Churchill's Empire: The World that Made Him and the World He Made [Hardcover]

Anthony Storr once observed that Churchill's extraordinary power to inspire and lead his nation during its darkest hour was rooted in the "romantic world of fantasy in which he had his true being." It is virtually certain that Churchill's romantic world was predominantly shaped by his imperial vision and conviction of the special, higher destiny of the "English Speaking Peoples."

In "Churchill's Empire: The World that Made Him and the World He Made," Richard Toye (previously the author of a book on the relationship between Lloyd George and Churchill and a Senior Lecturer at the University of Exeter) traces Churchill's involvement with the British Empire from his boyhood during its apogee to his twilight years during its sunset. Much of the story is well-known: the Young Winston waging and reporting on his "jolly little wars against barbarous peoples," the perennial "subaltern of Hussars" that lived beneath the statesman's skin, the prime minister who affirmed that he had not come to power to preside over the liquidation of the British Empire and then went on to do precisely that. However, Toye for the first time subjects the story to sustained analysis and has written a highly readable account that draws on many new sources - diaries, letters, newspaper articles and unpublished papers.

Toye traces how Churchill's attitudes were shaped by the influence of his prominent father, by his headmaster at Harrow, the Rev'd JEC Weldon, by his reading from Macaulay and Gibbon to such now forgotten tomes as Winwood Reade's "The Martyrdom of Man," by popular culture such as music hall jingoism, and by his early experience as a soldier, war correspondent and Colonial Office minister. He follows their evolution and convolutions through the war and into the necessary acceptance that the Empire's days were waning. Churchill accepted this reality but his underlying views remained remarkably constant and true to the Victorian complexity in which they had their original roots.

Toye shows us that Churchill's attitude to empire was complex but complex in a way that was not unusual among his contemporaries. The Victorian Mind (which as Nehru pointed out in the Forties, was what Churchill was predominantly possessed of) could combine broad racism (Churchill recurrently referred to "naked savages" and to such things as "slit eyes and pigtails" and spoke of Indians as "a beastly people with a beastly religion") with a remarkable tolerance towards individuals of any race, provided that they were "civilized" and "fitted for it;" it could promote "wicked and brazen exploitation" on the one hand but also proclaim a higher purpose and a true civilizing mission on the other. Churchill firmly believed in this duty to "think imperially" and to pursue "something higher and more vast than one's own national interests." As it became clear that Britain's ability to uphold this destiny was slipping away, Churchill urged it on the United States to which had passed the baton of the English Speaking Peoples despite doing its best under Roosevelt to hasten the end of the empire. Arguably, the English Speaking Peoples was a more important construct for Churchill than the empire per se, including India, which was to occupy so much of his energy.

"Churchill's Empire" contains many anecdotes and vignettes that I had not come upon in prior reading about Churchill. He informs us for example that WSC and Mark Twain- two of the most quotable wits of all time - actually appeared together on stage in New York in 1900, though neither seems to have risen to his personal best in that exchange. He tells us that Winwood Reade's book quotes a description of a slave ship including the words "never was so much suffering condensed into so small a space" - sound familiar? Then there was the bizarre telegram that Churchill dispatched to Eamon de Valera following the news of Pearl Harbor: "Now is your chance. Now or never. A nation once again." We learn of Churchill's concern about immigration trends in 1954: "public opinion won't tolerate it, " and his observation that the type of regime that some were trying to create in the fledgling European Community was very similar to what Britain had created in India a "function of central control including an external element."

Toye's book might have focused more on the importance of the idea of Empire to Churchill and how it fueled his leadership imagination; and he might have dwelt longer on the consequences to today's world of some of Churchill's actions, inactions and decisions in, for example, Palestine, Iraq and the partitioned sub-continent. Nonetheless, it is a fresh analysis and a well-told story with much to recommend it.

This is not an holistic biography. The author's aim is solely to look at Churchill's influence on matters relating to British imperialism. As such, very little time is spent looking at the particulars of the First World War and when it comes to the Second World War, much might appear to be overlooked, though I think in reality the author is here correcting what has previously been overlooked in other Churchill biographies.

The subtitle of the book, The World That Made Him And the World He Made, is very apt. Toye works in a chronological order, starting with Churchill's schooldays in the late 19th century. Toye shows us the influence that Churchill's old schoolmasters had on him, along with his reading of Gibbon's The Rise and Fall Of The Roman Empire.

From here, we look at Churchill's time in Africa which influenced his own writing of My African Adventure. Throughout the book, the portrait of Churchill that is painted is that of someone who contrary. The book doesn't flinch from including some of the racist language used, which may offend some readers. Certainly, if it were to be read aloud, such a reading would be unbroadcastable, though for the sake of decency, I shan't include any of the offending words here.

In my opinion, the most fascinating sections of the book are those dealing with India. The Churchill we see here is one who cares for the needs of those would call India `home' but he also lacked any confidence in their ability to rule themselves. So we have two threads of racism and care intertwined throughout Churchill's life. Probably the most damning section looks at Churchill's role in the Mau Mau uprising, and I was left thinking had the same thing happened in the 1990s whether or not Churchill might have been pursued and charged with war crimes.

It's a very enlightening book, well-written and really quite accessible. Some of it does seem to get a bit `samey' though I think this is just a consequence of the events being described, rather than the fault of the book's author. I think it's an important read for anyone interested in Churchill or in British imperial history.

Throughout Winston Churchill's long life and career, the British Empire remained front and center in his mind. He was a son of the Empire, a defender of the Empire and a product of the Empire. This book tells the story of Churchill's life from the perspective of his involvement with the Empire as a soldier and politician.

As a young army officer, Churchill served in India. As a newspaper correspondent he spent time in South Africa during the Boer War during which he was taken prisoner. His daring escape made him a British national hero. His reporting on the Cuban rebellion shaped his view of the rebels as well as that of his readers. Upon turning to politics Churchill soon held ministerial positions that involved other members of the Empire, especially his service as First Lord of the Admiralty. His responsibility for sending Anzac forces to the disaster at Gallipoli would remain an irritation in the Antipodes for the rest of his career. During his World War II prime ministership he was in constant negotiations with Dominions leaders, including his friend Jan Smuts of South Africa, Mackenzie King of Canada and John Curtin of Australia. Vowing not to preside over the dissolution of the British Empire, Churchill was in opposition when the crucial issues over independence for India were resolved. Upon return to power in 1951 he did preside over evolving relationships between Britain, the Dominions and colonies.

Through this work author Richard Toye provides the reader with surveys of multiple fields. We learn much about Churchill, but also gain perspectives on the Boer War, the development of South Africa, World Wars I and II, the evolving relations between Britain, Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, the rise of Israel and tensions between the Mother Country and Third World nations pursuing their own destinies. Not an unmitigated paean, it calls Churchill for his shortcomings while crediting his vision and accomplishments. The writing holds the reader's interest from start to finish. For one with a familiarity with Churchill, this is just the work to broaden and deepen understanding of Churchill and his world.