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{{Short description|British statesman and writerauthor (1874–1965)}}
{{Redirect|Churchill||Churchill (disambiguation)|and|Winston Churchill (disambiguation)}}
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{{Use British English|date=August 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=FebruaryOctober 20232024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix = [[The Right Honourable]]
| name = Sir Winston Churchill
| honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|KG|OM|CH|TD|DL|FRS|RA}}
| image = Sir Winston Churchill - 19086236948.jpg
| alt = Churchill, 67, wearing a suit, standing and holding into the back of a chair
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| birth_place = [[Blenheim, Oxfordshire]], England
| death_date = {{death date and age|1965|1|24|1874|11|30|df=yes}}
| death_place = [[London]], England
| resting_place = [[St Martin's Church, Bladon]], Oxfordshire
| party = [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] {{awrap|(1900–1904, 1924–1964)}}
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* [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]]
}}
| occupation = {{hlist|Historian|[[Winston Churchill as painter|painter]]|politician|soldiermilitary officer|[[Winston Churchill as writer|writer]]}}
| awards = [[List of honours of Winston Churchill|Full list]]
| signature = Winston Churchill signature.svg
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{{Winston Churchill sidebar}}
<!--Basic introduction; name, dates, why he was notable-->
 
'''Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill'''{{efn|The surname is the [[Double-barrelled name#British tradition|double-barrelled]] ''[[Duke of Marlborough (title)|Spencer Churchill]]'' (unhyphenated), but he is known by the surname ''Churchill''. His father dropped the Spencer.{{Sfn|Price|2009|p=12}} }} {{post-nominals|country=GBR|KG|OM|CH|TD|DL|FRS|RA}} (30 November 1874{{snd}} – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldiermilitary officer, and [[Winston Churchill as writer|writer]] who was twice [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom]], from 1940 to 1945 ([[Winston Churchill in the Second World War|during the Second World War]],) and again from 1951 to 1955. Apart from 1922 to 1924, he was a [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Membermember of Parliament]] (MP) from 1900 to 1964 and represented a total of five [[Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom|constituencies]]. Ideologically an adherent to [[economic liberalism]] and [[imperialism]], he was for most of his career a member of the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]], which he led from 1940 to 1955. He was a member of the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]] from 1904 to 1924.
 
<!--Early life and career prior to the Second World War-->
Of mixed English and American parentage, Churchill was born in [[Oxfordshire]] into the wealthy, aristocratic [[Spencer family]]. He joined the [[British Army]] in 1895 and saw action in [[British Raj|British India]], the [[Mahdist War]] and the [[Second Boer War]], gaining fame as a [[war correspondent]] and writing books about his campaigns. Elected a Conservative MP in 1900, he defected to the Liberals in 1904. In [[H. H. Asquith]]'s [[Liberal government, 1905–1915|Liberal government]], Churchill was [[Presidentpresident of the Board of Trade]] and [[Home Secretary]], championing prison reform and workers' social security. As [[First Lord of the Admiralty]] during the First World War, he oversaw the [[Gallipoli campaign]], but after it proved a disaster, was demoted to [[Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster]]. He resigned in November 1915 and joined the [[Royal Scots Fusiliers]] on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] for six months. In 1917, he returned to government under [[David Lloyd George]] and served successively as [[Minister of Munitions]], [[Secretary of State for War]], [[Secretary of State for Air]], and [[Secretary of State for the Colonies]], overseeing the [[Anglo-Irish Treaty]] and [[British foreign policy in the Middle East]]. After two years out of Parliament, he was [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]] in [[Stanley Baldwin]]'s [[Second Baldwin ministry|Conservative government]], returning sterling in 1925 to the [[gold standard]], depressing the UK economy.
 
<!--Later life, the Second World War, and Cold War-->
Out of government during his so-called "[[Winston Churchill's "Wilderness" years, 1929–1939|wilderness years]]" in the 1930s, Churchill took the lead in calling for rearmament to counter the threat of [[militarism]] in [[Nazi Germany]]. At the outbreak of the Second World War he was re-appointed First Lord of the Admiralty. In May 1940, he became prime minister, succeeding [[Neville Chamberlain]]. Churchill formed a [[Churchill war ministry|national government]] and oversaw British involvement in the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] war effort against the [[Axis powers]], resulting in [[End of World War II in Europe|victory in 1945]]. After the Conservatives' defeat in the [[1945 United Kingdom general election|1945 general election]], he became [[Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom)|Leader of the Opposition]]. Amid the developing [[Cold War]] with the [[Soviet Union]], he publicly warned of an "[[Iron Curtain|iron curtain]]" of Soviet influence in Europe and promoted European unity. Between his terms, he wrote [[The Second World War (book series)|several books]] recounting his experience during the war. He was awarded the [[Nobel Prize in Literature]] in 1953. He lost the [[1950 United Kingdom general election|1950 election]] but was returned to office [[1951 United Kingdom general election|in 1951]]. His [[Third Churchill ministry|second term]] was preoccupied with foreign affairs, especially [[Special Relationship|Anglo-American relations]] and preservation of what remained of the [[British Empire]], with India now no longer a part of it. Domestically, his government's completedpriority thewas developmenttheir ofextensive ahousebuilding programme, in which they nuclearwere weaponsuccessful. In declining health, Churchill resigned in 1955, remaining an MP [[1964 United Kingdom general election|until 1964]]. Upon his death in 1965, he was given [[Death and state funeral of Winston Churchill|a state funeral]].
 
<!--Reception and legacy-->
One of the 20th century's most significant figures, Churchill remains popular in the UK and the rest of the [[Anglosphere]]. He is generally viewed as a victorious wartime leader, who defendedplayed an integral role in defending [[liberal democracy]] against the spread of [[fascism]], and as a liberal reformer who spurred the creation of the modern welfare state. However,He recenthas scholarship hassometimes been morecriticised criticalfor ofhis Churchill,imperialism especially with regards toand [[Racial views of Winston Churchill|hiscertain viewscomments on race]], andin hisaddition unwaveringto commitmentsome towartime Britishdecisions imperialism.<ref>{{Citationsuch |last=Brendonas |first=Piersarea |title=Churchillbombing, the Roosevelts and Empire |date=2023 |work=The Cambridge Companion to Winston Churchill |pages=189–207 |editor-last=Packwood |editor-first=Allen |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/cambridge-companion-to-winston-churchill/churchill-the-roosevelts-and-empire/35629CFB5C8B4847126A886BD877890F |access-date=2024-07-11 |series=Cambridge Companions to History |place=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-108-84023-1}}</ref><ref>{{cite thesis |last1=O'Neil |first1=Patrick Michael |date=1993 |title=Winston S. Churchill's philosophy of empire: The mind of the imperialist |url=https://www.proquest.com/openview/5f3a988749132d744fbf749d898eb4cf/1 }}{{pn|date=July 2024}}</ref> Nonetheless,but historians and the British public oftennevertheless rank Churchill as one of the [[Historical rankings of prime ministers of the United Kingdom|greatest British prime ministers in British history]].
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===Childhood and schooling: 1874–1895===
[[File:Jennie Churchill with her sons.jpg|thumb|[[Lady Randolph Churchill|Jennie Spencer Churchill]] with her two sons, [[John Strange Spencer-Churchill|Jack]] (''left'') and Winston (''right'') in 1889]]
Churchill was born on 30 November 1874 at his family's ancestral home, [[Blenheim Palace]] in Oxfordshire.{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=5}} On his father's side, he was a member of the aristocracy as a descendant of [[John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=1|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=3, 5}} His father, [[Lord Randolph Churchill]], representing the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]], had been elected [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] (MP) for [[Woodstock (UK Parliament constituency)|Woodstock]] in February 1874.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=1|2a1=Best|2y=2001|2p=3|3a1=Jenkins|3y=2001|3p=7|4a1=Robbins|4y=2014|4p=2}} His mother, [[Lady Randolph Churchill|Jennie]], was a daughter of [[Leonard Jerome]], an American businessman.{{sfnm|1a1=Best|1y=2001|1p=4|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=5–6|3a1=Addison|3y=2005|3p=7}}
 
In 1876, Churchill's paternal grandfather, [[John Spencer-Churchill, 7th Duke of Marlborough]], was appointed [[Viceroy of Ireland]]. Randolph became his private secretary and the family relocated to [[Dublin]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=1|2a1=Addison|2y=2005|2p=9}} Winston's brother, [[John Strange Spencer-Churchill|Jack]], was born there in 1880.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=2|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=7|3a1=Addison|3y=2005|3p=10}} For much of the 1880s, Randolph and Jennie were effectively estranged,{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=8}} and the brothers cared for by their nanny, [[Elizabeth Everest]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=2–3|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=10|3a1=Reagles|3a2=Larsen|3y=2013|3p=8}} When she died in 1895, Churchill wrote "she had been my dearest and most intimate friend during the whole of the twenty years I had lived".{{sfn|Best|2001|p=6}}
 
Churchill began [[boarding school|boarding]] at [[St George's School, Ascot|St George's]] in [[Ascot, Berkshire]], aged 7, but he was not academic and his behaviour was poor.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=3–5|2a1=Haffner|2y=2003|2p=12|3a1=Addison|3y=2005|3p=10}} In 1884, he transferred to [[Stoke Brunswick School|Brunswick School]] in [[Hove]], where his academic performance improved.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=6–8|2a1=Haffner|2y=2003|2pp=12–13}} In April 1888, aged 13, he passed the entrance exam for [[Harrow School]].{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|pp=17–19}} His father wanted him to prepare for a military career, so his last three years at Harrow were in the army form.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=22|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=19}} After two unsuccessful attempts to gain admittance to the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]], he succeeded.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=32–33, 37|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=20|3a1=Haffner|3y=2003|3p=15}} He was accepted as a [[cadet]] in the [[cavalry]], starting in September 1893.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=37|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=20–21}} His father died in January 1895.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=48–49|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=21|3a1=Haffner|3y=2003|3p=32}}
 
===Cuba, India, and Sudan: 1895–1899===
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In February 1895, Churchill was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the [[4th Queen's Own Hussars]] regiment of the [[British Army]], based at [[Aldershot]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=51|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=21}} Eager to witness military action, he used his mother's influence to get posted to a war zone.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=62|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=28}} In the autumn, he and friend [[Reginald Barnes|Reggie Barnes]], went to observe the [[Cuban War of Independence]] and became involved in skirmishes after joining Spanish troops attempting to suppress independence fighters.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=56, 58–60|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=28–29|3a1=Robbins|3y=2014|3pp=14–15}} Churchill sent reports to the ''[[The Graphic|Daily Graphic]]'' in London.<ref name="HGN">{{Britannica|id=117269|title=Winston Churchill|author=Herbert G. Nicholas}}</ref> He proceeded to New York and wrote to his mother about "what an extraordinary people the Americans are!"{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=57}} With the Hussars, he went to [[Bombay]] in October 1896.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=63|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=22}} Based in [[Bangalore]], he was in India for 19 months, visiting [[Calcutta]] and joining expeditions to [[Hyderabad]] and the [[Military history of the North-West Frontier|North West Frontier]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=63|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=23–24}}
 
In India, Churchill began a self-education project,{{sfnm|1a1=Jenkins|1y=2001|1pp=23–24|2a1=Haffner|2y=2003|2p=19}} reading widely including [[Plato]], [[Edward Gibbon]], [[Charles Darwin]] and [[Thomas Babington Macaulay]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=67–68|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=24–25|3a1=Haffner|3y=2003|3p=19}} The books were sent by his mother, with whom he shared frequent correspondence. To learn about politics, he asked her to send him copies of ''[[The Annual Register]]'', the political almanacalmanack.{{sfn|Roberts|2018|p=52}} In an 1898 letter, he referred to his beliefs, saying: "I do not accept the Christian or any other form of religious belief".{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=92}} Churchill had been [[Baptism|christened]] in the [[Church of England]]{{sfn|Reagles|Larsen|2013|p=8}} but underwent a virulently anti-Christian phase in his youth,{{sfnm|1a1=Addison|1y=1980|1p=29|2a1=Reagles|2a2=Larsen|2y=2013|2p=9}} and as an adult was an agnostic.{{sfnm|1a1=Haffner|1y=2003|1p=32|2a1=Reagles|2a2=Larsen|2y=2013|2p=8}} In another letter to a cousin, he referred to religion as "a delicious narcotic" and expressed a preference for [[Protestantism]] over [[Roman Catholicism]] because he felt it "a step nearer Reason".{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=102}}
 
Interested in parliamentary affairs,{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=26}} he declared himself "a Liberal in all but name", adding he could never endorse the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]]'s support for [[Irish home rule]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=69|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=27}} Instead, he allied himself to the [[Tory democracy]] wing of the Conservatives and on a visit home, gave his first speech for the party's [[Primrose League]] at [[Claverton Down]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=69, 71|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=27}} Mixing reformist and conservative perspectives, he supported the promotion of [[Secular education|secular, non-denominational education]] while opposing [[Women's suffrage in the United Kingdom|women's suffrage]].{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=70}}
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Churchill spoke at Conservative meetings{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=42}} and was selected as one of the party's two candidates for the June [[1899 Oldham by-election]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=103–104|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=45–46|3a1=Haffner|3y=2003|3p=23}} While campaigning, Churchill referred to himself as "a Conservative and a Tory Democrat".{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=104}} Although the seats had been held by the Conservatives, the result was a narrow Liberal victory.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=105|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=47}}
 
Anticipating the outbreak of the [[Second Boer War]] between Britain and the [[Boer republics]], Churchill sailed to South Africa as a journalist for the ''Morning Post''.<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Ridgway |editor1-first=Athelstan |title=Everyman's Encyclopaedia Volume Nine: Maps to Nyasa |date=1950 |publisher=J.M. Dent & Sons Ltd |location=London |page=390 |edition=Third |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.460121/page/n395/mode/2up?q=%22james+nicol+dunn%22 |access-date=11 November 2020}}</ref>{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=105–106|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=50}} In October, he travelled to the conflict zone near [[Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal|Ladysmith]], then besieged by [[Boer]] troops, before heading for [[Colenso, KwaZulu-Natal|Colenso]].{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|pp=107–110}} AfterAt the [[Battle of Chieveley]], his train was derailed by Boer artillery shelling, he was captured as a [[prisoner of war]] (POW) and interned in a [[POW camp]] in [[Pretoria]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=111–113|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=52–53|3a1=Haffner|3y=2003|3p=25}} In December, Churchill escaped and evaded his captors by stowing aboard freight trains and hiding in a mine. He made it to safety in [[Portuguese East Africa]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=115–120|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=55–62}} His escape attracted much publicity.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=121|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=61}}
 
In January 1900, he briefly rejoined the army as a lieutenant in the [[South African Light Horse]] regiment, joining [[Redvers Buller]]'s fight to relieve the [[Siege of Ladysmith]] and take Pretoria.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=121–122|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=61–62}} He was among the first British troops into both places. He and cousin, [[Charles Spencer-Churchill, 9th Duke of Marlborough]], demanded and received the surrender of 52 Boer prison camp guards.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=123–124, 126–129|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=62}} Throughout the war, he publicly chastised anti-Boer prejudices, calling for them to be treated with "generosity and tolerance",{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=125}} and afterwards urged the British to be magnanimous in victory.{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=63}} In July, having resigned his lieutenancy, he returned to Britain. His ''Morning Post'' despatches had been published as ''[[London to Ladysmith via Pretoria]]'' and sold well.{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|pp=128–131}}
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In November 1910, Churchill had to deal with the [[Tonypandy riots]], in which [[coal miners]] in the [[Rhondda]] Valley violently protested against working conditions.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=219|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=198}} The Chief Constable of Glamorgan requested troops to help police quell the rioting. Churchill, learning that the troops were already travelling, allowed them to go as far as [[Swindon]] and [[Cardiff]], but blocked their deployment; he was concerned their use lead to bloodshed. Instead he sent 270 London police, who were not equipped with firearms, to assist.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=219|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=198}} As the riots continued, he offered the protesters an interview with the government's chief industrial arbitrator, which they accepted.{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=220}} Privately, Churchill regarded the mine owners and striking miners as "very unreasonable".{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=221}} ''[[The Times]]'' and other media outlets accused him of being soft on the rioters;{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=199}} in contrast, many in the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]], which was linked to the trade unions, regarded him as too heavy-handed.{{sfn|Rhodes James|1970|p=38}} Churchill incurred the long-term suspicion of the [[labour movement]].<ref name="HGN"/>
 
Asquith called a [[December 1910 United Kingdom general election|general election in December 1910]], and the Liberals were re-elected with Churchill secure in Dundee.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=222|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=190–191, 193}} In January 1911, Churchill became involved in the [[Siege of Sidney Street]]; 3three Latvian burglars had killed police officers and hidden in a house in the [[East End of London]], surrounded by police.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=222|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=194}} Churchill stood with the police though he did not direct their operation.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=224|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=195}} After the house caught fire, he told the fire brigade not to proceed into the house because of the threat posed by the armed men. Afterwards, two of the burglars were found dead.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=224|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=195}} Although he faced criticism for his decision, he statedsaid he "thought it better to let the house burn down rather than spend good British lives in rescuing those ferocious rascals".{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=224}}
 
In March 1911, Churchill introduced the second reading of the [[Coal Mines Act 1911|Coal Mines Bill]]; when implemented, it imposed stricter safety standards.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=226|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=177–178}} He formulated the [[Shops Act 1911|Shops Bill]] to improve working conditions of shop workers; it faced opposition from shop owners and only passed in a much emasculated form.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=226|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=178}} In April, Lloyd George introduced the first health and unemployment insurance legislation, the [[National Insurance Act 1911]], which Churchill had been instrumental in drafting.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=226|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=178}} In May, Clementine gave birth to their 2ndsecond child, [[Randolph Churchill|Randolph]], named after hisWinston's father.{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1p=227|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2p=203}} In response to escalating civil strife in 1911, Churchill sent troops into Liverpool to [[1911 Liverpool general transport strike|quell protesting dockers]] and rallied against [[National Railway strike of 1911|a national railway strike]].{{sfnm|1a1=Gilbert|1y=1991|1pp=230–233|2a1=Jenkins|2y=2001|2pp=200–201}}
 
During the [[Agadir Crisis]] of April 1911, when there was a threat of war between France and Germany, Churchill suggested an alliance with France and Russia to safeguard the independence of Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands to counter possible German expansionism.{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=235}} The Crisis had a profound effect on Churchill and he altered his views about the need for naval expansion.{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=202}}
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====Battle of Britain and the Blitz====
[[File:Churchill CCathedral H 14250.jpg|thumb|Churchill walks through the ruins of [[Coventry Cathedral]], 1941.]]
On 20 August 1940, at the height of the Battle of Britain, Churchill addressed the Commons to outline the situation. In the middle of it, he made a statement that created [[The Few|a famous nickname]] for the RAF fighter pilots involved in the battle:<ref name="The Few">{{cite web |url=http://www.churchill-society-london.org.uk/thefew.html |title=The Few |publisher=The Churchill Society, London |date=20 August 1940 |access-date=30 April 2020 |archive-date=12 March 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050312093906/http://www.churchill-society-london.org.uk/thefew.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="H364:1167">{{cite periodical |url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1940/aug/20/war-situation#column_1167 |title=War Situation – Churchill |magazine=Hansard |date=20 August 1940 |series=5th |volume=364 |page=1167 |publisher=House of Commons |location=Westminster |access-date=30 April 2020 |archive-date=4 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604054801/https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1940/aug/20/war-situation#column_1167 |url-status=live }}</ref>
 
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====Invasions of Sicily and Italy====
[[File:Winston Churchill au théâtre de Carthage, 1943.jpg|thumb|Churchill in the Carthage theatre, near the ancient [[Carthage Amphitheatre]], to address 3,000 British and American troops, June 1943]]
In the autumn of 1942, after Churchill's meeting with Stalin, he was approached by Eisenhower, commanding the [[North African Theater of Operations]], US Army (NATOUSA), and his aides on the subject of where the Western Allies should launch their first strike in Europe. According to General [[Mark W. Clark]], the Americans admitted a cross-Channel operation in the near future was "utterly impossible". As an alternative, Churchill recommended "slit(ting) the soft belly of the Mediterranean" and persuaded them to invade Sicily and then mainland Italy, after they had defeated the Afrika Korps. After the war, Clark still agreed Churchill's analysis was correct, but added that, when the Allies [[Allied invasion of Italy#Salerno landings|landed at Salerno]], they found Italy was "a tough old gut".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/soft-underbelly-fortress-europe/ |title=Were "Soft Underbelly" and "Fortress Europe" Churchill Phrases? |work=The Churchill Project |publisher=Hillsdale College |date=1 April 2016 |access-date=21 May 2020 |archive-date=9 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200609191114/https://winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/soft-underbelly-fortress-europe/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
 
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[[File:Photograph of President Truman giving British Prime Minister Winston Churchill a photograph taken at the 1945 Potsdam... - NARA - 199024.jpg|thumb|Churchill with [[Anthony Eden]], [[Dean Acheson]] and [[Harry Truman]], 5 January 1952]]
Churchill feared a [[H-bomb|global conflagration]] and firmly believed the only way to preserve peace and freedom was friendship and co-operation between Britain and America. He made four official transatlantic visits from January 1952 to July 1954.{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|pp=846–848}} He enjoyed a good relationship with Truman, but difficulties arose over the planned [[European Defence Community]] (EDC), by which Truman hoped to reduce America's military presence in West Germany.{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|pp=847, 855}} Churchill wanted US military support of British interests in Egypt and the Middle East, but while Truman expected British military involvement in [[Korean War|Korea]], he viewed any US commitment to the Middle East as maintaining British imperialism.{{sfn|Charmley|1995|p=255}} The Americans recognised the British Empire was in terminal decline and had welcomed the Attlee government's policy of decolonisation. Churchill believed Britain's position as a world power depended on the empire's continued existence.{{Sfn|Brown|1998|pp=339–340}}
[[File:Haile Selassie Churchill.jpg|thumb|Churchill meeting [[Emperor of Ethiopia|Ethiopian Emperor]] [[Haile Selassie]], October 22, October 1954, one of the UK's African allies in [[World War II]]]]
Churchill had been obliged to recognise [[Colonel Nasser]]'s revolutionary [[government of Egypt]], which [[Egyptian revolution of 1952|took power in 1952]]. Much to Churchill's dismay, agreement was reached in October 1954 on the phased evacuation of British troops from their [[Suez Canal|Suez]] base. Britain agreed to terminate its rule in [[Anglo-Egyptian Sudan]] by 1956, though this was in return for Nasser's abandonment of Egyptian claims over the region.{{sfn|Charmley|1995|pp=261, 277, 285}} Elsewhere, the [[Malayan Emergency]], a guerrilla war fought by Communist fighters against Commonwealth forces, had begun in 1948 and continued until 1960. Churchill's government maintained the military response to the crisis and adopted a similar strategy for the [[Mau Mau Uprising]] in [[British Kenya]] (1952–1960).{{Sfn|Mumford|2012|p=49}}
 
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{{Main|Death and state funeral of Winston Churchill}}
[[File:Churchills Grave.jpg|thumb|right|Churchill's grave at [[St Martin's Church, Bladon]]]]
Churchill suffered his final [[stroke]] on 10 January 1965 and died on 24 January.{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=911}}{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=958}} Like the [[Duke of Wellington]] in 1852 and [[William Gladstone]] in 1898, Churchill was given a state funeral.{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=911}} His coffin lay in state at [[Westminster Hall]] for three days. The funeral ceremony was at [[St Paul's Cathedral]] on 30 January.{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=911}}{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=958}} Afterwards, the coffin was taken by boat along the [[River Thames]] to [[Waterloo Station]] and from there by a special train to the family plot at [[St Martin's Church, Bladon]].{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=912}}{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=958}}
 
Worldwide, numerous memorials have been dedicated to Churchill. His [[Statue of Winston Churchill, Parliament Square|statue in Parliament Square]] was unveiled by his widow Clementine in 1973 and is one of only twelve in the square.{{sfn|Rasor|2000|p=300}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/gandhi-joins-churchill-statues-of-old-enemies-sidebyside-in-parliament-square-10108362.html |last=Dunn |first=James |title=Gandhi statue unveiled in Parliament Square – next to his old enemy Churchill |newspaper=The Independent |date=14 March 2015 |location=London |access-date=16 May 2020 |archive-date=25 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925162800/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/gandhi-joins-churchill-statues-of-old-enemies-sidebyside-in-parliament-square-10108362.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Elsewhere in London, the Cabinet War Rooms have been renamed the [[Churchill War Rooms]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Waterfield |first=Giles |author-link=Giles Waterfield |title=The Churchill Museum: Ministry of sound |journal=Museum Practice |date=Summer 2005 |issue=30 |pages=18–21 |publisher=Museums Association |location=London}}</ref> [[Churchill College, Cambridge]], was established as a national memorial to Churchill. In a 2002 [[BBC]] poll, attracting 447,423 votes, he was voted the [[100 Greatest Britons|greatest Briton of all time]], his nearest rival being [[Isambard Kingdom Brunel]] some 56,000 votes behind.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/2509465.stm |title=Churchill Voted Greatest Briton |work=BBC News |date=24 November 2002 |publisher=BBC |location=London |access-date=16 May 2020 |archive-date=8 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170908213548/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/2509465.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>
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===Political ideology===
{{Toryism |expanded=people}}
{{Conservatism UK|Politicians}}
As a politician, Churchill was perceived by some to have been largely motivated by personal ambition rather than political principle.{{sfn|Rhodes James|1970|p=6}}{{sfn|Addison|1980|pp=23, 25}} During his early career, he was often provocative and argumentative to an unusual degree;{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|pp=121, 245}} and his barbed rhetorical style earned him enemies in parliament.{{sfn|Rhodes James|1970|p=20}}{{sfn|Gilbert|1991|p=168}} On the other hand, he was deemed to be an honest politician who displayed particular loyalty to his family and close friends.{{sfn|Rhodes James|1970|pp=4, 19}} [[Robert Rhodes James]] said he "lacked any capacity for intrigue and was refreshingly innocent and straightforward".{{sfn|Rhodes James|1970|p=53}}
 
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===Imperialism and racial views===
{{see also|Racial views of Winston Churchill}}
[[File:British Empire 1921.png|thumb|left|upright=1.3|The [[British Empire]] at its territorial peak in 1921]]
Churchill was a staunch [[imperialist]] and [[monarchist]], and consistently exhibited a "romanticised view" of the British Empire and reigning monarch, especially during his last term as premier.{{sfn|Addison|1980|p=38}}{{sfn|Ball|2001|p=308}}{{sfn|Jenkins|2001|p=22}} Churchill has been described as a "liberal imperialist"{{sfn|Adams|2011|p=253}} who saw British imperialism as a form of [[altruism]] that benefited its subject peoples.{{sfn|Addison|1980|pp=32, 40–41}} He advocated against black or indigenous self-rule in Africa, Australia, the Caribbean, the Americas and India, believing the British Empire maintained the welfare of those who lived in the colonies.<ref name="CRC"/>
 
According to Addison, Churchill was opposed to immigration from the Commonwealth.{{sfn|Addison|2005|p=233}} Addison makes the point that Churchill opposed [[anti-Semitism]] (as in 1904, when he was critical of the proposed [[Aliens Act 1905|Aliens Bill]]) and argues he would never have tried "to stoke up racial animosity against immigrants, or to persecute minorities".{{sfn|Addison|1980|p=39}} In the 1920s, Churchill supported Zionism but believed that [[communism]] was the product of an [[international Jewish conspiracy]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Churchill |first=Winston |title=Zionism versus Bolshevism: A Struggle for the Soul of the Jewish People |work=The Illustrated Sunday Herald |date=8 February 1920 |page=5}}</ref> Although this belief was not unique among politicians, few had his stature,{{Sfn|Brustein|2003|p=309}} and the article he wrote on the subject was criticised by ''[[The Jewish Chronicle]]''.{{Sfn|Cohen|2013|pp=55–56}}
 
Churchill made disparaging remarks about non-white ethnicities throughout his life. Philip Murphy partly attributes the strength of this vitriol to an "almost childish desire to shock" his inner circle.<ref name="Conversation_Murphy">{{cite web |url=https://theconversation.com/churchill-and-india-imperial-chauvinism-left-a-bitter-legacy-36452 |last1=Murphy |first1=Philip |title=Churchill and India: imperial chauvinism left a bitter legacy |work=The Conversation |date=22 January 2015 |access-date=17 February 2022 |archive-date=17 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220217172211/https://theconversation.com/churchill-and-india-imperial-chauvinism-left-a-bitter-legacy-36452 |url-status=live }}</ref> Churchill's response to the [[Bengal famine of 1943|Bengal famine]] was criticised by contemporaries as slow, a controversy later increased by the publication of private remarks made to [[Secretary for India]] [[Leo Amery]], in which Churchill allegedly said aid would be inadequate because "Indians [were] breeding like rabbits".<ref name="Conversation_Murphy" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Limaye |first1=Yogita |title=Churchill's legacy leaves Indians questioning his hero status |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-53405121 |access-date=17 February 2022 |work=BBC News |date=20 July 2020 |archive-date=17 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220217185350/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-53405121 |url-status=live }}</ref> Philip Murphy says that, following the independence of India in 1947, Churchill adopted a pragmatic stance towards empire, although he continued to use imperial rhetoric. During his second term as prime minister, he was seen as a moderating influence on Britain's suppression of armed insurgencies against in Malaya and Kenya; he argued that ruthless policies contradicted British values and international opinion.<ref name="Conversation_Murphy" />
 
==Cultural depictions==
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* [http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/nra/searches/subjectView.asp?ID=P5659 Locations of correspondence and papers of Churchill] at the UK National Archives.
* {{PM20|FID=pe/003274}}
* {{Art UK bio}}
 
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Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Churchill"
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