
Churchill
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Narrated by:
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J. Rufus Fears
His friend, colleague, and esteemed political foe Clement Attlee once memorialized Winston Churchill as "the greatest Englishman of our time - I think the greatest citizen of the world of our time." More than a half-century later, Churchill's life remains proof that a single individual can change the course of history for the better and make of life a blessed and noble thing, despite public and private trials too numerous to name.
Who was this extraordinary man who rose up at an hour when freedom and right stood in mortal peril before tyranny and terror to rally the British people? To say with courage, genius, and eloquence, "Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, 'This was their finest hour.'"
Moreover, how did he accomplish this amazing feat? And how was it that this achievement was just a single part of a long and fruitful life in a stunning array of endeavors?
In these 12 inspiring lectures, Professor Fears presents a well-balanced portrait of Churchill that does not whitewash his flaws. Yet he also draws on the most recent historical scholarship and material from Churchill's writings and speeches to make the case that Churchill belongs with Pericles of Athens and Abraham Lincoln as one of the greatest statesmen in the history of democracy.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
©2001 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2001 The Great CoursesListeners also enjoyed...




















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loved it!
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wonderful!
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Churchill-a truly great man
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I understand how the English electorate did not appreciate Sir Winston, all of the time. I suspect he was even reviled by the ANZACs, understandably so. I did not know about his children. I expect he was larger than life to them. I knew he was Minister of The Admiralty, but, I did not know he was an Army officer, at the front, for the last year of the war. The professional British Army is exceptionally fluid in their requirements, if need be.
I knew he painted, but not as well as he did. I knew he wrote about English history, I did not know he was so prolific. I got through the first volume of his 4 volume set(The Birth of Britain: A History of the English Speaking Peoples, Volume I), on Audible. If you are not acquainted with the first 200 or 300 years of English royalty, this will be tough.
If you have a hard time with alcohol, you may have some questions. For example, when does one start drinking and when does one stop? The answer, when you wake up, go to sleep or exhaust your supply. Also, if your are captured by enemy forces. Suffice to say, Sir Winston does not appear to take sobriety to the extreme. In "Hero Of The Empire", Sir Winston is not the only man going to South Africa with luggage laden with wine and whiskey. A years supply of alcohol was as much required as good socks.
Overall I enjoyed the listen. But, be advised, there is one thing you should consider, the author and narrator, Dr. Fears. He is lively, never monotone and he will keep your attention. And he sounds a lot like Jerry Seinfeld.
If Walter Mitty were English, he drank a lot.
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Great overview of Churchill's Life
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Excellent!!
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Excellent Course
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Churchill the great
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Fears starts the lecture by giving us a history of Churchill's ancestors, then he proceeds to provide for us not just the facts of Churchill's life, but how his character was formed, how it emerged, and how Churchill through both successes and failures demonstrated that he was a champion of liberty not just for the people of England but for the people of the world. I think Fears does a good job supporting his argument, even going so far as to then take the contrary position, to see if that position could be proved, the Churchill was a failure.
The lectures are slightly dated, and new history has come to light. For example, at the time the lectures were written, the U.K. was part of the European Union. Fears says that Churchill would have liked to have seen the UK as part of that union, what would he have thought about the UK stepping back out of the union?
It would've been interesting to hear Professor Fears explore the hard and tragic decision Churchill made, to attack the French fleet in the Mediterranean, to keep it from falling into the hands of the Germans.
Also to consider the question of whether the British knew that Coventry was going to be bombed and let it happen in order to keep the Germans from knowing that the Allies had access to the Germans code.
Fears is a very good lecturer, if not an outstanding one, but I do believe this great course is worth enjoying. I thank professor Fears for championing Churchill as it historical figure worth knowing about, A person from home we can learn lessons that we can apply to our own lives. And two of those great lessons are: "Stand up and fight for what you believe in" and "Never give up."
Churchill, champion of liberty
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Any additional comments?
I really didn't know much about Churchill, and I learned a lot from this course. The author traces Churchill's family history to set the stage for Churchill's ascent to various positions of power, his thoughts and his decisions. His research is thorough. A reader with more knowledge than I about Churchill might be turned off bythe professor's "man crush" on Churchill. Churchill can do no wrong in this course (except exhibit a poor political antenna). His critics and political opponents can do no right and suffer from an absence of character. Seems unlikely that history is this one-sided. I'll leave the course with an appreciation of not only Churchill the statesman and war time leader, but also Churchill the author, the artist, the business man and the family man. I'll have to listen elsewhere if I want a less biased perspective of his opponents and a view of Churchill from some of his critics.Churchill's Biggest Fan
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