We mean to hold our own. I have not become the King’s First
Minister in order to preside over the liquidation of the British
Empire , said the indefatigable Prime Minister of Britain during
World War 11, Winston Churchill, in 1942. But unfortunately, that was what
he was compelled to do as recounted by Peter Clarke in his book titled: The
Last Thousand Days of the British Empire . In a
rave review of the book, Allan Massie surmised that Churchill rightly dominated
the book as he was shown, warts and all, from the drawing on the diaries of
Alan Alanbooke and Sir Alec Cadogan, as infuriating, often boring, sometimes
wandering, arriving at meetings without having read his briefing papers, often
unrealistic in his demands, hell to work with.
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| *Gen Danjuma |
Curiously, the more Churchill’s weaknesses
were exposed, the more splendid he seemed. According to Massie, If at times
Alanbrooke and others wondered how they could win the war with him, they all
knew it would have been impossible without him. To be sure, Churchill,
soldier, writer and politician, was one of Britain ’s
greatest heroes, particularly remembered for his indomitable spirit while
leading Great Britain
