginary 450-mile memorial ADG wrote "I would like to send every man, woman and child in Western Europe on pilgrimage along that via sacra, so that they might think and learn about what war means from the silent witnesses on either side."

100 years on, historian, educationalist and author Sir Anthony Seldon has taken up the cudgels to get this memorial set up, and a number of ADG's family, including my cousin, sister and I, are joining him on an inaugural walk of 250 or so miles of the eventual 450 he hopes will eventually become an official international trail. www.viasacrawalk2016.org.uk for all further info.

In due course, if the French and Belgian governments can be persuaded,  Sir Anthony hopes a permanent, marked route will be established, but things are not yet at that stage.

However, walking 250 miles in 3 weeks is an effort on my part that I thought worthy of a bit of potential charitable fundraising whatever. As the Via Sacra project is not quite ready, I have
therefore done a bit of lateral thinking and have chosen to support this extraordinary little charity instead. Legs4Africa collects unwanted prosthetic legs from the UK and recycles them for amputees in Africa who have no access to the modern prosthetic technology that many Europeans enjoy. It's an inspired idea that is bringing hope to thousands who have lost limbs whether through war, disease or accident, and I hope ADG would approve.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.