Winston Churchill - Great Contemporaries

GREAT CONTEMPORARIES

The genesis of Great Contemporaries:
after dictating his essay on Clemenceau,
Churchill revises the typescript for the Strand Magazine

GREAT CONTEMPORARIES

Churchill Reflects on FDR, Hitler, Kipling, Chaplin,
Balfour, and Other Giants of His Age

Winston S. Churchill

Edited by

James W. Muller
with
Paul H. Courtenay and Erica L. Chenoweth

Copyright Estate of Winston S. Churchill, 2012. Editorial matter James W. Muller, 2012.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who wishes to quote brief passages in connection with a review written for inclusion in a magazine, newspaper, broadcast, or online publication.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Churchill, Winston, 18741965.
Great contemporaries : Churchill reflects on FDR, Hitler, Kipling, Chaplin,
Balfour, and other giants of his age / Winston S. Churchill ; edited by James W. Muller with Paul H. Courtenay and Erica L. Chenoweth.
p. cm.
Originally published: London : Butterworth, 1937.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-935191-99-5
EPUB: 9780795349676
Kindle: 9780795349683
1. Biography20th century. 2. Great BritainBiography. 3. EuropeBiography. I. Muller, James W., 1953 II. Title.
D412.6.C5 2012
920.009041dc23 2011049836

Grateful acknowledgment is made to the following for the illustrations used in this book:
From the Typescript of Churchills Clemenceau Essay: Churchill Archives Centre, The Churchill Papers, Churchill College, Cambridge: Chartwell Papers, hereafter referred to as CHAR, 8/282A/3, reproduced with permission of Curtis Brown, London, on behalf of the Estate of Sir Winston Churchill; The Earl of Rosebery as Prime Minister: 0/20/40 Crown copyright, UK Government Art Collection; The Ex-Kaiser: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; George Bernard Shaw: 1934, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; Joseph Chamberlain: 1908, Period Paper; Sir John French: scanned from Winston S. Churchill, Great Contemporaries, 2nd rev. ed. (London: Thornton Butterworth, 1938), facing 79; The Author with John Morley: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), facing 95; Hindenburg with Hitler: 1933, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Bundesarchiv, courtesy of William O. McWorkman; Savinkov with General Kornilov: RIA Novosti; Herbert Henry Asquith: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; Asquiths Letter to Churchill, April 8, 1908 (CHAR 2/34/7): scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), 14243; Lawrence of Arabia: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), facing 155; Augustus Johns Pencil Sketch: National Portrait Gallery, London; Lawrences Inscriptions in The Seven Pillars: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), 163; F. E.: National Portrait Gallery, London; Marshal Foch: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), facing 187; Leon Trotsky: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; Alfonso XIII: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), facing 209; Earl Haig of Bemersyde: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), facing 223; Arthur James Balfour: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), facing 237; The Fhrer: 1935, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Richard Freimark; George Nathaniel Curzon, 1920: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), facing 273; Philip Snowden, Chancellor of the Exchequer: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; Georges Clemenceau in Retirement: photo by Henri Manuel, Paris Bettman/Corbis; His Majesty King George V: scanned from Great Contemporaries (1938), facing 319; Lord Fisher: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division; Charles Stewart Parnell: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Brady-Handy Photograph Collection; Lord Baden-Powell: Mirrorpix; Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Wikimedia Commons; H. G. Wells: The Rare Book and Manuscript Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; The Author with Charlie Chaplin: Bettman/Corbis; Lord Kitchener: 1916, The Illustrated War News, Wikimedia Commons; His Majesty King Edward VIII, as Colonel, Welsh Guards, while Prince of Wales, by George Boucas: 17869 1936 copyright reserved, Estate of George Boucas; Rudyard Kipling, by Thomas Johnson: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. Every effort was made to obtain permission for all illustrations reproduced in this book.

Electronic edition published 2016 by RosettaBooks
Cover design by Alexia Garaventa
Cover image of Winston Churchill and Charlie Chaplin on the steps of Chartwell, 1932, courtesy of the Broadwater Collection
www.RosettaBooks.com

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

INTRODUCTION

EDITORS NOTE ON THIS EDITION

PREFACE

THE EARL OF ROSEBERY

THE EX-KAISER

GEORGE BERNARD SHAW

JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN

SIR JOHN FRENCH

JOHN MORLEY

HINDENBURG

BORIS SAVINKOV

HERBERT HENRY ASQUITH

LAWRENCE OF ARABIA

F. E. FIRST EARL OF BIRKENHEAD

MARSHAL FOCH

LEON TROTSKY, ALIAS BRONSTEIN

ALFONSO XIII

DOUGLAS HAIG

ARTHUR JAMES BALFOUR

HITLER AND HIS CHOICE

GEORGE NATHANIEL CURZON

PHILIP SNOWDEN

CLEMENCEAU

KING GEORGE V

LORD FISHER AND HIS BIOGRAPHER

CHARLES STEWART PARNELL

B.-P.

ROOSEVELT FROM AFAR

ADDITIONAL ESSAYS IN THIS EDITION

H. G. WELLS

CHARLIE CHAPLIN

KITCHENER OF KHARTOUM

KING EDWARD VIII

RUDYARD KIPLING

NOTES

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

FRONTISPIECE: FROM THE TYPESCRIPT OF CHURCHILLS CLEMENCEAU ESSAY

THE EARL OF ROSEBERY AS PRIME MINISTER

THE EX-KAISER

GEORGE BERNARD SHAW

JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN

SIR JOHN FRENCH

THE AUTHOR WITH JOHN MORLEY

HINDENBURG WITH HITLER

SAVINKOV WITH GENERAL KORNILOV

HERBERT HENRY ASQUITH

ASQUITHS LETTER TO CHURCHILL, APRIL 8, 1908

LAWRENCE OF ARABIA

AUGUSTUS JOHNS PENCIL SKETCH

LAWRENCES INSCRIPTIONS IN THE SEVEN PILLARS

F. E.

MARSHAL FOCH

LEON TROTSKY

ALFONSO XIII

EARL HAIG OF BEMERSYDE

ARTHUR JAMES BALFOUR AS FOREIGN SECRETARY

THE FHRER

GEORGE NATHANIEL CURZON, 1920

PHILIP SNOWDEN, CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER

GEORGES CLEMENCEAU IN RETIREMENT

HIS MAJESTY KING GEORGE V

LORD FISHER

CHARLES STEWART PARNELL

LORD BADEN-POWELL

FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT

ADDITIONAL ESSAYS IN THIS EDITION

H. G. WELLS

THE AUTHOR WITH CHARLIE CHAPLIN

LORD KITCHENER

HIS MAJESTY KING EDWARD VIII, AS COLONEL, WELSH GUARDS, WHILE PRINCE OF WALES

RUDYARD KIPLING

* Where possible, this edition reproduces the illustrations that accompanied each essay in the second edition of Great Contemporaries (1938). In cases where that edition indicated their provenance, original sources are reprinted below them in this new edition; current credits for such illustrations are listed on page iv. The alternate illustrations that have been substituted in some cases are marked by an asterisk in this list. Other illustrations added in this edition are also marked by an asterisk. The letter from Asquith and the inscriptions by Lawrence, which appear in the second edition, are not included in the corresponding list in that edition.