FINEST HOUR - Winston Churchill

Second Quarter 1994Number 83VH^XFINEST HOURJournal of the International Churchill Societies • Australia • Canada • New Zealand • UK • USA

THE INTERNATIONAL CHURCHILL SOCIETIESAUSTRALIA • CANADA • NEW ZEALAND 'UNITED KINGDOMPATRON: THE LADY SOAMES, D. B. E.UNITED STATESFounded 1968, the International Churchill Societies work to foster interest in and knowledge on the life, philosophy and literaryheritage of the Rt. Hon. Sir Winston S. Churchill, KG, OM, CH, MP (1874-1965), and the great goals to which he was devoted—the quest for liberty and democracy. The Societies are independent non-profit organizations which, with the Rt. Hon. SirWinston S. Churchill Society of B.C., jointly sponsor Finest Hour, special publications, conferences, symposia, tours, the"Teaching the Next Generation" programme, and the Churchill Center for the Study of Statecraft in Washington, DC.HONORARY MEMBERSWinston S. Churchill, MPMartin Gilbert, CBEGrace Hamblin, OBERobert Hardy, CBEAmbassador Pamela C. HarrimanJames Calhoun HumesMary Coyne Jackman, BA, D.Litt.S.Yousuf Karsh, OCThe Duke of Marlborough, DL, JPAnthony Montague Browne CBE, DFCColin L. Powell, KCBWendy Russell RevesAmbassador Paul H. Robinson, Jr.The Lady Soames, DBEThe Rt. Hon. The Baroness Thatcher, OM, FRSThe Hon. Caspar W. Weinberger, GBECOUNCIL OF CHURCHILL SOCIETIESJonathan Aitken, MP, Chairman45 Great Peter Street, London SW1P 3LT, EnglandTel. (071) 233-3103ICS AUSTRALIAAustralians please resubscribe through ICS/USA.Announcement next issue.ICS CANADARevenue Canada No. 0732701-21-13Garnet R. Barber, President4 Snowshoe Cres., Thornhill, Ont. L3T 4M6Tel (416) 881-8550John G. Plumpton, Secretary-Treasurer130 Collingsbrook Blvd. Agincourt ON M1W 1M7Tel. (416) 497-5349 Fax. (416) 395-4587Committee MembersEdward Bredin, QC; Leonard Kitz, QCThe Other Club of TorontoBernard Webber, President3256 Rymal Road, Mississauga, Ont. L4Y 3C1Tel. (905) 279-5169SIR WINSTON S. CHURCHILL SOCIETY OF BCIan Whitelaw, President1110 Palmerston AvenueW. Vancouver, BC V7S 2J6ICS NEW ZEALANDGordon H. J. HoggRiverside Farm, 291 North Road,Clevedon, RD2, PapakuraICS UNITED KINGDOMCharity Registered in England No. 800030David Boler, ChairmanPO Box 244, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN3 0YFTel. (071) 623-5616 Fax. (071) 247-4488Jill Kay, Membership Secretary, "Tympany,"Beckenham Place Park, Beckenham, Kent BR3 2BS2/FINEST HOUR 83UK TRUSTEESHon. Nicholas Soames MP (Chairman);The Duke of Marlborough, DL, JP: RichardHaslam-Hopwood, Hon. Celia Sandys Perkins,L.W. Pilgrim DFC, FCA; David J. Porter; LordCharles Spencer-Churchill, Geoffrey J. WheelerCOMMITTEEDavid Boler (Chairman); Dennis Jackson OBE, DL,RAF ret. (Vice-Chmn.); David Jones; Jill Kay;Barry Coleman, BA; Mark Weber; Wylma Wayne;L. W. Pilgrim, DFC, FCA (Treasurer)ICS UNITED STATES, INC.Internal Revenue No. 02-0365444Ambassador Paul H. Robinson, Jr., Chairman135 S. LaSalle St., Chicago IL 60603Tel. (800) 621-1917, Fax. (312) 726-9474Richard M. Langworth, President181 Burrage Road, Hopkinton NH 03229Tel. (603) 746-4433, Fax. (603) 746-4260Merry L. Alberigi, Vice PresidentPO Box 5037, Novato CA 94948Tel. and Fax. (415) 883-9076William C. Ives, Vice PresidentKeck, Mahin & Cate, 49th floor77 W. Wacker Dr., Chicago IL 60601Tel. (312) 634-5034, Fax. (312) 634-5000Derek Brownleader, Secretary1847 Stonewood Dr., Baton Rouge LA 70816Tel. (504) 752-3313George A. Lewis, Treasurer268 Canterbury Road, Westfield NJ 07090Tel. (908) 233-8415USA TRUSTEESAmbassador Paul H. Robinson, Jr., Chmn.The Hon. J. Sinclair Armstrong, CBERichard M. Langworth, George A. LewisWendy Russell Reves, The Lady Soames, DBEThe Hon. Caspar W. Weinberger, GBEUSA DIRECTORS ('Executive Committee)•Merry L. Alberigi, Marianne Almquist,Derek Brownleader, R. Alan Fitch,Larry Kryske, Richard Hazlett, 'William C. Ives ,* Richard M. Langworth, *George A. Lewis,•Dr. Cyril Mazansky, James W. Muller,Douglas S. Russell, Jacqueline Dean WitterCHAPTER COORDINATORDr. Cyril Mazansky50 Dolphin Rd., Newton Center MA 02159Tel. (617) 296-4000 x5000, Fax. (617) 296-2872ICS STORES (Back issues & Saks Dept.)R. Alan Fitch8001 Harrods Landing, Prospect KY 40059Tel. (502) 228-8774 Fax. (502) 228-7558ACADEMIC ADVISORSProf. James Muller, Univ. of Alaska (Chairman)Prof. Keith Alldritt, Univ. of British ColumbiaDr. Larry Arnn, Claremont InstituteProf. Raymond Callahan, University of DelawareProf. Eliot A. Cohen, Johns Hopkins UniversityProf. Kirk Emmert, Kenyon CollegeProf. Warren F. Kimball, Rutgers UniversityProf. Patrick Powers, Assumption CollegeProf. Paul A. Rahe, University of TulsaProf. Max Schoenfeld, Univ. of Wis. Eau ClairePres. Jeffrey Wallin, The National AcademyProf. Manfred Weidhorn, Yeshiva UniversityICS ALASKAJames. W. Muller, tel. (907) 272-78461518 Airport Hts. Dr., Anchorage AK 99508ICS ARIZONAMarianne Almquist, tel. (602) 955-18152423 E. Marshall Ave., Phoenix AZ 85016JCS CALIFORNIANorth: James Johnson, tel. (408) 353-210324595 Soquel-San Jose Rd, Los Gatos CA 95030South: Bruce Bogstad, tel. (805) 581-00521059 Rambling Road, Simi Valley CA 93065ICS ILLINOISWilliam C. Ives, tel. (312) 634-5034Keck, Mahin & Cate, 49th floor77 W. Wacker Dr., Chicago IL 60601ICS MICHIGANJudge Peter B. Spivak, tel. (313) 963-20703753 Penobscot Bldg., Detroit MI 482267CS NEBRASKAEdward W. Fitzgerald, tel. (402) 390-9932218 So. 94th St., Omaha NE 68114ICS NEW ENGLANDDr. Cyril Mazansky, tel. (617) 296-4000 x500050 Dolphin Rd., Newton Center MA 02159ICS NEW YORKCynthia Newberry, tel. (212) 535-4008903 Park Avenue #8-N, New York NY 10021ICS NORTH TEXAS (Emery Reves Chapter)Ann & Richard Hazlett, tel. (214) 742-54872723 Routh St., Dallas TX 75208ICS OREGONWilliam D. Schaub, tel. (503) 223-07482622 SW Talbot Road, Portland OR 97201ICS PENNSYLVANIARichard S. Raffauf, tel. (215) 777-1653RD6, Box 449, Reading PA 19608ICS WASHINGTONRon Helgemo, tel. (703) 351-29672037 Wethersfield Ct, Reston VA 22091

2nd Quarter 1994FINEST HOURJournal of the International Churchill Societies Number 8310 Winston and Clementineby The Lady Diana Cooper, 1892-1986Famed for her beauty and the "durable fire" of hermarriage to Alfred Duff Cooper, Lady Diana was earlyadmitted to a delightful friendship with the Churchills.Few write better of Winston and Clementine.14 Winston Churchill and Eastern Europeby Stanley E. SmithPart 1: The Polish Government.Could Churchill have done more to save Poland?22 Churchills at Play: A Journey to the Levantby Richard M. Langworth from Lady Moyne 's Scrapbook"Winston as Tourist," an unfamiliar role,was captured indelibly by Lady Moyne's lenson a 1934 Mediterranean voyage.26 The North American Churchillsby Elizabeth Churchill SnellGenealogical research is sometimes a matter of happen-stance;in this case, the acquisition of a house inDevon made it possible to discover many facts aboutthe Churchills of Canada and America.Book ReviewsA Very Great Soul by A.G.S. NorrisCyanide in My Shoe, by Josephine ButlerPure Chance by Dame Felicity Peake30 Will There Be Another Great Soulfor the Next Millennium?by Cynthia Newberry31 Josephine Butler: She Also Served, Maybeby George Richard32 Memoirs of a Great Ladyby David J. Porter-Si Sir Winston Churchill: A Reportby Karan JainA 13-year-old Friend of ICS provides teachingby the Next Generation41 Salvaging Charmleyby Manfred Weidhorn42 Bric-a-Bracby Douglas J. HallAn Ongoing InvestigationInto the Good, the Bad and the Ugly4589213033363738Amid These StormsInternational DatelinesICS PeopleWit and WisdomAnnouncementsBook ReviewsImmortal WordsAction This DayRiddles, Mysteries, EnigmasDespatch BoxNote: "Churchilltrivia" and"Churchill in Stamps" resume next issue.Cover: "She was statue-like,, and oneexpected to see her carrying an agatelamp. Her chiseled nose and elegantlyupheld head suggested a goddess of theinfant world," wrote Lady Diana Cooper(page 10). Painting by Sir Winston ofLady Churchill at the Launch ofHMSIndomitable, 1939, painted c.1954.Reproduced with permisssion of CurtisBrown Ltd, London, on behalf of theChurchill Heritage. © Churchill Heritage.FINEST HOUR 83 / 3

AMID THHSH STOKMSFINEST HOURISSN 0882-3715Richard M Langworth, EditorPost Office Box 385Hopkinton, New Hampshire03229 USATel. (603) 746-4433Senior EditorsJohn G. Plumpton130 Collingsbrook Blvd.Agincourt, OntarioM1W 1M7 CanadaH. Ashley Redburn, OBERosemere, Hollands MeadOvermoigne, Dorchester,Dorset DT2 8HX UKNews EditorJohn Frost8 Monks Ave, New Barnet,Herts. EN5 1D8 UKContributorsMartin Gilbert, United KingdomGeorge Richard, AustraliaStanley Smith, United StatesRon Cynewulf Robbins, CanadaJames W. Muller, United StatesDouglas J. Hall, United KingdomJames Bell, GreeceFINEST HOUR is publishedquarterly for Friends of the InternationalChurchill Societies,which offer several levels of supportin their respective currencies.Membership applications andchanges of address should be sentto the appropriate national officeson page 2. Permission to mail atnon-profit rates in the USA grantedby the US Postal Service,Concord, NH, Permit no. 1524.Copyright 1994. All rights reserved.Designed and producedfor ICS United States by DragonwyckPublishing Inc. Printed byMorgan Press Inc. Made in U.S.A.THE parallels between the careers of Richard Nixon and Sir WinstonChurchill are interesting. Both were born to parents of little wealth.Although life as conducted by their elders was on a vastly different scale,Nixon like Churchill had to work for everything he had, as he reminded his nationin the same sentence with his famous "I am not a crook." Politically both were centristswho preferred coalitions to parties — officially for Churchill in 1940-45, quasiofficiallyfor Nixon in 1968-73, when he achieved one of the most liberal legislativerecords of any American president in tandem with an opposition Congress.The most striking parallel was the way both men repeatedly roared backafter being pronounced politically dead: Churchill after 1915 (dismissed byAsquith), 1929 (the Tory loss to Labour), 1936 (the Abdication crisis) and 1945 (theLabour landslide); Nixon after 1952 (almost dumped as Eisenhower's runningmate), 1956 (ditto), 1960 (losing the Presidency to Kennedy), 1962 (losing theCalifornia governorship) and 1974 (the only President forced to resign). Nixon wascertainly proof of Churchill's dictum: "In war you can only be killed once — but inpolitics, many times."Nixon's oratory and writing didn't hold a candle to Churchill's, but bothwere political tacticians hampered by a fatal flaw: in Churchill an inability to compromiseprinciple to achieve broader political goals: as over India and EdwardVIII vs. the need for British rearmament in the 1930s, for example; in Nixon a persecutioncomplex that caused him to lie to his country about a third-rate burglaryhe never authorized. Yet at his death Nixon was hailed by many as a hero, whileChurchill was being excoriated by revisionist historians.Alistair Cooke on the BBC spoke movingly about the Nixon funeral: howschoolchildren, jaded by other politicians in the years since, tend now to excuseNixon's "high crimes and misdemeanors," if they understand them at all; how formerenemies praised Nixon at his death: for the approach to China that created thefirst fault-line in Communism; the strategic arms treaty; the transformation ofVietnam from an American quagmire when he took office to a local affair when heleft. Nixon might even have pulled off the 1973 Vietnam peace accord, had he notbeen fatally wounded by Watergate. Mr. Cooke leaves us with a description of alone man at the Nixon funeral. Asked why he'd come, he answered simply, "Justpaying my respects to a former leader." As do we. Peace at last, Mr. President.# LADY DIANA DUFF COOPER, "the most beautiful woman in England," had apenetrating mind and brilliant pen, capable as few others of capturing a time, earlierin this century, when women considered the world laden with opportunity forfulfillment. This she proved with her famous seven-year performance in MaxReinhardt's "The Miracle," her able collaboration with Duff Cooper's ambassadorshipto France, her notable trilogy of memoirs. Her "Winston and Clementine,"first published in The Atlantic just after WSC's death, was unknown to her son,Lord Norwich, who graciously gave us permission to publish it as our cover story:as fine a tribute to the Churchill marriage as we are likely to encounter.Diana and Duff were two bright lights of the Churchill era. It is a joy toread their correspondence (A Durable Fire: The Letters of Duff and Diana Cooper 1913-1950 , London and New York 1983, edited by their granddaughter Artemis) — ifonly to preserve such writing as this, Diana to Duff in the trenches, 1918: "It is Ithat must read [our letters] to the envious young — flauntingly, exultantly — andwhen they hear yours they'll dream well that night, and waking crave for such amythical supreme lover and regret that they are born in the wrong age — as once Idid before I saw your light, crying for Gods and wooers..." Shortly after they met,Duff wrote to Diana: "Bores with God's help we will never be." They weren't.RICHARD M. LANGWORTHThe editor's opinions are his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Churchill Societies or their Trustees.4 / FINEST HOUR 83

INTHRNATIONALDATHUNHSQUOTE OF THE SEASONIt might be said that he outlived his future by ten years and his past by more than twenty.The brilliant prospects which had shone before him until he became the leader were dispersed by thebreak-up of his Government and the decisive defeat of his Party. The part he took as a patriot in supportingthe War destroyed his hold upon the regard and confidence of the Radical masses... He severedhimself by purposeful action from his friends and followers... Within a decade after achieving the pinnaclehis political career was closed for ever. It was only two decades later that his long life ended. "-WSC ON ROSEBERY (AND NDCON?), GREAT CONTEMPORARIES, 1937MILTON FRIEDMAN TO SPEAKAT '94 CONFERENCE, SEPT. 25BANFF, ALBERTA — Hoover InstitutionSenior Research Fellow Milton Friedman andhis wife Rose will be the guests of ICS Canadaand the 1994 International ChurchillConference September 23-26th. Dr. Friedmanwill speak on Sunday the 25th aboutChurchill and Economics: "I have longargued that great men need not be goodeconomists and my prime example is WinstonChurchill. I yield to no one in my admirationfor Churchill but, as it happens, heuniformly in my opinion made the wrongdecision about economics on almost everyoccasion when he encountered it from pre-World War I to post-World War II." Don'tmiss this challenging critique and all the othergreat events in Canada. See the back cover ofthis issue and register when your conferencepacket arrives separately in the post."CHURCHILL AS PEACEMAKER"WASHINGTON, DC — The Churchill Centerfor the Study of Statecraft, founded byICS/USA, announces its first Churchill Symposium,in conjunction with the WoodrowWilson Center for Scholars October 28-29th.Sir Robert Rhodes James ("Churchill, Studyin Failure"), Paul Addison ("Churchill on theHome Front"), Manfred Weidhorn ("Harmonyof Interests") James W. Muller ("TheEducation of Winston Churchill") KirkEmmert ("Churchill and Empire") StevenLambakis ("Architect of Peace") and Dr.Williamson Murray are among ten academicswho will deliver papers discussing aspects ofChurchill as peacemaker from the Boer Warthrough the two World Wars, Irish and MiddleEast settlements, and quest for a "summit"in the 1950s. Tickets will cost little ornothing but seats are limited. If you are not amember of the ICS Washington Chapter andwish to attend, please contact the editor.ICS/UKA.G.M.CHARTWELL, KENT, UK, APRIL 16TH — TheAnnual General Meeting of ICS UnitedKingdom saw David Boler elected Chairmanand Wing Commander Dennis Jackson,OBE, DL, RAF (ret.) Vice-chairman. Thecomplete Committee and Trustees are listedon page two. Lady Soames retired as aTrustee but remains Patron. At least onemeeting of the new Committee has sincetaken place, and David Boler will be in touchwith Friends of ICS/UK regularly on comingbusiness and events. Congratulations to all onthe new and old teams.JUMPING ON THE BANDWAGONLONDON THIS SEASON — "Spies in theSky" (BBC2, February) said Churchill "personallyapproved" a series of "highly provocative"RAF spy missions over the USSR...ClivePonting's biography (May) said WSC was aracist who wanted "forcibly to sterilize100,000 mental degenerates and send tens ofthousands of others to labour camps"... PatRiott's Greatest Story Ever Told said Churchillengineered the 1929 Wall Street stock marketcrash...Norman Rose's An Unruly Life(March) said Churchill was pro-appeasementin the 1930s... Andrew Roberts in The Spectator(9 April) revealed "Churchill's life-longantipathy to coloured people and unsuccessfulattempts to block New Commonwealthimmigration"... Michael Smith in the SundayTelegraph said Churchill was paid by the CIAto finance a campaign for united Europe...Allison McLaughlin in the DailyExpress said Churchill and the Royals "wereregularly supplied with heroin and cocaineduring visits to Royal Deeside" in the early1900s... The British Nationalistcalled WinstonChurchill MP's campaign to limit immigration(FH #81, page 22) "ironic in view of hisgrandfather's part in the destruction of theBritish Empire." According to Andy Harris inSunday Sport, 12Sep93, England's soccer bossGraham Taylor had a visit from Sir Winston,who spoke via Sunday Sport's medium, MysticMaria, equating England's World Cupcampaign with World War II.There, you have it all. Oh, and P.S.:England lost.BIG THREE ON TVNEW YORK, APRIL 19-20TH — NBC airedDavid Rintels's "World War II: When LionsRoared," a four-hour production dealing withthe relationship between Churchill (BobHoskins), Roosevelt (John Lithgow) and Stalin(Michael Caine), all of whom were reasonablyeffective. Stalin was a bit too much of acuddly bear, Roosevelt looked right but hisvoice lacked FDR's unique lilt, and Churchillkept his chin on his chest too much.(Hoskins took advantage of his four hours offame to demonstrate his ignorance by callingChurchill a drunken megalomaniac.) In somescenes, split-screen techniques were used toshow the men reacting to each other's longdistancecommunications, while those sendingthe communications were made to speakthem. The trouble is that people speak differentlythan they write, so the approach isn'tquite valid. On the other hand, so few knowanything about history that any dramaticlicense which crams a little of it into theirskulls isn't a bad thing. A videocassette recordingmay be ordered (North AmericanTV equipment) by dialing (800) 568-9393.Next, CBS is preparing a six-hour miniserieschronicling Sir Winston's life, based onWilliam Manchester's "Last Lion," the finalvolume of which is being written. ProducerMartin Ransohoff says he hopes to have itready for the 50th anniversary of the end ofWorld War II's conclusion (not to mentionWSC's unceremonious Order of the Boot).Actors are not yet announced, but as WSCwe'd prefer Hopkins to Hoskins...CHURCHILL COLLOQUIUMCAMBRIDGE, UK, MARCH 28-30TH — TheMoller Centre for Continuing Education atChurchill College held an impressive symposiumchaired by Professor C. Andrew on thetopic, "Sir Winston Churchill, Europe, theEmpire and the United States, whicharchivist Correlli Barnett tells us will be pub-FINESTHOUR83 / 5

International Datelines...lished eventually as a book. Included wereimportant papers on Churchill and British seapower; WSCs defence policies; his relationswith de Gaulle, Roosevelt, Mussolini, Adenauer,the Danes and Poles; WSC and theMiddle East; WSC on NATO and Westerndefence; and a summation, "Churchill andBritain's Place in the World" by MartinGilbert. Altogether, a stunning exercise. Allcongratulations to Churchill College.WORKS IN PROGRESSDedicate another bookshelf to yourChurchill collection: at least fifteen books arepresently being written about WSC besidesPonting, Rose (pg5) and Snell (pg26).Professor C. Andrew, editor: ChurchillColloquium at Cambridge (see above).Martin Gilbert: Vols 2 and 3 of theChurchill War Papers: Never Surrender, June-December 1940 (late 1994) and The Ever-Widening War: 1941 (1995); also The WinstonChurchill-Emery Reves Correspondence, tobe published 1995.Dr. Barry Gough (Wilfred Laurier University):A War of Combinations: First Lord ofthe Admiralty and First Sea Lord.Richard M. Langworth: Reader's Guideto the Books of Sir Winston Churchill, to bepublished by ICS (late 1994).William Manchester: The Last Lion Vol3: Defender of the Realm, 1940-1965 (asmuch as two years off, W.M. tells us).Dr. John Mather: Churchill's Health(provisional tide); see article last issue.Anthony Montague Browne: Long Sunset,the memoirs of WSCs private secretaryfrom 1952-1965 (London:Cassell).Dr. James W. Mullen The Education ofWinston Churchill (work in progress).The Hon. Celia Perkins: Churchill'sBoyhood (provisional title), based on hithertounpublished letters and documents (1994).Patrick Powers: Democratic Statesmanship:the Lessons of Lincoln, Churchill and deGaulle (work in progress).Douglas S. Russell: Churchill's MilitaryCareer (provisional title, work in progress).Dr. David Stafford (Univ. of Edinburgh):A new book on Churchill and secretintelligence, which the author discussed duringan ICS visit to Edinburgh on May 21 st.Frederick Woods: Bibliography of theWorks of Sir Winston Churchill (new edition,manuscript deadline early 1995).Have we left any out? Please advise.HUMES TOURS COUNTRY—QUOTEBOOK IN NEW EDITIONJames C. Humes, editorof The Wit and Wisdomof Winston Churchill, hastraveled the USA onbehalf of his book andICS, including manychapter meetings: February12th, thePHOTO: JERRY BAUERWyndhamHotel, Philadelphia, organized byRichard Raffauf; February 17th, the NixonLibrary, Yorba Linda, California; March 21st,National Arts Club, New York City, withCynthia Newberry the ICS organizer; March24th, Dallas, organized by Dick and AnnHazlett; May 12th, Washington, organizedby Ron Helgemo; April 23rd, Omaha, organizedby Ed. Fitzgerald. Humes related thequips and quotes that are so much a part ofChurchill's persona, recalling the dialoguebetween WSC and FDR. ICS/Pennsylvaniasponsored two students, while at all venuesHumes signed numerous copies of his books.The latter, we are very pleased to report, hasreached its third impression, which shows amassive effort to correct various points ofdetail and inaccuracy in the quotes, and willbe available tlirough the ICS New Book Service(regular price $20, ours $16). A reviewwill appear in FH shortly.CHURCHILL SOCIETY OF B.C.VANCOUVER APRIL 8TH — The third"Evening with Churchill" was held tonight byThe Rt. Hon. Sir Winston S. Churchill Societyof British Columbia. This has become aregular semi-annual event, with Dr. KeithAlldritt ("Churchill the Writer") the firstguest a year ago and a second event held lastautumn. We do not have details of the April8th event, but for those who don't want tomiss an always-interesting night, please writefor details about the autumn number: StanleyH. Winfield, #1-54 Richmond Street, NewWestminster, BC V3L 5P2.Mr. Winfield has obtained permissionfor Finest Hour to reprint a fine speech bySenator Jerry S. Graftstein, QC, to the UniversityClub Annual Dinner in Toronto onOctober 27th last. Entitling his talk,"Churchill as a Liberal," Sen. Graftstein coversa little-known aspect of the Great Man'scareer. It will appear at earliest opportunity,but we cannot resist reproducing the finalparagraph now: "Friends, may I conclude byasking you to rise, liberally charge your glasses,and raise a fulsome and liberal toast to theUniversity Club."NEW CHURCHILL SCHOLARSHIPSPHOENJX, ARIZONA, MARCH 30TH— DianeThomson is the first University of Arizonastudent to win a $20,000 Churchill scholarship,along with nine others cited by theChurchill Foundation in New York City.Scholarships pay for tuition, fees, living andtravel expenses at Cambridge University inEngland. The Foundation, headed by HaroldEpstein and John Loeb, has awarded scholarshipsin Sir Winston's honor for thirty-threeyears, and eight Churchill scholars have wonthe Nobel Prize. Richard Cosgrove, a UA historyprofessor who coordinates national andinternational scholarships for the school, said,"I consider winning a Churchill more of a feateven than winning a Rhodes." (To win, DianeThomson maintained a straight-A grade averageand received perfect scores on two of herthree Graduate Record Exams. She will pursuea master's of philosophy degree in environmentand development, examining improveduses of natural resources in poor countries.)FDR-WSC DATABASE FUNDEDHYDE PARK, NY, JANUARY 19TH — A Britishgovernment grant similar to the one made toICS last year (to produce the 1991-92 Proceedings)has been awarded to the RooseveltLibrary, to produce a database of the Roosevelt-ChurchillCorrespondence in theLibrary and establish a computer link betweenthe Churchill Archives in Cambridgeand the FDR Library.The grant of $4500 wasthe brainstorm of British Vice-Consul RayRaymond. Again the British Embassy hasused its grantmaking power to do nothingbut good work; we congratulate the FDRLibrary and wish them success in this project,which will mean so much to scholars.A YOUNGISH 88"I am enclosing amoney order to cover mysubscription to ICS and aphoto. In January I celebratedmy 88th birthday.I am living at the MerrimacValley RehabilitationHome. If anyonewould like to visit me, I would be verypleased to receive them," writes Bob Edwards,who only makes us hope that we look as goodat 88 as he does. His accompanying resumeattests to a fascinating life, with ancestors datingto the 17th century in the USA. If a fellowChurchillian wishes to pay Bob a call, hemay be reached at 22 Maple Street, Amesbury,Massachusetts 01913 USA.6 / FINEST HOUR 83

ICS/WASHINGTONWASHINGTON DC, FEBRUARY 17TH — SirWinston's "Never Despair" was appropriateto people living in North America last winter.However, after several postponements due toweather, twenty-four hardy associates assembledat the Marvin Center, George WashingtonUniversity, for a dinner meeting whereRon Helgemo described upcoming eventsand introduced two speakers. Fellow of theSociety Herbert Goldberg, and Royal Navyveteran Raymond Goodman. Dr. Goldberg,who regularly lectures at local universities, discussed"Churchill and the Nation's Capital."Raymond Goodman, a retired World Bankexecutive, was a member of Churchill'sentourage on HMS Prince of Wales at theArgentia meeting with Roosevelt. His topic,"All at Sea with Churchill" discussed hisencounters with the PM.Either or both of these fine speakerswould provide a fine evening for other chapters,if their expenses can be covered. If youare interested, please contact Ron Helgemo(address and phone number on page 2).COVER 42: D-DAY +6JUNE 12TH — The forty-second ICS commemorativecover was posted to recipients onthe covers list* today, marking the 50thAnniversary of Churchill's return to Frenchsoil on D-Day +6. (He lunched with Montgomerythree miles from the front, appearingdisappointed when Montgomery said it wasunlikely that the enemy would disturb theirrepast.) Covers chairman Dave Marcus hasagain created a historic keepsake on an importantanniversary.* ICS covers are free, but you must askto be put on the list. To do so, send a recentcopy of your ICS mailing label to Dave Marcus,3048 Van Buskirk Circle, Las Vegas NV89121 USA. If you did not receive mis coverautomatically but wish a copy, please send $3or the equivalent to ICS Stores, 8001 HarrodsLanding, Prospect KY 40059 USA.Alexander James Blastos (center) with Athens attorney Yiannis Vahaviolos and Btastos' advisor Chris Spirou(New Hampshire Democratic Party chairman) with the 325-foot Christina recently purchased by Blastos for$2.2 million. Photo from the New Hampshire Sunday News, 13 March 1994, courtesy Alexander Blastos.CHRISTINA IS BACKKEENE, NH, USA, MARCH 13TH — Millionairebusinessman Alexander Blastos has purchasedthe former Onassis yacht Christina,which carried Sir Winston on several voyagesat the end of his life, for $2.2 million, andplans a restoration that will cost $40 millionover the next several years.Christina, which started life fifty yearsago as the Canadian frigate Stormont, lastbelonged to the Greek Navy. Blastos, 28, willcharter the yacht at $70,000 a day to recouphis investment, although he really considers ita link with his Greek heritage. Original features,including a bathroom replica of KingMinos' lost Palace of Knossos, a swimmingpool with a raisable bottom that converts it toa dance floor, nine swank cabins named afterGreek islands, and fountains that pulsate tothe rythym of music in the smoking salon, areto be restored. ICS will observe Mr. Blastos'svoyage of rejuvenation with interest. Christinais the biggest yacht owned by an American,the fifth largest private yacht in the world.FREDERICK FORSCH, R.I.P.NEW YORK CITY, OCTOBER 8TH — Retiredinvestment banker Frederick Forsch diedtoday, six months after he had anonymouslydonated his notable Churchill collection toDartmouth College. The collection, housedat Dartmouth's Baker Library, includessigned first editions of nearly everything WSCpublished, including pamphlets and over 100unpublished letters.some marked "secret,"written by WSC between 1893 and 1960.Among the manuscripts, bound as "WinstonChurchill's Prophecy 1911," is WSC'sfamous cabinet memo about the probablecourse of a war with Germany, which accuratelymirrored what really happened. Thereare also signed photos and memorabilia, andsome things on the lighter side, such as a1926 letter to Admiral Keyes: "I designed orpaid for in my time all the capital ships,except the Hood, now in commission. Butthis should not encourage you to ask for anynew ones! They are so good, mey will certainlylast a great deal longer." Says special collectionslibrarian Philip Cronenwett, "This is aremarkable collection, built by an asrute studentand collector of Churchill materials overfifty years. It will not only provide Dartmouthstudents widi important resources, butwill be available to scholars too."ICS/NEW ENGLANDNEEDHAM, MASS., FEBRUARY 22ND —Chapter director Cyril Mazansky spoke on"Churchill and his Contemporaries" to agarnering of 150 at the Retired Men's Clubthis evening. His tlieme was similar to that ofhis lecture at the 1993 Washington conference,when he portrayed "Churchill's GreatContemporaries: A Pictorial Panorama ofCigarette Cards." Actively interested in thelife of Churchill for many years, Mazansky isa member of the executive committee andboard of directors of ICS/USA. He was profiledin Finest Hour #79 (p28).FINEST HOUR 83 /7

ICS PEOPLE: DAVID BOLERThe new chairmanof ICS UnitedKingdom, DavidBoler became fascinatedby Sir Winstonat the age of 13, alongwith all the other 230boys in his boardingschool in die Weald of Kent: "We were madeto watch his funeral, displayed on four largetelevision screens placed in each corner of ourassembly/sports hall!"His curiosity aroused, David learnedmore from his late father's Second World Warbooks, mostly on the Royal Navy, but alsofrom Churchill's WW2 memoirs: "Father hadbeen commissioned into die 'Wavy Navy,' orRNVR, in the early part of die war, sailing incorvettes and frigates. He replaced the familypots and pans donated to Beaverbrook's Spitfireappeal with shining new ones from Halifax,Nova Scotia, from his many visits to thatport. He had the dubious distinction of beingon the first RN ship to be sunk by a U-boatwith an acoustic torpedo, HMS Lagan, in1943. He left the Navy with a D.S.C."From his father's wartime experiences, aswell as being part of the generation born soonafter the war, David's interest in World War IIand die man who led Great Britain through itwaxed. Initially he simply collected books onChurchill, until a chance introduction toICS/UK led him to be appointed vice-chairmanon the Committee formed following formerchairman Geoffrey Wheeler's 1989 retirement.During the next four years he was activelyinvolved in organizing the House of Commonsdinner and other functions of ICS/UK,in particular two book signing evenings held atthe Royal Auto Club for Martin Gilbert'sChurchill: A Life and Volume I of his WarPapers. David has also spoken to various organizationsabout ICS, notably the ChurchillSociety in Anglesey and local schools in Kent,where he found the pupils very interested. Hehas illustrated these talks with videos and taperecordings, and looks forward to furtherengagements.In his business career David started workat Lloyd's of London in a broking firm in1969. In 1981 with four colleagues he cofoundedLloyd Thompson, and in October1987 ("Black Monday") they went public onthe London Stock Exchange! The majority ofL-T's business emanates from North America,"but I look after clients from Scandinavia andthe Far East, thus my travels to North Americahave been sadly limited." With his wife Dianehe did manage to attend the 1993 Washingtonconference, and ICS Canada hopes to see theBolers in Alberta this September.David married Diane on Trafalgar Day,21 October 1978; they have three boys,Nicholas, Simon and Timothy, aged 15, 13and 11, "all of whom suffer my obsession withWSC with resigned good humour." He has afascination for exploring secondhand bookshopswherever he travels, a recent acquisitionbeing an Icelandic first edition oiMy Early Life(in looseleaf form) from a visit to Reykajavik!Their interest in history has just now led Davidand Diane to purchase a Grade 2* listed house(in Kent, of course), which will inevitably benefitfrom their ministrations.HERITAGE FUND THANKSICS United States most sincerely thanksthe supporters of its Heritage Fund drive at theend of last year. This appeal for financial supportfor extra publications has more than metits goal, and has secured our ability to producethree new works: The Churchill-Conover Correspondence,A Reader's Guide to the Books of SirWinston Churchill, and The Proceedings of theChurchill Societies 1992-1993, and a new editionof The Chartwell Bulletins. A special newedition of Churchill's prescient 1924 pamphlet,Shall We Commit Suicide?, is being preparedfor all of you to express our gratitude.ERRATA: FH#7\In my editorial, page 3, I stated that contraryto my remarks in FH #67, Lord RandolphChurchill did die from syphilis. Considerableresearch by Dr. John Mather (see his articlelast issue), has now conclusively proved thatthis is not true: the immediate cause of deathwas pneumonia arising out of complicationsthat had nothing to do with venereal disease.Martin Gilbert also notes that my referencesto his having sent physicians "blind" copiesof Lord Randolph diagnoses and receivingtheir opinions that the symptoms were of asyphilitic was incorrect. Also, "dementia" isalso not an accurate description of Lord Randolph'sillness. Dr. Mather's evidence will bepublished in these pages. RMLCooper, Dr. Burke A. Cunha, Anthony J. Czarnicki,Raymond E. Dana, Dr. George Davis,Thomas C. Deas Jr., Robert H. Dunn, HowardDyer III, Judge William R. Eads, Edward W.Fitzgerald, James R. Fitzpatrick, Edward R. Flenz,Mollie Frank-Jones, Charles Fredericks, GeorgeA. Gerber, William H. Gleason, Roger M. Gold,Craig P. Goodrich Esq., H. Robert HamiltonEsq., Peter C. Hayes, Dr. John A. Herring, RuthHill, Dr. J. Brooks Hoffman, Robert R. Hunt,Van G. Hunt, Gilbert H. lies, Dr. Andrew S.Jacob, Karan Jain, R. R. Johnson Jr., W. QuinnKelly, Joseph W. Kirschbaum, Eugene S. Larson,Raymond A. Lavine, Robin Lawson, Paul S.The Chartwell Associates (named in honor ofLeavenworth, Gerald B. Lechter, Walter P.Sir Winston's home, designed to help support Linne, Richard S. Lowry, Alfred J. Lurie, John J.ICS publications, donations of $1000 or more): Marek, John David Marshall, Robert E. Mayer,Fred Farrow, John T. Hay, Ambassador Paul H. Dr. Cyril Mazansky, Myron M. McElwaine,Robinson, Jr., Peter J. Travers.Thomas J. McGrath Jr., Paul L. Meaders, GeorgeThe Dalton Newfield Advocates (named in Colin Mello, John R. Mercy, Ingrid A. Merikoski,Helen & John Moffatt, Amy E. Moffet,honor of the President of ICS 1970-75, whosevision and leadership led to its successful campaignto republish out-of-print Churchill books, Muessig, Dr. Milton G. Mutchnick, Benjamin R.Edward L. Moore, Coleman W. Morton, Paul J.donations of $500 to $999): Jane Fraser, William Neilson, Robert E. Nelson, Roy B. Newsom,C. Ives. Parker H. Lee III, Michael W. Michelson,Robert M. Sprinkle.Karen M. Ouellette, John Owen, Russell J. Page,Robert P. Odell Jr., Dr. Kenneth S. O'Neil,Donors of $100 or more: Keith Adams, Paul A. Parker, David E. Pennington III, RobertDonald W. Fish, Linda L. Plan, Jack Moseley, H. Pilpel, Mr. & Mrs. Michael Pintavalle, Karl S.George Christian Jr., Matthew Fox, Jay S. Goodgold,James H. Gressette Jr., David A. Handley, son Jr., Winston O. Roulier, Edwin F. Russell,Richardson, David Robinson, Walter F. Robin-Judith & Gerald Kambestad, Richard M. Langworth,Dr. John H. Mather, John W. Parker, Schneider, William R. Schulz, Dr. Harvey H.Henry W. Ryan Jr., Steven Schiffer, Laz L.Reese Taylor, Dr. Curtis W. Vickers, Bernard J. Shapiro, Samuel E. Shapiro, William John Shepherd,Joseph John Snyder IV, Dr. Daniel Sperber,Vreizen, Dr. Allen P. Webb, Glenn A. WherryJr., Alex M. Worth Jr., Anonymous.Charles J. Steele, Nicholas Stewart, M. RichardDonors of up to $100: Claire Luce Abbey, Strauss, Lydia A. Taylor, Russell K. Tillman,James Agar, Suzanne Aken, Richard D. Applegate,Ronald Baron, Gilbert Barre, Bill & Lor-Weeks, Jerome K. Welsch Jr., John F. Whitney,Daniel L. Treacy, Michael J. Turrisi, Glen R.raine Beatty, Rev. William Benwell, Ian G. David J. Willette, Matthew B. Wills, Richard C.Beswick, David R. Billingsley, Nicholas Bitter, Wilson, Dr. H. William Winstanley, MarkCharles K. Bobrinskoy, Ray Butterworth, Dr. Wohlgemuth.Douglas Cairns, Bonnie & Robert Castrey, R. G.Chamberlain Jr., F.W. Channer, Anthony R.Note: If you made a non-anonymouscontribution and your name is not on the list,Cichantk, Ltc. Raymond Colvin, James Guy please advise the editor. M>8 / FINEST HOUR 83

In the book field, nothing is more popular than Churchillian quotes. Sprinkling them into "InternationalDatelines," as we've done recently, isn't as effective as a separate column, which commencesherewith. I shall concentrate on the lesser known quotes, or well-known ones which havebeen misquoted in popular books—and droll photos, such as the one below. -EditorWIT AM) WISDOMTHE SPORTING TRAVELERA quote often attributed to Churchill wasapparently first coined by his wife: "Winston isa sporting man—he always likes to give thetrain a fair chance to get away." Clemmie usedthis often because WSC was so often late;although her husband may have picked it uphimself as well.RIDDLE, MYSTERY, ENIGMAEveryone is familiar with the first part ofthis quote: "I cannot forecast to you the actionof Russia. It is a riddle wrapped in a mysteryinside an enigma." Martin Gilbert has notedthat relatively few people recall the rest of thequote, made in a wartime speech, in whichWSC answered his poser: "...But perhaps thereis a key. That key is Russian national interest."SMITHSONIAN'S HAT TRICKThe March 1994 Smithsonian committeda gaffe in a piece on computer-altered photographs,illustrating four famous personalitieswearing the "wrong" hats (above). Churchill, ofcourse, would look perfectly normal wearing aten-gallon, as in the photo at right (Cairo 1942),as we advised the editors. I believe he picked upthe cowboy hat habit while touring the USA in1929; can a reader confirm this?MARRIAGE"At Blenheim I took two very importantdecisions: to be born and to marry. I am contentwith the decision I took on both occasions.I have never had cause to regret either."NEW YEAR'S TOAST, 1942"Here's to a year of toil—a year of struggleand peril, and a long step forward towardsvictory. May we all come through safe andwith honour." -Stated on the train enrouteWashington after addressing the Canadian Parliamentin Ottawa, 31 December 1941.NUCLEAR WAR ENVISIONED"Might not a bomb no bigger than anorange be found to possess a secret power...toblast a township at a stroke...guided automaticallyin flying machines by wireless or otherrays without a human pilot?" -Stated in "ShallWe Commit Suicide?" (1924). In April 1994 itwas disclosed that Russian scientists had a powerfulnuclear device no bigger than an orange,and fears were expressed lest it get into thehands of terrorists...RATTING AND RE-RATTINGChurchill alwlays used die verb "to rat"to symbolize the desertion of one's party,whether by him or someone else. "Anyone canrat," he said, referring to his desertion of theTories for the Liberals in 1904—"but it takes acertain amount of ingenuity to re-rat" (referringto his desertion of the Liberals for theTories in 1924).And: when told in 1945 that a memberof the Labour Party had quit to join the Liberals,Churchill observed: "That's the first I'veheard of a rat swimming to a sinking ship."COMPONENTS OF A GOOD SPEECHJames Humes's Wit and Wisdom of WinstonChurchill contains a number of goodpieces of advice on this subject. A good speech,Churchill said, presents a "series offacts...brought forward all pointing in a commondirection. The end appears in view beforeit is reached. The word anticipates the conclusionand the last words fall amid a thunder ofassent."And: "Don't deliver an essay with somany points. No one can absorb it. Just sayone thing...Of course, you can say the point inmany different ways over and over again withdifferent illustrations...And: "Vary the pose and vary the pitch.Finally, don't forget the pause."Most important of all, from one of hispre-speech asides: "I am going to give a verylong speech today; I haven't had time to preparea short one."WHEN TO LIEVice-Admiral Sir William Crawford submitsa Churchilliasm uttered during a visit tothe Home Fleet at Scapa Flow in 1941, forwardedto us from the Daily Telegrpah byDavid Boler: When asked by an officer inHMS Rodney, "Prime Minister, is everythingyou tell us true?", Churchill replied: "Youngman, I have told many lies for the good of mycountry. I will tell many more."And, to Stalin, during a conversation atTeheran: "Truth is so precious that she mustoften be attended by a Bodyguard of Lies."BY THE WAY...James Bell's column for this space was not to handat press time. §SFINEST HOUR 83/ 9

Winston and ClementineFamed for her beauty and the "durable fire" of her marriageto Alfred Duff Cooper, First Viscount Norwich, Lady Diana Cooperwas early admitted to a delightful friendship with Winston andClementine Churchill. Few write better of the happiness they shared.BY THE LADY DIANA COOPER, 1892-1986In 1908 (he was 33, she 22) and 1955, with HM The Queen as Winston retired as Prime "Minister.FROM the solemn moment when the world knewthat Winston Churchill had breathed his last, a roll ofhonour of some seventeenth-century poet elusivelyhaunted me. To lay it I asked friends, poets, and publishers,even All Souls College. All remembered it,but none could place the lines that say:O that Sir Philip Sidney should be deadO that Sir Walter Raleigh should be dead.Many another glorious name is listed, and now wecan add:O that Sir Winston Churchill should be dead.He above all these is not to be mourned. He livedhis last years imprisoned by age, and now that theiron gates of life are opened, his spirit soars to the libertyhe lived for. Nothing survives — not marble norgilded monuments at Westminster Abbey, not evenpyramids enclosing pharaohs. Only legend remains,and Sir Winston's legend is as secure as that of anyhero who fought and triumphed over evil. His famewill last when records are effaced, till legends becomefables, and fables histories.No man deserved his laurels more wholly. He leftus the example of his prowess, the books that recordhis great times; and more than these he gave us courage.10/FINEST HOUR 83

wOME years ago I wrote for my own records what Iremembered about Winston Churchill over fifty years,and among these notes comes a facet of his life thatin the elegies and paeans of today may not be emphasized.I mean his life with his wife and the part sheplayed in balancing his lion's heart. My contributionscarcely expressed solemnity, but the account of hisdomestic side cries out to be heard. I quote:"Winston Churchill, the greatest man ever fatheredby England or mothered by America, Winston who inour most dread days armed us with a superhumancourage and endurance that we might respond to hiswords and actions, victoriously chose his wife withlove, wisdom, and intuition."Many great men have done as much. Caesar'sCalpurnia, we are told, was above suspicion. Nothingis known of her beauty, and we cannot guess at hertemptations. Josephine, chosen by Napoleon in hisyouth for love, was a better wife than the princesswho bore him a son. Martha Washington was surelygood, and Eleanor Roosevelt too. Disraeli married outof cold sense rather than sentiment, and learned tolove his wife tenderly. Mrs. Gladstone was adored byWilliam, for whom she would hide in her bodicecakes and goodies from party tables. Among PrimeMinisters I have personally known, Mr. Asquith chose(or was he chosen by?) a Christian dynamo who lovedhim till his end and after. Lord Baldwin could notsustain life after his wife's death. There was Tolstoy'smarriage of unadulterated and increasing misery, yetwho but Sofya Andreevna could he have found tobear him thirteen little Russians and copy War andPeace seven times with her own hand? A wise choiceindeed."Winston Churchill, not in his earliest youth,chose most wisely and most well. His bride could havefigured in a Homeric story. She was statue-like, andone expected to see her carrying an agate lamp. Herlarge, lightest of blue-green eyes, her chiseled noseand elegantly upheld head suggested a goddess of theinfant world. Blood coursed through the marble, flushingit with animation, warmth, sometimes rising topassionate heat in partisanship of a cause. Calm shealso had, with a well-balanced judgment of people andsituations — consistent and reliable. She often knewthe sheep from the goats better than Winston did.'Clemmie sits behind me on the platform, shaking herbeautiful head in disagreement with some new andpregnant point I am developing,' I remember his saying,with pride in her stable Liberalism, after someTory meeting. Her devotion never subjected her tobecoming a doormat or to taking the easier way withher high-powered Hercules.") PERSONALLY, did not know the Churchills whenthey married, though they were household words sinceI first remember adult talk. I saw Clemmie's tall, slimfigure for the first time in 1910, swathed in blackweeds, together with another strangely beautifulyoung woman, passing silently, as I was myself, beforethe bier of King Edward VII in Westminster Hall. 1asked who were these Attic women and was told theywere Winston Churchill's wife and his sister-in-law,Lady Gwendeline Churchill (later mother to ClarissaEden). I can never forget their veiled beauty. I didnot know how the Churchills lived or where. Later Iknew there were children; that a little girl by dyinghad plunged her mother into deep grief which left apermanent scar. Neither Randolph, an Olympianlookingboy, nor the two older daughters did I set eyesupon till they were grown up, and Mary, the youngest,was still a child when, in the Thirties, I came moreintimately into the home life of Chartwell.I was continually meeting Winston at small partiesof friends — perfect companions and audiences for hishistrionics, his eloquence, and his quips; or at bigger,more formal dinners, where he would sit, a littlehunched, distrait or perhaps just self-sufficient, betweentwo ladies trembling with shyness and glowingwith the vain hope of pleasing or impressing.Whenever I saw him and his wife together in countryhouses, pompous or bohemian, they appeared a shiningepitome of successful marriage.Serene, radiant, and selfless, Clemmie put her husbandabove her children, her interests, and the wholeworld. She had been frugally brought up — not, Ithink, much butter on the bread, and the slice wasoften eaten in Dieppe, the onetime refuge of the indigent— but her mother, Lady Blanche Hozier, sawthat her education was surely founded. Their standardsof tenue can never have been relaxed; no dirtywindows or crumpled tablecloths; the dress's hemwashed and ironed on coming home from the party, inreadiness for the next night's dance. The story is toldthat Lady Blanche, suspecting one sunny afternoonthat Winston would propose marriage, saw to it thather daughter was dressed in her freshest muslin, andan order given that there was to be no sitting downtill her hand was pledged. I imagine him drawing herto some romantic stile, rock, or rustic seat, andClemmie obediently insisting on standing.Manners and grace, order and good taste must havebeen considered essential, for these virtues showedbrightly before these desperate years of spacious, servantlesshouses, when attics, stairs, and cellars, outhousesand dirt traps harass the exhausted householder.These virtues were vital, for Chartwell was a largeFINEST HOUR 83/11

Below right: Statler Hotel, New York, post-Iron Curtain speech, March 1946; Sarah, WSC CSC, Randolph.Presented to ICS by President Kennedy's White House photographer, Cecil Stoughton.house, impeccably run, where the master's enterprisestook the shape of earthworks and waterworks; wherethe staff must include a posse of secretaries to copewith stacks of reference books, red boxes, manuscriptsof books to be; where the studios and passages borepiled pyramids of canvases; where midnight oil foreverburned.In wartime, difficulties increased apace, perhaps alittle less, materially, for the exalted. Winston was alwaysa fastidious eater, and Clemmie and her famouscook, Mrs. Landemare, had to cater for moods ofhunger or of fractious fatigue and cheerfully reorganizemeals ordered for six at eight o'clock into meals fortwenty at ten-thirty. Yet the wheels revolved sweetly,and there was time and space for pause and relaxation,for children and games. I can see Clemmie, betweenthe wars, on the tennis court whacking veryprofessional backhanders, alert beneath a green eyeshade,or strengthening, during the summer months inher bedroom, those muscles most needed for christianiaturns on Alpine heights. I can see her in the war,energy undiminished, great in her own right. Herhousewifery gave her limited time for public work; Iremember knitting my mealtime through to makeoiled sweaters for sailors at Clemmie's wish and sheorganized a big campaign for gifts to Russia and madea fine success of her visit there early in 1945.Of all the heroes, of Hector, of Lysander, and ofCaesar, Clemmie's paragon was probably the easiest tolive beside. At least my eyes saw him as most docileto her rule. I never heard Winston nagged. All greatmen are more childish than good women, and theremust have been, behind the scenes, some Mrs. Caudlelectures, some of the scolding that a nanny gives hercharge for childishness, showing off, overexcitement,obstinacy, or sulks, some promise extracted that suchbehaviour would not happen again. I can hear hisPrime Minister's professed penitence, the vow madeand never kept by the incorrigible schoolboy.One of his dearest associates tells me that thosewho were closest to this extraordinary man throughthe fearful war were struck by the contrast betweenWinston at work and Winston, the family man, atplay. They might spend a whole afternoon listening tohim as the great statesman, propounding plans onwhich the lives of millions of men and the world's futurewould depend, and a few minutes later theywould see him at the dinner table, a benevolent oldcodger, twinkling with humour, treated as a naughtychild by his wife, and mercilessly teased by his daughters.LIFE at Chartwell before the war was that ofEngland's "Little Man" on a titanic scale. Clipping theprivet hedge became laying bricks for outhouses andwalls; digging a ha-ha against stray sheep turned tovast earthworks and lake dredgings. The dressinggown and slippers were there (embroidered withOriental dragons), and so was the tobacco puffedthrough a select cigar. So was the Irish stew and treacletart, the garden's first green peas and gooseberries,the open table around which crowded the family andguests from without — a retainer or so, someDominion Prime Minister, a scientist from Harvard,and the inevitable and cherished cronies.The pets were ever present, as in all our houses —the dog of the day, the spoiled cat, ducks and swans tobe fed, and later, the companion of his age, the archbudgerigar, perched on his shoulder or on his glass'sedge. Winston's feeling for animals was passionate. Ihave watched him mobilize tired notables at a houseparty to seek a lost poodle in twilight, and he onceheld up a meeting of urgency to wait for a vet's verdict.There came a time in the war when Winston, agedsixty-five, found the free countries around him gaggedand fettered, and all his fortitude was called upon. Inthose days Clemmie's burden became colossal. Fivehours' sleep at night and an hour's siesta were all thatthis restless phenomenon allowed himself for rest.What other wife could have restrained herself fromurging him to bed? But she learned in their finesthour to know the moment for self-effacement and themoment to take charge.Once, when he was anxious to see Monsieur PaulReynaud in France, his colleagues and the flying men12/FINEST HOUR 83

His constant companion through the 1951 campaign, CSC whispers a word to her husband at the Conservative Party's victory celebration,after which Churchill formed his third administration. (I945's caretaker government was his second)."I often put myself in Clemmie sshoes, and as often felt how theypinched and rubbed till I kickedthem off, heroic soles and all,and begged my husband to restand be careful. Fortunately,Clemmie was a mortal ofanother day ..."tried to dissuade him from a flight that would have tobe through danger and tempest. Clemmie was besoughtby an apprehensive friend to influence her husbandagainst taking this risk. "Are the R.A.F. flyingtoday?" she asked. "Yes, but on essential operationsonly." "Well, Winston says that his mission is an essentialoperation," was all the satisfaction he got fromthis Trojan woman. The Prime Minister went — andreturned.The task would have been too heavy for mostwomen to carry. It has always been my temptation toput myself in other people's shoes: even into a horse'sshoes as he strains before the heavy dray; into a ballerina'spoints as she feels age weigh upon her spring;into Cinderella's slippers as she danced till midnight;into the jackboot that kicks; into the Tommy's bootsthat tramp; into the magic seven-leaguers. With experienceof age I have learned to control this habit ofsympathy which deforms truth. In war days I oftenput myself into Clemmie's shoes, and as often felt howthey pinched and rubbed till I kicked them off, heroicsoles and all, and begged my husband to rest and becareful. Fortunately, Clemmie was a mortal of anotherday.Again, in 1943, after Winston had fallen ill atCarthage, Clemmie flew out to nurse him and arrangea convalescing Christmas at Marrakesh without hisfamily. In 1944 Christmas wore a brighter look. On itseve the children were already assembled at Chequers.A special Christmas tree, a present from PresidentRoosevelt, stood ready for lighting, and the grandchildren,all agog with anticipation, were frustrated by atelegram from Athens bringing the disturbing newsthat the situation there was critical and that the smallparty of English troops, sent to Greece to cow Communism,was having a perilous time. Winston characteristicallydecided to leave London by air that verynight. Did Clemmie protest? Did she tell him he wasbeing cruel to the children and spoiling everythingfor everyone? Did she beg for postponement till afterthe Christmas dinner, till after lunch, at least till afterthe giving of presents and kisses? I doubt it. She hadbecome a friend of sacrifice. So Winston flew awaythat night, managed to scotch a Communist coupd'etat, and Greece remained free. I think that is whatthe reports told us. I hope they told the Greeks.It must have been a hard time for a wife to sustainrobustly an ungrateful country's dismissal of its saviourat the first post-war election. Winston was very affected— indeed, stunned. "I'm told it's a blessing indisguise," he said to me in Paris. "If it is, it's very completelydisguised."Death places his icy democratic hand on kings, heroes,and paupers, and in 1965 the free world and theenslaved registered with mourning or contempt thepassing of Winston Churchill. Stones were graven,elegies voiced from platforms and pulpits, the muffleddrums rolled, the arms were reversed, the hatchmentsput up, the last post sounded. The world's sympathywas automatically expressed for the widow, but littlewas said about his married life, because it was toohappy to be heard of.His epitaph might be:One who never turned his back but marchedbreast forward,Never doubted clouds would break,Never dreamed, though right were worsted, wrongwould triumph,Held we fall to rise, are baffled to fight better,Sleep to wake. $3FINEST HOUR 83/13

Winston Churchill and Eastern EuropePart 1: The Polish Government.Could Churchill have done moreto save Poland from Communism?BY STANLEY E. SMITHTHE collapse of Communist regimes throughoutEastern Europe in the autumn of 1989 cheeredthe hearts of all lovers of freedom. That tidalwave of change also swept away many of the artificialand long-imposed restraints on the expression of nationalisticand ethnic passions felt by those in the liberatedcountries and by their cousins overseas. Thespirited public debate, both verbal and physical, resultingfrom the collapse of these restraints has includedsome recriminations against those who supposedlybrought the Eastern European countries, orallowed these countries to be brought, to their sorrypolitical, economic and environmental state.For the most part, Communist regimes in EasternEurope were formed the closing months and aftermathof the Second World War. One question inparticular that has been raised is whether the greatWestern powers could have done more to bring freegovernments to Eastern Europe. Winston Churchill,for example, has been accused of ceding much ofEastern Europe to Stalin's influence in exchange fora free hand militarily in Greece.Churchill's role in the formation of the postwarstructure of Eastern Europe deserves a look. Notonly was he one of the Big Three leaders of the victoriousAllies, he was also involved in the war longerthan either President Roosevelt or Marshall Stalin.The crux of the problem of Eastern Europe wasPoland. Not only was it the largest and most populousof those countries; it was also the one most intimatelyassociated with the origins of the war. Polandthus occupied by far the most time and attention ofthe Big Three leaders in their negotiations over postwarEurope. Accordingly, the discussion of Polandwill be the longest section of this article, and will bedivided into two topics: the Polish government, andthe Polish borders. Other topics discussed will be thedivision of Germany, the Balkan states and Czechoslovakia,Greece, and Yugoslavia.The invasion of Poland by Germany on 1September 1939 began the Second World War. OnSeptember 28th, just after the capitulation of War-Mr. Smith is a regular contributor to Finest Hour.14/FINEST HOUR 83saw, Hitler and Stalin revised the secret protocol oftheir non-aggression pact so as to divide Poland betweenthem along the Narew, Bug, and San Rivers. APolish government-in-exile, led by Wlaydslaw Sikorski,was formed in France, and, after the fall ofFrance in June, 1940, removed to England.The German invasion of Russia on 22 June 1941changed Russia's policy toward Poland dramatically.In accordance with the old maxim that "the enemy ofmy enemy is my friend," Stalin reestablished diplomaticrelations with the Polish government in Londonon July 31st. Two weeks later, the two governmentssigned a military convention in Moscow thatestablished a Polish Army in Russia. Some 75,000 ofthese Polish soldiers later fought in the Middle East.Diplomatic relations between the Polish and Sovietgovernments continued well into 1943, during whichtime German forces overran Poland and penetrateddeeply into western Russia. On 13 April 1943, however,Germany announced the discovery of massgraves of interned Polish officers in the Katyn forestin Poland and accused the Soviet Union of theirmurder. The officers had been interned in nearbycamps by the Soviets prior to the German invasion ofRussia, and had not been heard from since April1940. Sikorski told Churchill privately that he hadproof that the Soviets were indeed responsible fortheir deaths. On April 17th, the Polish governmentasked the International Red Cross to investigate theKatyn Massacre. In response, Stalin angrily accusedthe Polish government of collusion with Hitler andsevered diplomatic relations. 2The controversy over who was responsible for theKatyn atrocity continued until very recent times. InSeptember 1943 the Soviets reoccupied the Katynarea. Four months later, they issued a report accusingthe Germans of the crime, an accusation thatChurchill later said required "an act of faith" to believe,given the evidence. 11 On 13 April 1990, fortysevenyears to the day after the initial announcementby Germany, the Soviet government admitted Sovietresponsibility for the massacre and denounced it as"one of the worst Stalinist crimes."Stalin's reaction to the Polish government's requestfor an investigation could therefore hardlyhave been caused by injured innocence. It is thusplausible to surmise that, following the surrender ofthe German army that had beseiged Stalingrad, hetook seriously the possibility that he would win thewar, overrunning Poland in the process, and that heused the Katyn controversy as a pretext for severingrelations with a Polish government that he could notcontrol. His coldness toward the London Poles didnot abate in July 1943, when Sikorski was killed in an

airplane crash and was replaced by Stanislaw Mikolajczyk;nor, beyond a few nominal concessions, did itever abate thereafter. At the Teheran Conference inDecember 1943, Stalin spoke strongly against theLondon Polish government and said he doubted thatit would ever become "the kind of Government itought to be." 1Churchill tried repeatedly through 1944 to reconcileStalin and the London Poles. In January, hewarned Stalin against setting up a rival Polish government,and said he was urging the London Polesto accept Stalin's wishes about the Polish-Soviet border.5 Although the anti-German activities of Sovietagents in Poland had reportedly caused some resentmentamong the general population by bringingreprisals down upon them,' 1 Churchill was able to tellStalin on February 20th that the Polish governmenthad ordered the Polish Underground to cooperatewith the Soviets in fighting the Germans.' (Subsequentlythat summer, Mikolajczyk reported to Churchillthat the Polish Underground was fighting alongsidethe Soviet forces advancing through Poland. 8 )Frontier concessions were also made. NonethelessStalin, referring to the Polish leaders in London, toldChurchill on March 3rd that "I am more convincedthan ever that men of their type are incapable of establishingnormal relations with the USSR. 0 " Laterthat month, Stalin said that the London Poles neitherrepresented the interests nor expressed the aspirationsof the Polish people."'During this period, however, and indeed throughthe rest of the war, Stalin denied that he had anywish to communize Poland. On February 5th Churchillreported to Roosevelt that Stalin had told himthat Poland would be free and independent, and that"he would not attempt to influence the kind ofGovernment they set up after the war." He had alsoassured Churchill that the London Poles would ofcourse be allowed to return to Poland and establish agovernment there." Soviet Ambassador Feodor Gusevrepeated these assurances to Anthony Eden a fewdays later. 12 Even a year later, at Yalta, Stalin deridedany talk of trying to "Sovietize Poland" as "stupid"' 3 .During the early months of 1944, Churchillworked very hard to reconcile Stalin and the LondonPoles. In February, Churchill informed Stalin thatthe Poles were ready to make substantial border concessions,but Stalin sneered at them. 14 On March 3, ina message to Churchill, he said "I have come moreand more to the conclusion that such people are notcapable of establishing normal relations with theUSSR. 1 "' In his reply four days later, Churchill saidthat he was only asking that Stalin achieve a workingrelationship with the Polish government, "which weshall continue to recognize as the Government of theAlly for whom we declared war upon Hitler." IfStalin refused, he said, he would be "very sorry indeed... Our only comfort will be that we have triedour very best."'" In April, he urged the Polish governmentto dismiss its Commander-in-Chief, GeneralSosnknowski, whose statements had offered Stalin.Mikolajczyk refused to do this."Despite Churchill's efforts and warnings, Stalinmoved steadily to establish his own instruments ofcontrol within Poland. On 31 December 1943, amonth after the close of the Teheran Conference,Stalin instructed the Polish Workers' Party to form aNational Home Council (KRN). Boleslaw Bierut, along-standing member of the Comintern, was placedin charge. In late June, a Polish Committee forNational Liberation was set up under Soviet auspicesin Chelm. A few days later, it moved to Lublin. 18The advance of Stalin's political grip kept pacewith his military advance westward through EasternEurope and toward the heart of Germany. In lateJuly, Soviet forces crossed the temporarily designatedWestern frontier of Poland known as the CurzonLine The Polish Committee of National Liberation,or Lublin Committee, was then declared to be the executivebranch of the KRN. When Soviet troops occupiedLublin on July 23rd, the Lublin Committeedeclared itself to be the only legal executive power inPoland. Stalin told Churchill on that day that he haddecided to "establish contact" with the Lublin Committee"to undertake the setting up of administrationon Polish territory."' 9 A week later, Mikolajczyk andtwo of his colleagues flew to Moscow for ten days oftalks that produced no lasting results.' 201. Winston S. Churchill, The Hinge of Fate (Boston:Houghton Mifflin, 1950), pp. 757-761.2. Statin's Correspondence with Churchill and Altlee, 1941-1945 (New York: Scribner, 1958) p. 121 (hereinafter "Stalin.")3. Churchill, pp. 757-614. Martin Gilbert, Road to Victory (Boston: HoughtonMifflin, 1986), p. 588.5. Ibid., p. 665.6. Anthony Eden, The Reckoning (Boston: HoughtonMifflin, 1965), p. 503.7. Stalin, pp. 201-204.8. Gilbert, p. 857.9. Stalin, p. 207.10. Ibid, pp. 212-13.11. Gilbert, p. 672.12. Eden, p. 508.13. Jim Bishop, FDR's Last Year (New York: WilliamMorrow and Company, Inc., 1974), p. 396.14. Gilbert, pp. 686-688.15. Ibid., p. 699.16. Ibid., pp. 701-2.17. Ibid., p. 734.18. Ibid., p. 813.19. Ibid., pp. 861-2.20. Eden, p. 548; Winston S. Churchill, Triumph andTragedy (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1953), pp. 129-132.FINEST HOUR 83/15

Concerned about these developments, Churchilltelegraphed Stalin on July 27th that "it would be agreat pity and even a disaster if the Western Democraciesfound themselves recognizing one body ofPoles and you recognizing another ..."'" Stalin sent amollifying reply the next day. 22As subsequent events were to show, once Sovietforces reentered Poland and, in the course of thenext several months, reoccupied that country, timewas on the side of the Lublin Committee those forcessupported. The Committee could, and did, continuallyextend its control and weaken internal opposition.23 The most cynical example of this was the refusalof the Soviet army to assist the Warsaw uprisingin August. One apparent reason for this is that thepopulation of Warsaw and the Polish Undergroundforces engaged in the uprising supported the LondonPoles rather than the Lublin Poles. The Germanswere therefore allowed to exterminate sometroublesome political opposition. 21In October 1944, Churchill and Eden flew toMoscow to confer with Stalin and Molotov.Delegations of Polish leaders from both London andLublin also attended the conference. There Churchillpressed Mikolajczyk to meet with the Lublin Polesand come to some agreement. 25 When Churchill andEden met the principal Lublin Poles themselves,however, they were not well impressed. Churchill describedthem as "mere pawns of Russia" who "appearedto me to be purely tools, and recited theirparts with well-drilled accuracy. 2 ' 1 " Eden describedthem as "creepy" and, in conversation with Churchill,referred to Bierut and Osubka-Morawski as "the ratand the weasel." 27 Churchill met Bierut again severalmonths later in Potsdam, and, in light of events inPoland, could hardly have been reassured whenBierut glibly (and falsely) "professed to agree with[Churchill] about elections and democracy, and assured[him] that Poland would be one of the mostdemocratic countries in Europe." 28At the Moscow Conference, Churchill tried againto reconcile Stalin and the London Poles. Stalinwarned Churchill that among the Soviet power elite,only he and Molotov were inclined to deal "softly"with Mikolajczyk. This questionable disparagement ofthe scope of Stalin's power within the Soviet Unionwas not challenged by Churchill, at least in his memoirs.29 Stalin did consent to meet with Mikolajczyk,and had what Churchill described to Roosevelt as "anhour and a half's very friendly talk." When Mikolajczykpromised to establish a government "thoroughlyfriendly" to the Russians, Stalin appeared to flirtbriefly with the idea of agreeing to allow the LondonPoles to obtain a governing majority over the LublinPoles. He quickly rejected that idea, however, and insistedthat the Lublin Poles constitute a majority ofthe Polish government. 3 "By December of 1944, Stalin was making it clearthat the cordial discussions of the Moscow Conferencehad in no way mollified his hostility to the LondonPoles. In a December 8th message to Churchill,he said Mikolajczyk was "incapable of helping a Polishsettlement." He accused Mikolajczyk of coveringup the activities of anti-Soviet "terrorists," and concludeddismissively that "[ministerial changes in theemigre government no longer deserve serious attention.31 " In a subsequent message to Roosevelt, Stalinagain accused Mikolajczyk of screening terrorists, andpraised the Lublin Poles for strengthening governmentalactivities and introducing agrarian reform.' 2By now it was clear that formal Soviet recognitionof the Lublin Poles was only a question of time, andof little time at that. Roosevelt, in his reply to Stalin'smessage, tried to stave off this event. He pointed outthat Mikolajczyk had left the London Polish government,that much of Poland was still controlled by theGermans, and that the Polish people had not yet hadan opportunity to elect a representative government.He also declared that the United States would nottransfer its recognition from the London to theLublin government as the latter was then constituted.33 Churchill expressed similar concerns. Despitethese protests, on 5 January 1945, the Soviet Unionformally recognized the Lublin Committee as theprovisional Polish government."Poland at YaltaThe march of military events immensely strengthenedStalin's hand. Soon after recognizing the LublinPoles, Stalin launched an attack all along the easternfront. This winter campaign progressed so rapidlythat, by the end of January, Soviet forces had traversedPoland, occupied most of Eastern Europe andcrossed the frontier into Germany itself. 3 ' It was atthis critical time that the Big Three leaders met fortheir final wartime conference, at Yalta.21. Gilbert, p. 863.22. Ibid., p. 870.23. Eden, p. 557.24. John Colville, The Fringes oj Power: 10 Downing StreetDiaries 1939-1955 (New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1985),p. 505.25. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, p. 235.26. Ibid., pp. 235, 239.27. Eden, p. 563.28. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, p. 666.29. Ibid., p. 237.30. Ibid., pp. 240-1.31. Stalin, p. 282.32. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, p. 332-3.33. Ibid., pp. 334-5.34. Ibid., p. 332.35. Ibid., p. 329; Edward R. Stettinius, Roosevelt and theRussians: The Yalta Conference (Garden City, New York:Doubleday, 1949), p. 301.16/FINEST HOUR 83

The Yalta Conference, which was held 4-11 February1945, was dominated by contentious negotiationsover the future of Poland, which was discussedin seven of the eight plenary sessions. 31 'On February 6th, Roosevelt sent Stalin a letter inwhich he reiterated that the American governmentcould not recognize the Lublin government as it wasthen constituted. He suggested that Bierut and Osubka-Morawskibe invited to Yalta to form a newprovisional government that would include Mikolajczyk,Grabski, and Romer from London. This newprovisional government would be recognized by theAllies until free elections could be held and a permanent,representative government established. Churchillsupported the idea. 3 'At the plenary session on February 8th, Rooseveltput forward a proposal that expanded upon theideas in his letter. He proposed that several Polishleaders from Lublin and London be invited toMoscow to form a new provisional government, aPresidential Committee of three and a new constitution,under which free elections would be held. TheAllies would then recognize the elected government. 38Churchill put forward a similar proposal of hisown. He urged the establishment of a representative,provisional Polish government "based upon all thedemocratic and anti-Fascist forces in Poland and includingdemocratic leaders from abroad." As soon aspossible, this provisional government would hold"free and unfettered elections on the basis of universalsuffrage and a secret ballot", in which "[a]ll democraticparties should have the right to participate andrun candidates." Churchill said he was willing, however,that some small amendments, to accept theAmerican proposals. 3 ' 1 In a message that evening toClement Attlee, the Deputy Prime Minister, Churchillsaid he would be willing to recognize a provisionalPolish government that included even eight or tenLondon Poles; at least then the Western Allies couldfind out what was happening in Poland. 10No conclusion was reached on these proposals atthat day's session. At a postprandial meeting of thethree Foreign Ministers (Stettinius of the USA, Edenof Britain, and Molotov of the USSR) on February9th, Eden put forward a "British Revised Formula"in which, following discussions in Moscow among thetwo Polish delegations and the Allied representativesthere (Molotov, Harriman of the USA, Kerr of Britain),the Allies would recognize an interim governmentincluding members of both Polish delegationsand pledged to hold free elections based on universalsuffrage, the secret ballot, and broad participation bydemocratic parties. The election would be supervisedand reported on by Allied ambassadors." The threeForeign Ministers agreed on all these points exceptthe last, from which Molotov demurred, protestingthat monitoring the elections would "offend thePoles." 12The Polish controversy continued to dominate theplenary sessions. In response to Roosevelt's suggestionthat the Lublin Poles come to Yalta, Molotov offeredthe patently lame excuse that he couldn't getthrough to them on the telephone, and so could notget them to the conference in time. 43The Soviets argued that the Lublin Committee, asit was, constituted the proper provisional governmentof Poland until free elections could be held. Stalincontended that the Lublin Poles were very popularwithin Poland, and that the traditional Polish resentmentof Russia was vanishing as the "liberating" RedArmy advanced. The Lublin Poles, he declared (insomething of a contradiction), could maintain thepeace in the rear of the Red Army, but the LondonPoles could not. 44 He asserted that the Lublin governmenthad as much democratic legitimacy as deGaulle's government did in France, and added thatPolish elections might be possible in a month. 15 Stalinnonetheless eventually agreed to support a statementincorporating "Poles temporarily abroad" and non-Lublin democratic leaders within Poland into theprovisional government. 46Churchill sharply disputed Stalin's contention thatthe Lublin Poles were popular. He said his informationwas that the Lublin Poles had the support of atbest one third of the Polish population, and thus hadno right to claim to represent the whole nation. 4 ' Healso said that the Polish Army, now some 150,000strong and active in Italy, would regard any transferof British recognition from the London Polish governmentas a betrayal. 48Toward the end of the conference, Roosevelt withdrewhis proposal of a Presidential Committee. Insteadhe proposed, through Stettinius, that the LublinCommittee be recognized as the provisional Polishgovernment (pending free elections), but that thegovernment be reorganized to include other Polishleaders. 1 ' 1 Implicit in this proposal was Roosevelt's acceptanceof Stalin's demand that the Lublin Poles retainat least majority control of the provisional government.According to John Colville, one of Churc-36. Churchill,37. Stettinius,p. 372.38. Stettinius,39. Ibid., pp.40. Churchill,41. Stettinius,42. Churchill,43. Stettinius,44. Churchill,45. Stettinius,Triumph and Tragedy, p. 365.pp. 157-9; Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy,pp. 209-210.211-12.Triumph and Tragedy, p. 375.pp. 246-8.Triumph and Tragedy, p. 382.p. 182.Triumph and Tragedy, p. 369-71.pp. 214-16.181-6.46. Ibid., pp.47. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, p. 372; Stettinius,pp. 156-7.48. Churchill, Triumph and. Tragedy, pp. 376-9.49. Stettinius, pp. 223-6.FINEST HOUR 83/17

hill's assistants, the Prime Minister was "distressed" atthis. 50Central to the thinking of the Western Allies wasthe idea that the provisional Polish government, howeverit was composed, should hold free elections assoon as possible, and that the Allies should recognizethe new government resulting from those elections.At an Anglo-American luncheon early in the conference,Churchill asked Roosevelt to back his demandsfor an independent coalition government and freeelections in Poland. Roosevelt replied that, yes, somethingwould have to be done to persuade the Russiansto go along with this, but he didn't know what. 31As it tuned out, the Russians quickly agreed thatearly elections should be held.' 2 Curiously, the mostcontroversial point about the Polish elections waswhether they should be monitored by diplomatic observers.Churchill and Roosevelt wanted this, butStalin was adamantly opposed, protesting that itwould be "offensive" to the Poles. 5 ' That the Stalinwho in 1939-40 had participated in the dismembermentof Poland should by 1945 have become sensitiveto Polish pride is hardly to be believed. His obstinancyon this point, which he maintained in the criticalsubsequent months of 1945,' 4 provides clear evidenceof his intention to keep his iron grip onPoland and never to allow truly free elections.Although Roosevelt privately expressed his determinationto have the elections observed in any case, nomention of observers was made in the final communiqueof the conference. 3 'Despite disagreement over the circumstances ofthe election, all three Allies agreed that they shouldrecognize any Polish government that resulted fromfull, fair elections. 31 'As at any important conference, each delegationcame to Yalta with its own agenda and its own perspectiveon events, each of which powerfully influencedthe negotiations over Poland.Stalin wanted a Polish government that wasfriendly to Russia, and, at least partly as a result ofthe German invasion of 1941, he felt that he couldensure the friendliness of a country on his borderonly by controlling it, directly or indirectly. Thus,while doing whatever was absolutely necessary to placatehis Western allies, he allowed no action to betaken that would weaken his sturdy hold on Polishpolitics.Churchill regarded the question of the Polish governmentas the crux of the conference, and centralto the honor of Britain. 37 The invasion of Poland hadtriggered Britain's entry into the war, and Churchillwas determined to do all he could to bring about astrong and independent government in Poland.' 8Nonetheless, he realized that by 1945 Britain was nolonger the senior partner in the Western Alliance,and that he could achieve little against the Russianbear without the energetic backing of Roosevelt. Hewas particularly distressed when he felt that suchbacking was not forthcoming.' 9The Western Allies, in particular the UnitedStates, were anxious to get Russia to agree to enterthe war against Japan, an important point thathelped Stalin in the negotiations. Without Russianhelp, the Japanese war was expected by military expertsto last another twelve to eighteen months andto cost between 500,000 and 1,000,000 Allied casualties.11 " Of particular concern were the large Japanesearmies in China, against whom the Red Army couldbe very helpful." 1 At the time of the Yalta conference,the feasibility of atomic weaponry was far fromcertain, and the Battle of the Bulge was still freshenough in the minds of the delegates to remindthem of the tough resistance even an almost-defeatedenemy could put forth." 2 By the end of the conference,Russia had secretly agreed to declare war onJapan within three months of Germany's surrender.This it did — but the dropping of the first atomicbomb two days earlier had by then made Russianhelp unnecessary.At the conference, Roosevelt was also anxious toobtain Russian agreement to America's ideas on votingprocedures at the United Nations organization.Stalin eventually agreed, but the issue did help himobtain concessions about Poland. biTo some observers, Roosevelt's performance at theconference seemed distorted by a preoccupation withelectoral politics and enfeebled by declining health.At the Teheran conference in 1943, Roosevelt hadtold Stalin that he [Roosevelt] had to keep quietabout Poland until after the 1944 election. "This,"noted Eden, "was hardly calculated to restrain theRussians.'"' 4 At Yalta, with the 1944 election behindhim, Roosevelt still seemed, at least to Harriman, toshow "very little interest in Eastern European countriesexcept as they affect sentiment in America.'"''Though Polish-Americans mattered a good deal to50. John Colville, "How the West Lost the Peace in1945", Commentary (September, 1985), p. 43.51. Bishop, p. 337.52. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, pp. 380-1.53. Ibid., p. 382.54. Ibid., p. 438, pp. 499-500.55. Stettinius, pp. 251-2, 335-8.56. Ibid., pp. 157-9; Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, pp.376-9, 382.57. Stettinius, pp. 213-14, 152-3.58. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, pp. 494-7.59. Colville in Commentary, p. 43; Bishop, p. 337.60. Colville, Fringes of Power, p. 561; Stettinius, p. 97.61. Stettinius, p. 98.62. Ibid., p. 304.63. Bishop, p. 359.64. Eden, p. 496.65. Colville in Commentary, p. 44.18 /FINEST HOUR 83

an American politician like Roosevelt, they meant littleto Churchill or Stalin. Roosevelt nonetheless citedPolish-American opinion in some of the negotiationsabout Poland.' 1 ' In what may have been another tacticalerror, Roosevelt confessed that he doubted thathe could garner enough public support to keep apeacetime army in Europe for more than two years.'' 7The President's health was not then a public issue,but it deteriorated notably during the final year ofhis life. Though Stettinius claimed to find him alwaysalert and capable, Churchill had been "deeply worried"about Roosevelt at their second Quebec conferencein September 1944.''" By the time of the Yaltaconference in February 1945, FDR had declined evenfurther, which almost certainly contributed to his inabilityto put forward Western interests in Polandwith full vigor and effectiveness.At Yalta, however, Stalin held the trump cards.Not the least of these was his near-monopoly of informationon actual events in Poland. In the discussions,Churchill challenged Stalin's assertions of thewide popularity of the Lublin Poles, but admitted tobeing at a disadvantage because of having few intelligencesources within the country. 1 ' 9 This was one ofthe reasons why he had wanted election observers tobe allowed into Poland. Having failed to budge Stalinon that issue, Churchill finally relented and agreed topostpone diplomatic exchanges with Poland until thenew government was recognized there. 70 This arrangementproved inadequate; within weeks of theconclusion of the conference, Churchill was moved tocomplain that "an impenetrable veil [had] beendrawn across the [Polish] scene."' 1On February 11th, the final communique of theconference, better known as the Yalta Declaration,was issued. In that document, the three Allies reaffirmedtheir "common desire to see established astrong, free, independent, and democratic Poland."In tacit acknowledgement that the Lublin Poles constitutedat least the starting point of the next Polishgovernment, the Allies declared that "[t]he ProvisionalGovernment which is now functioning inPoland should therefore be reorganized on a broaderdemocratic basis with the inclusion of democraticleaders from Poland itself and from Poles abroad ..."(with the precise division of power to be determinedlater). Recognition by the United States and Britainwas to follow the formation of this reorganized government.'2The Allies came down foursquare, at least onpaper, in favor of democratic elections in Poland:"This Polish Provisional Government of NationalUnity shall be pledged to the holding of free and unfetteredelections as soon as possible on the basis ofuniversal suffrage and secret ballot. In these electionsall democratic and anti-Nazi parties shall have theright to take part and to put forward candidates ..." 7:iThus the Yalta conference closed to the ring ofnoble words, a ring that would unhappily prove hollowin the months ahead.The Yalta Declaration had specified that Molotovand the American and British ambassadors to Russia(Averell Harriman and A. Clark Kerr) should assistin the reorganization of the Polish government byholding consultations in Moscow with leading Poles. 74The consultations went badly from the start, forMololov allowed very few non-Lublin Poles to participate.Meanwhile, no Western observers were allowedinto Poland, and the Lublin Poles consolidated theirpower by means of liquidations, deportations andother measures." In late March, when arrangementswere being made for the international conference inSan Francisco that would launch the United Nationsorganization, Molotov asked that Poland be representedonly by the Lublin government. The UnitedStates and Britain refused to agree to this, whereuponMolotov declared that he would boycott theconference.' 1 'Churchill noticed within the first few weeks of theMoscow talks that the Soviets were either ignoring orbadly misinterpreting the section of the Yalta Declarationthat called for consultations "with members ofthe present provisional Government and with otherPolish democratic leaders from within Poland and fromabroad ..."" In the broader sense, he also saw Polandas the test case for settling with Russia the meaningof the noble words of democracy and liberty includedin the Yalta Declaration.' 8On March 8th, Churchill proposed to Rooseveltthat they send separate messages to Stalin urgingthat no Poles be rejected for consultation except bythe unanimous decision of the Moscow commission,that the Lublin government be prevented from takingany major actions in the meantime, and that theSoviets arrange for American and British observersin Poland. In his reply, Roosevelt suggested insteadthat a general political "truce" be called in Poland,and said he would prefer that Harriman and ClarkKerr appeal to Molotov before any direct appeal bemade to Stalin. Churchill agreed to defer addressingStalin about his grievances, but he considered a truce66. Stettinius, pp. 240-2; Bishop, p. 400; Churchill,Triumph and Tragedy, p. 367.67. Stettinius, p. 127.68. Ibid., p. 73; Colville in Commentary, p. 42.69. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, p. 383.70. Bishop, p. 406.71. Churchill, Triumph and. Tragedy, p. 429.72. Stettinius, pp. 335-8.73. Ibid.74. Ibid.75. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, pp. 421-2.76. Ibid., pp. 431-2; Colville, Fringes of Power, p. 592.77. Stettinius, pp. 335-8. Emphasis mine.78. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, pp. 422-23, 427-28.FINEST HOUR 83/19

"actively dangerous" because it would give the Lublingovernment more time to consolidate its power. Duringthis period, Churchill felt that Roosevelt was losinghis grip on events, and that the Presidents messagesseemed increasingly to be prepared by a committeeof his advisers. 79Churchill was nothing if not persistent, and onMarch 27th he urged Roosevelt to "stand by our interpretationof the Yalta Declaration" and join him insending a message on Poland to Stalin. In a secondmessage the same day, Churchill assured Rooseveltthat "Stalin will understand that the whole point ofthe Yalta decision was to produce a Polish governmentwe would recognise, and that we obviously cannottherefore deal with the present Administration."""Roosevelt agreed that the time had come to addressStalin directly, and sent Churchill the proposedtext of a message. Churchill endorsed it, and Rooseveltsent it to Stalin on March 29th. In the message,Roosevelt complained that the Moscow commissionhad made no progress because of Molotov's interpretationof the Yalta agreements. He rejected theidea that the reorganized Polish government shouldbe little more than a continuance of the presentLublin (now Warsaw) government: the goal of theYalta accords had been the creation of a fundamentallynew government. Roosevelt also denied the validityof the Warsaw government's claim of a vetoover participants in the Moscow consultations. Finally,the President urged Stalin again to allow Westernobservers into Poland."Churchill followed Roosevelt's message with oneof his own on April 1st. In it, he endorsed Roosevelt'smessage and said the Warsaw veto was absurd,especially when it was extended even to Mikolajczyk.He also expressed his regrets that an apparentlyspontaneous offer by Molotov to allow Westernobservers into Poland had been withdrawn. 82In his reply, Stalin showed little spirit of accommodation.He accused the American and British ambassadorsof trying to abolish the Warsaw governmententirely instead of using it as a nucleus of anew government. He also insisted that only thosePoles who wanted friendly relations with the SovietUnion should be allowed to take part in the consultations,and that the Warsaw government should beconsulted first. In a slight concession, he said Mikolajczykwould be allowed to participate in the consultations,but reiterated that sending observers to Polandwould "insult" the Poles. 83 In a message to Churchilllater that month, following a similar exchange of correspondence,Stalin maintained the right of the SovietUnion to strive for the creation of a "friendly"government and to veto a "hostile" one. 81The language of the Yalta Declaration was generalenough to cause just this kind of controversy. Thereis no question that the Declaration called for the inelusionof both "democratic leaders from withinPoland" and "Poles abroad" in the Moscow consultationsand in the reorganized Polish government. 8 'Stalin's effort to exclude the London Poles from theconsultations thus was clearly a violation of theagreement. How a "reorganized" Polish governmentwould be constituted, however, was subject to interpretation.The Western powers had hoped that theold London and Lublin governments would be"swept away," and that a new government would beformed from roughly equal elements of both. 8 '' Stalinmade it clear that the new government would consistpredominantly of the old Lublin Poles, with at most afew token additions. The impasse remained unbrokenat a meeting of the three Foreign Ministers inlate April. 87The death of President Roosevelt on April 12thwas a great shock to the world, but the war, rushingtowards its close, had by then gathered such momentumthat nothing could impede it. Churchill wasnonetheless pleasantly surprised by the speed withwhich Roosevelt's successor, Harry Truman, began totake hold of many important matters. On April 14thTruman proposed to Churchill that he [Truman]send Stalin a message denying Warsaw's right to aveto on consultations and suggesting that limited delegationsof Poles from Warsaw and from Londontake part in the consultations. Churchill agreed. 88Stalin continued to insist that only those who had"actively shown a friendly attitude" toward the SovietUnion should be invited to the consultations inMoscow. 89 In a last effort at reconciliation, Trumandispatched Roosevelt's trusted but ailing adviser,Harry Hopkins, to Moscow in May. Hopkins managedto wring from Stalin the concession that Mikolajczyk,two of his London colleagues, and a few non-Lublin Poles from within Poland would be invited tothe consultations. 90 In a June 4th message to Truman,an exasperated Churchill acknowledged thatprogress had been made, but noted that the concessions"are no advance on Yalta ..." He said, "weought by now ... to have had a representative Polishgovernment formed," and added that "I cannot feeltherefore that we can regard this as more than a79. Ibid., pp. 422-29, 418-19.80. Ibid., pp. 432-4.81. Ibid., pp. 435, 743-5.82. Ibid., pp. 435-6.83. Ibid., pp. 437-8.84. Ibid., pp. 492-4.85. Stalin, p. 397, n. 85.86. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, pp. 492-4.87. Ibid., pp. 490-1.88. Ibid., pp. 486-7; Stalin, pp. 325-6.89. Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, pp. 499-500.90. Ibid., p. 581.20 /FINEST HOUR 83

milestone in a long hill we ought never to have beenasked to climb." 91Compounding these negotiations about the compositionof the Polish government were negotiationsover the fate of sixteen leaders of the Polish underground.In March, the Soviet government had invitedthe Polish underground, which had always favoredthe exiled government in London, to send adelegation to Moscow to participate in the governmentalconsultations there. Their personal safety wasguaranteed in writing, and a rendezvous in a suburbof Warsaw was arranged. At this rendezvous the delegationvanished from sight. After a flurry of initialdenials, the Soviet government eventually acknowledgedthat the members of the Polish delegationwere imprisoned in Moscow. Despite British andAmerican efforts to effect their release, they weretried in June on charges of espionage and terrorism.All but three were convicted and reimprisoned.Churchill condemned this as the "judicial liquidation"of the leadership of the Polish underground, therank and file of which had been butchered in thesuppression of the Warsaw uprising the previous August."2Little more progress was made in the negotiationsover the Moscow discussions., In mid-April, Churchillwrung from Mikolajczyk a declaration that a "closeand lasting friendship with Russia" was the "keystoneof future Polish policy." Mikolajczyk also madegrudging territorial concessions. These messageshelped smooth Hopkins's path in obtaining fromStalin an invitation for Mikolajczyk to attend theMoscow talks. 03 As a last hope, Churchill tried inApril and May to persuade Truman to delay thewithdrawal of the western armies into the agreeduponzones of occupation until the political future ofPoland had been satisfactorily arranged, but Trumanrefused to do this. 94In late June, a new Polish Provisional Governmentwas formed as a result of the Moscow discussions.Except for Mikolajczyk and one colleague, the Polishleaders from London were entirely excluded.Although the free elections agreed to at Yalta hadnot been held, the American and British governments,at President Truman's request, withdrew theirrecognition from the Polish government in Londonand transferred it to the new government in Warsaw.Churchill wearily concluded that "it is difficult to seewhat more we could have done."The aftermath was somber. Elections for executivepositions in the Polish government were delayed forover forty years. Legislative elections were not helduntil 1947, and were tightly controlled by the Communistgovernment. Mikolajczyk, who had returnedto Poland in 1945, was persecuted and forced to fleehis homeland forever in 1947. Only in 1980, with thebirth of the Solidarity union, did cracks begin to appearin Communist rule in Poland, which finally collapsedfollowing the elections of 1989.Indeed it is difficult to see what more Churchillcould have done. As the war neared its end, Stalin'smilitary and political grip on Poland became almostcomplete. Only in conjunction with his American allycould Churchill have exerted any real pressure onStalin to live up to the letter, let alone the spirit, ofthe Yalta Declaration, and the American governmentwas not willing to join Churchill in doing this. Thedying Roosevelt was an unsteady reed in his lastmonths, and, following his death, Truman declinedto change the occupation plans approved by his predecessor.A healthier Roosevelt or a more experiencedTruman might have been more flexible inmeeting the changed circumstances. Nonetheless,whether public feeling at the time would have allowedthe democratic allies suddenly to turn on theSoviet Union and go to the brink, or over the brink,of war to bring democracy to Poland is highly doubtful.To the extent that geography governs historyPoland, trapped between totalitarian giants, was, oncewar broke out, probably doomed for the time to fallunder the sway of one or the other regardless ofwhat the democratic powers tried to do. Thus theblame for its fate lies squarely on Hitler and Stalin. $91. Ibid., p. 582.92. Ibid., pp. 497-8.93. Ibid., pp. 489-90.94. Ibid., pp. 515, 501.1(5 NEW BOOK SERVICEA service to ICS Friends; we buy at trade prices, passing alongthe savings. Shipping: $4 first book, $1 each additional, UPS inUSA, bookpost elsewhere. US$ or Sterling; orders over $100 orfrom outside USA may use Visa/Mastercard. Order from:Churchillbooks, 181 Burrage Rd, Hopkinton, NH 03229 USA.Write for details on Official Biography and other books.1053. The Churchills: Pioneers and Politicians, by Elizabeth Snell(see page 26). Reservations taken (about $20).1052. The Wit and Wisdom of Winston Churchill, James Humes editor(see page 6), 234pp, reg. $20, our price $16.1051. The Medallic Portraits of Winston Churchill, by J.E. Engstrom,66pp, illus, hdbnd ($25), our price $19.1050. Churchill on the Home Front, by Paul Addison, 494pp, illus,softbound, excellent work ($25), our price $20.1048. Winston Churchill, Architect of Peace, by Steven Lambakis(reviewed FH82), 208pp ($48), our price $42.Books Entirely bv Sir Winston Churchill (all hardbound):1001. India, 1st US edn, fwd by Manfred Weidhorn ($35) $251002. The River War, clothbound from Collected Works $601003.77je Eastern Front, from Collected Works $751013. Earty Speeches, as above, included Liberalism $751014. Mr. Brodricks Army, 1st US edn. $16, deluxe binding....$181015. For Free Trade, 1st US end $16, deluxe binding $18FINEST HOUR 83/21

Churchills at Play: A J"Winston as Tourist," an unfamiliar role, was captured indeliThe arrival at Marseilles, 26 September i 934. BY RICHARD M. LANGWORTH • FROM "FOR Winston Churchill, 1934 was a hard year. He had begun to speak and write about onBritain's weak air defenses vis-a-vis Germany; but though he gained a wide audience outsideParliament, few in the House would listen. In March he had confronted the Secretary of Statefor India, Sir Samuel Hoare, with charges that he had exerted undue influence on Manchester cottonmanufacturers to support the India Bill; three months later a Committee of Privileges had pronouncedHoare innocent, and Churchill was mauled in the ensuing debate for having raised "false charges" in anattempt to defeat the India Bill. Parliament adjourned in August, but Churchill paused only long enoughto pack for a three-week working "holiday" in France, where he labored day and night on volume threeof Marlborough. Lord Riddell then asked him for a series of articles in News of the World, while film producerAlexander Korda offered him £10,000 to write a script for a George V documentary, and hedropped everything to begin work on that. The pace would have defeated anyone other than Churchill;even so, as he wrote Clementine, it was "a very strange way to earn a living!"Although the Churchills rarely holidayed together, they may have considered the terrible pace of 1934a good reason to break precedent. Thus they left Chartwell September 25th for a cruise in the easternWinston with his secretary, Mrs. Pearman; the two kept a killing pac22 / FINEST HOUR 83

[ourney to the Levantbly by Lady Moyne's lens on a 1934 Mediterranean voyage.PHOTO ALBUM OF LADY MOYNEWSC with Moyne; later, bathing whilst underway.Mediterranean as guests of Lord and Lady Moyne aboard their yacht Rosaura, the same vessel that wouldbear Clemmie away to the South Pacific the following year, leaving a lonely Winston to communicatewith her by means of his "Chartwell Bulletins" (published by ICS in 1989; available from ICS Stores).Even then the great wheels of Winston's writing-factory did not stop turning: against Winston's returnJohn Wheldon was assembing more materials for Marlborough, while Keith Feiling was preparing a"rough scheme" for what was to become Churchill's History of the English-Speaking Peoples.Winston and Clementine flew to Paris where they took an overnight train to Marseilles, boardingRosaura on September 26th. By October 2nd they were in Piraeus harbor, Winston working madly on hisGeorge V filmscript: on the 3rd he wrote Korda asking if still photos of Cabinet ministers received bythe King for the signing of the 1922 Irish Treaty could be "made to move on the Mickey Mouse plan?Even if they only moved for a few seconds it would enable the necessary points to be made."It was not all work, for Winston certainly knew how to play, as these photographs from Lady Moyne'sscrapbook suggest. Martin Gilbert's Volume V tells us how Rosaura sailed eastwards from Athens, "toCyprus and the southern coast of Turkey. Churchill swam, painted and worked on his film script.aboard.Clementine carriages about Syracuse; Lord Moyne is her driver.FINEST HOUR 83/23

On October 6 the yacht reached Beirut....From Beirut, Churchill and his wife drove inland to theruins of Palmyra, and thence to Damascus." On the 9th they spent the night in Nazareth, moving on toNablus and Jerusalem, where they rejoined the Moynes. In Jerusalem, they were entertained by the actingHigh Commissioner, John Hathorn Hall, who later recalled for Martin Gilbert:"Churchill started rather morose, and monosyllabic, & was not very responsive while the women werethere. But when the women withdrew, & he had sunk a couple of brandies, he really got going & waspositively coruscating. I acted as a 'feeder,' raising all sorts of controversial political & international issuesand wild theories for him to demolish, which he did with devastating wit & in superb prose. Hescintillated for the rest of the evening...When I saw him to his car he said to me 'I know that you don'treally believe those things that you were saying; I knew what you were doing, my boy.'"The Moynes and Churchills traveled on to Jericho, Amman, Petra, Akaba and across the Sinai desertto Cairo. After two days in Cairo, and painting the pyramids, Gilbert relates, Winston and Clementinesailed from Alexandria to Naples aboard the faithful Rosaura, entrained for Paris, and flew home toCroydon aerodrome on Octrober 21st. One of Churchill's first letters from Chartwell after his return wasrLeft: Qraflex at the ready. Winston explores Tunis. Right: Clementine (I) in Syracuse.* K ^^ • Tip IM^T:Jericho: Moyne with the Churchills (left) and British garrison commanders (right). Below: inspecting the British garrison..«*-.24 / FINEST HOUR 83

an invitation to Sir Eric Geddes, chairman of Imperial Airways: "I am sure we must do more to supportcivil aviation in view of the enormous preponderance of German machines and their convertabilityfor war purposes." Holiday diversions could not detain that restless spirit for long.Lady Moyne's scrapbook offers a rare glimpse of "Winston as Tourist," Camera at the ready, enjoying abrief interlude with his wife, as the controversies of India and Nazi Germany swirled about himand writing assignments achieved proportions that would have swamped more normalbeings. But Winston was not, perforce, a normal being.A Note About the OriginalLady Moyne's scrapbook is for sale. As well as numerous photographs of the 1934 "Journey to the Levant"it includes photos taken at Chartwell, where Winston and Clementine played host to their Rosaurahostess. The owner of the album states that a portion of the proceeds of the sale will go to theChurchill Society of the purchaser; for details contact the editor. 15Left: WSC, CSC and Moyne at Mycenae, right: Winston in the Sacred Qrove, Olympia.The Moynes wen : . f :hosted by the ChurJsuu ^iChartwell (left & right).WSC is on the steps to hisfishpond. Walter Moyne,center, was CSC's host inthe South Seas in 1935.FINEST HOUR 83/25

The North American ChurchillsGenealogical research is sometimes a matter of happenstance;in this case, acquisition of a house in Devon made it possibleto discover many facts about the Churchills of Canada and AmericaBY ELIZABETH CHURCHILL SNELLEXCHANGINGEXPERIENCES INTHE DUTCH ROOMATTHE HOTELMEETING OF THE TWO WINSTON CHURCHILL*.For several years I have been tracing the roots ofthe North American Churchills and their relationto the English family. The following is basedon a talk I gave In late 1992 to the Hantsport, NovaScotia Historical Society. This was most appropriatesince Hantsport is the place where, since 1823, CanadianChurchills have made waves: not only as buildersof ships and owners of a worldwide fleet, but also inprovincial and federal politics.My research, mainly conducted in England, concernsthe pre-Marlborough history of the WestCountry (Dorset, Devon) Churchill family. One ofthem, John, was the first Churchill to land in America,arriving at Plymouth, Massachusetts c. 1643. One26 / FINEST HOUR 83

of John's descendants was Canadian Senator EzraChurchill, of the seventh generation in North America.(The Virginia branch of the American Churchillsoriginated in Oxfordshire; by their own admissionthey have no relation to the West Country line,which includes the two Sir Winstons and the FirstDuke of Marlborough.)That I have been able to conduct this West Countryresearch at all is a story in its own right. My husband'sexport housing company, Interhabs, sold a finished,semi-detached English-design house to a builderin Devon. When I saw it I fell in love with it, andbegged my husband to buy one of the halves. Its location,at Hackpen Hill, Cullompton, Devon, initiallymeant nothing to me. I did not know Devon. But thehouse was situated in a magnificent high, pastoral,wooded setting declared to be an "area of outstandingnatural beauty." So it was, and I asked nothingmore—but more was to be given me.I had sent over in the container with our furnitureall the Churchill genealogical material I had collected,thinking the English West Country would be anappropriate place to begin putting the story together.Perhaps I might be able to learn more there, perhapsnot. It was not really that important, I thought ingenuously,since I already had a great deal.I could not have been more wrong. Almost immediately,in the small village library in Wellington,Somerset (where I do my marketing), I discoveredthat the first Sir Winston Churchill (1620-1688) hadconcocted what is now regarded as a bogus pedigree,claiming to trace his heritage back to the NormanConquest. He claimed as ancestor one Roger de Curcelle,who came into England with William the Conquerorand received from William extensive lands inSomerset and elsewhere. This I have been able to explodein my book.The West Country ChurchillsThe Churchills ancestors can be traced to Devonshireas far back as the twelfth century, at an areaknown as Broad Clyst, north of Exeter, only twelvemiles from my house at Hackpen Hill. Two ChurchillManors still stand, though the present structures arelikely on the sites of yet older buildings. I have visitedthem and talked with the owners several times. I wasalso able to talk in 1991 with the Devon historian Dr. W.Elizabeth Churchill Snell, a contributing Friend of ICS,Canada, lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Cullompton,Devon, England. Her book, The Churchills: Pioneers andPoliticians, England, America, Canada, is published by WestCountry Books, Ltd. See New Book Service, p22.G. Hoskins, whose work was the basis for disprovingthe Norman Churchill genealogical hypothesis, whomA. L. Rowse in his The Early Churchills implored to dofurther research. Unfortunately a series of strokes hadleft Dr. Hoskins with a severe loss of memory, and Iwas unable to determine how he had traced the originsof the Churchills to Broad Clyst. But the consensusis that from Devon, some of the Churchills movedinto neighboring Dorset and the vicinity of Dorchester.(I have been able to visit all these Devon andDorset sites, as they are all within a day's drive frommy house at Hackpen Hill.)The first Sir Winston was born (or moved to justafter his birth) to Wootton Glanville, Dorset, in thevicinity of Sherbome. His son John, later First Dukeof Marlborough, was reputedly born at Ashe House,south of Axminster. Both these homes are quite closeto the birthplace, also near Dorchester, of the firstAmerican pre-Marlborough West Country Churchill,John, born 1613, who emigrated to "New Plimoth,"Massachusetts, circa 1643. Although I cannot preciselydefine the relationship between these two branches ofthe family, I offer in my book several well-researchedpossibilities. There is no doubt, as even A. L. Rowseadmits, that the two families were the same stock, thefirst Sir Winston's having come from BradfordPeverell. Incidentally, Sir Winston Churchill includedthe Roger de Curcelle ancestry story in the first editionsof Marlborough but omitted it in later editions.RANDOLPH WINSTON CHURCHILL(1887-1941)The Canadian ChurchillsOnly seven years olderthan the first Sir Winston,John Churchill of Americawas born into a family settledin Colliton House, Dorchester,and Muston Manor,slightly to the north. InAmerica thirty years later,he founded a distinguishedfamily of American andCanadian Churchills. In researchingthe latter, some fascinating parallels havecome to light. For example, during the interregnum1688-89 in England, which placed William of Orangeon the throne of James II (when John Churchill, laterDuke of Marlborough, left James and his post as generalof the royal army to declare for William), in NewYork a West Country Churchill, William, was chiefmilitary officer under acting colonial governor JacobLeisler. Leisler represented the interim citizens' party,which took over when the province repudiated theroyal officers appointed by James II.FINEST HOUR 83/27

The Canadian descendants of John Churchill theAmerican began with Lemuel (fourth generation),who migrated from Plymouth, Massachusetts to Yarmouth,Nova Scotia in 1763. Ezra (seventh generation)founded the firm of E. Churchill & Sons inHantsport, N.S. in the 1840s. In the 1870s they werereputed to be the fifth largest shipbuilders in theworld. They built themselves, or had built at otheryards, or had shares in, over one hundred wooden vessels,including the largest three-masted barque everbuilt in Canada, and a number of small steamers activeinto the 1890s. Ezra, who had enjoyed a politicalcareer in pre-Confederation Canada, and was appointedone of the first senators in Ottawa after the Confederation.In 1992 the Public Archives of Nova Scotia greatlyencouraged me by publishing my article on Ezra's politicalcareer in The Nova Scotia Historical ReviewVolume XII, Number 1 (1992). I had wanted to writethis for a long time, because so much emphasis hasbeen placed on Ezra's shipbuilding career but little, Ithink, on his political contribution.While the Canadian Senate, and the role of Senators,has been much debated in Canada lately, it maybe worthwhile to reflect that in the Confederationagreement of 1867 it was envisioned that Senatorswould be the guardians of regional interests. In practice,however, it came to be that regional interests devolvedupon the House of Commons. But while Ezrawas in the Senate, from 1871 until his death in 1874,it was his duty, unlike today, to oversee the needs ofNova Scotia, almost as he had for twelve years on theprovincial level, as a member of the House of Assembly.Ezra's descendants bore interesting names. His sonwas called George Washington Churchill, and was fatherto Randolph Winston Churchill (1887-1941),who fought for the Allies during World War I. Randolphwas sixteen years younger than his fifth cousin,the famous American novelist and sometime warcommentator Winston Churchill (see below). But,while American-Winston chose to fight his war froma lofty, remote and philosophical deployment, hisyounger Canadian cousin Randolph chose to fight itin the trenches. The American uttered the rallyingcry; the Canadian answered it. (And, as we know, theEnglish-Winston did both!)Randolph Winston Churchill joined the FirstRegi-ment, Canadian Garrison Artillery, mobilized in1914- He was commissioned in the 112th Battalion,1915, and sent overseas aboard HMT Olympic (sistership of the Titanic and a troop transport during thewar) in July 1916. After training at Bramshott,Randolph was sent to France, having requested reversionin rank to get into the fighting. He was woundedsix weeks later in an attack on the Vimy-Avion railwayembankment and hospitalized at Etaples, thenManchester, Broad-stairs and Chester. At this pointWinston the English-man reputedly asked to meethim. Whether he did is not clear. Randolph returnedto Canada in 1917, in time to assist in relief work followingthe terrible explosion there that year. But byJanuary 1918 he was back in the European war,wounded again, hospitalized again, and recovered. Hewas at Mons on 11 No-vember 1918 for the signing ofthe Armistice at the time Winston the Englishmanwas at his Ministry of Munitions HQ, looking downupon the pandemonium in Northumberland Avenueas Big Ben struck the eleventh hour of the eleventhday of the eleventh month—about which he writes somovingly in the last chapter covering 1918 in TbeWorld Crisis.The AmericanWinston ChurchillKeynoting the1988 ICS Conferenceat BrettonWoods, NewHampshire, AlistairCooke joked withthe audience overthe appropriatenessof the setting—notbecause of the famousBretton WoodsMonetary Conference,he said, butbecause nearby Cornishwas the village"where Winston Churchill spent the last fifty years ofhis life."Mr. Cooke was referring, as he explained, "to theeminent novelist whose fame was so considerable thatwhen young Winston Spencer Churchill decided topublish a book, he wrote to Winston Churchill inNew England saying he did not wish to trade on hisfame or mislead the reading public." The two engagedin a charming correspondence, made famous in M;yEarly Life (see sidebar), whereby English-Winston proposedto use his middle name or initial to distinguishhimself from American-Winston, who declared hehad no middle name. Curiously, while English-Winstonwrote only one novel, Savrola, American-Win -28 / FINEST HOUR 83

MR. WINSTON CHURCHILL TO MR. WINSTON CHURCHILLLondon, June 7, 1899.Mr. Winston Churchill presents his compliments toMrs Winston Churchill, and begs to draw his attentionto a matter which concerns them both. He has learntfrom the Press notices that Mr. Winston Churchill proposesto bring out another novel, entitled RichardCarvel, which is certain to have a considerable saleboth in England and America. Mr. Winston Churchillis also the author of a novel now being published in aserial form in Macmillan's Magazine, and for which heanticipates some sale both in England and America. Healso proposes to publish on the 1st of October anothermilitary chronicle on the Soudan War. He has nodoubt that Mr. Winston Churchill will recognise fromthis letter — if indeed by no other means — that thereis grave danger of his works being mistaken for those ofMr. Winston Churchill. He feels sure that Mr. WinstonChurchill desires this as little as he does himself.In future to avoid mistakes as far as possible, Mr. WinstonChurchill has decided to sign all published articles,stories, or other works, 'Winston Spencer Churchill,'and not 'Winston Churchill' as formerly. He truststhat this arrangement will commend itself to Mr. WinstonChurchill. ... He takes this occasion of complimentingMr. Winston Churchill upon the style and successof his works, which are always brought to his noticewhether in magazine or book form, and he trusts thatMr. Winston Churchill has derived equal pleasure fromany work of his that may have attracted his attention. •Windsor, Vermont. June 21, 1899.Mr. Winston Churchill is extremely grateful to Mr.Winston Churchill for bringing forward a subjectwhich has given Mr. Winston Churchill much anxiety.Mr. Winston Churchill appreciates the courtesy of Mr.Winston Churchill in adopting the name of 'WinstonSpencer Churchill' in his books, articles, etc. Mr. WinstonChurchill makes haste to add that, had he possessedany other names, he would certainly haveadopted one of them. The writings of Mr. WinstonSpencer Churchill (henceforth so called) have beenbrought to Mr. Winston Churchill's notice since thepublication of his first story in the 'Century.' It did notseem then to Mr. Winston Churchill that the works ofMr. Winston Spencer Churchill would conflict in anyway with his own attempts at fiction.The proposal of Mr. Winston Spencer Churchill toaffix a note to the separate writings of Mr. WinstonSpencer Churchill and Mr. Winston Churchill, thetext of which is to be agreed on between them, — isquite acceptable to Mr. Winston Churchill. If Mr.Winston Spencer Churchill will do him the favour ofdrawing up this note, there is little doubt that Mr.Winston Churchill will acquiesce in its particulars.Mr. Winston Churchill will take the liberty of sendingMr. Winston Churchill copies of the two novels hehas written. He has a high admiration for the works ofMr. Winston Spencer Churchill and is looking forwardwith pleasure to reading Savrola. •ston wrote only one non-fiction book, A Traveller inWar-Time, (New York: Macmillan 1918), extolling thevirtues of the Allies following a visit to Britain andFrance.Both Winstons entered politics, the American servingfor a time in the New Hampshire legislature. Itwas then that English-Winston allegedly wrote him,saying, "I intend to become Prime Minister of GreatBritain; wouldn't it be a lark if you became Presidentof the United States at the same time?" ButAmerican-Winston never progressed beyond a briefterm of state office.Despite a promising start, relations between thesetwo distant cousins never developed. Possibly theywent awry in 1901, When English-Winston touredAmerica: American-Winston threw a dinner party inhis honor in Boston, but English-Winston receivedthe bill! They did not meet again until September1917, when American-Winston visited Number TenDowning Street just before writing A Traveller in War-Time . Lloyd George was Prime Minister, and English-Winston was of course Minister of Munitions in LloydGeorge's government, while American-Winston was aquasi-representative for President Woodrow Wilson'sBoard of Naval Strategy. They also met briefly afterwardat the Front in France. But neither makes anymention of these meetings in his subsequent writings.Indeed American-Winston never mentioned hisEnglish counterpart at all in any of his writings, andthroughout his life kept a discreet distance. TheNorth American Churchills, both the AmericanWinston and the Canadian Randolph, were a prettystiff-necked pair as regards their bumptious, distantEnglish kinsman. From their egalitarian point of view,as expounded by their American colonist forebears,English-Winston had the misfortune of being borninto the hereditary aristocracy — that power andprivilege which the American "experiment" had setout to eliminate. The two North American Churchillsof the new social order were not without their own setof privileges, and their self-righteousness seems a littlemisplaced. But not even the democratizing process ofthe Great War was able to dispel their fear that profferedfriendship might be construed as toadyism. $FINEST HOUR 83/29

RHYIHWSWill ThereBe AnotherGreat Soulfor the Next Millennium?CYNTHIA NEWBERRYA Very Great Soul: A Biographical Character Study of theRt. Hon. Sir Winston S. Churchill, by A.G.S. Norris(Edinburgh: International Publishing Co. 1957. 336pages. Redburn 145. Frequency: scarce.)THIS is yet another book about Winston Churchillbut one with a decided bent: it deals withthe metaphysical, the stuff of legend, the inexplicableand the inescapable. The author would haveus believe in a universe complete with spiritual entities,vital forces, and divine influences. In a word, hewould have us believe in a predetermined worldwhere the element of chance — that by-product of acold and uncaring universe devoid of any meaning— does not exist. In Norris's view of the world,Winston Churchill was no mean stroke of luck forwestern civilization at the eleventh hour. Instead hewas a man of destiny, an instrument of Providence.This is a highly personalized account that defiescategorization — it is biography, psychology and astrologyin about equal measure. The author's purposein writing such a work was to set the record"aright" for historians of the next century concerningChurchill's good name. It is a name besmirched notby a remorseless chaos, but by what Norris calls the"agents of the antichrist" — forces in the epic struggleagainst good and evil which seek to destroyChurchill's reputation by sowing confusion anddoubt about his words and deeds. Published nearlyforty years ago, it remains highly relevant ...In defense of his subject, Norris contends that"outstanding qualities and attributes manifesting inphysical life are prenatal acquisitions of soul" (soulbeing that which enters the body at birth and whichMs. Newberry is in charge of the ICS New York chapter.A lifelong teacher, she has been associate director ofAdmissions and Development at St. Hilda's and St. Hugh'sSchool, New York City.leaves it at death). He believes that in 1874 "a verygreat soul [Churchill] came to our troubled earth ...charged with work which could benefit the wholeplanet ..." He sets out to prove that all was notchance in the scheme of things and that Churchill'slife — his triumphs, trials and disappointments —was but a preparation for his ultimate test "in theface of the great danger which suddenly faced theworld," and from which he never once "faltered." Oras Churchill himself said that night in 1940 when hebecame Prime Minister: "As I went to bed about 3a.m., I was conscious of a profound sense of relief.At last I had the authority to give directions over thewhole scene. I felt as if I were walking with destiny,and that all my past life had been but a preparationfor this hour and for this trial."Norris, who was a manager at an insurance company,consulted more than two hundred and fiftyworks over a fifteen year period. At the age of seventyin 1957 he published his book in Scotland, layingclaim that it was the "severest test to which acharacter study has ever been subjected." The book isin two parts. The first part can be read more or lessas standard biography. The "test" is to be found inthe second part, which consists of "tabulated scientificdata," i.e., astrological charts which the authorthinks "will resolve to some degree perhaps most ofthe controversies centering around Churchill." Thus,the second part attempts to explain such controversialaspects of his life as his change of party (Conservativeto Liberal, 1904), his reputation for arrogance,and his capacity for alcohol in terms of his soul andpersonality traits, which are fleshed out in great detail.If one can accept Norris's quantitative proof insupport of his qualitative premise — that drives deepin the unconscious [soul] "spiritually stimulated"Churchill's life, imbuing him with a "vague sense ofmission" — then the author's conclusions will makefor some interesting reading. For instance, we aretold that Churchill's novel, Savrola, written while hewas a young subaltern in India and first published in1900, can be understood only in terms of the "motivepower in the unconscious." The author contends thatthe plot, allowing for "distortion" when passingthrough the conscious mind, uncannily parallels theevents of Churchill's life — World War II, 1945(voted out of office) and 1951 (triumphant return tooffice). In light of the scientific data which he interpretsat great length, Norris concludes that Churchill'ssubconscious could have been "impregnated"with a prior knowledge of his destiny.The most interesting aspect of the book, however,is Norris's thought about fate and the manner in30/FINEST HOUR 83

which he attempts to interweave this with scientificdata in explaining Churchill's life. He seems to viewfate much as the ancient Greeks did — as a threadwith which the gods spin around a person the fatefulmoments of his or her life as if that person were aspindle. The spinning usually takes place at birth andat marriage, or may continue throughout a person'slife until all the thread has been draw off the distaff,bringing about death.In this vein, one of the most fascinating accountsis the converted world-symbol, "St. Michael Slayingthe Dragon in a Shower of Black Rain." We are toldthat this "denotes one with strength of purpose andability to sustain trails. The Dragon is lust, corruption,and the cold moisture of the earth. St. Michaelis the life, solar energy, conqueror of decay; theblack rain, the evil which corruption draws. So whenthe native realizes his soul force he becomes a veritablevictor over the monster into whose jaws so manyunwarned and unguarded fall. It is a symbol of victory."It so happened that in 1940, when Churchillbecame Prime Minister, Pluto, which had been in retrogradesince his birth, had the above word-symbolwhich coincided with Churchill's role as "inspirer of apeople standing alone in the world against themassed forces of the antichrist."Was Churchill really fated to don the mantle of St.Michael and slay the Dragon as Norris believes? Didhe have a choice? Churchill himself, while on a tripthrough Africa in 1907, concluded that free will andpredestination were one and the same. Observing thebutterflies in Uganda, he noticed that their wingschanged from deep russet to brilliant blue accordingto the angle and one's line of vision. He wrote:"Whether you believe in Free Will or Predestination,all depends on the slanting glimpse of the colour ofhis wings — which are in fact at least two colours atthe same time."La Fontaine remarked, "One often meets his destinyon the very road which he took to escape it."One can't help but wonder as we face the new millenniumwhat tests are in store for us. Will there beanother great soul waiting in the wings to help usout, or were we just lucky the last time round? Arewe really only a bundle of behavioral responses atthe mercy of ourselves, instead of Providence? And ifwe should cry out for help in the Twenty-first Century,will we be greeted only with silence and have togo it alone, or will we like the weary traveller who isembarked upon a universal journey, be given sustenancealong the way from that which also gives lifeto man?Josephine Butler:She Also Served, MaybeGEORGE RICHARDCyanide in My Shoe, by Josephine Butler. (Cheltenham,Glos., This England Books, 1991. Hardbound,205 pages, £9.95. Available from This England, POBox 52, Cheltenham, Glos. GL50 1YQ, England.)THE recently deceased Josephine Butler (FH 81,page 7) claimed to have been a member ofChurchill's "Secret Circle," a group of intelligenceagents answerable directly to the Prime Ministerand limited to twelve members. The "Secret Circle"was indeed a secret — neither MI5 nor the WarOffice were aware of it and none of the twelve membersknew the identity of any of the others.The book deals principally with the author's adventuresin France, into which she parachuted severaltimes to liaise with the Underground. Her story isexciting and detailed and would make an excellentthriller film. Recruited by Churchill because of herknowledge of France and the French — she hadMr. Richard is a longtime contributor to Finest Hourfrom Taroona, Tasmania, Australia.studied medicine in Paris and on qualifying hadworked there on cancer research — Dr. Butler quicklybecame one of the few people who travelled regularlybetween Britain and Occupied Europe.In the course of her adventures Dr. Butler was atone time arrested by the Gestapo and interrogatedby the notorious Klaus Barbie. Despite this and manyother hair raising escapades she survived the warand, of course, lived to tell her tale.The principal interest for Churchillophiles is naturallythe references to the Great Man and the insightswe are given to an aspect of his wartime leadershipnot often explored: that of spymaster.Butler was working in the Ministry of EconomicWarfare when she was selected as a potential recruitfor the "Secret Circle." Interviewed personally byChurchill, who had of course previously apprisedhimself of her background and experience, she saysshe was able to convince him of her suitability for hiselite team. It was during this interview that she wasgiven, by Churchill, the code-name by which she wasknown throughout the war: Jay-Bee, from her initials.Before her first mission in France Jay-Bee receivedvery thorough training in the role she would be requiredto undertake. Meticulous in detail, it even extendedto a French dental surgeon being employedto replace some of her front teeth, lost when practisingfalling from a Lysander aircraft a few feet abovethe ground.FINEST HOUR 83/31

In July 1942, on completion of her training andbefore her first operation on French soil, Jay-Beehad an interview with Churchill. During their conversation,she writes, she noticed how strained anddespondent he appeared, so she spontaneously toldhim how much his efforts were appreciated in thecountry and how she wished she could somehowlighten his load. The PM's response was "Thank you,Jay-Bee. I thank God that I have a wonderful shoulderto weep on: that of my darling Clemmie."In the same year in another meeting, Jay-Bee remarkedto Churchill that when in trouble she prayedand meditated and that she knew he also meditated.This apparently surprised WSC, who said, "You arevery observant. Most people imagine I just cat-nap."Throughout the war years Jay-Bee met Churchillon her return from visits to France to inform him ofthe local situation regarding both military activity andcivilian morale. Her last conversation with him was in1945, just after the Labour Government had beenelected and WSC was out of office. When she toldhim he would never be forgotten, Churchill replied,"If they have forgotten me now they will not do sowhen I die, for I shall have the biggest State Funeralthis country has ever seen; and if [the Duke of] Norfolkis still in charge and does not make a good jobof it, I shall come back and haunt him!' (Norfolk wasin charge in 1965, did an excellent job and remainedghost-free.)Cyanide in my Shoe is a fascinating story with a considerableamount of detail, particularly concerningButler's exploits with the French Maquis or Underground.Churchill is portrayed throughout as ahuman being rather than a great war leader, withglimpses of the personal rather than the officialChurchill. It is a book worth having for its Churchillreferences and is besides a good if fairly light read.There is however one problem — we have no wayof proving whether or not it is what it purports tobe. Is it in fact the personal memoirs of someonewho was in an extremely privileged position, or simplyan imaginative and plausible work of fiction?Jay-Bee died in 1992 at the age of ninety. Herhusband had died in 1947 and their only child, ason, was killed in an air raid in 1944. Most of hercontemporaries are alas also gone now and she hadno next of kin, so a definitive answer is liable to behard to come by.She did, however, have in her possession a letterin a familiar hand dated London, May 1945, whichread: "To Jay-Bee (Josephine Butler): My thanks —"She was a member of my secret circle on invasionplans of Europe. She gave up her identity in the serviceof her country."Jay-Bee is of those who knew patriotism was notenough, there had to be sacrifice. She helped to setup the Second Front. Winston S. Churchill"Predictably, some of the experts who have examinedthe letter vouch for its authenticity, while someare equally convinced it is not. genuine. JosephineButler herself faced doubts. Her response was thatChurchill had written it in her presence. Further, sheclaimed to have indicated at the time she might inthe future write a book on her wartime experiences.Churchill is said to have replied that if she did so shemust tell the truth.Perhaps one day, conclusive evidence as to thetruth or otherwise of the story will become available.For the time being we must be content to read, considerand decide for ourselves.Memoirs of a Great LadyDAVID J. PORTERPure Chance The Memoirs of Dame Felicity PeakeSOME may feel that in calling her book Pure.Chance Dame Felicity Peake shows an unduesense of modesty, for this is the story of a remarkablewoman. She joined an RAF Company ofthe ATS in 1939 as an Aircraftwoman EquipmentAssistant 2nd class and by 1946, at the age of 33,had risen to the top when she was appointed WAAFDirector. To members of the International ChurchillSociety, there is an aspect of this excellent memoirthat will arouse their interest.Dame Felicity's school days began with a close connectionto the Churchill family, when she was intro-Mr. Porter was chairman, ICS/UK, 1990-94.duced to Sarah, Churchill's daughter. This friendship,established at their first Day School in London'sSloanc Street, endured many years and, even duringthe war when Dame Felicity was heavily committed toher work in the Royal Air Force, they were able tomeet from time to time in the company of importantpersonalities. A sense of fairness and understandingin the treatment of people, which was closely sharedby Felicity and Sarah, is well depicted in the book,not only by a particular incident which took placewhen they were young girls, but by examples illustratedthroughout the book's 217 pages. DameFelicity's sense of responsibility and compassion areparticularly evident in her counselling of young pilotsand Airwomen during the height of the Battle ofBritain, a vital aspect in maintaining their morale.Felicity Peake was born in 1913. Her early upbringingshows how little the old social order was affectedby the First World War, a point which of somesignificance in her later career. She married in 1935Jock Hanbury, and she and her husband soonlearned to fly — she went solo after only six andone-half hours! Alas Hanbury was killed in a flying32/FINEST HOUR 83

accident in 1939. She married Sir Harold Peake, thedistinguished banker, in 1952 and has a son, Andrew.She served at Biggin Hill during the Battle ofBritain, and later at Bomber Command. Subsequentlyshe commanded the WAAF Officers' School andthen served at No. 60 Group and as senior WAAFOfficer, HQ Middle East. As WAAF Director sheplayed an outstanding part in ensuring that womenin the Services were treated equally with men. Onthis she had the full support of the Chief of the AirStaff, Marshal of the Royal Air Force Lord Tedder.When the Women's Royal Air Force was foundedin 1949 Dame Felicity became its first Director andshe played a major role in shaping the future of theService.Pure Chance vividly recalls Dame Felicity's uniquerole within the RAF. It will be of great interest to allwho served during the last war or who are interestedin military history. She writes from a depth of knowledgeand understanding.In 1949, she was appointed a Dame of the BritishEmpire and from 1947-1950 was an HonoraryA.D.C. to King George VI. She has been a memberof the Council of the Royal Air Force BenevolentFund since 1946 and was a Trustee of the ImperialWar Museum from 1963-1985. In 1987 she was thefounder Chairman of the Friends of the ImperialWar Museum, a highly firmly respected Society nowestablished with a considerable membership. M>IMMORTAL WORDSAMERICAN OCCUPATION OF ICELANDThe military occupation of Iceland by the forces of the United Statesis an event of first-rate political and strategic importance; in factit is one of the most important things that has happened since the war began.It has been undertaken by the United States in pursuance of the purely American policyof protecting the Western Hemisphere from the Nazi menace.I understand that in the view of the American technical authoritiesmodern conditions of war, especially air war, require forestalling action,in this case especially in order to prevent the acquisition by Hitlerof jumping-off grounds from which it would be possible, bound by bound,to come to close quarters with the American Continent.The seizure of Iceland by Hitler would be of great advantage to himin bringing pressure to bear both on Great Britain and the United States...This measure of American policy is thereforein complete harmony with British interests...It would obviously be foolish for the United States to have one planfor defending Iceland, and for the British forces to have another.The second principle of United States policy,which I understand has led them to the occupation of Iceland,has been the declared will and purpose of the President, Congress and people of the United Statesnot only to send all possible aid in warlike munitions and necessary suppliesto Great Britain,but also to make sure we get them.Here again is a course of actionfor which the United States must take full responsibility.Apart from this the United States forces in Iceland will, of course,require their being sustained or reinforced at sea from time to time.These consignments of American suppplies for American forces overseaswill, of course, have to traverse very dangerous waters,and, as we have a very large traffic constantly passing through these waters,I daresay it may be found in practice mutually advantageousfor the two navies involved to assist each other,so far as is convenient,in that part of the business.I really do not think I have anything further to sayabout a transaction which appears at every pointto be so very plain and simple.House of Commons9 July 1941FINEST HOUR 83/33

Sir Winston Churchill: A ReportOne of the Societies' primary purposes is "Teaching the NextGeneration." Herewith a 13-year-old Friend of ICS providesteaching by the Next Generation.BY KARAN JAINSir Winston Churchill, one of the greatest Englishmenof this century, was born in November,1874. He belonged to a famous family, and wasthe son of Lord Randolph Churchill, an Englishpolitician. The Duke of Marlborough, a great generalof over 200 years ago, was his ancestor. WhenWinston was twelve years old he was sent to an expensiveschool called Harrow, which he disliked verymuch. Churchilllater wrote (notquite accurately)that he was notvery fond of hisstudies. At thattime in Englandthe most importantsubjects in schoolwere Latin andGreek. Peoplethought that it wasessential to knowLatin and Greekwell; but youngWinston did notfind these subjectsinteresting. Hewas, however, veryfond of reading andhe read all thebooks he could findespecially abouthistory. This habithelped him tolearn good Englishand, as a result, he wrote very well. Although youngWinston disliked group sports he was good at fencing.When he left school he decided to join the army.He was very proud of his ancestor, the Duke of Marlborough,and perhaps hoped to be a great general likeMr. Jain, aged 13, is a member of ICS/Pennsylvania.He wrote this report last year when he was younger.him. He went to a famous military college calledSandhurst. When he had finished his training atSandhurst he joined a cavalry regiment in 1895 andspent a few months in Cuba during the time of theCuban war of independence against Spain. While inCuba he wrote about the war and sent reports to andEnglish newspaper. In 1896 his regiment went toIndia. He lived in Banglore for some time.Churchill wasvery brave'and adventurousand he wantedto see some realfighting. When heheard that fightinghad broken out betweenthe Englishand the tribesmenof the North-Westfrontier province ofIndia, he marchedwith the Britishforces. Every fewdays he sent backreports of the warto an English newspaper.His reportswere read withgreat interest inEngland. AfterARTWORK COURTESYRICHARD HASLAM-HOPWOODIndia, WinstonChurchill fought awar in Sudan, apart of Africa which was under the rule of Britain andEgypt. Here again Churchill acted as a soldier as wellas reporter.In 1899 Churchill left the army. He had seenenough of military life and now he wanted to make acareer as a politician. He also decided that he couldearn more money through writing than being an armyofficer.34/FINEST HOUR 81

In South Africa covering the Boer War, Churchillwas captured and held by the Boers as a belligerent,though he protested that he was merely a reporter.Determined to escape from his prison camp inPretoria, Churchill went "over the wall" one nightand caught a goods train headed out of Boer territory.During the days he hid or traveled by foot. One nighthe came to a mine which was run by an Englishman.The Englishman helped him to hide in a dark caveat the bottom of the mine. Churchill had to stay deepunderground in a small hole for a number of days.After many days of adventure he at last managed toescape from Boer territory. On his return to Englandhe was greeted as a popular hero.In 1900, when young Winston was only twenty-six,he became a Member of Parliament. In the next thirtyyears his name became famous in the British Parliament.He held many important posts in the Governmentand at the time of the First World War heplayed an important part in organizing the navy. Inthis war, Germany was defeated by England, Franceand America, and she became a very weak country.After the First World War, Churchill returned topeacetime politics. He was usually a member of theparty which was against the Government. He wasnever afraid of being unpopular and always boldly saidwhat he thought to be true. He warned the world thatGermany was turning slowly into a powerful countryand that she was preparing for war again. But nobodywanted to listen.It was true that from 1933 Germany, under a mannamed Adolf Hitler, was no longer a weak country.After occupying Austria and Czechoslovakia, Hitlerplanned to conquer more land in Europe.This is what Churchill had feared, but unfortunatelythe world had not listened to him. In 1939 whenPoland was invaded by the German soldiers, Englandand France became convinced of Hitler's growingpower and wanted to stop him. In September 1939they declared war on Germany and the Second WorldWar broke out. German armies soon occupied manycountries in Europe — Norway, Denmark, Belgiumand the Netherlands. After England had fought onthe side of France for nearly a year, the English peoplerealized that they needed a strong man like Churchillas their leader. Churchill was thus made the PrimeMinister of Britain in May 1940.In June France was conquered by Hitler. Soon theNazis marched across France and reached the coast inthe north of France. They only had to cross the EnglishChannel in order to reach Britain. Before crossingover, Hitler decided to bomb England and make herweak. Those were dark days for the people of Britain.At a time when they had to fight the Germans allalone, it was Churchill who helped his countrymen bygiving them hope and courage. His speeches at thattime are remembered even today. Soon after he becamePrime Minister, he brought courage in thehearts of the English people with these words:"WE SHALL DEFEND OUR ISLAND, WHATEVER THECOST MAY BE ... WE SHALL FIGHT ON THE BEACHES, WESHALL FIGHT ON THE LANDING GROUNDS, WE SHALLFIGHT IN THE FIELDS, AND IN THE STREETS, WE SHALLFIGHT IN THE HILLS; WE SHALL NEVER SURRENDER."He did not let his countrymen be frightened ofNazi Germany. He told them that the aim of the peopleof England was "victory at all costs, victory inspite of all terror, victory however long and hard theroad may be." Whenever he met people he would lifthis fingers to make his famous "V" sign, V for Victory.During this time Churchill devoted all his energy inserving his country. He woke up early to write letters.He went to the House of Commons in the afternoon. •Many afternoons he visited the soldiers, encouragedthem with cheerful words, looked at the new guns andother war equipment. Then he would return to hisstudy and usually work there till three o'clock in themorning. It was Churchill's deep devotion that helpedEngland to stand strong against the mighty power ofGermany.In June 1941 Germany attacked Russia; later Japan,a friend of Germany, attacked America. As a resultRussia and America were brought into the war andEngland no longer had to fight alone. On one sidewere Britain, Canada, America and Russia and theywere called the Allies. On the other side were Germany,Italy and Japan and they were called the AxisPowers. In 1944 the Allies crossed the English Channeland landed in Normandy, on the north-west coastof France. Slowly the Germans were driven away fromall the countries they had conquered in Europe. In1945 the war came to an end, and Hitler took hisown life.After the war Churchill did not continue as PrimeMinister. But he continued to take interest in the politicsof his country and the world. In 1951, at the ageof 77, he again became Prime Minister of GreatBritain. He remained in office till 1955. In 1953, thenew Queen, Elizabeth II, honored him with a knighthoodand he came to be known as Sir WinstonChurchill. In the same year he received the NobelPrize for Literature for his excellent writing. In 1965,the whole world was shaken by the news of his deathat the age of ninety-one. Winston Churchill will alwaysbe affectionately remembered by the people ofthe world as the Grand Old Man of Britain. $FINEST HOUR 83/35

JOHN G. PLUMPTON100 YEARS AGOSwiftly Fading ShadowsSecond Quarter 1894 • Age 19Although Winston was almost twentyyears old he still received letters ofadmonition from his father who thoughtthat he wasted too much time and travelledto London too frequently. LordRandolph wrote his wife that he hadwritten Winston that "in all qualities ofsteadiness taking care of things and ofnot doing stupid things Jack is vastly hissuperior."Unknown to his father Churchill wasmaking plans for his future career. Hewas accompanied by Sir Julian Byng,who later commanded the CanadianCorps at Vimy Ridge and served asGovernor-General of Canada, on a visitto the 4th Hussars, a cavalry regiment.From his mother he received the following:"A bird whispered to me thatyou did not sleep in yr own bed lastnight. Write to me all about it. I am notsure if Papa wld approve." Winstonreplied that his father only expresseddisapproval about visiting London.Once again he expressed his career desire."How I wish I were going into the4th instead of those old Rifles. It wouldnot cost a penny more and the regimentgoes to India in 3 years which is justright for me. I hate the Infantry — inwhich physical weaknesses will renderme nearly useless in service and theonly thing I am showing an aptitude forathletically — riding — will be no goodto me." The ambitious young manpointed out that "of all regiments in thearmy the Rifles is slowest for promotion."He knew that only when he didwell at Sandhurst would it be the time totackle his father on his career path.When the opportunity arose, however,he declined to raise his specific wisheswith his father. "It was very pleasantstaying with Colonel Brabazon at Aldershot.He has made such a smart regimentof the 4th. They used to be consideredvery slack — bt he has worked awonderful change. It was quite extraordinaryhow clean and smart the menwere. It was the first time I have evermessed with a regiment — and the ceremonyinterested me very much."The deterioration of Lord Randolph'shealth was quite noticeable. Against his36 / FINEST HOUR 83doctor's advice, he decided to embark,accompanied by Lady Randolph, upona world tour. He telegraphed to the Secretaryof State for War, Sir Henry Campbell-Banneman,a request that Winstonbe released from Sandhurst for 'my lastday in England.' Winston and Jack cameto London to see their parents depart.His father had less than a year to live.Winston later wrote of the event: "Wedrove to the station the next morning —my mother, my younger brother and I.In spite of the great beard which he hadgrown during his South Africa Journeyfour years before, his face looked terriblyhaggard and worn with mental pain.He patted me on the knee in a gesturewhich however simple was perfectly informing.There followed his long journeyround the world. I never saw himagain, except as a swiftly-fading shadow."YEARS AGOWholesale Elimination of Grand DukeACTION THIS DAYSecond Quarter 1919 • Age 44As Secretary of State for War and Air,Churchill was not a member of the InnerCabinet but he was still a prominentplayer in one of the issues which requiredmuch of the Cabinet's attention— post-revolutionary Russia. His activeand vociferous support for interventionbrought him into conflict with his longtimefriend, Prime Minister David LloydGeorge.Lloyd George said of Churchill's vehemencethat "his ducal blood revoltedagainst the wholesale elimination ofGrand Dukes" but Churchill was repelledalso by Marxist doctrine, the brutaltyranny of the Bolsheviks, and a beliefthat foreign intervention had achance of preventing the slaughter inherentin any civil war.While he believed that Marxism/Leninism would create "a condition ofbarbarism worse than the Stone Age" healso understood that only Russianscould prevent a Bolshevik victory andits consequences.He worried that the new Russiawould create an unholy alliance with arevitalized Germany. To prevent this heargued for support for a German invasionof Russia. "Kill the Bolshie and Kissthe Hun," he said.There was little support for Churchill'sinterventionist proposals in theCabinet. The Prime Minister waffled forsome time but eventually declared thatit would be best "to attend to our ownbusiness and leave Russia to look afterhers."The press also had reservations aboutChurchill's views. The Daily Express declared:"Let us have done with themegalomania of Mr. Winston Churchill,the military gamester" and the DailyHerald reminded its readers thatChurchill was "the gambler of Gallipoli... The gambler's first throw wasGallipoli... His second throw is the newwar in Russia."In The Weekly Dispatch, he outlinedhis credo for Britain's foreign policy:"Keep firm friends with the UnitedStates; Aid and Protect France; Make afair peace with the German people; Supportthe anti-Bolshevik forces in Russia."50 YEARS AGOThree Miles from the EnemySecond Quarter 1944 • Age 69While eagerly and anxiously awaitingthe invasion of Europe, Churchillalso worried about possible perfidy bythe Soviets. "Once we get on to the Continentwith a large commitment, theywill have the means of blackmail, whichthey have not at the present, by refusingto advance beyond a certain point, oreven tipping the wink to the Germansthat they can move more troops to theWest." Force and facts, he believed,were the only realities the Communistsunderstood. Later he would comment:"Never forget that the Bolsheviks arecrocodiles." At home his governmentpurged known British Communistsfrom D-Day planning.Clementine's fifty-ninth birthdaywas the occasion for a family gatheringexcept for Randolph who was inYugoslavia. They partied until 4:30 a.m.,playing Gilbert and Sullivan and oldmusic-hall songs on the gramophone.Churchill wrote Randolph: "I am keepingWinston with me in the countrywhere he is safe from the London bombingsand has room to play about... Maryis in action two or three nights a week."Churchill's disagreement with theAmericans on strategy in Italy continued.He feared that their insistence on

an invasion of the south of France afterNormandy, on top of Alexander's "desolatingdelay," would destroy futuresuccess in Italy. He and his American alliesalso disagreed on whom to supportin Yugoslavia.On Good Friday, he spoke to the seniorBritish and American generals onplans for D-Day. General de Gaulle wasnot yet aware of those plans. It was decidednot to tell him until June 4th.In their memoirs Brooke, Eden andEisenhower all comment on the PrimeMinister's exhaustion at this time. Inearly May Churchill admitted to Brookethat he felt like Roosevelt, who "was nolonger the man he had been." Speakingof himself, Churchill said that "he couldstill always sleep well, eat well, and especiallydrink well, but that he no longerjumped out of bed the way he used to."One evening at Chequers Churchillstartled his guests, who had assembledto listen to a professional pianist, whenhe commented that what mattered mostin music are the silences between thenotes.In early May be met with the DominionPrime Ministers, King of Canada,Curtin of Australia, Fraser of NewZealand, Smuts of South Africa andHuggins of Southern Rhodesia.Casualties were a constant worry forhim. He was unhappy about the pre-invasionbombing of France but acceptedthe arguments of the Americans that itwas necessary to limit the losses andperhaps the success of the invasion. Beforehe went to bed on the evening ofJune 5th he told his wife: "Do you realizethat by the time you wake up in themorning twenty thousand men mayhave been killed?"On June 4th Rome was liberated andChurchill's feelings of elation about thatachievement were so strong that he tookthe first ten minutes of his speech to theHouse on June 6th to ask the House to"take formal cognisance of the liberationof Rome by the Allied forces under thecommand of General Alexander." Needlessto say, members waited throughoutthat speech for his announcement aboutthe landings in Normandy. After hisspeech in the House, he lunched withthe King and drove with him to Eisenhower'sheadquarters.On June 10th, after Montgomery announcedthat "we have won the battle ofthe beaches," Churchill, Smuts, Brooke,General Marshall and Admiral Kingcrossed the Channel where they weremet by Montgomery. After a beach welcomethey drove through "our limitedbut fertile domain in Normandy." Theylunched on the lawn at Montgomery'sheadquarters, looking towards the frontwhich was only three miles away.Churchill enquired about the chances ofGerman armour breaking up theirlunch. Montgomery acknowledged thatthe chateau had indeed taken a poundingthe night before. The Prime Ministerreminded him that "anything can bedone once or for a short time, but custom,repetition, prolongation, is alwaysto be avoided when possible in war."Montgomery moved his headquarterstwo days later.On the night of June 12th the first flyingbombs fell on London and for thenext nine months the home front wasonce again a battlefield.Brooke now found Churchill, relievedof his Normandy worries, "in avery good form, and quite ten yearsyounger," but the debate over aSouthern France invasion versus an aggressiveoffensive in Italy would continueto vex the British Prime Minister. &Addenda: Finest Hour 81This column noted that WSC's regiment,the 4th Hussars, was amalgamatedwith the 8th King's Royal IrishHussars in 1958 to form The Queen'sRoyal Irish Hussars. With the currentreductions in the British Army, TheQueen's Royal Irish Hussars will disappear,amalgamating with TheQueen's Own Hussars to form a newregiment, The Queen's Royal Hussars.Incidentally, the l7th/21st Lancers("The Death or Glory Boys") of Balaclavaand Omdurman fame are alsogone. Last summer they amalgamatedwith the 16th/5th Lancers to form TheQueen's Royal Lancers.CAPT. J.R. GRODZINSKY, CFBCALGARY, ALB., CANADAAddenda: Finest Hour 82Anent Mr. Hunt's request for documentationthat the "two-finger salute"originated as a taunt by Englisharchers toward the French after Agincourt,Finest Hour's house authority,Robert Hardy, informs us as follows:"It is established that Henry V told hissoldiers of the French threat to cut offthe index and middle fingers of Englisharchers as he rode among thembefore the battle, and this was indeeda French practice at the time. It cannotbe proven that the victoriousEnglish taunted the French captives byholding up their unsevered fingers;medieval writing on the subject issparse. The theory is therefore unconfirmed,although it certainly seems alikely scenario."Det. Thompson, WSC, Cunliffe-Lister (later Lord Swinton)Q: Can you please identify the automobileWinston Churchill is shownpiloting in this photo?H1DDLKS, MYSTHRIHS. ENIGMASA: The date is 1925 and the car is possiblya Daimler 20. I say "possibly " because,while there are several photos of this occasion,they all focus on the occupants ratherthan the car. But Churchill always ownedDaimlers through the 1920s and 1930sand this is almost certainly his car. Whatbothers me about this ID is that the vehicledoesn 't seem to have the wheelbase of eventhis smaller Daimler. Further input fromreaders is requested. Note: this photo appearsin Lady Soames's "Family Album"(1982), another in Randolph Churchill's"Churchill: His Life in Photographs"(1956).Q: Concerning the Scribners(American) edition of Marlborough,Woods A40b: I have Volumes I and IIdated "1946." Are they part of a remainderissue? I did not know that theScribner six-volume edition was publishedafter 1938.A: Scribners republished all six volumesin entirety using original plates but thinnerpaper in 1946 and 1950, noting thesedates on the title pages. The reprints thereforebulk thinner. "Churchill BibliographicFINEST HOUR 83/37

RIDDLES, MYSTERIES, ENIGMAS...Data" (published by ICS, available fromICS Stores) lists the 1950 on page 1.07 as"A40bb" but, did not record the 1946 impression,which rightfully deserves thatnumber, and the 1950 should be "A40bc. "Q: In your grasp, within yourreach, do you have any WSC quoteson Machiavelli, and what did WSC feelabout "The Prince"?A: From Darrell Holley's "CJmrchill'sLiterary Allusions" (McFarland, 1987) wefind:"Had [Arthur Balfour's] life been castamid the labyrinthine intrigues of theItalian Renaissance, he would not have requiredto study the works of Machiavelli. "("Great Contemporaries, p208). And:"Edward I anticipated the teachings ofMachiavelli...Machiavelli has profoundlyobserved that every fortress should be victualedfor a year..." ("Birth of Britain,"pages 304, 350). And: "[Mussolini] mightwell have pondered with relish onMachiavelli's celebrated remark, 'Menavenge slight injuries, but not grave ones. '"('The Gathering Storm," US ed. p262; asimilar line appears in "Marlborough, " Vol3, US edn., p84.) Finally, there is an extensivequote from 'The Prince, " chapterXXV, in "Lord Randolph Churchill,"Volume I, page 375 (US and Englisheds.): "It is better to be impetuous than cautious.For Fortune is a woman who to bekept under must be beaten and roughlyhandled; and we see that she suffers herselfto be more readily mastered by those whotreat her so...And always, like a woman,she favours the young, because they are lessscrupulous and fiercer, and command herwith greater audacity. "38/FINEST HOUR 8125TH ANNIVERSARYCONFERENCEThanks from the Next GenerationOn behalf of my students at JamesMadison High School I wish to thankyou for inviting them to attend theICS Conference. Your generosity hasenriched them immeasurably. The opportunitiesyou afforded them tolearn, to speak and to meet importantdignitaries will all be remembered. Ipersonally enjoyed their reactions,which ranged from, "I have a wholenew respect for Churchill" to "Didn'tknow what to do with all those forksand glasses!" Clearly this was a learningexperience in many ways. I lookforward to further involvement formyself and my students and would behappy to cooperate with your effortsto reach high school students.LYNN L. DUBIN, VIENNA, VA.The Society's generosity allowed anexperience I would not otherwise havehad. I found the events educational,especially the tour and lecture at theU.S. Holocaust Museum. Thank youfor the opportunity and privilege.JEFF M. MORNEAU, JAMES MADISON H.S.Q: [To Dr. Cyril Mazansky:] Whatbooks would you recommend for anunderstanding of Churchill and theJewish People?A: The best source is still unpublished,but, Martin Gilbert plans to write it. Oiliersources, most out of print, are as follows:"Churchill and Zionism" by Norman Rosein "Churchill: A Major New Assessment"by Robert Blake & Wm. Roger Louis, NY:Norton, still in print. "Zionism vs. Bolshevism," 'The Palestine Crisis, " "Our Taskfor Peace in Palestine" and "Sir HerbertSamuel" by Winston S. Churchill in the"Collected Essays," London: Library of ImperialHistory 1976, out of print but availablefrom Churchill book specialists. "Churchill:A Life, " by Martin Gilbert, London:Heinemann, NY: Holt 1991, Redburn432; many references to WSC and thejews. "Churchill's Literary Allusions," byDarrell Halley, North Carolina & London:McFarland 1987, Redburn 408; listsWSC's uses of the Old Testament in hisspeeches and tunlings. "Churchill and thejews" by Michael Cohen, London: Cass1985, Redburn 390; negative, reviewed in"Finest Hour" 49. "Churchill and, Zionism," lecture by Martin Gilbert, JewishTopics of Today Booklet, World, JeivishCongress, British Section, 1974. "WinstonChurchill on Jewish Problems " by Oskar K.Rabinowicz, London: Praeger 1956, London& NY: Yoseloff 1960, Redburn 137;very good, out of print but often available,from specialist booksellers. "Churchill and,Palestine 1939-1945" by Gavriel Cohen,Jerusalem: Yad Izhak Be.n-7.vi 1976, Redbum325. "Churchill and the Holocaust"by Martin Gilbert, lecture at ICS 1993Conference, tape available from ICS Stores."Moses" in 'Thoughts and Adventures" byWinston S. Churchill, Woods A39. Commentson Palestine partition in "Step byStep" by WSC, page 151, Woods A45.Speeches on Palestine by Churchill, on 1August 1946 (reprinted in, 'The Sinews ofPeace," 1948, Woods A124), and on 26January 1949 (reprinted, in "In the Balance,"1951, Woods ABO). -CMQ: Can you identify this famousWW2 photo of Churchill inspectingHome Guard positions on the coast ofEngland? I believe the Nazis used itfor propaganda purposes. Is there anysource that would sell such a photograph?A: The photo ivas taken during WSC'sinspection of Northeast coastal defenses inJuly 1940 and belongs to the Imperial WarMuseum, which I think has issued postcardsor posters. Try writing or ringing the IWMat Lambeth Road, London SE1 6HZ, lei.(071) 735-8922. Indeed the photo wasused in Nazi propaganda under the title,"Wanted for Murder," referring to WSCas a gangster, which the tommy gun andpinstriped suit. put. over very well!Send your queries to the editor. Wetry, we try... $DHSPAI'CH BOXI really enjoyed it and learned a lot.I hope that my classmates and I willhave a chance to learn more aboutChurchill's life in the future. Thethings that I learned, and the wholeexperience, was something I'll neverforget.ESTHER JAMES, JAMES MADISON H.S.Thanks for inviting me—I have developeda great interest in Churchilland look forward to attending otherICS conferences in the future.CHRISTINE GILBERT, JAMES MADISON U.S.

Speaking in front of your Societywas an invaluable experience. I havebeen on our Forensics team for twoyears and have competed in nationaltournaments, but I have never had theopportunity to speak to a group mainlyof adults. Everyone made me feelcomfortable and welcome. I alsolearned a great deal at the Sundaynight banquet. Mr. Jack Kemp made agreat speech and the food and conversationwere wonderful. It was a privilegeto hear Martin Gilbert's lecture atthe Holocaust Museum. I didn't realizewhat a great role Sir Winstonplayed in ending the war. It's scary toimagine how long it might have continuedif great men like Churchilldidn't exist. I don't think there aremany good choices for youth in rolemodels, and pity friends who idolizerock stars, actors, even cartoon characters.The Conference instilled in me adesire to learn more about. Churchill.He will always be on the top of my list.TARAH GRANT, JAMES MADISON H.S.Attending the Conference gave mea better knowledge of who WinstonChurchill was and still is to many people.He is an example of a true leader.I enjoyed the student presentations.Churchill's quotes seem to stand thetest of time. James Humes was a speakerwho came across to me. He has somuch enthusiasm and zeal!SAB1NA KOOK, JAMES MADISON H.S.Fraternal GreetingsThank you very much indeed forinviting us back to your home afterthe Conference. How wonderful it. wasto relax in New Hampshire. We thoroughlyenjoyed the Washington Conferenceand met some very nice peoplewho I hope we will meet againnext year in Canada.DAVID HOLER, SEVENOAKS, KENT, UKWhat an exemplary conference inWashington! On behalf of the "Canadacontingent." I'd like to express ourcongratulations to everyone on theteam for the superlative, well organizedevent you staged for the enjoymentof all attendees. As hosts for the1994 Conference in Calgary/Banff, weacknowledge Washington as a toughact to follow, but hope to continue inthe standards you've set.GARNET R. BARBER, PRESIDENTICS CANADA, THORNHILL, ONT.More Conference CommentsWashington was my first ICS Conference,but I am sure it. won't be mylast. You run a great meeting and deservethe membership's commendation.It was a pleasure to be among thedonors who enabled so many youngpeople to attend, and meeting LadyThatcher was certainly an unexpectedreward. I completed her book andwrote her as soon as I finished, andwas very pleased to get a prompt response.Thank you for making theweekend so special.1'ARKER H. LEE, 111, FAIR HAVEN, N.J.Thank you for all the work in organizingthis year's successful conference.It was wonderful to learn thatAlistair Cooke [who sent his regretsbut promised to be present on our50th anniversary] will be around intwenty-five years when I'm writing thestory of the first fifty years of ICS.[Mr. Freeman wrote about the firsttwenty-five in issue #81. -Ed.] If I followMr. Cooke's example I'll end upwriting about our 125th Anniversary.DAVID FREEMAN, PLACENTIA, CALIF.I am thrilled with the book yougave me to thank me for my help onthe Navy Chapel ceremony, a mostgenerous token of thanks. That servicewas a real brainstorm on your part[but you did the work! RML] and wasthe most moving event to me also.Others have said the same to me.A1DA R. SCHOEN1TELD, WASHINGTONI can't thank you enough for includingme at the conference but alsomaking me feel part of the event. Ihad a wonderful time and learnt agreat deal over the past couple ofdays. It has been incredible to meet somany people dedicated to keeping mygreat-grandfather's name alive andmade me feel even more proud to bea member of the family.DOMINIC WALTERS, NEW YORK CITYMore on Free TradeOn free trade, I ain pleased to hearyou're staying on the side of the angels.Unfair trade practices like youdescribe in your response to the freetrade correspondence (FH 81, p41) arecommonplace in industry. Loss leadersand selling below cost in order to establisha company or increase marketshare happen all the lime. As an oldantitrust lawyer I can tell you thateconomists will attest there is no lastingbenefit to be gained from thesetactics, absent barriers to entry in themarketplace. And as any economistalso will tell you, the only really effectivebarriers to entry are those raisedby government.The notion that there is a trade"gap" between Japan and the U.S. is afiction. On a per capita basis, Japanimports as much from the U.S. as viceversa. In 1992 Japan imported U.S.goods worth $48 billion while the U.S.imported Japanese goods worth $97billion. But because the U.S. has twicethe population, the per capita averagewas $384 worth of Japanese importsfrom the U.S. and $383 worth of U.S.imports from Japan. Why should theJapanese be coerced into importingmore per capita than America does?Editor's Response: Don't factors like thepercentage of raw vs. finished goods haveto be considered besides per-capitaamounts'? Answer to paragraph one: in1971 Nissan introduced the Datsun 240Z,selling for wlial most of us auto writerswere fairly convinced was a loss. Five yearslater (after the Z s price had risen considerably),the 240I260I280Z ruled thesports car market, and its derivations didfor a long time. That seems to me a fairlylasting benefit. The "export subsidy program"that produced $3995 24OZs in1971 is still in there pitching on behalf ofcars that cost much less in Los Angelesthan they do in Tokyo.Churchill's Handicaps[To the Editor of The Spectator:] Ofthe various charges leveled againstHarold Macmillan in Simon Heffer'sarticle ("Centenary of a double crosser,"5 February f994), surely the mostdamaging was Enoch Powell's acuteobservation that because he had anAmerican mother Macmillan neverhad Britain's best interests at heart.An American mother was, of course, adefect Macmillan shared with anotherwell-known 20th century prime minister.Goodness knows what Churchillwould have been able to accomplishfor Britain had he not labored underthis handicap.JOHN CUTCHER, KNOXVILLE, TENN., USA[To the Editor of The WashingtonPost: ] In your tribute to the lateSpeaker of the House, you cited TipO'Neill's suggestion that "WinstonFINEST HOUR 83/39

DESPATCH BOX...Churchill .lost his seat in Parliamentbecause he forgot the people in hisown election district while he was busyfighting World War II." This is an accurateparaphrase from the speaker'sautobiography, but his capacious memorybetrayed him. Not only was hewrong about Churchill's fate in 1945,but wrong by 17,000 votes —Churchill's margin of victory in hisWoodford constituency in 1945.Mr. O'Neill doubtless cited thisimaginary defeat by way of reinforcinghis celebrated dictum, "All politics islocal." But there is irony in that, sincethe constituency-based elections characteristicof British parliamentarydemocracy do not permit Members ofParliament, however distinguished, theluxury of ignoring local issues in thename of national abstractions.It may be of note that Churchill didlose three earlier postwar elections, notlong after World War I, when the futurewar leader was moving back intothe Conservative fold from a long affiliationwith Lloyd George, Asquithand other Liberals. But fortunately,the British political system offers todistinguished and brilliant figures anadvantage we do not, by custom, extendto our own — the possibility ofshifting constituencies until one finds afit. This option was open to Churchillafter three defeats in the 1920s. Had itbeen closed, who can doubt that thehistory of the 20th century would bedifferent, duller and darker than itwas?Is there a lesson here for those whowould deprive American voters oftheir discretion to reelect their leadersas often as they wish by the patentlyanti-democratic mechanism of "termlimits"? In any event, we are in TipO'Neill's debt for stimulating someuseful, if random, thoughts about thequirks of Winston Churchill's politicaldestiny—and maybe our own.EDWIN YODER, ALEXANDRIA, VA., USAThe Charmleyan ChroniclesYou'll be pleased to know that inLondon, Charmley's book (FH #81p32) is already on remainder, and abook club has it at £2, while MartinGilbert's book (Churchill: A Life) is intwo paperback editions, one called the"pocket edition," if you have fat pockets.AI. LURIK, NEW YORK CITYHere's a curiosity: author Charmley,from the olympian heights of the Universityof East Anglia, putting his magisterialtuppence into the British pressdebate over the Churchill archives(your editorial, FH #81 p4). Why isn'tCharmley's philosophical soulmate,David Irving, taking part in this discussion?Neither he nor Charmleyseem challenged for chutzpah.JAMES MACK, FAIRFIEI.D, OH, USAEditor's Response: Alas Mr. Irving isdoing time in Penlonville, having lost anargument with HM Govt. over the extentof his German royalties. I certainly hopeMr. Charmley doesn 'I make the same mistake:what would we do without him?There He Goes AgainI am seriously indebted to you foryour entertainment value. Your editorialwith its blasts against "wimpy reviews"and "too much ink" (FH 81 p4)consorted oddly with ProfessorSchoenfeld's intelligent review and Dr.Arnn's sleep-inducing prolixity; hoistby your own petard, I fear. Odd, ofcourse, to devote seven pages to a misrepresentationof part of my book andtwo to a review of the whole thing, butI am sure your readers will understand.The long march through Dr.Arnn's turgid prose brought to mindDenis Healy's comment that being attackedby Sir Geoffrey Howe was akinto being savaged by a dead sheep. Hisinability to distinguish between my argumentsand those of Alan Clark andhis attribution to me of opinions whichhe might prefer I held may serve tokeep his reader awake, but they donothing to encourage any confidencein him. Had I but space enough Ishould be delighted to take issue withhim [O spare us, mighty swami! -Ed.],but a man who appears to be underthe delusion that I advocate an alliancewith Hitler is hardly worth your spaceor my time.As to this King Charles' Head of"anti-Americanism" which is oncemore given an airing, I would referboth the good Doctor and your excellentself to my book, rather than tiltlances with the intellectually challengedin your valuable pages. 1should have thought, in view of thestandard of some of the reactions tomy book, that you might considertransferring the title on page 43[Churchilltrivia] to your front cover.JOHN CHARMLEY, NORFOLK, UKEditor's response: I am filled with admirationover your bio of Duff Cooper: it isso understanding of your subject's humanfoibles, so willing to wink at his bad calls,so fixated on what really matters, so devoidof the cobbled, quote ... so unlike your bio ofChurchill! I am forced to wonder what isgrowing in Norfolk, and how long you 'tiebeen smoking it?Now you know Dr. Arnn did not sayyour hook advocated an alliance withHitler, that he distinguished your argumentsfrom A Ian Clark's; and I don i graspthe logic by which you claim to be both entertainedand, asleep. But I know whatyou 're up to, John! This makes five, straight,free copies I've sent you containing yourcontributions. As diverting as it's been, Ican 'I let it go on. It is smashing of you toreward, us with so much prose for free, butsince I can 'I quite gel, you voted an lion,membership, after this issue you 'II just have,to pony up £20 like the rest of us.De'ja vu All Over AgainPlowing through Gilbert's TheStricken, World 1916-1922 left me feelingdepressed. Has anything reallychanged? It has been said that Godmade a terrible mistake when He gaveman limited intelligence but unlimitedstupidity. Admirals dressed in beautifulgold braid are much more amusingas a group than the Frocks. And, afterall, if I remember correctly, the Britishadmirals fought the convoy systemuntil it was almost too late. But withtheir foul ups at least they, unlike AdmiralHalsey, did not try to sail theirships through not one but two typhoons.RICHARD ZIMISERT,HOLLYWOOD, CALIF, USA.Editor's response: I'm sure we can finda writer somewhere to prove, thai Churchillcaused, those typhoons, since he, is undoubtedlyresponsible for all the naturaldisasters of the war as well as the unnaturalones.40 / FINEST HOUR 83

Salvaging CharmleyMANFRED WEIDHORNJohn Charmley's book, Churchill:End of Glory has been taken to task inmany ways. Larry Arnn (FH 81) hasshown how Charmley's quoting out ofcontext distorts his argument. RichardLangworth (FH 80) and others havenoted the sometimes questionablesources cited. Reviewer Gaddis Smithhas declared Charmley's implicit solution— to negotiate with Hitler — tobe a crime and, what is worse, a blunder.Is anything salvageable left?I think so. Charmley may have seenthe problem correctly and stammeredin articulating it; or he was indeedhimself partially blind, and his bookcan be saved only if it is pushed in adifferent direction by means of aslight revision of his argument.Despite the wide divergence of interpretationof them, the basic historicalfacts are simple: [1] Britain went towar to save Poland, and the war endedwith Britain victorious but Poland conquered.[2] Britain was a sort of superpowerin standing heroically aloneagainst the German superpower duringthe first third of the war, but atthe end was overshadowed by the twonew superpowers, the US and theUSSR. [3] A Britain shorn of its Empire,heavily dependent on the UnitedStates, passive in the face of the communizationof Eastern Europe, and aprey to socialism at home, had won aPyrrhic victory.Those being the incontrovertiblefacts, the question is: how avoidablewere these developments? That bringsus to the realm of the hypotheticaland the subjective. Some recent criticsof Churchill, led by Charmley, accordinglyspeculate that they were avoidable— if only Churchill had been less romanticand archaic, less Churchillian.A critique of these critics mustbegin with essentials. Churchill facedthree choices: Negotiate with Hitler; orgo under alone; or win with the helpof allies. The critics seem to opt forthe first. Britain, they contend, couldhave made an arrangement with Hitlerwhich would have resulted in Hitler'sdestruction of the odious CommunistDr. Weidhorn is the dean of thinkers onChurchill's thought and an ICS academicadvisor.regime in Russia and would have keptAmerica in its isolationist cocoon. Thatarrangement would have enabled acondominium of the old British Empireand the new Third German Empireto rule Europe.Prudential (albeit immoral) as thatsolution might have been, the criticsassume that [1] Hitler would deal; [2]the British Coalition governmentwould let Churchill deal; [3] Hitlerwould be faithful to the deal; [4] Russiawould have gone under; [5] Americawould keep out; [6] The BritishEmpire still had a long way to go; [7]a Britain tied to Hitler would have remaineddemocratic; [8] Americanhegemony is bad. As Langworth,Smith, et al point out, most, of theseCharmley assumptions (1-3, 6-8) aredubious.If we start with better assumptions— namely, that a deal with Hitler wasout of the question for many reasons— Churchill is left with two of theoriginal three choices: Go under heroicallyalone, or ally Britain with theRussians and the Americans. Churchillpreferred survival to self destruction.(Curiously, Charmley ascribes the samepreference to the average Briton, withwhom Churchill was allegedly out oftouch, but uses it as an argumentagainst fighting Hitler!) So Churchillmade a deal, but with Russia andAmerica rather than with Germany.He thereby had to hock the store, forhe ran into one of Machiavelli's ironlaws: "A prince ought never to makecommon cause with one more powerfulthan himself to injure another, unlessnecessity forces him to ...; for if hewins you rest in his power." That is tosay, survival proved to be very expensive.But had he any other choice?Not really, because he was swimmingagainst the tides of history. Thedays of the European empires werewaning. Though Churchill definitelyinsisted he was not going to presideover the liquidation of the British Empire,the actions necessary for savingBritain brought the liquidation nearer.The grim choice was between losingthe Empire or losing Britain as well asthe Empire.As for the emergence of SovietRussia as a force to be reckoned with,one must remember that in his memoirsChurchill said that in the earlystages of the Grand Alliance, theAnglo-American anxiety was overkeeping Russia in the war. Only laterdid the problem become one of stoppingthe sweep of Russian armies. It iseasy to blame Roosevelt and Churchillfor allegedly selling out EasternEurope to Stalin, but what were theyto do — inflict World War III on awar-ravaged world the day after V-EDay by trying to force the Russiantroops back? A Russia which has occupiedEastern Europe would not relinquishit any other way — not after thefrightful toll of Russian lives taken bythe Germans and not after Russia hadbeen invaded from Eastern Europefour times in 250 years. Stalin hadplenty of legions in Eastern Europe,and possession is often nine-tenths ofthe law. FDR and WSC could havejawboned, negotiated, pleaded, threatenedall they wanted, but, in Stalin'sworld, legality grows out of the barrelof a gun.And if it came to using force, whatwould be the purpose of a military attackon Russia? To roll back the IronCurtain? Yet Charmley himself pointedout that the average Briton is moreinterested in survival in everyday lifethan in heroic, romantic crusades infaraway places on behalf of a noblecause.On Russia (and America) no lessthan on the Empire, Churchill confrontedgreat historical forces. As farback as 1840, a prescient Alexis deTocqueville had predicted that Russiaand America were "marked out by thewill of Heaven to sway the destinies ofhalf of the globe." Communism mayor may not have delayed that historicaltendency, but Hitler certainly acceleratedit.The conclusion to all this is that thecritics shocked everyone because theysuggested that a deal with Hitlerwould have been kinder to Churchill'sfate and would not have been the endof his glory. Inaccurate and immoralas that contention may be, the criticsdo have a legitimate case, which is thatthe hero of the 1940 back-to-the-wallstand and of the 1945 victory had themisfortune to see the deleterious sideeffects of his victory. The law of unintendedconsequences had come intoplay. History usually works that way:A problem is not solved but replacedby a new problem, or, as in this case, aproblem is solved only to have the solutionbring its own set of problems.What Charmley might be saying betweenthe lines, or could be made tosay if the emphases are altered, is thatFINEST HOUR 83/41

DESPATCH BOX...Manfred Weidhorn...Churchill was a tragic figure."Tragedy" is an overused and misunderstoodword; President Kennedy'sdeath by assassination, however sad,was not a tragedy. In its strict classicsense, tragedy means, among otherthings, being damned if one does anddamned if one does not. It means "noway out"; it means facing insolubleproblems. It means, above all, no freelunches, for survival and victory havelarge price tags. Churchill's misfortunewas to be able to save the world fromHitlerism only at the cost of soon losingthe Empire, advancing communismbeyond Russia's borders, boostingAmericanism, and opening the door tosocialism at home. But, despite thecritics' fantasy, he had no alternative.Churchill is therefore a tragic hero,someone out of Sophocles orShakespeare. He did his best, but fate(aka historical forces) was against him.He himself realized that fact when, asCharmley points out, he saw an analogybetween his own career and that ofCromwell. Each leader was so focusedon fighting off the predator of thehour (Imperial Spain, Hitler'sGermany) that he did not see, orcould not cope with, the rise of a newone (Louis XIV's France, Stalin'sRussia). Perhaps he himself also realizedit, when, as Charmley likewisenotes but does not fully explain, liecalled the last volume of his war memoirs,Triumph and Tragedy.The "end of glory," then, wasBritain's, not Churchill's. He who hadthe good fortune to be in the lightplace at the right time in 1940 remainedin power long enough to findhimself in the right place at the wrongtime. He learned Kipling's lesson, thattriumph is an "impostor." Churchill isguiltless, however, of having made anybad choices on the major issue confrontinghim. Charmley's basic flaw isto present as a preventable error whatwas in fact an inescapable tragedy.MANFRED WEIDHORN YESHIVA UNIV. NYBric-a-bracAn Ongoing Investigation Into the Good, the Bad and the UglyDOUGLAS J. HALLLord Randolph Churchill PlateIt is probable that the elevenyear-oldWinston took great pridein seeing his father's portrait featuredon a china plate. It mustcertainly have given him some distinctionamongst his fellow pupilsat his Brighton prep-school! It wasproduced by Staffordshire Pottery(backstamped "Rd No. 41050") inthe black and white octagonal designvery much favored for commemorativeplates in the later Victorianperiod. The Queen herselfwas frequently portrayed, as weremembers of her large family, leadingchurchmen, judges and politicians.Other contemporary potteriesproducing plates in the eightsidedformat with "foliate borders"Bric-a-brac columnist Douglas Hall isdeveloping a book about collectible Churchilliana,which ICS hopes to publish.around the subject included Wallis,Gimson & Co and Nestle & Huntsman.So far as I can establish thiswas the only plate commemoratingLord Randolph's political career.It is ironic that a few years later hewas castigating his son "... you willbecome a mere social wastrel, oneof the hundreds of public schoolfailures and you will degenerateinto a shabby unhappy and futileexistence."Wartime Sepia TransferThis transfer appeared on awide range of articles from manydifferent potteries during 1940-41.My collection includes mugs (twodifferent shapes), ashtrays (circularand square), two different cup andsaucer sets, two sizes of beaker anda milk jug. Some pieces are unmarkedbut amongst the backstampscan be found WellingtonChina, Lancasters, Paragon China,Sutherlands and Gray's Pottery.This little mug, just 3 1/2 inchestall x 3 1/2 inches diameter, fromGray's Pottery, is one of the best,in fine bone china with unusuallyheavy gilding around the rim andon the handle. Current UK secondarymarket prices for items inthis design range from £30-£100depending upon quality and condition.The Pikering BustEasily the most widely availablepiece of Churchilliana is the veryfinely detailed little five-inch-tallbust design by R.A. Pikering in1949. An excellent likeness, thebust depicts a rather grim-lookingChurchill smoking a cigar andwearing the collar badge of theO rder of Merit. Inscribed "Winston42 / FINEST HOUR 83

S. Churchill" on the pedestal, theoriginals were signed "RA Pikering'49" on the back and cast in eithersolid bronze (6 lbs.) or hollowbronze (3 lbs.) and mounted on aplinth of polished marble 3 1/4x21/4 x 3 3/4 inches. During Churchill'ssecond term as Prime Minister,and again during 1965 and1974 the bust as re-issued in alightweight plastic resin material ineither black or white. These plasticresin busts did not have the marbleplinth but are neverthelessquite finely defined. They musthave been available in the thousandsand would have cost nomore than a few shillings but didprovide the opportunity for anybodyto acquire an affordablepiece of Churchilliana. In 1970BEL products of Birmingham produceda solid brass and hollowbrass version of the bust (seeSmith p. 106). Somewhere alongthe way an unknown manufacturerproduced the bust in an artificialmarble substance similar toAlvastone. In one form or anotherthese little busts are frequentlyseen around the antiques fairs.What surprises me, in view oftheir ready availability, is their remarkableincrease in price over thelast few years. An original signedbronze could be bought for £30five years ago but I have just seenone listed by a London dealer at£150. I bought several plastic resinexamples for an average of £5each in 1990-91. One Londondealer is currently listing the blackversion at £25 each and the whiteone at £32. (A USA dealer has ablack one at $35.) Another wellknownLondon dealer, operatingnot far from Oxford Street, hasthe black one on offer at £69!Tea TinDating from World War I, thishighly decorative tea tin is 7 1/4inches tall and 5 inches square. Allaround are detailed battle scenesand the flags of the allies. The colorsremain remarkably bright, withno evidence of fading after eightyyears, although there are usuallysome rust spots and a few smallscratches. In addition to Churchillthe tin portrays King George V,the Czar of Russia, Grand DukeNicholas, Sir John Jellicoe, theKing of the Belgians, GeneralJoffre, Lord Kitchener and SirJohn French. Now fairly rare inthe UK where it has a currentvalue of around £25.Royal Winton Pin TrayThis neat little four-inch-diameterpin tray was produced duringWorld War II by Grimwades (RoyalWinton) at Shelton, Stoke-on-Trent.A nice sepia line drawing of asmiling Churchill with a decorationof flowers, the crossed flags of theUK and USA and the inscription"Rt Hon Winston Churchill, PrimeMinister, Great Britain," it hasbeen in my collection for manyyears and, although I had neverseen another around the antiquesfairs, I had not considered it tohave any great value. Then a USAcatalogue arrived and I noted avalue of $150! I dusted mine andmoved it to a lower shelf! I havesince, just recently, seen anotherexample on offer in the UK. Avery well-known dealer, who is notrenowned for the modesty of hisprices, offered it to me for £16.He said he had bought it inAmerica! Can anyone make anysense of transatlantic pricing?Fakes and ForgeriesFor somebody with graphologicalskill, it is possible to create aquite deceptive copy of Churchill'sautograph in just a few seconds.The major London Fine Art Auctioneersall report that they rejectat least half of the "Churchill's" offeredfor each sale because theyare forgeries, and often completewith cleverly faked letters ofprovenance! Where do those forgeriesthen go? Well I would urgecaution around the antiques fairsand small-town auction halls.The faking of a china pot demandsnot only a rare skill butalso access to some expensivehardware and a significant inputof man-hours. Ceramic forgerstend, therefore, to target the verytop end of the market. But surprisinglythe occasional fake doesturn up way down the value spectrum.On the left, a genuine characterjug from Staffordshire Fine Ceramicsof Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trentissued in the early 1980s: a nicelittle jug, but nothing remarkable,which sold originally at around£25 and has a current secondarymarket value of about £40. Thefake jug, on the right, has poorquality paintwork and badly oxidisedglaze. But the main giveawayis the silver-topped walking stickwhich forms the handle. On thefake it is very clumsy and completelyout-of-scale. I bought it for£5 simply so that I could display italongside the genuine jug. In isolation,without a bench-mark, itmight just have fooled somebody,but it is had to see even then howthe forger could have made aprofit. $FINEST HOUR 83/43

©Ip 1 Iflj JVratual (&nnfzttntt"I am greatly attracted to this country. The tide is flowing strongly," wrote Winston Churchill tohis wife in 1929 from his room in the Banff Springs Hotel. He was referring to the excitingdevelopments taking place in Canada at that time. The tide is flowing strongly once againand exciting developments are occurring in the planning for The 11th International ChurchillSocieties Conference.• meet Sir Winston's daughter, Lady Soames, andhis granddaughter, Hon. Celia Sandys;• hear Milton Friedman argue that Churchill did not make goodeconomic decisions;• attend a performance of the Calgary Symphony;• make many new friends from Churchill Societies around the world;• learn about the latest Churchill-related research and publications;• watch a musical ride of a mounted troop;• view a slide presentation on Churchill's paintings;• enjoy Hits from the Blitz;• see the spectacular scenery Churchill saw: "The panorama of theRocky Mountains rises along the Western Horizon in endless serratedridges to grey blue peaks nine thousand feet above the sea."You too will be strongly attracted to this country!For further information: John PlumptonInternational Churchill Society, Canada130 Collingsbrook Blvd.Agincourt, Ontario, Canada M1W 1M7Tel. 416-497-5349 Fax: 416-395-4587