Taking A Stand In World War II: Winston Churchill

Following the collapse of France during World War II, the conditions the Allied powers faced became bleaker by the day. The United Kingdom was standing alone in the face of Germany, and under Hitler’s reign, the German “blitzkrieg” or “lightning war,” a tactic involving bombardment, tanks, and ground troops in quick offense proved too much for many countries. Winston Churchill would be the one to place hope in the hearts of the British people, delivering his “Their Finest Hour” speech on the 18th of June, 1940. Churchill utilized persuasive rhetoric whilst appealing to the people's logic and emotions, to raise morale and spirit in the United Kingdom to fight.

Ever since his victory in World War II, Winston Churchill has been considered one of the greatest military and political leaders of all time. He has been remembered for his determination, motivational speeches and wartime leadership. In particular, the success of the evacuation of Dunkirk, and the defeat of Hitler have been remembered as two of his greatest achievements. However, Churchill also made a number of mistakes throughout his career, which have now been mostly forgotten. The best example of this, is the failed Gallipoli campaign, which ended in complete disaster. However in spite of this, Churchill still remains thought of as one of the greatest leaders in history, because of the challenges that he faced throughout his career, and how he responded to them.

The year was 1940; the world’s second great World War was in full swing, with Britain and Germany at the forefront. The fall of Britain’s closest ally, France, stunned the British Empire and threw it into disarray. Through the chaos, Winston Churchill emerged. Churchill would be an inspiring leader who was able to rally the entire nation in times of hardship. Through his leadership, the “British Bulldog” would face the Axis powers and come out victorious, as well as become a public hero for the British people. Yet, immediately after the war, Churchill did not return to the prime minister seat because of a shocking defeat in his re-election, despite his immense reputation he gained from the war. Though lauded by the British population for his prowess as a wartime leader, Churchill’s conservative politics were out of touch with a population ready for post-war relief and led to his defeat in the 1945 election.

In a total war, the home front must be entirely united to continue to fight and fund a war effort, and Churchill appeals to unity and patriotism. He asks the people of Britain to give what Churchill himself will be offering ‘“blood, toil, tears, and sweat”’ (32). If the Prime Minister can give his everything to fight in the war, it encourages the audience to want to participate as well. Churchill continues to appeal to unity through his use of words like ‘we’ and ‘our’ to unite the country with the government as they fight for one cause. By creating a ‘team’, they can effectively rally the audience into action. The public opinion may believe that the Germans are unstoppable, but Winston’s emotionally charged words that with total effort and war from all fronts with the support of God, the feat can be achieved (35). Because of the war, the Prime Minister conveys the necessity for “victory; victory at all costs; victory in spirt of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival” (38-40). By bringing the risk of destruction of the country should they fail, it further persuades the audience to want to give their all so they can win the war. After riling up the crowd with the emotionally charged pathos arguments, Churchill closes with a final remark: ‘“Come then, let us go

Winston Churchill is often proclaimed as the greatest leader in Britain history and one of the world's eminent leaders. He was a charismatic and adventurous, egotistical, visionary and with unconventional ideologies, an enigma of his era. His life spanned for more than two world wars and the rise and fall of the Victorian

During this speech he stated, “No one can make us fight abroad unless we ourselves are willing to do so. No one will attempt to fight us here if we arm ourselves as a great nation should be armed.” He also stated, “Over 100 million people are opposed to war in this country. If democracy means anything to us, that is reason enough to stay out.” This was a very important speech that made people realize to stay out of the pathways of war. This information was stated in Document F. Also is the year of 1941, the President of the United States and the Prime Minister of Great Britain agreed on various common principles in the national policies. They chose to base their hopes for a better future for the world. This was a huge action that showed how we are willing to work with other countries and stay out of war as much as we can now. Document H stated this

and left Britain alone in the time of war, and primed the British people for what was to come. "When we see the originality of malice, the ingenuity of aggression, which our enemy displays, we may certainly prepare ourselves for every kind of novel stratagem and every kind of brutal and treacherous maneuver," (Churchill). Churchill gave his enemy lots of credit. They were, after all, very good at the art of war, deception,

World War II was a period that changed many countries forever after the war ended: Germany was split in two, an iron curtain fell across the continent shortly after the war’s end, and acres of land and millions of people were destroyed and lost in the war. However, many changes happened during the war as well, and this is easily observed in Britain during the beginning of the war, when the country was constantly being bombed and attacked during the Battle of Britain. The Battle of Britain forced British citizens to change their mindset as a society and as a functioning economy in a split second, regardless of whether or not the people were ready for it.

help lead Britain to victory. On the other hand, Hitler was also a very strong leader was

What Winston Churchill was most remembered for was his great speeches he said to all

People make history. When France had fallen to the Nazi Germany it now meant that the British now stood alone and they were not going to give appeasement anytime soon. They selected a new prime minster Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, he was very much against giving into the Germans. For England Churchill was their savior in the war, when the time was difficult and the odds were against England he gave the British their will/ urge to fight back and to not give into the Nazi's. "We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets... We shall never surrender." He was what the British needed. He was one of the greatest speakers and used this to his advantage to persuade the British people to support him and have

First off, Winston Churchill could understand circumstances and deal with them accordingly. For example, he consistently throughout the war remained on his feet and never let things pass by him. Winston Churchill knew he could not win the war on his own, so he made allies with the United States and Russia. Also, throughout the war he never let his guard down and seemed to make right decisions.

Winston Churchill symbolized Britain during World War II. His image, and that of the British people as a whole, was one of defiance in the face of overwhelming adversity. His galvanizing and courageous leadership as Prime Minister of Britain during World War II was the catalyst for the stubborn resistance of the British and the ultimate victory of the Allied forces over Hitler. His speeches stirred the masses and mobilized the British. When everything continued to go wrong, when things could seemingly get no worse, he was there to encourage and give support to the Allied armies. With his inspiring speeches, he motivated the nation of Great

Nevertheless, it was his excellent leadership skills, his instinct for making beneficial wartime decisions, and motivational speeches, which inevitably lead to the success of Great Britain in World War II. Britain and the world free of Hitler and the Nazis looked to Winston Churchill for leadership. Because of his soldier's training, his historical knowledge, and a statesman's beliefs that had filled his mind for a long time, he considered the burden of leadership to be very light. Many still regard him as the greatest British leader of the last century.

It is difficult to examine leadership as a concept without mentioning Winston Churchill. He was at once a brilliant, petty and compassionate man. He is lauded in many texts as one of the greatest leaders of all times for his actions during World War II, and he received awards as the most recognizable person and greatest leader in the twentieth century. The qualities of leadership he displayed though can be widely debated because he was one thing before the public and another to the people closest to him. There is no doubt that without the redoubtable courage of Winston Churchill Strongly leading the charge, Britain, and maybe the world, would not have survived the chaos of World War II. But, he also did do some amount of harm because of his blind self-confidence. The research paper is about the leadership of Churchill, and it looks specifically at his background, capabilities, and then gives conclusions based on his life that give clues as to what leadership actually is.