Introducing Winston Churchill
In January 2005 it was the fortieth anniversary of the death of Winston Churchill. According to recent reports most children think Churchill is a nodding dog in an advert! So perhaps it is time to straighten this out.
Winston Churchill was born on November 30th 1874 at Blenheim Palace near Woodstock in Oxfordshire. It was the home of his grandfather the 7th Duke of Marlborough.
Over his lifetime, Churchill was an author, soldier, journalist and politician. He also enjoyed painting and won the Nobel Prize for literature. Although he became a great leader, he did not excel at school. However he had an independent nature and was also a risk taker - this and his extraordinary confidence are probably what in fact marked him out as a leader.
In 1900 he first became a politician and then became Prime Minster in May 1940. He led the country during WW2 and victory was always the aim whatever the cost, for he knew without it the consequences would be horrific. He didn't allow Britain to think of defeat and he kept their spirits up with rallying speeches and got everyone to pull together with a unique community spirit. If Churchill hadn't been Prime Minster Britain might be a very different place. Due to his strong and forceful attitude, he was not surprisingly known as the British bulldog!
Winston Churchill was an inspiration as is often viewed as the greatest leader of the twentieth century. He died on the 24th January 1965 and was given a full state funeral in St Paul's Cathedral.
If you are interested in finding out more about Winston Churchill there is the Cabinet War Rooms in London. You can also find out lots of fascinating information by logging on to the Imperial War Museum site – visit www.iwm.org.uk