WINSTON CHURCHILL; BLOG 3 188; JUN 19, 2015

THE MESSAGE:

Sir Winston Churchill was Great Britain's Prime Minister in the years 1940 to 1945.  Every European leader, challenged by Adolf Hitler, had either backed down or been conquered. By the summer of 1940, the Führer stood at the pinnacle of world power – feared by most, admired by many, and absolutely worshiped by his own people. The Germans had overrun Poland, occupied Norway and defeated and humiliated France, a major power. It seemed only a matter of time before Hitler would dominate all of Europe. He was aligned with the Soviets and the Americans were still neutral and biding their time. 

The perseverance of the British under Churchill was of great importance in shaping the course of World War II. 

Churchill believed that success was only fleeting, that failure was not fatal and the courage to continue the struggle was paramount

Churchill's died in 1965. His funeral service was held at St Paul's Cathedral after the wartime PM had been laid in state for three days at Westminster Hall. It was a time when people said that the nation came to a halt and people on the streets stood and paid their respects to the great man passing. David Cameron Britain's Prime Minister at the time said, "If there is one aspect of this man I admire more than any other - it is Churchill the patriot." 

SOME EXCERPTS FROM CHURCHILL'S GREATEST SPEECHES DURING THE YEARS OF WWII.

WE SHALL NEVER SURRENDER
4 June 1940. House of Commons.

Churchill inspires the nation

“Even though large tracts of Europe and many old and famous states have fallen or may fall into the grip of the Gestapo and all the odious apparatus of Nazi rule, we shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.”

THEIR FINEST HOUR
18 June 1940. House of Commons.

Churchill rises in the Commons, standing tall in the face of an impending onslaught, and inspires the pilots of the RAF to victory in the Battle of Britain.

“The battle of France is over. I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of Christian civilisation. Upon it depends our own British life, and the long continuity of our institutions and our Empire. The whole fury and might of the enemy must very soon be turned upon us. Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this island or lose the war.

If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be free and the life of the world may move forward into broad, sunlit uplands. But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age made more sinister, and perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science. Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, ‘This was their finest hour.’”

THE DEBT
20 August 1940. House of Commons.

Churchill praises the bravery of the RAF pilots in the 'Battle of Britain'

“The gratitude of every home in our Island, in our Empire, and indeed throughout the world, except in the abodes of the guilty, goes out to the British airmen who, undaunted by odds, unwearied in their constant challenge and mortal danger, are turning the tide of the World War by their prowess and by their devotion. Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”

WINSTON CHURCHILL THE GREAT WIT

BESSIE BRADDOCK SCOLDS WINSTON

Bessie says,  “Winston, you are drunk!“

Winston retorts, “My dear, you are ugly, but tomorrow I shall be sober and you will still be ugly.“

After being disturbed on the toilet by the Lord Privy Seal, Winston said “Tell him I can only deal with one sh-t at a time!”

U.S. President Harry S. Truman once defended Churchill’s replacement, Clement Attlee, by saying “He seems a modest sort of fellow.“

To which, Churchill replied “He’s got a lot to be modest about.“

Ramsay MacDonald just couldn’t catch a break from Winston, who found his apparent lack of a spine frustrating. He once called him “a sheep in sheep’s clothing.“

More venom for Ramsay MacDonald — “We know that he has, more than any other man, the gift of compressing the largest amount of words into the smallest amount of thought.“

THE QUESTION:

What if the free world today still had the benefit of Winston Churchill's leadership?

THE QUOTES: 

HEAR YE ALL

“A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.“-Winston Churchill

“In the course of my life I have often had to eat my words, and I must confess that I have always found it a wholesome diet.“-Winston Churchill

LAURELS TO:

WINSTON CHURCHILL FOR HIS COURAGEOUS AND EXCELLENT WAR TIME LEADERSHIP.

THE CLIP: