The Influence of Clementine Churchill (Chapter 17) - The Cambridge Companion to Winston Churchill
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17 - The Influence of Clementine Churchill

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 January 2023

Allen Packwood
Affiliation:
Churchill College, Cambridge
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Summary

The chapter looks at Clementine Churchill’s often neglected position as her husband’s closest advisor and greatest influence. It begins by recounting the attributes she brought to the role, including championing the role of women in wartime and offering personal ‘protection’ to Winston at times of great stress, such as the eve of the D-Day landings. Her role as a British ‘First Lady’ is explored; attending key wartime conferences, editing and rehearsing Churchill’s speeches, and managing high-level international diplomacy with de Gaulle, Roosevelt and Stalin. However, her most important role was in managing Winston, monitoring her husband’s behaviour and restraining him when the need arose. It was a role that absorbed almost all of her energy and time, leaving her little of either for herself or her family.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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References

Further Reading

Fishman, J., My Darling Clementine: The Story of Lady Churchill (London: W. H. Allen, 1963)Google Scholar
Meacham, J., Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship (New York: Random House, 2003)Google Scholar
Purnell, S., First Lady: The Life and Wars of Clementine Churchill (London: Aurum Press, 2015)Google Scholar
Soames, M. (ed.), Speaking for Themselves: The Personal Letters of Winston and Clementine Churchill (London: Doubleday, 1998)Google Scholar
Soames, M., Clementine Churchill, rev. ed. (London: Doubleday, 2002)Google Scholar

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