As Great Britain's prime minister during World War II, Winston Churchill used his greatest gift, the power of oratory, to rally his nation and to pave the way toward victory for his countrymen.
Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill was born 30 November 1874 at Blenheim Palace near London and spent his early childhood in Ireland. There he witnessed the bombings and bloodshed of guerrilla warfare and developed a fascination for war. Churchill decided in his youth to pursue a military career.
Upon graduation from the Royal Military College at Sandhurst, he was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the Queen's Own Fourth Hussars, a cavalry unit, in April 1895. From 1895 to 1899, Churchill served with the Hussars, maintaining order in the British colonies and distinguishing himself in battle for his bravery in the Sudan. During his years in the cavalry, Churchill further distinguished himself as a hero and as a writer. His account of the war in the Sudan in his book, "The River War," thrust him into the public arena and paved the way for his entrance into British politics.
In 1899, he presented himself as a candidate for office with the Conservative party, the party of his father and other noblemen, and gave his first speech to a conservative club in Bath.
By 1900, Churchill had made a name for himself in the British political system and was elected a member of Parliament. He spoke vehemently on government budgeting and compassionately on the plight of the English working class, developing the gift of oratory that would earn him wider fame.
Before the onset of World War I, Churchill served as the first lord of the admiralty for the British navy. Responding to the threat of war, he prepared for the worst by adding airplanes to the naval fleet in 1912. When war came in 1914, the navy, under Churchill's command, performed excellently and added to its reputation as the world leader in naval power.
Churchill's political fortune rose and fell with the war. He left politics for a time and resumed his military career. As World War I continued, Churchill served as a major on the front lines where he continued to refine his military and writing skills.
After the war, Churchill returned to government and served as chancellor of the exchequer in the British cabinet, responsible for public income and spending. But the politician never forgot the lessons of war and monitored the uneasy peace in Europe carefully.
With the rise of Hitler, Churchill turned his attention to Germany and unlike his peers, believed that Hitler could not be trusted.
After the Nazis took over Czechoslovakia and Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain returned from his historic meeting with Hitler, he reassured the British citizens that there would be peace with Germany.
But Churchill disagreed with Chamberlain and delivered a grim address to the House of Commons:
"England has been offered a choice between war and shame. She has chosen shame--and will get war." (1)
Churchill continued his warnings to the government as Hitler fed his insatiable appetite for power. When the Nazis invaded the Netherlands and Belgium, Chamberlain resigned and Churchill was elected the new prime minister.
In 1940, England was in the midst of being bombed, bloodied, and beaten by the fierce German Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain. Unlike France, Italy, Poland, and Denmark, Churchill would not surrender. The new prime minister passionately proclaimed to the people of England:
"I have nothing to offer, but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. You ask, 'What is our policy?' I will say it is to wage war, by sea, land, and air with all our might and with all the strength God can give us . . . against a monstrous tyranny. You ask, 'What is our aim?' I can answer in one word: Victory--victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road might be; for without victory there is no survival." (2)
Churchill directed the rescue of British troops across the English Channel from Dunkirk that gave England an important moral victory and spoke again with power:
"We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender . . . ." (3)
. . . and with irony,
"And we'll fight them with the butt end of broken bottles because that's bloody well all we've got." (4)
Although Hitler offered peace on his terms, Churchill refused and prepared for invasion. When Germany attacked with air power, the British air force responded courageously, prompting Churchill to these words:
"Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few." (5)
The Germans were relentless in their attack. During the Battle of Britain over 60,000 British civilians were killed and over 70,000 were injured. (6) Throughout the ordeal Churchill comforted his people, wept with them, and urged them on with his famed victory signal of two fingers raised in a "V."
When supplies became scarce, Churchill called on U.S. President Roosevelt for support. Together, the British, French, and Americans formed the Allied powers. The challenge before them was to stop the Nazi expansion and break their hold on Europe.
Churchill had severe misgivings about plans to attack in France, and argued for an invasion through eastern Europe. Supreme Commander General Eisenhower proposed that an attack across the English channel would be more effective. The D-Day invasion planned and executed by Allied forces turned the tide of war and led to the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany.
Honored for his contribution to victory and peace, Churchill was named "Man of the Century" by Time magazine in 1950 and elected to a second term as Prime Minister in 1951. In 1953, he was given the title Knight of the Garter by Queen Elizabeth II. For his powerful ability to lead and encourage his people, he was loved and honored throughout the world.
Churchill himself offered as his motto:
In War: Resolution
In Defeat: Defiance
In Victory: Magnanimity
In Peace: Goodwill (7)
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1. Michael Wright, ed., "The Reader's Digest Illustrated History of World War II: The World at Arms," (New York: The Reader's Digest Association, 1989), p. 19.
2. Mollie Keller, "Winston Churchill," (New York: Franklin Watts, Grollier Company, 1984), p. 88.
