This selection of the thoughts of Robert Birley reflects the various stages of his career, including his role as Head Master of Charterhouse during World War II, his maverick professorship in South Africa, and his later fame at the City University and as Gresham Professor. Sermons delivered at Charterhouse emphasize the uniqueness of the individual, particularly when monumentous events seem to evade the human grasp. This is a concern which recurs continually in his lectures on history, education, politics, totalitarianism and nationalism. He continually illuminates such abstractions by personal anecdotes, including his time confronting the Russians in post-war Berlin and his experiences with apartheid in South Africa. There are many pieces of a bibliographic nature, and a selection from his period as Head Master at Eton.