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Winston S. Churchill: Youth, 1874–1900 (Volume I) (Churchill Biography Book 1) by [Randolph S. Churchill, Sir Martin Gilbert]

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Randolph S. Churchill

Winston S. Churchill: Youth, 1874–1900 (Volume I) (Churchill Biography Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Randolph S. Churchill (Author), Sir Martin Gilbert (Introduction) Format: Kindle Edition

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Book 1 of 8: Winston S. Churchill Biography

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“A milestone, a monument, a magisterial achievement… rightly regarded as the most comprehensive life ever written of any age.”
—Andrew Roberts, historian and author of The Storm of War

“The most scholarly study of Churchill in war and peace ever written.”
—Herbert Mitgang, The New York Times

In the official biography of Sir Winston Churchill, of which this is the first of eight volumes, Randolph Churchill—and later Sir Martin Gilbert, who took up the work following Randolph’s death in 1968—had the full use of Sir Winston’s letters and papers, and also carried out research in many hundreds of private archives and public collections. The form in which the work is cast is summed up in the phrase that Randolph quotes from Lockhart: “He shall be his own biographer.” The subject is presented, as far as possible, through his own words, though never neglecting the words of his contemporaries, both friends and critics.

Volume I, first published in 1966, covers the years from Churchill’s birth in 1874 to his return to England from an American lecture tour, on the day of Queen Victoria’s funeral in 1900, in order to embark on his political career. In the opening pages, the account of his birth is presented through letters of his family. The subject comes on the scene with his own words in a letter to his mother, written when he was seven. His later letters, as a child, as a schoolboy at Harrow, as a cadet at Sandhurst, and as a subaltern in India, show the development of his mind and character, his ambition and awakening interests, which were to merge into a genius of our age.

The narrative surrounding these letters presents facts relevant to Sir Winston and other personalities discussed, and fills in the historical background of the last quarter of the nineteenth century. Here is all the excitement of the beginning of the extraordinary career of the greatest statesman of the twentieth century.

About the Author

RANDOLPH S. CHURCHILL, the only son of Winston Churchill, was born on 28 May 1911. Educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford, he became a widely-read journalist in the 1930s, reporting first-hand on the German elections of 1932 and warning of Hitler’s military ambitions. In the Second World War he served as an intelligence officer at General Headquarters, Middle East, and in the Special Forces in the Western Desert. In 1944 he volunteered to parachute behind enemy lines to serve as a liaison officer with the Yugoslav partisans. For his war services he was awarded the MBE (Military).

Between 1938 and 1961 he edited six volumes of his father’s speeches. His own books include The Rise and Fall of Sir Anthony Eden; The Six Day War, a history of the six-day Arab-Israeli war of 1967, written with his son, Winston; and the first two main and five document volumes of the biography of his father: Youth, 1874–1900 and Young Statesman, 1901–1914. An Honorary Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge, Randolph Churchill died at his home, Stour, East Bergholt, Suffolk, on 6 June 1968.

About the Work

In the official biography of Sir Winston Churchill, his son Randolph—and later Sir Martin Gilbert, who took up the work following Randolph’s death—had the full use of Sir Winston’s letters and papers, and also many hundreds of private archives. The work spans eight volumes, detailing Churchill’s youth and early adventures in South Africa and India, his early career, and his more than fifty years on the world stage. No other statesman of modern times—or indeed of any age—has left such a wealth of personal letters, such a rich store of private and public documentation, such vivid memories in the minds of those who worked closest to him. Through these materials, assembled over the course of more than twenty years, one is able to know Churchill in a way never before possible.

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Winston S. Churchill Biography
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April 4, 2015
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Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00VQG4FI0
Publisher ‏ : ‎ RosettaBooks (April 4, 2015)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ April 4, 2015
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 24413 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 629 pages

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4.4 out of 5

235 global ratings

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Unique biographical style that shows how an ordinary child became extraordinarily ambitious

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 2, 2015

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This biography of Churchill is written by his son and covers several volumes. This first volume covers Churchill's youth.

They style is basically where the author takes excerpts from letters written to or from or about Churchill and fills in explanatory material in between. As a result, you get a good feel of what was written about Churchill from his contemporaries and what he personally felt. It is not a style that everyone will like, but gives us a good feel for the source material that historians generally work with. This is why so many volumes were needed to write his life history.

I was struck by how ordinary of a boy that he was. He didn't really show much potential until after his father died. He also had what was probably a typical childhood of an upper class Briton, where he was sent away to school at a young age and raised by a Nanny. He did not have much interaction with his parents. It was heart rending to see so many letters addressed to his parents begging them to come visit him or even come to major events in his school life.

After his Father's death he changed radically in that his ambitions and talents grew exponentially. He wanted to be a great parliamentarian and thought the path was to obtain glory in war. He effectively used his mother's connections to receive dangerous assignments and used his writing skills to become a war correspondent when he could not get the military assignments he wanted.

This was a fascinating volume and I will continue with the subsequent volumes.

6 people found this helpful

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Don B.

A rare combination, famous, significant, and courageous

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 3, 2017

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WSC was a rare combination, famous, significant, and courageous even in his early years. His fame began with a daring escape from a POW camp, though he had gained some attention as a newspaper war correspondent prior to that. His significance was beginning through his nonfiction books based on his military service and his experiences as a correspondent; this was the beginning of an extensive and important literary output. Of course, as anyone with even a slight knowledge of twentieth century knows, his significance is of the highest order. Churchill's courage is shown through his calm, focused behavior under fire, particularly in the incident of the armored train -- no spoiler here, read the book.
This biography is very detailed, as one might expect from an eight volume work on one man's life. The author of this first volume, Churchill's son Randolf, made extensive use of letters and telegrams to provide primary source documentation of his subject's, and others' thoughts, plans, opinions, activities, related to WSC's life and the times in which he lived.

Some may consider this level of detail a negative aspect as it means the tale does not move along in three-to-five second MTV like jumps from scene to scene. Others, this reviewer included, appreciate the chance to get to know quite well one of the most important men of the 20th century. I look forward to the remaining volumes and deepening my acquaintance with this striking personality.

2 people found this helpful

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Wonderful, once you're used to the manner of presentation

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 29, 2015

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Largely consisting of excerpts from other materials, I found the book off putting at first. The nature of the book is acknowledged from the beginning, so it wasn't a matter of surprise, and other readers may find it endearing from the start.

However, as Churchill the subject gets older, he comes into the voice which all of us know, and it's steady going after that. The interstitial material is fine, and it's interesting to see Winston Churchill's relationships at this young age. Through the author's own contributions and that of his subject and others, the early story of Winston Churchill presents itself in an interesting form. It's more immersive, too, as one becomes accustomed to the manner in which people communicated well over a century ago. Of course, it helps that the subject led a fascinating life from the very beginning. Fans of Downton Abbey will no doubt find interesting parallels here and there.

Churchill's money problems crop up early, and it might be well to keep in mind how much we owe to them, that is, how much more he wrote than he might have if was financially secure. As Churchill's books from this time period are in the public domain, further reading is not expensive and well worth the effort.

One person found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

learned a lot

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 29, 2019

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Churchill is a lifelong hero of mine. I had no idea about his childhood or his difficulties in school. I learned for the first time about family relationships. I red much more than I wanted to of his correspondence with his mother, and really my only complaint was the length of this volume. His courage and apparent talent for landing on his feet is breathtaking. No wonder he sat on the roof while the bombs fell in London. Trying to decide if I can do 1200 pages of the next volume...

One person found this helpful

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Yakov

Plodding

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 4, 2015

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Churchill is such a monumental figure I promised myself to read all seven volumes. I admit, it was hard to get through this first one. Upon reflection, I see it as a necessary preamble to the rest of the story and in spite of what seemed to be a lot of useless plodding it sets the stage. The last part of this volume begins to open the reader's eye to one of the most complex and pivotal minds of the twentieth century. With feet firmly grounded in young Churchill's world I am now ready for the rest - with baited breath!

2 people found this helpful

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BAF

Churchill's ealry years, it seemed to me a miracle that he survived them.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 30, 2015

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Using a lot of letters to and from Churchill, the story of his early life is told in a manner that was quite interesting. I was skeptical that so many letters would be of such great interest and entertaining as well. It took me a while to become comfortable with the literary style of the late 19th century, but I once adjusted, it was a very good read. I always give 4 stars to the books I really enjoy; a 5 star book is a rarity for me to bestow.

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chuckles

what made a great statesman what he was

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 2, 2015

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very interesting look at life in England during the last 20 yrs of the 1800's. although mostly ignored by his upper class parents Churchill decided early to be a success in life and planned and executed a path to attain that goal. Great detail on people and places, from an English point of view. Most enlightening on the financial stress that plagued the Churchill family even though they were of the upper class. Easy to read although you need to be a history enthusiast.

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Joshua Leslie

Great Insight into Churchill's Early Life

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 16, 2020

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The book came in good condition, no markings on pages, and all photos intact. This book is a great insight into Churchill's early life, starting with his father as a politician in Westminster and ending with the death of Queen Victoria. It is remarkable that Churchill lived to 90, considering the illnesses he experienced in his youth and the injuries and the precarious situations he got himself into both as a war correspondent and soldier. The book looks quite thick, but that is mostly because it is filled with letters written to and from Churchill. If you are using the book as a historical reference, you can skip past the various letters scattered throughout the book.

One person found this helpful

Kindle Customer

Illuminating

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on March 11, 2019

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This is a fascinating insight into the formative influences that shaped the Great Man. Clearly, although he is very human, the innate potential for greatness shines through from the earliest. The unique access of the author to family archives, and even more crucially, to their exclusive network of connections, provides numerous examples, not always in the public domain, which furnish the clues to how his character was shaped and developed. We see the beginnings of an illustrious life, very consciously pursued by his own deliberate purpose, rather than by luck (although he had some) it was his vision and determination that carried him along.

Mr. J. Young

Stirling stuff

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 31, 2022

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One of the most entertaining biographies

noddy

Very detailed descriptions of battles fought

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 12, 2019

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Very detailed descriptions of battles fought by the great man, backed up by evidence of many letters. However one battle became very much like another in my mind.

Dr T

Good in parts - enough parts to be worthwhile...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 20, 2015

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Rather old fashioned, so you might want to skim some bits, but a great read in parts

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