| | Churchill was disappointed by the failure to control an expansionist Soviet Union toward the end of the war, and watched with mounting concern another totalitarian state rise dominant in Europe. To the amazement of many outside Britain, his party was routed in the 1945 general election and he became Leader of the Opposition. His famous "Iron Curtain" speech at Fulton, Missouri, in 1946 was the opening salvo and warning of the Cold War, unpopular at the time but later considered prophetic. In 1949, he predicted the demise of Communism, "ignited by a spark coming from God knows where, and in a moment the whole system of lies and oppression is on trial for its life." | | Churchill was disappointed by the failure to control an expansionist Soviet Union toward the end of the war, and watched with mounting concern another totalitarian state rise dominant in Europe. To the amazement of many outside Britain, his party was routed in the 1945 general election and he became Leader of the Opposition. His famous "Iron Curtain" speech at Fulton, Missouri, in 1946 was the opening salvo and warning of the Cold War, unpopular at the time but later considered prophetic. In 1949, he predicted the demise of Communism, "ignited by a spark coming from God knows where, and in a moment the whole system of lies and oppression is on trial for its life." |
| − | In 1951 the Conservatives regained an electoral majority and Churchill became prime minister again, but he was disappointed in his effort to achieve a peaceful settlement of cold war antagonisms, and his domestic record was indifferent. He became a Knight of the Garter, acquiring the title "Sir Winston" in 1953. | + | In 1951 the Conservatives regained an electoral majority and Churchill became prime minister again, but he was disappointed in his effort to achieve a peaceful settlement of [[Cold War]] antagonisms, and his domestic record was indifferent. He became a Knight of the Garter, acquiring the title "Sir Winston" in 1953. |
| | + | Suffering from age and poor health, he retired in April 1955, but remained a Member of Parliament for another nine years. He declined a peerage in order to remain in Commons. In 1963 he was declared an Honorary Citizen of the United States by President [[John F. Kennedy]]. He died at age 90 on January 24, 1965,<ref>http://www.churchill.navy.mil/site%20pages/history.aspx</ref> a remarkable longevity suggesting that he was not really the heavy lifelong drinker of [[alcohol]] as some of his contemporaries asserted about him.<ref>https://winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/myth-churchill-alcohol/</ref> |
| − | Suffering from age and poor health, he retired in April 1955, but remained a Member of Parliament for another nine years. He declined a peerage in order to remain in Commons. In 1963 he was declared an Honorary Citizen of the United States by President [[John F. Kennedy]]. He died at age 90 on January 24, 1965. [http://www.churchill.navy.mil/site%20pages/history.aspx]
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| | Churchill was a prolific historian with a lively style and a very wide audience who authored his books under the pen name "Winston S. Churchill." He won the 1953 [[Nobel Prize]] for [[Literature]], bestowed for his numerous books on history, biography and politics. His greatest biography was ''Marlborough'' (4 volumes, 1933–38); his best-known historical work was ''A History of the English-Speaking Peoples'' (4 volumes, 1956-1958). His personal memoirs, ''My Early Life'' (1930), ''The World Crisis'' (5 volumes, 1923–31) and ''The Second World War'' (6 volumes, 1948–53) are readable personal accounts of his Victorian youth and the two world wars. In all, Churchill wrote over 40 titles in over 60 volumes, nearly 1,000 articles and uncounted speeches. Having an immense vocabulary, Churchill is estimated to have used 45,000 to 60,000 different words in his works, which exceeded that of even [[Shakespeare]]. | | Churchill was a prolific historian with a lively style and a very wide audience who authored his books under the pen name "Winston S. Churchill." He won the 1953 [[Nobel Prize]] for [[Literature]], bestowed for his numerous books on history, biography and politics. His greatest biography was ''Marlborough'' (4 volumes, 1933–38); his best-known historical work was ''A History of the English-Speaking Peoples'' (4 volumes, 1956-1958). His personal memoirs, ''My Early Life'' (1930), ''The World Crisis'' (5 volumes, 1923–31) and ''The Second World War'' (6 volumes, 1948–53) are readable personal accounts of his Victorian youth and the two world wars. In all, Churchill wrote over 40 titles in over 60 volumes, nearly 1,000 articles and uncounted speeches. Having an immense vocabulary, Churchill is estimated to have used 45,000 to 60,000 different words in his works, which exceeded that of even [[Shakespeare]]. |