Sunday 17 October 2010

World War 2 and Winston Churchill

I believe in the 20th century there has never been a more important politician than Winston Churchill. He helped get England out of a mess durig WW 2, and was a strategic politican. During WW 2, he instilled in the British people a sense of opitmism and hope.He helped  the countries anima during difficult times.

He's definitely one of my favorite people in History, but to be honest, there was a time I didn't know much about Winston Churchill. I learned more about him more when one of the tourists I guided when I work as a tour guide was a big World War 2 fanatic. I was giving him a tour of London, but I felt he was giving me the tour, because he knew so much about WW 2. He floored me with his in depth knowledge and passion about anything that has to do with World War 2. That said, we stopped at the Cabinet War Museums one afternoon and had a pot of tea at the canteen discuss what we saw.

The Cabinert War Museum is located at the very famous address 20 Downing Street, where Churchill conducted the war. It was fascinating to see so many artefacts, and the actual room where he slept, ate and made his calls to President Roosevelt.


Cabinet War Museum

The British government, fearful of aerial warfare, built a subterranean safe house for Churchill and his Cabinet to use during World War II. The Cabinet War Rooms, as they came to be known, were constructed in the basement of the Treasury building in Whitehall, near to Parliament and Number 10 Downing Street. 10 feet underground, the War Rooms were reinforced with a layer of concrete one to three metres thick. The underground lair consisted of the Cabinet Room, where Churchill’s Cabinet met; the Map Room, from where the war effort was directed; and The Churchill Suite, which consisted of nine rooms for the personal use of Churchill and his wife ‘Clemmie’. The complex, which can be visited today, covers 3 acres and incorporates a canteen, a hospital, a shooting range and the Prime Minister’s Lavatory, from which Churchill could secretly contact President Roosevelt at the White House.


It is said that it was inside the Map Room that Churchill devised most of his strategies.



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Our Finest Hour


On June 18, 1940 Churchill delivered a famous speech to the House of Commons in Parliament.He will always be remembered for speaking against fascism and standing for democracy. He was also very famous for his Quotes.  In spite of his speech impediments he was a compelling and inspiratinoal orator, and to this day is still admired for his rhetorics. He held many important ranks and won the Nobel Prize for Literature.His famous speech " Never give in-Never, never, never, never in nothing great or small, large, or petty, except in convictions of honor and good sense, still to this day, inspires hope and passion in those young and old. I love Winston Churchill, and can't wait to read his books.


For more information: Cabinet War Rooms






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