During the Second World War the bombings by Luftwaffe, the German Air force, had unleashed hell on Europe. The Great Britain was at the center stage of this attack. On land as well German force, Panzer Army, had developed their lightning fast battle technique called "Blitzkrieg" to crush the countries like Poland, France in no time. Luftwaffe use to play a major role in Blitzkrieg. When French people couldn’t withstand in front of the German force the neck of the Britain was almost tied. The English Channel was the only obstacle between the German forces and Britain.

People and property were getting burnt by the hands of Germans. Thousands were getting killed brutally. Pyromaniac Germans had set the Britain on flames but Britain never gave up! The Great Britain was banking on one hope. That hope was given to them by one man. He personified the courage, the resilience of the British people. Every one was looking at Sir Winston Churchill with optimism. Churchill was a master of strategy, but his most indispensable talent was his oratory.

Churchill became Prime Minister (and First Lord of the Treasury, etc.) just as Hitler's offensive against Western Europe got under way. On May 13^th 1940 ,he summoned the House of Commons for a vote of confidence. Although he had the support of all political parties, it was appropriate that he state what he had to offer, and announce the policy and aim of His Majesty's new Government:

“I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat....”

“You ask, what is our policy? I will say: It is to wage war, by sea, land, and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us: to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy. You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word: Victory -- victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror; victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival. Let that be realized; no survival for the British Empire ... [nor for what the Empire has stood for, nor] for the urge and impulse of the ages, that mankind will move forward toward its goal. But I take up my task with buoyancy and hope. I feel sure that our cause will not be suffered to fail among men.... let us go forward with our united strength.''

The man who has to start the tenure as PM like this way must be very unlucky. Any other human would have crumbled down under pressure and no would have blamed him/her. Such was the condition then. The confidence of the man was very solid. Sir Winston took up the challenge and rose to the occasion. The Great Britain was fortunate to have him.

Just a few days later Germany's Panzer Army broke through the weak spot left in the Maginot Line near the Ardennes forest. French defenses crumpled quickly and the frontline British troops became trapped against the Sea in an ever-tightening pocket near the Channel ferry port of Dunkirk.

"In the midst of our defeat, glory came to the island people, united and unconquerable; and the tale of the Dunkirk beaches will shine in whatever records are preserved of our affairs.''

Over 330,000 soldiers were evacuated successfully from Dunkirk Harbor and the nearby beaches, with Hitler's armies and air force attacking. At least 1000 ships participated, over a quarter of which were sunk. Even before this evacuation, Britain was the major customer of American arms manufacturers and now also needed to replace some 120,000 vehicles and as many guns that had been abandoned at the beaches. The United States Army had some 500,000 30-gauge rifles manufactured 22 years before in the Great World War, along with over 100 million bullets for them. The U.S. began packing these and numerous other munitions into boxcars even while that splendid armada was rescuing the soldiers at Dunkirk. There was much nay saying that Britain was already intending to sue for peace (as France did in a few weeks), and that if the arms crossed the Atlantic they would soon fall into the hands of the Nazis.

On June 4^th 1940, the last day of the evacuation, H.M. Prime Minister and Minister of Defense made a speech in Parliament. The Luftwaffe had inflicted frightening losses at the beaches, and the British public could have become demoralized, so special tribute was given to the British airmen:

“We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations. But there was a victory inside this deliverance ... It was gained by the Air Force....

“This was a great trial of strength between the British and German Air Forces. Can you conceive a greater objective for Germans in the air than to make evacuation from these beaches impossible, and to sink all these ships which were displayed, almost to the extent of thousands? Could there have been an objective of greater military importance and significance for the whole purpose of the war than this? They tried hard, and they were beaten back; they were frustrated in their task. We got the Army away; and they have paid fourfold for any losses which they have inflicted....

“When we consider how much greater would be our advantage in defending the air above this island against an overseas attack, I must say that I find in these facts a sure basis upon which practical and reassuring thoughts may rest.

"... [but] we shall not be content with a defensive war. We have our duty to our Ally....''

Churchill then unveiled his plan to reconstitute the Expeditionary Force and to ``realize the largest possible potential of offensive effort.'' He closed the speech with a passage which is still recited sixty-five years later:

“Even though large tracts of Europe and many old and famous States have fallen or may fall into the grip of the Gestapo and all the odious apparatus of Nazi rule, we shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight in the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing-grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender,''

This famous quotation is often truncated here, but the continuation clarifies Churchill's unswerving faith:

“and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God's good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the Old.''

Friends some of us give up from the best of the situations. I have seen people pulling out defeat out of the jaws of victory. Some give up even before the beginning of the battle. These people really need to study The British chapter of the Second World War. Standing on the door of the hell, when the whole nation is on fire, if a man has to say above things then even the most cowards will get up and get on to the field with a will to die for the nation. He was tough nut to crack. The mettle of the man was very hard. He infected British army and people with these qualities. The man had courage of steel. More importantly he adhered to his words and his performance was no short of the things he used to deliver in his speeches. The valor was oozing out in his every step.

Well the steel man had another side which was very light hearted. His sense of humor used to make most serious of the men explode in laughter in the worst of the situations.

Ripe plums of humor can be taken from his public and private speeches, his Parliamentary replies ,all revealing a trenchant sharpness of mind, fine appreciation of humor and devastating sense of fun. Perhaps British political scene had experienced the razor edged wit of the man. Sir Winston Churchill's unquenchable and astringent wit, which was at once infectious, puckish and sometimes out-and-out rude can never be forgotten.

Some of his anecdotes are as follows.

· One woman MP, who was noted more for her strong independence of mind than for her beauty, once turned on Churchill after a rather heated exchange:

Mr. Churchill, you're drunk

And you, madam, replied Churchill, are ugly. But I shall be sober tomorrow.

· Mr. Attlee, Leader of the Opposition in 1951, made a bitter attack on Churchill, which was loudly applauded by all sections of the Labour Party. Rising to his feet in the House of Commons, Churchill said: A great deal of his speech was made up of very effective points and quips which gave a great deal of satisfaction to those behind him. We all understand his position: I am their leader, I must follow them.

· On another occasion when Attlee was Prime Minister, he described himself as a humble human being. Winston Churchill in the opposition retorted: 'Our Honorable Prime Minister has the humility of a man who has everything to be humble about.

· Attlee once described Churchill as a Sheep in Lion's skin. Churchill replied that 'it is much more honorable to be a sheep in lion's skin than to be a sheep in sheep's skin'.

· Sir Alan Herbert, M.P., made a provocative maiden speech on the second day of the new Parliament in 1935. Churchill was asked for his comments: 'Call that a maiden speech? It was a brazen hussy of a speech. Never did such a painted lady of a speech parade itself before a modest Parliament!'

· A lady M.P. was once having tea with Churchill in the lobby room of the House of Commons. She wanted to pull Churchill's legs and told him: 'I would love to put poison in your cup of tea'. Churchill replied with a smile: 'If you were my wife, I would have drunk it'.

· Once on a transatlantic tour, Churchill was stopped by a woman who said to him in a gushing voice: 'Doesn't it thrill you, Mr. Churchill, to know that every time you make a speech the hall is packed to overflowing?' 'It is quite flattering,' Winston replied. 'But whenever I feel this way I always remember that, if instead of making a political speech, I was being hanged, the crowd would be twice as big'.

Churchill was a master of epigram. Here are a few flashes from his armory of epigrams:

'Democracy is more vindictive than Cabinets. The wars of peoples will be more terrible than those of kings'.

'The Conservative Party is not a Party, but a conspiracy'.

'Russia is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma'.

'Moral force is, unhappily, no substitute for armed force, but it is a very great reinforcement'.

'Politics is more exciting than war because in war you can get killed only once. In politics you can get killed several times.'

'A true statesman in a parliamentary democracy is one who, without ignoring the clap-trap of democracy, is capable of thinking and acting beyond it'.

For me Sir Winston has given the motto of my life. It keeps me on my toes and motivated. It is something like this

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal what matters is how you continue”

Very simple language is used but the message it gives is great!

Sir Winston Churchill died in January 1965. History will continue to record and rerecord his greatness for generations to come. Even when talking of death his wit was not lacking. On being asked on one of his birthdays if he had any fear of death, he replied: 'I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter'.

President John F. Kennedy summarized Winston S. Churchill's rhetorical grandeur with the statement that "In the dark days and darker nights when England stood alone--and most men save Englishmen despaired of England's life--he mobilized the English language and sent it into battle."

So friends, my question is which modern Indian Leader comes to your mind in comparison with Sir Winston Churchill? If you think Oratory, Yes, there are more than few but their doings were hampered by our system or on some occasions these leaders lost the courage. They say that we will never bow to terrorism but how many strong and courageous steps have been taken to thwart it?

Well, by reading this column/blog, if anyone of us gets inspired and take a leaf out of the book of Sir Churchill for the battle of the life then I would consider that I have achieved what I had intended to. Get up youngsters! Uttishtha bharati! Get up and embrace never say die spirit. We are the future of the world! Let’s make the world a better place!

Forgive the mistakes but do let me know!

A proper critic is always welcome!

You can have his speeches at
http://www.churchill-speeches.com/speech_player/index.htm

You can have his quotes at
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/w/winston_churchill.html

You can have his humorous quotes/epigrams at
http://www.workinghumor.com/quotes/winston_churchill.shtml

Declaration- Sir Winston’s sayings and the immediate references to them are taken from the Internet as they are because I had no other choice. I was neither present at his time nor I am Churchill so I had to depend on some sources.