You can walk in the footsteps of those who changed the world.
Some of history’s most profound turning points were not decided by a single battle or a signed treaty, but by the steady, determined movement of people. These famous marches saw ordinary citizens take to the streets and highways, their footsteps echoing with demands for justice, freedom, and dignity. Their journeys transformed public consciousness and altered the course of nations.
Today, you can still connect with these powerful events by visiting the places where they happened. Walking these historic routes offers a tangible link to the past and a powerful reminder of the courage it takes to march for a cause.
1. You can cross the bridge from the Selma to Montgomery Marches in Alabama.
In 1965, activists led three protest marches along the 54-mile highway from Selma, Alabama, to the state capitol in Montgomery. These marches were pivotal moments in the American Civil Rights Movement, raising awareness about the fight for Black voting rights. The first march, known as “Bloody Sunday,” ended in brutal violence against the peaceful protesters on Selma’s Edmund Pettus Bridge.
Today, visitors can walk across that same bridge, a powerful and sobering experience. The entire route is now designated as the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail, with interpretive centers along the way, as per Live Science. Your journey can end on the steps of the Alabama State Capitol, the same place where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a rousing speech to 25,000 people.
2. You can visit the start and end points of Gandhi’s Salt March in India.
The Salt March of 1930 was a brilliant act of nonviolent civil disobedience led by Mahatma Gandhi. To protest Britain’s colonial salt tax, Gandhi and his followers marched 240 miles from his home at Sabarmati Ashram, near Ahmedabad, to the coastal village of Dandi. There, he illegally produced salt by evaporating seawater, inspiring millions of Indians to do the same in a direct challenge to British rule.
Travelers can visit Sabarmati Ashram today, which is now a serene museum dedicated to Gandhi’s life and work. From there, you can travel to the coast of Dandi, where a memorial stands on the spot where he broke the salt law, as shared in Army Cadets UK. Visiting these two sites provides a profound connection to a key moment in India’s struggle for independence.
3. You can stand where MLK delivered his dream in Washington, D.C.
The 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was one of the largest political rallies for human rights in United States history. Over 250,000 people gathered on the National Mall to advocate for the civil and economic rights of African Americans. The march culminated in front of the Lincoln Memorial, where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech, as reported in the NAACP.
Today, this location is one of the most visited memorial sites in the country. You can stand on the exact spot where Dr. King spoke, which is marked by an engraving on the marble landing: “I HAVE A DREAM.” Looking out from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial towards the Washington Monument allows you to see the same view as the speakers and organizers of that historic day.
4. The Women’s March on Versailles can be traced from Paris.
A defining event of the French Revolution, the Women’s March on Versailles took place in October 1789. Angered by the high price and scarcity of bread, thousands of market women from Paris began a spontaneous march to the lavish Palace of Versailles. Their protest grew into a revolutionary force that successfully compelled King Louis XVI and his family to return with them to Paris.
A visitor can easily trace this historic 12-mile route today. You can start in front of Paris’s city hall, the Hôtel de Ville, where the march began. From there, you can travel to the magnificent Palace of Versailles, imagining the scene as the revolutionary crowd stormed the gates and changed the course of French history forever.
5. You can follow the path of the Jarrow Crusade in England.
In 1936, during the height of the Great Depression, around 200 men from the shipbuilding town of Jarrow in Northeast England marched nearly 300 miles to London. They were carrying a petition to Parliament to demand work and the rebuilding of industry in their impoverished town. The Jarrow Crusade became a powerful symbol of the plight of the working class in Britain.
Today, you can visit Jarrow and see memorials dedicated to the marchers, capturing their spirit of determination. In London, you can stand before the Houses of Parliament at Westminster, the final destination of their long journey. While the marchers were dismissed at the time, their crusade left a lasting mark on the nation’s social conscience.
6. The Long March’s legacy can be found all across China.
The Long March was a harrowing, year-long military retreat undertaken by the Red Army of the Communist Party of China from 1934 to 1935. To evade the Nationalist army, Mao Zedong led his forces on a grueling 6,000-mile trek through some of China’s most rugged terrain. The journey became a foundational myth for the Chinese Communist Party and solidified Mao’s rule.
While it’s impossible to follow the entire route, travelers can visit key sites that have been preserved as monuments to the march’s legacy. One of the most famous is the Luding Bridge, the site of a heroic battle in Sichuan province. You can also visit museums dedicated to the march in cities like Zunyi, which was a crucial turning point in the long journey.
7. You can join the annual March of the Living in Poland.
Unlike the other events on this list, the March of the Living is a modern, commemorative march that honors a tragic historical one. It is an annual educational program that brings people from around the world to Poland on Holocaust Remembrance Day. Participants march the nearly two-mile route from the main camp of Auschwitz to the extermination camp of Birkenau.
This path mirrors the death marches that prisoners were forced to endure at the end of World War II. It is a deeply moving and solemn experience, designed to honor the victims of the Holocaust and to ensure that the world never forgets. The march culminates in a ceremony at Birkenau, providing a powerful tribute to resilience and remembrance.