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The Churchill Project - Hillsdale College > Articles
English-Speaking Peoples (12): Gladstone and Disraeli
23
Jan
2023
1
By examining Gladstone and Disraeli, Churchill reminds us that even the most bitter political rivalries of the day can induce significant change if calibrated to a nation's interest. Politics is a contest where people choose the best candidate for the job. We could take these lessons to heart and seek prudence and guidance in the crises of our own day.
Winston Churchill and the Etymology of “Iron Curtain”
19
Jan
2023
1
The evidence suggests that Churchill had a most prosaic source for phrase that quickly became his, © Fulton, 1946. But his many references to “iron curtain” make for an interesting line of enquiry. It shows (to our surprise) that Churchill used the term at least six times before he arrived to stun the world in Missouri.
Great Contemporaries: George Nathaniel Curzon
16
Jan
2023
1
Churchill described Curzon’s funeral as “dull and dreary,” but he had “faced his end with fortitude and philosophy. I am v[er]y sorry he is gone. I did not think the tributes were v[er]y generous. I w[oul]d not have been grateful for such stuff. But he did not inspire affection, nor represent g[rea]t causes.”
Great Contemporaries: Fleet Admiral William Leahy
12
Jan
2023
The crippled President claimed Leahy was his “leg man,” but really used him to help understand complex military issues associated with waging a world war against two technologically advanced and aggressive nations. Leahy was also to serve as the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff above General Marshall, Admiral King, and General Arnold of the Army Air Corps. Leahy rarely took a contentious point of view during JCS deliberations. Instead he preferred to persuade FDR in private on courses of action he favored.
English-Speaking Peoples (11): Lincoln, Lee, and the Civil War
09
Jan
2023
Churchill’s is largely a military account, with sentiments that that surprise some. “We march with Lee and Jackson, with Stuart, with Longstreet, and with Early through autumn woodlands…. Virginia, the proud Founder State…trampled upon, disinherited, impoverished, riven asunder….” Yet Churchill is not pro-Confederacy. His instincts were always with liberty.
The Sordid History of the Collected Works
06
Jan
2023
1
The Collected Works raised problems of scholarship. Certain volumes were reset and reedited. Some volumes were taken from editions, which differed radically from the originals. In all, only eight volumes and half of a ninth, offprinted from first or early impressions, contained the original text and pagination. Seven volumes were offprinted from later editions. The other 18 1/2 volumes, though improved with uniform type and better maps, bear no resemblance to the originals. However magnificent in appearance, they are not bibliographically compelling.
Churchill and Health Issues: The Paradox of Coincidental Success
05
Jan
2023
1
In 1942 Churchill broadcast on a four-year plan for postwar reconstruction, including what he called “the spacious domain of public health…. I was brought up on the maxim of Lord Beaconsfield which my father was always repeating: ‘Health and the laws of health’…. Here let me say there is no finer investment in any community than putting milk into babies. Healthy citizens are the greatest asset any country can have.”
English-Speaking Peoples (10): Recovery and Reform
04
Jan
2023
Recovery and careful reform fostered prosperity at home and the Empire abroad, “based upon Government by consent, and the voluntary association of autonomous states under the Crown,” Churchill writes. “At the death of Queen Victoria it might well have been believed that the problems of past centuries were far on the high-road to gradual solution”
Churchill and the European Court of Human Rights
29
Dec
2022
“German peoples. Within the wider framework of the UNO [United Nations Organization] a Council of Europe has been set up…. I have long believed in the idea of a United Europe. In the turbulent year 1943 I said… ‘We must try to make this Council of Europe into a really effective league with a High Court to adjust disputes and with armed forces, national or international or both, held ready to enforce its decisions and to prevent renewed aggression. This Council must eventually embrace the whole of Europe.’” —WSC
Benjamin Hett on Leadership during the “Gathering Storm”
22
Dec
2022
This excellent commentary notes how Gallipoli, the great millstone of failure, was hung round Churchill’s neck, while the Norway campaign, first great failure of the Second World War, was blamed almost entirely upon Chamberlain. Churchill loyally defended the Prime Minister and, in a display of character, tried to take responsibility. But Chamberlain was wrongheaded and arrogant, while Churchill displayed wit and respect for democracy.
Churchill and the Reign of King George V, Part 2: War and Peace
19
Dec
2022
“King George’s reign has seen moral, social, political and scientific changes in the life of all countries and of all classes so decisive that we, borne along upon the still hurrying torrent, cannot even attempt to measure them. The means of locomotion, the art of flying, the position of women, the map of Europe, the aims and ideals of all nations—East and West, white and black, brown and yellow—have undergone a prodigious transformation.” —WSC
English-Speaking Peoples (9): Napoleon, Nelson and Human Freedom
12
Dec
2022
1
Clement Attlee once quipped that Churchill’s History should have been entitled, “Things in History Which Interested Me.” Unconsciously Attlee identified the value of history written by one who made it. Churchill writes from his own experience. He understood defending human freedom, and fighting with one’s back to the wall.