Thoughts from a Life: Exploring Scruton's Legacy

By Fisher Derderian

2 Newsletter-01.png

By now, many are familiar with the general contours of Roger Scruton’s life as a Cambridge-educated philosopher who left the academy for a life of writing and farming. They will know of the important events in Scruton’s life—his ‘conversion’ to conservatism during the Paris ‘68 riots; the work he did to support Soviet dissidents in Central Europe; the chance meeting of his wife, Sophie, during a fox hunt; or, more recently, the hit job done by the New Statesman that led to his removal from and subsequent reinstatement to the U.K. Government’s commission on beautiful architecture. Most will also be well aware of the fact that he was knighted by HRH the Prince of Wales in 2016 and of the honors bestowed upon him by Czech President Václav Havel, Polish President Andrzej Duda, and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. However, the question remains: what did Roger Scruton think and, just as important, what did he actually do?

To this end, the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation is pleased to announce the series Thoughts from a Life. Over the course of the next few months, the Foundation will be featuring a series of short articles on our website from some of the leading public figures and intellectuals exploring different aspects of Scruton’s thought and life. Some of the guest contributors include:

  • Professor Tim Crane on Scruton’s philosophy;

  • Ayaan Hirsi Ali on Scruton and the West;

  • Professor Ryszard Legutko on Scruton’s work in Eastern Europe;

  • Roger Kimball on Scruton and high culture;

  • Yuval Levin on Scruton and the future of conservatism;

  • Avik Roy on Scruton as a teacher and mentor; and

  • Lord Glasman on Scruton and the nation state.

I invite you to follow along during these coming weeks to learn more about Scruton and what he thought was important. It is our hope that this series will give you greater insight as to why Scruton’s legacy will lead to, as the Foundation’s mission states, “the conservation, care, and continuation of traditional wisdom and culture.”


Fisher Derderian is the Executive Director of the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation.

Fisher Derderian