In anticipation of Winston Churchill III?s speech on February 10th,
I read John Keegan?s brief biography of Winston Churchill (Viking Book,
2002).  Keegan is perhaps the foremost military historian of our
time.  If you have not read his “The Face of Battle” you have
missed a real treat.  He documents warfare over the last 2,000
years by looking at the experiences of average soldier in battle.

His biography of  Churchill is very readable and brief (200
pages), unlike the thousand page tomes written by other
historians.  Since Keegan is a military historian, he emphasizes
Churchill?s military record in the colonial wars and in World War
I.  Keegan notes that these experiences are fundamental for
understanding Churchill?s character and actions. For example, Keegan
notes that ?The bravery that he discovered he could display in
close-quarters combat did much to restore the self-confidence damaged
by his father?s coldness and his schoolboy failure. His physical
courage was remarkable and would help later to underpin the moral
courage that was also a central trait of his character.?

A big surprise for me was Keegan?s claim that early in his
parliamentary career Churchill was a social reformer. He adopted the
attitude of his father called ?Tory democracy.? In fact Keegan claims:
?Churchill?s reputation as a social reformer has now been overlaid by
that of war leader as to be forgotten. His commitment, however, was
genuine and his achievements were considerable.  Had peace
persisted he might now be remembered, if only by political historians,
as a pioneer of Britain?s welfare state.?

Any comments?