Franklin D. Roosevelt

Despite sharp wartime differences, the British never forgot George Marshall. At the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, as he entered Westminster Abbey representing the United States, the vast congregation stood as a mark of respect. When he was hospitalized and dying in 1959, Churchill (by then “Sir Winston”), on a visit to Washington, accompanied President Eisenhower to see him. He left Walter Reed Medical Center with tears in his eyes.

“The President was eager that American forces be sent into battle as soon as they were prepared. A landing in North Africa, Operation Torch, was agreed. And so the Grand Alliance began. It seems to me that these day-long meetings—and the accompanying lunches and dinners—were immensely important. They bonded the two new allies. And they set up a structure that would prosecute the war to its successful conclusion.”

Churchill is not here to recall in his thoughts. There is no doubt he was faced with one of the statesman’s painful decisions. There was, after all, a World War going on, but the Allies were closing on Berlin. The end might come any day. Yet there is no doubt about his bereavement.

“This essay on importance of relations with Stalin in shaping the Churchill-Roosevelt relationship, is a brief historical gem.” —Nigel Lawson

Did Churchill turn somersaults over the Soviets? Yes and with good reason. We understand events better through good historians, and hindsight.

Churchill interacted with eleven U.S. presidents, none more crucially than FDR. “No lover,” he said, “ever studied every whim of his mistress as I did those of Roosevelt.” The relationship shifted in late 1942 and 1943, as the American contribution to the struggle grew. Eventually, Churchill would refer to himself, unenthusiastically, I suspect, as the President’s “loyal lieutenant.”