Winston Spencer Churchill was the most extraordinary combination of soldier and statesman. Of aristocratic birth, he enlisted as a cavalry officer, saw action at the Battle of Omdurman and, as a civilian, reported the Boer War for the
Manchester Guardian. Captured by the Boers, he escaped dramatically, and the popular appeal of his exploits helped him to gain a Parliamentary seat.
At the outset of the First World War he became First Lord of the Admiralty and acted as the brilliant initiator of the Antwerp and Gallipoli campaigns. These failed to bear fruit and he became a Colonel in the front line on the Western
Front. At the end of the war, his political career followed a chequered path until he received the call to become Prime Minister in May 1940. In this role he proved to be the saviour of his country.
Dr Pelling's biography of the great war leader has been widely acclaimed:
'Never dull, and enlivens the narrative with a touch of wit... shrewd and realistic... it will surely hold the field for a very long time.'
LORD BLAKE, The Sunday Times