>> history book shelf features the country's best known american history writes writers of the past decades talking about their books. you can watch our weekly series every saturday at 4:00 p.m. eastern here on american history v on c-span 3. >> the house will be in order. >> for 40 years, c-span has been providing america unfiltered coverage of the white house,

congress, the supreme court and policy events from washington, d.c. and around the country. created by cabe until 1979, c-span is brought to you by your legal cable or satellite provider. c-span, your unfiltered view of overnment. next, international church him provides his relationship with washington, d.c.. historical itol society held this event, held on the george washington university campus in washington, d.c. >> i'm thinking maybe once the speaker hears my voice, he'll wander -- i know lee had a lot of ground to cover so i don't want to waste too much time.

everyone knows who churchill is, of course. >> who am i, is the question? >> who is lee pollock? he's been a wonderful friend to the historical society and i think the d.c. scholar society in gentle. ee pollock was a trustee and driesor -- advisor to the board for the international churchill society for almost nine years and was executive director for six years before that the tame d of that since, he launched this wonderful center where we're meeting today. the national churchill library and center here in d.c. it opened in october of 2006 and in case you don't know, the -- 2016 and in case you don't know, the international church him society -- do you have any? >> i can get out a magazine.

>> yes, he can get out some progress gabbeda -- gentlemen we call it information. >> dedicated to preserving the thoughts, words, and deeds of sir winston church him and ensuring he remains relevant for future generations. is connection to the capitol -- sexal what lee is here to talk about. >> thank you. the short cut answer is winston churchill.org will tell you everything about both the international churchill society and winston churchill's life and legacy. the national churchill center at george washington university, where we are today is a wonderful venue for scholarship research, education and outreach and we're delighted to harn -- partner with the capital historical society on programs

like this. we look guard to many more cooperations in the future. the story of winston churchill in the united states begins in 1895 when he first set foot on american shores. he was just 20 years old, known primarily as the son of one of britain's greatest families. had been born at landhmbing am palace, the home of his grandfather, the duke of marlboro and came to the united states in 1895 while on his way to cuba. he had secured an assignment to report on the cuban resurrection against san francisco iraq imperial rule. his father was this man, lord randolph churchill, who had died earlier in the year. one of the most prominent political figures of the late victorian age. thought by many to be a future primary, which was a position, unlike his son, he never was able to obtain.

when churchill was in new york, he had his first brush with congress and he spent several ys with a man named burt cochran, a very close mother of church him's jenny, who was, of course, american. cochran was born in ireland in 1854, immigrated to the united states when he was only 17 and son -- soon thrust himself into democratic politics. he was a maverick democrat. was elected to congress four separate times and served in various position from 1897 all the way to 1923. he bulleted heads with taminy hamm. he was continually being elected, defeat. ed and then re-elected. he was considered to be one of the premier if not the premier public speaker in the united states. both theodore roosevelt and senator henry cabot lodge

thought he was the greatest or or in america at the time. there were some skeptics who thought he was just a gaby irishman. we have no video so there's no way to prove that. he was a instant influence on churchill's own developmental speaking skills. churchill said from him, i've earned to hold thousands in -- enthralled. churchill returned to the united states for the second time in 1900, which was his virs visit to warked in those ensuing five years he had begun to make his fame as a war correspondent and soldier in india and sudan and most famously in south africa during the boar wars. he was captured by them, escaped and wrote a series of books and articles about it. towards the end of 1900 he himself was elected to

parliament. he was only 25. most of thea member time until he retired 50 years later. the second visit to washington had a particular purpose. as churchill himself said -- "i come to the united states to pursue period of time, not pleasure. the profit was to come from the series of speeches all around the united states. he folk spok spoke at a dinner in new york. he was introduced by america's most famous author, mark twain. and then went on to meet the governor, theered door

roosevelt. who'd just been elected vice president. that meeting did not go especially well. teddy said of winston churchill -- "although he was not an attractive fello, i was interested in some of the things he had to say. i think they were too similar to like open other. in churchill was in washington, he was hosted by this man, new or chauncey depew from york. churchill wrote to his mother jenny back in london "the senator showed me the capital, introduced me to a great many senators of note and also -- to the president, with whom i was considerably impressed.

we have no record of that president mckinley, who had just been re-elected thought of his young english visitor. he would be dead of an assassin's bullet just nine months later and teddy roosevelt became america's youngest head of state, a distinction he still holds to this day. churchill's second speaking event turned out to be less than a success. he wrote to his mother, a certain amount of informsness started in my tour, together with a chill i got from traveling all those stuffy trains, which brought my temperature up to 102, in which condition i had to give my lecture. the "washington post" reported of that talk "church him ganim baresed whether he began and through his lecture his worlds came in a jerky and hesitating manner. this was certainly not mr. churchill, the great or or we came to know in 1940.

churchill would not return to the united states or washington for almost 29 years but he was hardly idle during those decades. is life was a whirlwind of spectacular success and dramatic failure. his political fortunes soared as he joined the cab net. and finally in 1911 as first lord of the admiralty. as the head of the british royal navy, played a critical role in ensuring that the feet ploo -- three-point was ready at the start of the first world war but to eet rick career came naught with the darr nells campaign in turkey in 19 15. he was not entirely responsible but became the scapegoat and was forced out of government. he spent several grave months on active duty in the trenches of

bell july but soon was back in london in government. first as minister of munition then as secretary of state for war and air and for the colonies and finally for five years beginning in 1924 as chancellor. there's a wonderful port rate of him none other than john singer sergeant. his rhythm with america and its people remained strong and important. he recognized the rise of the united states as an economic, political, and military power and knew that that had changed the world. even as britain struggled to pay for its excessive empire. churchill remained in close contacts with many of its most influential, most public and private citizens. his voluminous books and

articles were widely reeled through the america but still there were frictions. churchill was exasperated by britain's demand for full repayment of its wartime debts to america and for america's desire to build its own fleet that would rival britain'. his frustration with the united states sometimes boiled over, although only in private. after the election of her better hoover in 1928, churchill wrote to his wife clipen tine saying poor old england is slowly but surely being forced into the failed. why can't me, -- americans leave us alone? sure them they might manage their own affairs. she wrote back considering her husband should become foreign exeqhur.

she said you must try to understand a master america and make her like you but all this talk back academic in may 12929 when churchill lost office along with the defeat of the conservative government. he was not to be back in government for a full 10 years. churchill's lack of influence on british policy frustrated him but the silver lining was the opportunity for an extended two-month holiday and speaking tour across the united states in 1929 where he met personality as diverse as william hahn -- randolph herself and interestingly, charlie chaplin in hollywood. the trip to the united states included a brief stopover in washington where he met her better however at the who i say. ominously, the day of that meeting was october 19, 1929, just weeks before the wall street crash, which along with the ensuing depression would

sweep her better however from offers a few years later. church him returned to the united states again in 1931 on another lecture tour, which was marred by a serious automobile accident on new york's fifth avenue. he reached washington in february 1932, this time staying at the british ambassador. on february 12th of that year, he spoke to a large gathering in constitution hall and now the "washington post" reported he was greeted with "prolonged and deafening" applause. the next day chirge church hill saw hoover in the white house and visited the house of representatives. the sessions were briefly suspended to so the members could meet in visitor. the america tour was a success and brought badly needed money into the churchill's compers the american media response was more

guarded. after churchill called for quament working agreement between greats britain and the united states" the "washington post" responded with hostility writing "not too many years ago political and economic union with the yankees would have been repull sitch to british statesmen. now that the tables are turned, mr. churchill is trying to flatter the united states into taking over some of britain's livelts. what contribution has britain to make to the cooperative bond that mr. church him suggests? churchill's years in the political wilderness ended with the outbreak of the second world war in september 1939. nine months later he was prime minister, as the western democracies faced their greatest challenge. over the next year and a half under winston churchill's inspired leadership, the british people survived the evacuation from dunn kirk, won the battle of britain, endured the blitz

and contained the german army in both north africa and in the atlantic. and then the world changed again. winston church him sent if -- spent the first sunday of december 1941 at checkers, his official residence outside of london. his guests included the new ambassador who had just succeeded kennedy. churchill had grown close to both these men, who -- whose reports back to washington were highly valuable to the british cause. at 9:00 p.m., they turned on the radio to listen to the evening news. at the ends of the broadcast, there was a short sentence about a japanese attack in hawaii. the ambassador called the white

house and winston churchill took the phone. mr. president, he said, what's his about japan? it's true, roosevelt replied. they've attacked us at pearl harbor. we're all in the same boat now. churchill later described his feelings that evening, knowing that the alliance with the united states was finally a reality. he wrote, so we have won after awful. after months of locally fighting, britain would live. and then -- then he added, being saturated with emotion, i went to bed and slept in the sleep of the saved and the thankful. the previous year churchill had explain told his son randolph in less eloquent terms how britain would win the war, saying i shall drag the americans. in now with the help of japan, that had finally happened.

the next day church him made plans to travel to washington to begin a joints war e. with president roosevelt. he arrived on the 22nd and lived in the white house for almost a month. time mgs reported "winston churchill has swept in like a breath of fresh air, giving washington added vigor for he comes in a new error." they added this amusing cartoon. in a famous episode one morning, the president had an idea he wanted to discuss with churchill and had himself reeled into the prime minister's bedroom. churchill was emerging from a bapts and his towel fell to the floor. churchill quickly drew himself up and said but sir, the prime minister of great britain has nothing to hide from the president of the united states.

churchill got to know the white house butler alonso fields who later reported the following conversation. fields, he said, in future, if i am will accused of being a teetotaler, i trust you will come to my defense. he replied, prime minister, i will defend you to the last drop. churchill and roosevelt developed a deem bond. they agreed on the a new command structure in what was called the germany-first structure and called for the declaration of the united nations confirming that complete victory other the enemy was essential to life, liberty, independence and freedom. churchill and roosevelt together lit the white house christmas tree on the december 24. they later war shimmed at star cris church in alex alexandra,

sitting in the very pew that had been usinged bill george washington, singing "the battle hymn of the republic," one of church he's hill's faverls. the day after christmas church him addressed a joint session of congress, the first foreign leader to be corded that honor. it was a chance to present himself to an audience, many of whom just a few months before were highly skeptical of american involvement in the war. aide elt's trusted ade -- warned churchill he might receive a tepid performance. you can find online wonderful footage of churchill's speech, which is him at his absolute best. any doubts about churchill's reception were quickly dispeled by the roaring row vacation he received as he was escorted down

the aisle. he quickly won over his listeners by observing -- i cannot help reflecting that if my father had been american and my mother british instead of the other way around, i might have got here on my own. he spoke of bat tolls come and concluded with this colt -- cold of arms. it is not due to us here in the mist liss of the future, still i -- my faith and hope that in the days to come the british and american peoples will, for their own say. , and for the good of all, walk together in majesty, in justice and in peace. churchill flashed his famous v for victory sign as he left the floor, at which point the "washington post" reported,ment fingers spread in the same victory signed were raised in scores of places throughout the chamber." when churchill left washington january 14th after a farewell

dinner with roosevelt and hopkins, the president's parting words to him were trust me to the bitters end. winston churchill knew that this alliance would bring britain and america to ultimate victory. he arrived back in britain on january 17th, welcomed by the british people who saw in him the savior of their nation, indeed, of western civilization itself. while president's roosevelt's parting worlds as bowied churchill's spirits, a progress of the war was hardly encouraging. hong kong fell on christmas day and even more painfully, singapore, the gigralt or of the east was capped february 14, 1942. churchill caug called that the worst czar in british history.

rom ill's african corps was advancing again in egypt and youboats were ravaging alloyed shipping in the atlantic. -- atlantic. churchill return told washington less than six months after his previous visit. this time in june 1942. as he and roosevelt sat together in the oval office, devastating news came of the surrender of 35,000 british troops in libya. silence enveloped the room, broken when roosevelt said "what can we do to help,"? american military assistance in the form of 300 critically needed sherman tanks were ispatched to avid -- aid britain. by the time churchill returned to washington again on may 12

the following year, that relationship, bolstered by the armies of the soviet union, had turn it would tiled of war. axis forces had been swept from north africa and the invasion of italy was imminent. most importantly, planning had begun for a joint allied american crossing of the english channel into the heart of nazi occupied europe the following year. n -- on may 189, 1943 church hill addressed a joint session of congress for the second time. his meticulous preparation was evidence is by the facts he spent 10 hours -- hree days later, churchill lunched at the white house with vice president henry wo --

wallace. churchill explained to wallace that he expected britain and america to dominate the new united nations organization to be created after the war. wallace relied "the notion of angelo americans -- woump offensive to other nations of the world, as well as the united states. nd -- according to wallace churchill continued. hy be apologetic about angelo- american superiority? let us unite the two great angelo saxon civilizations in order to confer this benefit of freedom on the rest of the world. barely a year later, at the democratic convention in 1944, henry wallace was replaced by a little known junior senator from

missouri named harry truman. had wallace remained on the ticket and succeeded franklin roosevelt nine months later, the history of the united states and the cold war might have been very different. as the temper of the war increased, churchill made another visit to washington in september after the quebec conference and feeting -- meeting with the president at hyde park. churchill this time stayed at the white house, where one senior british official reported "the prime minister's sleeping arrangements have now become quite promiscuous. he talks with the president until 2:00 a.m. and consequence -- consequently spends a large part of the day in and out of bed, bathing at unsuitable moments and going up and down the white house corridors in his dressing robe. no wonder eleanor roosevelt found him to be a difficult

houseguest. when roosevelt went to hyde park, leaving churchill alone in the white house, his message to the prime minister was winston, please tweet the -- treat the white house as your own, invite anyone you want at any of my als and do not hesitate to engage my dwriesors at any time you wish. churchill took full advantage. eleanor didn't warm to the british take over of her home after 18 years. interestingly when the diary was plushed after the war, it caned this -- after the war is over, winston, will i think, settle down in the u.s. if that had happened, i would say that winston churchill's home in washington, d.c. would be a top tourist attraction today. churchill did not return to washington for two and a half years, at which point the world

had changed dramatically. germany had been defeated. two atomic bombs had forced japan into surrender un conditionaly. the dynamic was world politics had also changed. america was the dominant partner in the rhythm with britain and the leadership of winston churchill has been decisively denied by the british people in 1945. churchill was relegate told leader to have opposition. clementine, who had home that would her husband would retire at the end of the floor said "the defeat was a blessing in disguise." churchill said, my dear, apt the moment, it seems quite effectively disguised. but as you can imagine, churchill was not someone to slim quietly into retirement. he was determined to return to power and to keep his position

in world airlines and in particular, his shasmture in the united states in november 1945, churchill received a speaking invitation from a small, unknown college in missouri. at the bolts of a tismede invitation was a hand written message which reeled as follows -- this is a fine school in my home state. hope you can do it. i'll introduce you. the handwriting was of the new president, missouri's own harry truman. churchill recognized the attention that would come from sharing a platform with the new leader of the free world and he semied the invitation quickly. he arrived ined united states in january 1946 and spent six weeks in south florida writing what would become his iconic iron curtain supreme -- feature [florida he went back to washington to board the president's private plane so he

and trunal could travel together to fulton. one of the most entertaining moments of the triche occurred at 2:30 a.m. the next morning after a lengthy card game. church hill suddenly put down his poker land and said "if i were to be born again, there is one country in which i would wants to be a citizen, where a man knows he has an unbounded future. press today's name the country, he replied, the u.s.a., although i deplore some of your cumplings. which customs, he was asked? churchill responded, you stop drinking with your meals. by the time the train had arrived in missouri, the president and the former prime minister had formed a bond and churchill's speech was a sensation in the united states and around the world. churchill remained in opposition for five more years following that fulton speech but unlike

his wilderness years in the 1930's, his return to power was not just a dream. during this time, churchill retained his focus on international aaffairs -- affairs and on the importance of angelo-american cooperation in an increasingly dangerous world. this his next visits, 10 days in march in early 1949. this included a white house visit to president truman in which the potential use of american atomic power in the event of russian aggression in europe was discussed. churchill's return to number 10 downing street was finally rewarded in october 1951 just before his 77th birthday when a conservative party won a narrow majority in the house of commons. a few months later in early january 1952 churchill was back in the united states were a series of meetings with trulyen

and his advisors. five of these meetings were held over two weeks, addressing a wide range of world issues. relation with the soviet union and china, turbulence in the middle east. the war in korea and the future of continental europe, which was still suffering from the destruction of the second world war. a highlight of churchill's time was his third address to a joint session of congress january 17th, 1952. his rhetoric did not soar to the heights of his great speech in december 1941. instead, reflecting britain's diminished and changed position in the world, churchill began by saying, "i have not come here to ask you for money to make life easier for us in britain. " but happily, since this was to be his last appearance before congress, he edged on a more inspiring moment.

churchill commented on the many changes in the world since his 1941 visit but noted, "one thing is exactly the same as when i was here first. britain and the united states are working for the same high cause. " churchill added --" bismarck once said that the supreme fact of the 19th century was that britain and america spoke the same language. let us make sure that the supreme fact of the 20th century is that britain and america tread on the same paths. interestingly in congress that day were four future presidents of the united states. congressman john f. kennedy. richard nixon and gerald ford and senator lyndon johnson. if any of you happen to have a photograph of the four of them with winston churchill inscribed, i'd like to have it. when churchill next returned to

washington in january 1953, still as prime minister, the balance of power had shifted. the president-elect was his friend from the second world war, dwight d. eisenhower. churchill sent ike a warm message of congratulations but he privately worried about the new administration, telling his secretary, "i am greatly disturbed. i think this election makes war much more probable." churchill was especially worried of the new secretary of state, the stone face leds john foster dulles. dulles said "it would be most unfortunate for churchill to return to washington because he would cast a spell on american statesmen. after churchill's second meeting with dulles. his secretary reported

"churchill had said some very harsh things about the republican party in general and about dulles in particular. he said he wanted no more to do with dulles, whom he disliked and distruthed -- trusted but dulles remained secretary of statement until prim 1959, just a month before his death. for the remainder of his term as prime minister, churchill was careful not to criticize the united states in public but his ponce of dulles remained unchanged. he described him as "dull, duller, dulles." and while the precise attribution is unclear, church him further reported to have described the secretary of sate as requests a bowl who carries his own china shop around him. ." church him was impacted by a

severe stroke he suffered in june of 1953 but he remained concerned about world affairs and in particular, the new hydrogen bomb, many times more destructive than the ones dropped on hiroshima and nagasaki. churchill saw the death of seph stalin in march 15 -- 1953 and the emergence of collective government in moscow as the opportunity for detente. he propose what would he calmed a meeting amount the summit with the new russian leadership, thus adding another churchill phrase to the academy of diplomacy. was hurchill's influence not appreciated in washington. in december 17953, churchill met eisenhower in bermuda and was shocked when ike described the soviet union as "a woman of the streets." according to churchill the president then added, under her

dress was the same old girl despite a path, perfume or lice. this was clearly not churchill traveled to washington but the american response remained unchanged. churchill told ellis that he might meet with the russians amself, preparatory to meeting which would include the president. that thatd churchill would be dangerous, adding, and illusion of success would be bad and a failure might create the impression that the only alternative was war. churchill left washington for the last time as prime minister on june 29, returning to britain on the queen elizabeth. he lobbied for his own meeting

with the soviet leader in vienna, despite opposition from the united states, but the idea came to not when the soviets refused. perhaps they recognized churchill's waning influence in the united states, who was their real adversary. ath his two-year quest for eating with the soviets having failed, churchill came under pressure from his own party to retire. he celebrated his 80th birthday downing street and continue to hold office until he stepped down in april the following year. a break with protocol, the queen came to his home for his farewell dinner instead of him traveling to buckingham palace. meeting of cabinet his career, he is putting advice

to his colleagues, notwithstanding the strains with the united states, was, never be separated from the americans. it was a sound advice, the truth of which was revealed the following year when his successor, anthony eden, himself in failing health, blundered into the suez crisis. eisenhower and dulles brought an end to the anglo-french adventure, humiliating the british government, and eden retired three years later. churchill's sunset years from his retirement in 1955 to his death 10 years later were a time of gradual decline. old age beset him and he suffered a series of ailments, becoming more depressed with passing years, faced with the decline of britain's power, as

well as his own, he told his private secretary, i have worked hard all my life and i have achieved a great deal, in the end, to have achieved nothing. one highlight of his last years was another visit to washington and a meeting with eisenhower in 1959 when churchill was 84. the president hosted a dinner at the white house whose guests included churchill's friend bernard farouk, the former secretary of state james byrnes, and former american ambassador in london lewis douglas, as well as a future president, lyndon johnson. john fostersited dulles, who was ill with cancer, and george marshall, who churchill admired. marshall had been struck down by a stroke and was unable to speak. ahighlight of the visit was

helicopter flight up to gettysburg where eisenhower owned a farm. they traveled around a golf cart to visit the battlefield. left the airl force base to return to britain, one of the onlookers reported his final words as, farewell to the land of my father, god bless you all, and good night. churchill never returned to washington and made one more visit to the united states in 1961. he was in new york harbor on a yacht when he received a phone call from resident john kennedy, inviting him to visit the white house. churchill was too weak to except in what would have been a memorable encounter.

despite his declining years, churchill's bond with america remained unbroken. 9, 1860ulted on april -- 1963 in a ceremony at the white house rose garden. churchill had been rented honorary citizenship in the united states. his health prevented him from attending. as president kennedy signed the proclamation, he watched from his london home by a satellite-tv. among the guests were some of churchill's oldest friends, including april harriman, who churchill's former daughter-in-law, as well as three sons of frank and roosevelt. a special guest was bernard farouk, who churchill met in 1919. the family was represented by

his grandson who was named winston churchill. wednesday -- churchill's relationship with the kennedys had begun years before. joseph p kennedy had visited churchill in the 1930's. joe kennedy was a controversial multimillionaire who made his fortune in stock market speculation, movies, and some claimed bootlegging during prohibition. the churchill-kennedy connection group when churchill sent kennedy to be ambassador to the court of st. james in 1938. roosevelt relish the chance to tweak the british mind by sending to london and energetic but less than diplomatic politician. and his wife along with their children took london by storm.

beingdest and the one groomed to be the first catholic president was joe junior, who was 23. his brother jack was 21 and still a student at harvard. classes at the london school of economics in 1935 and his time with his family in england exposed him to important world issues that were to be significant in his career. initially sympathetic to appeasement, jack skews gradually evolved. somearvard thesis, with string pulling from joe, was turned into a book entitled, why england slept. inspiratione to an from winston churchill's own collection of speeches titled, while england slept, could not have been more obvious. 20 years later, fitzgerald hisedy, having replaced

brother, became america's first catholicis day only president heard his desire to detente with the soviet union echoed winston churchill. ,ou frontier phrases such as let us never negotiate out of fear but let us never fear to nottiate, as well as, ask what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country, in my mind show churchill inspiration. the proclamation signed by the president that day cited churchill's accomplishments, but it began with a reference to his american roots. where churchill, a son of america, a subject of britain, has been throughout his life a firm friend of the

american people and american nation, then kennedy's own remarks were cast in churchill phrases. he said, in the darkest days and darker nights, when britain english menand most despaired of england's life, winston churchill mobilized the english language and sent it into battle. the president concluded, we need to honor him, but his acceptance honors us more, for no statement or proclamation can enrich his name, the name of winston churchill is already legend. was read byflight his son randolph. i am happy american my blood and the story of my association with your nation goes back nearly 90 years. war, we stoodd in

together, and because of that, the free world stands still. irony in the son of joe kennedy leading a merit because tribute to winston churchill. greetedlarity that had joe kennedy in 1938 when they arrived in london were dissipated by joe's support for appeasement. churchill's to satisfaction, he returned to the united states in 1940, britain was at war and his reputation was tainted. , joe kennedyain's is remembered as a defeatist, if not an outright nazi sympathizer. there was one especially poignant moment in the bose garden that day. two years before, joe kennedy suffered a stroke, leaving him partially paralyzed and ute.

ceremony, ae of the reporter glanced up at a window of the white house. he saw an old man in a wheelchair looking on. it was joe kennedy watching his son on the man whose leadership joe had disdained in london 25 years before. eight months later, winston churchill wept silently as he watched the tv coverage of the assassination and funeral of that president, john f. kennedy. let's and today on a less somber note. frank and roosevelt, churchill's suddenly,iend, died but not surprisingly, in 1945. five days later, churchill addressed the house of commons saying of his meetings with the president, i admired him as a

statesman, a man of affairs and a world leader. us,chill concluded, for their only remains to say, in franklin roosevelt, their died of the greatest american friend we have ever known and the greatest champion of freedom who has ever brought help and comfort from the new world to the old. a campaign was launched in britain to create a memorial to the american president. there were what that over 100 60,000 subscriptions and it was sold out in a few days. the location in grover square was ideal and later joined by one of eisenhower and recently of ronald reagan. years, there was not a similar memorial to churchill in a prominent place in washington. there is a sculpture of him on massachusetts avenue outside the british and the sea, where he stayed on many of his visits.

churchill in this statue strides forward with one foot on american soil and the other on embassy grounds, technically in the united kingdom. the plaque describes this as a symbol of america's -- churchill's anglo-american dissent. tribute toine churchill, but in an out-of-the-way location. few pedestrians go by and cars speed along. sometimes, churchill feels lonely out there. he has many admirers in our country. i am pleased to tell you, a few years ago, our organization was able to donate a bust of churchill to the permanent ,ollection of the u.s. capitol a likeness greeted by the british sculptor. in abust was in veiled

ceremony in statuary hall. eight no more fitting vocation could be found to commemorate winston churchill than in the building that is at the heart of our democracy, where he made his speech in december, 1941. his secretary of state at the time and congressional leaders participated in the oven and someone remarked that was the only thing they agreed on the entire year. a green onsay at since then. you can watch the full video of the ceremony on youtube, it is worth watching. broaderable to get adultery from the who to sing a song including the appropriate one, stand by me, which could be a watchword for the anglo american special relationship that churchill championed. back one you are capitol hill, stop in the area

which is known as freedom of boyer. -- freedom foyer. saying today, by more than 50 years after his death, the words winston is in washington when true in the halls of congress and at the white house, from capitol hill to pennsylvania avenue, here at the churchill library and center at george washington university. thank you. [applause] >> i'm happy to respond to any questions. -- there is a microphone coming. >> our national security briefings. i was told here that winston had

been receiving after the war, he was receiving our national security briefing on a daily basis for a number of years and that occurred up until the kennedy administration. he would have been well-informed when he was prime minister from 1951 through 1955. i am not sure when he was leader of the opposition what he was told. he and truman developed a good relationship from 1945 when truman took office until he retired in 1952. churchill was well-informed, particularly about the use of atomic weapons. his views evolved. a was someone who had been opponent of bolshevism and supported the use of british troops to suppress the russian government in 1920, and had to

make his peace with joseph stalin during the war. in paris,f detente which came to fruition in 1989 cop was an idea churchill championed, and the phrase the summit the one he coined. although he was accused of being a warmonger -- which i think was unfair -- a search for peace was a touchstone of his career and ,t was ironic 30 years later the soviet empire fell. it would be nice if churchill lived to see that day. some of what happened was rooted in his policies of the 1940's and 1950's. a couple of items in the exhibit case that related to your talk. the flag and the calendar from december.

could you talk about those? ofwe have a collection churchill material and memorabilia on display. of that into the shell case is the flag that flew over the united states congress december, 1940 one when churchill made the speech to congress. it is owned by his great grandson who lent it to us for display. i could have taken it out and hung it up, but it is worth god knows how much money. the thing to the left, the square card is a signature item. that is one of a set of 30 cards that are churchill's personal engagement diary for the period of the second world war from 1939 through 1945. there is one month on one side and another month on the other site. and card has november 1941

december 1941. it is a fascinating document. it tells you what he did every day during the war. these cards were lost after the war, taken by someone. steve forbes ended up owning them and donated them to us and we donated them to university. the only record of churchill's day to day activities, it is fascinating to see where he went, who he met, and so forth. george washington university, when we donated the cards, at them digitized. if you go to the website, the originals are digitized. the university sponsored a crowd transcribing exercise, where 300 people transcribed the handwritten entries and there was a system to flag discrepancies. if you go on the website, you

can read these entries day by day, see what churchill was doing. it is an important resource for historians that had disappeared for decades. we are pleased not only that the originals are here, but that the information itself is open to the public. it is worth checking out. >> what is the url? >> if you search national churchill library and center at what washington university, it will pop up. gwuink it is library. .edu/churchill center. do a google search. our website, winston churchill.org, is the best online resource. we have video on their of churchill's speech to congress. it is too bad the house of congress -- house of commons never allowed films. everyone said he was at his best

speaking in the house of commons. he would sometimes give a speech and deliver it later on the bbc or after the war recorded it. everyone says the speeches don't have the punch and the energy. you can imagine the house of commons had a 600 members, but the chamber seat is a smaller number. on an exciting day, when the future of the world was at stake, and churchill makes the speeches, you can imagine the excitement in the house of commons when everyone is crowded together. sadly, we don't have video of that or audio or pictures. there is only one still photograph someone took, i think the norway debate in 1940. he had a spy camera. oftook a few pictures tamerlan speaking during that debate when he was prime minister.

it is fun to see. it gives you a sense of how traumatic -- the recording of churchill speak to -- speech to congress is wonderful. thank you very much. what would churchill say about the global condition today? what would he say about brexit? what would he say about the russians moving into syria and our condition in this country? worldwould find the challenging, as it was in his time. why people areed so interested in churchill, i say facetiously, churchill is and on con -- icon of leadership and the competition in the leadership business today seems to be modest. people look back to him. churchill and brexit is an interesting subject. during the referendum in 2016 and since then, both sides

invoke historical figures. they both invoked churchill. i would say the following. churchill was a proponent after the war of peace interrupt and particularly between the two ancient enemies of germany and france. he was pleased in the late 1940's, that started to happen. thought written should be of europe and not in it. he did not want to join the coal and steel community. if you look at the evidence, you would say, you can never say what someone from the pass would say about the present, but you can look at his writings at the time, he would not have wanted britain to be part of the eu. my counter to that, churchill's view of the world in the 1950's was predicated on his

assumptions about the world, that britain would remain an economically,r politically, and militarily. that britain would be america's principal ally and principal focus and the british empire would continue to be a meaningful thing. all of those -- the likes of those -- that's to have been knocked away. i would make a counter argument, churchill was ably a list. -- a realist. he would have lamented at the assumptions had fallen by the wayside. britain is not a military power. the united states has pivoted to asia. the british military has weakened. a whole series of things. the empire is gone. he might look at those things and say, perhaps britain, with all the frustrations and

bureaucracy that comes with being part of the eu, ab britain would have a stronger voice in within europe as opposed to on the outside. that is my take on it. last surviving child was always being asked, what would your father think? someone would say, i think this is what he would think. she said, i don't know, and how would you? if she was alive today, she would slap my hand for speculating about her father. >> went there significant differences during the war over strategy between roosevelt and churchill with roosevelt disdainful of a lot of churchill's ids? >> i do a talk about churchill and roosevelt.

certainly, when you look at the history of the second world war, as the world went on, the relationship between britain and america changed. britain became the secondary partner in the relationship and in the friendship he had with roosevelt. churchill had a creative and fertile mind about everything, including strategy. there is a debate about what he thought about d-day. there is a terrible movie that .ame out called churchill he is played by brian cox, who is a fine actor. the premise is churchill was opposed to d-day and prayed for its failure. there are some ridiculous scenes where he is on his knees praying. the idea he is opposed to d-day is wrong. he was concerned about it. particularly about his experiences from the first world war, the failure of the amphibious landings.

he came around at the end of it. britain had been the only factor in the war, he would have put it off. britain would not have had the resources to cross the channel anyway. there were infections between churchill and roosevelt -- frictions between churchill and roosevelt and their staff. they were frustrated by churchill's fascination with secondary strategies. churchill went on at length about the soft underbelly of europe and thought the allies could proceed up italy easily into the heart of europe. the italian campaign was a hard slog with brutal fighting. is the most my famous. many of churchill's strategies were ignored. he wanted to invade norway. he wanted to capture island taken by the germans. he had a lot of ideas that were a distraction.

there was friction. whenwere united ultimately operation overlord took place one of the stories is, a couple of weeks before when churchill's enthusiasm had flourished, he wanted to be on one of the ships when they were landing. this appalled his military advisors. if they could not talk him out of it. he was determined. , he would go up to the roof of number 10 downing street in the middle of german air raids, he wanted to see what was happening. he was a brave person. they could not figure out how to talk him out of this. they said there is one person he might listen to. king george the sixth came to seem churchill and churchill still said no. the king wrote him a letter

pleading with him, you are my prime minister and i would like to go to see that day too, but if i can't, why should you? i would be distressed if something happened to you. they had a close bond. the king had cut many prime ministers and churchill was the only one he called by his first name. churchill finally relented. six days later, he was there on hms, across the channel on the normandy bridge was shallow and there was military activity and was photographed. the excitement of war was something that was part of his makeup. the is why people say, when first world war started, he wrote a letter to his wife saying, i am excited and i feel bad that it is -- that i am excited. that is one of the reasons the phrase warmonger was attached to

him. .e thought war was exciting as terrible as more is, it is exciting. especially if you are on the winning side, which he generally was. thank you so much for coming and please come back. [applause] you were a wonderful speaker. appreciate lee and rachel who helped organize this. my colleagues would not let me forget if i did not point out we have these pink slips. you can grab one to talk about the next few talks. the next one is one of our capital fellows, that will be in the cbc. don hawkins will be back at the vfw. kimberling is here. he will talk about the in this space. we will be back here. we look forward to seeing you back. >> thank you.

[applause] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2019] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] this is american history tv, exploring our nation's past every weekend on c-span3. up next, on our series the civil war, chris mackowski discusses the battle of mine run, a small engagement between union forces and confederates here fredericksburg, virginia. the emerginger of civil war blog, which hosted a symposium on forgotten battles. air corpstes, veterans recounting their experiences as fighter pilots in the european theater in world war ii. speakers include an ace fighter pilot and two members of the airman, an african-american unit. at 8:00, lectures in history. colorado college professor

teaches a class on marijuana regulation. features we'll america a documentary telling the story of apollo 12, which blasted off 50 years ago on a november 14, 1969. it was the second mission to land on the moon. ont is what is coming up american history tv. >> it is my honor and privilege to introduce our final speaker, chris mackowski. chief andeditor and cofounder of emerging civil war. he is the editor of the award-winning emerging civil war series and the engaging the civil war series. professor in the school of communication in new york. he also serves as the associate f