Warlord: Churchill at War: 1874-1945

Warlord: Churchill at War: 1874-1945

by Carlo D ' Este (Author)

Synopsis

Carlo D'Este's startlingly fresh biography examines the life of Winston Churchill through the prism of his military service as both a solider and warlord: the descendent of the first Duke of Marlborough who, despite never having risen above the rank of lieutenant colonel, eventually came at the age of sixty-five to direct Britain's military campaigns in the greatest conflict of the twentieth century. Churchill's childhood ambition was to be a soldier. In 1895, at the age of 21, he was commissioned into the Fourth Queen's Own Hussars. Two years later he saw action on the Northwest Frontier of India, and in 1898 took part in the last cavalry charge of the British Army at the Battle of Omdurman in the Sudan. These early experiences furnished him with crucial understanding soldiers and love of soldiering which lasted for the rest of his life. In 1940, Prime Minister at last, he kept for himself the office of Minister of Defence so there would be no question about who was ultimately responsible for Britain's war effort. Using extensive untapped archival materials, Carlo D'Este tells this extraordinary story as never before. He explores Churchill's strategies in both world wars - the disastrous failures as well as the dazzling triumphs, and casts fresh light on his tumultuous relationships with his generals. Warlord is a masterful, unsparing portrait of one of history's most fascinating and influential leaders doing what he enjoyed most - being a soldier.

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More Information

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 960
Edition: 1
Publisher: Allen Lane
Published: 02 Apr 2009

ISBN 10: 0713997532
ISBN 13: 9780713997538

Media Reviews
Carlo d Este, one of the finest historians of the Second World War, brings to his new book all his skills as a military analyst. Even those who think Churchill s life familiar will find this a wonderfully stimulating study. --Max Hastings
The many biographies of Winston Churchill have tended to paint him from a political perspective. In his new book, military historian Carlo D Este shifts the focus onto Churchill the military leader and how his passion for wartime endeavors led to the improbable British victory in the Allied cause. --History Wire
Winston Churchill s life spanned the last decades of the British Empire, and to read Carlo D Este s enjoyable new biography is to recall the sequence of disasters that befell Britain between the final days of the Victorian era and its brush with extinction in World War II. --Robert Kagan, The New York Times Book Review
Masterful. . . . D Este provides a blow by blow on all of the events of World War II. He is especially good at rendering the devastation Britain faced during the Blitz and the preparations for the Normandy Invasion. --The Chicago Sun-Times
An engaging narrative. . . . Well-researched, balanced, and highly readable. . . . Carlo D Este provides us with a very human look at Churchill s lifelong fascination with soldiering, war, and command . . . with an eye for colorful quotation and telling anecdote. --The Washington Post
Elegantly written, this tour de force belongs in every library addressing the 20th century. . . . D Este is a master analyst of 20th-century military leadership, and this book may be his finest yet. . . . He tells the complex story of a statesman and warrior. --Publishers Weekly (starred review)
D Este astutely lauds Churchill s soldierly courage but questions how Churchill-the-politician acted as, in effect, an operational general. --Booklist (starred review)
Carlo D Este, among our very best military historians, has found in Winston Churchill a subject worthy of his talent. Warlord takes the familiar subject of Churchill s amazing life and makes it glitter anew. --Rick Atkinson
Epic. . . . A briliantly exciting narrative. . . . D Este has given us, finally, the lion not only in winter, but at war: impetuous, brazen, misguided, but indefatigable, indomitable, and magnanimous: the greatest and most energetic generalissimo of the 20th century. --Nigel Hamilton, The Boston Globe
Winston Churchill's life spanned the last decades of the British Empire, and to read Carlo D'Este's enjoyable new biography is to recall the sequence of disasters that befell Britain between the final days of the Victorian era and its brush with extinction in World War II. --Robert Kagan, The New York Times Book Review
Elegantly written, this tour de force belongs in every library addressing the 20th century. . . . D'Este is a master analyst of 20th-century military leadership, and this book may be his finest yet. . . . He tells the complex story of a statesman and warrior. --Publishers Weekly (starred review)
The many biographies of Winston Churchill have tended to paint him from a political perspective. In his new book, military historian Carlo D'Este shifts the focus onto Churchill the military leader and how his passion for wartime endeavors led to the improbable British victory in the Allied cause. --History Wire
D'Este astutely lauds Churchill's soldierly courage but questions how Churchill-the-politician acted as, in effect, an operational general. --Booklist (starred review)
Carlo D'Este, among our very best military historians, has found in Winston Churchill a subject worthy of his talent. Warlord takes the familiar subject of Churchill's amazing life and makes it glitter anew. --Rick Atkinson
Masterful. . . . D'Este provides a blow by blow on all of the events of World War II. He is especially good at rendering the devastation Britain faced during the Blitz and the preparations for the Normandy Invasion. --The Chicago Sun-Times
Epic. . . . A briliantly exciting narrative. . . . D'Este has given us, finally, the lion not only in winter, but at war: impetuous, brazen, misguided, but indefatigable, indomitable, and magnanimous: the greatest and most energetic generalissimo of the 20th century. --Nigel Hamilton, The Boston Globe
Carlo d'Este, one of the finest historians of the Second World War, brings to his new book all his skills as a military analyst. Even those who think Churchill's life familiar will find this a wonderfully stimulating study. --Max Hastings
An engaging narrative. . . . Well-researched, balanced, and highly readable. . . . Carlo D'Este provides us with a very human look at Churchill's lifelong fascination with soldiering, war, and command . . . with an eye for colorful quotation and telling anecdote. --The Washington Post
Author Bio
Carlo D'Este is a retired US Army lieutenant colonel and a distinguished military historian. His first book, Decision in Normandy, established him 'at a stroke as a major military historian' (Max Hastings) and was followed by a series of ground-breaking studies, now recognized as the definitive books on their subjects, including Bitter Victory: the Battle for Sicily 1943 and Fatal Decision: Anzio and the Battle for Rome. He has also written highly acclaimed biographies: Patton: A Genius for War and Eisenhower: Allied Supreme Commander. He lives in Massachusetts.