Articles

Dunkirk, produced by Christopher Nolan, sets out to portray the 1940 rescue of the Allied armies from the clutches of Hitler’s Wehrmacht in terms of courage, heroism, survival, and a few examples of cowardice. In that he succeeds admirably. In terms of context—in conveying an understanding of what Dunkirk was about—he fails utterly.

It is not unprecedented for a head of state of a democratic nation to give classified information in wartime to the head of a despotism, including the Russian or the Soviet government. On April 3, 1941, Winston Churchill sent Joseph Stalin a message containing classified information for the purpose of informing him of German troop movements and military intentions.

The Huffington Post presented five reasons why Churchill should not be featured on Britain's five pound note. Four of these are common—but debunked—criticisms, and although the fifth is new, it holds up no better than the other four.

The film “Churchill,” to be released in June, purports to tell the story of Winston Churchill’s life in the week running up to Operation Overlord, the attack on the Normandy beaches which began on D-Day, 6 June 1944. Well-acted with good photography and music, it attempts an insight into Churchill’s psychology at that crucial stage of the Second World War. The only problem with the movie—written by the historian Alex von Tunzelmann—is that it gets absolutely everything wrong. Never in the course of movie-making have so many specious errors been made in so long a film by so few writers.

A recent film, Viceroy's House, narrates the story of the massacre in India following its independence and partition. While absolving the man most responsible—Louis Mountbatten—it charged Winston Churchill and his military secretary Hastings Ismay with the deaths of millions.

Among the few foreign statesmen to champion independence for the Baltic States, Churchill faced stiff opposition from war-weary colleagues in the 1920s.

During the war, Britain had a fairly strict internment policy for incoming foreigners. Churchill certainly acknowledged the wisdom of carefully vetting incomers for enemy agents. However, Churchill quickly began to deplore the broad policy of interning refugees and foreigners, and firmly believed that no one should be imprisoned without just cause.

This slim volume contains two jewels in the form of Winston Churchill’s signal 1946 speeches at Fulton and at Zurich. It also provides much interesting background information on the two milestones, and how each was intended to extend liberty.

Was Churchill really that good of an artist? What made him a great leader and what was his greatest accomplishment? Richard M. Langworth discusses these highlights of Winston Churchill and his reputation.

Beginning in the 1950s, reported UFO sightings were rampant in Great Britain. There was even a claim that Churchill ordered that one sighting be classified, in order to prevent mass hysteria in the public. This claim, unsubstantiated, is probably no more than a rumor.