British Empire

Winston Churchill, of course, like any human, had flaws and made blunders, be it Gallipoli, the Gold Standard, the Abdication crisis, or the India Act. However, his actions in the Second World War trumped his mistakes by saving civilization from Nazi and fascist tyranny. Regardless of Mr. Cooper, this truth will always shine through in the history of mankind.

It’s not new: There has always been an American polemic that the United States’ involvement in the Second World War was unnecessary and unwinnable. What makes this latest version interesting, and worrisome, is the way it sees Winston Churchill as a primary aggressor, instead of the nakedly genocidal, tyrannical, and racist Führer of Germany, Adolf Hitler.

In sum, Germany and its fascist allies started World War II, initiated the mass warring on civilians, and institutionalized genocide. They felt empowered to do so not because of Allied aggression or terrorism, but because of initial appeasement, American isolationism, and Russian collaboration. That is what enticed Hitler and the Axis into starting a war they soon had no chance of winning, once their formidable enemies embraced the prior Axis notion of total war.

No, Churchill did not send fleets of firebombers to kill innocent women and children in the Schwarzwald. “The reason why this kind of nonsense passes for history is that standards for evidence have virtually disappeared. The standard is not exactly rocket science. Remnant evidence is better than tradition-creating evidence. Corroborated testimony is better than uncorroborated testimony. Forensic evidence is better than hearsay.”

Early in the drive for Indian independence, a federal system and dominion status were proposed. Through the 1937 elections, the Muslim League and Hindu Congress were united in their wishes. Dr. Masani explains how the break occurred—and how Nehru responded to Minoo Masani’s warning that the Muslim League would reject further collaboration.

The promise of Dominion status required only that Congress, the Muslim League and the princes agree on power-sharing at a federal Centre. To blame Churchill for the internal divisions that obstructed such a coalition obfuscates reality. A power-sharing deal between Nehru and Jinnah would have made nonsense of Churchill’s fears. Instead, India’s fragile imperial unity fell apart under majoritarian strains. That gave Churchill the dubious distinction of being proved right.

A forensic examination and point-by-point of a Cambridge University panel on Churchill, race, the British Empire and the Second World War.

India is about to attain economic superpower status and it’s unbecoming for the country still to try to cling to victimhood status. The Times of India has had to run headlines such as: "Don’t Blame West for Molestations, Rapes Here." (The paper also has adverts for "upper-caste brides" in its lonely hearts column.) With regard to Churchill, it’s the sign of a self-confident people that they can ascribe greatness to those who disliked them. We Britons do that for  the anglophobic Thomas Jefferson, Napoleon Bonaparte and Charles de Gaulle.