On August 15, 1908, British newspapers announced their forthcoming marriage on the front pages. famous politician Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill and Maid Clementine Ogilvie Hozier. The upper world was skeptical about this news. Everyone predicted a quick divorce, since, according to the general opinion, the groom was clearly not suitable for family life. But heaven wanted otherwise. The young managed to build one of the most famous marriages in the world, having lived in love and fidelity for fifty-seven years.
The future Baroness Clementine Churchill was born on April 1, 1885 in a poor but very noble family of a retired British army officer G.M. Hozier and his wife, Lady Blanche Ogilvie. Her childhood was not joyful, the reason for this was the problems that interfered with the happiness of her parents.
The fact is that rumor attributed many love affairs to her mother, and evil tongues even claimed that Colonel Hozier was not the real father of her children. So it was or not, it is not known, but unable to withstand the pangs of jealousy, he divorced his wife and officially abandoned the children, leaving old family without a livelihood.
Of course, he also received a severe moral injury. eldest daughter, the future wife of English Prime Minister Clementine Churchill. The memory of this did not leave her for the rest of her life. Having received an excellent education in childhood and being fluent in several foreign languages, she, the heiress of an ancient aristocratic family, was forced to give French lessons for a piece of bread.
The first meeting of Clementine with her future husband took place in 1908 at a party with her aunt and, undoubtedly, was nothing more than a providence of God, since both he and she were among the guests quite by accident, having completely different plans for that evening. But everything turned out just the way the heavens wanted.
The news of the wedding surprised many. It should be noted that Clementine, despite her poverty, was a very choosy bride and, at her twenty-three years old, managed to refuse three enviable seekers of her hand. As for the groom, it was said that in life he was only interested in politics, well, perhaps, whiskey, Havana cigars, horses and roulette. It is unlikely that with such inclinations one can expect anything worthwhile in the future family life.
The marriage took place in September 1908 in London at St. Margaret's Church. It became a real event in social life and was widely covered in the press. In addition to the usual information in such cases, containing a list of high-ranking guests and details of the ceremony, all the newspapers noted the extraordinary charm of the bride, dressed in a white satin dress with a flowing veil and adorned with jewels (a gift from the groom). The bride and groom, dressed in the latest fashion of that time, were not ignored either.
It should be noted that at first the young husband did not deceive the general bad forecasts. It is known that spending time free from politics in a casino, he a short time managed to lose several times and return again own state. In addition, despite his addiction to alcohol, he learned to fly an airplane and wrote several books. To top it off, he turned out to be an incredible gourmet, capable of munching on kilo-sized meals and sitting for hours wrapped in cigar smoke. With all this, against her will, the charming Clementine Churchill faced, whose photo of those years is presented at the beginning of the article.
But the marriage did not break up. The fact is that she was not only beautiful, but also an intelligent woman. Long before the wedding, there was a rumor about her as an unusually strict and reasonable girl, capable of soberly and balancedly assessing problems. In marriage, these qualities were manifested in their entirety.
She did not try to remake her husband, and even more so somehow put pressure on him, but unconditionally accepted what fate sent her. She achieved her goal exclusively with tenderness and affection (learn, young brides). It took effect. Over time, Clementine became an indispensable friend and ally of Winston, who in her presence turned from a stubborn and uncompromising politician into a meek young man. At the same time, she managed to adapt herself in everything to him.
For example, one of his features was the inability and unwillingness to listen to the interlocutor. This deficiency developed so much that at times Winston physically ceased to hear the one with whom he communicated. The wise woman found great way out from the position: do not want to listen - read, and she bombarded him with her messages.
Later, one thousand seven hundred of them were published by daughter Marie, the last of all the children that Churchill gave her husband Clementine. Biography - a book containing many interesting facts from the life of the mother, saw the light after her death.
From the memoirs of people close to them, it is known that Clementine Churchill, remaining in the shadows, always knew how to be there when her husband needed it. For many years spent together, their spiritual union invariably strengthened, despite all the hardships of life that had to be endured, and there were many of them.
Even being on the verge of ruin as a result of certain crises, the spouses did not question their marriage union. Surprisingly, very windy in former years Winston, having become a husband, completely abandoned his former habits and never cheated on his wife, who paid him mutual fidelity. In his memoirs, written at the end of his life, he frankly said that of all the luck that fate so generously bestowed on him, the union with Clementine was undoubtedly the main one.
They had five children: son Randolph and daughters Diana, Sarah, Mary, and Marigold, who died at the age of three. By the way, it was she who was Winston's favorite child, and her death caused him a deep moral trauma, which required great mental strength to overcome.
Since the beginning of World War II, Clementine Churchill headed the Red Cross Fund for Aid to Russia, which she created, which provided invaluable assistance to our country. Thanks to her, eight thousand pounds sterling was collected, which was used to purchase and send food, medicine, clothes and invalid prostheses to Moscow.
In the spring of 1945, Clementine visited the USSR, where she celebrated Victory Day. Having visited a number of cities, among which were Leningrad, Odessa, Stalingrad, Rostov-on-Don and Yalta, she, while in Moscow, read out on the radio an address from her husband Winston Churchill to our people. For outstanding services to the Soviet Union, Stalin awarded her the Order of the Red Banner of Labor and presented her with a gold ring adorned with a large diamond.
Clementine Churchill spent a month and a half in the USSR that year. It is very likely that, in addition to personal interest in the country to which she provided assistance, the reason for such a long journey was her husband's instruction to see as much as possible and, upon returning, to retell his impressions to him.
This, of course, was not about espionage - others were engaged in this, but the subjective opinion that Clementine could make was important to him. subsequently wrote and published a six-volume work on the history of the war, and it is likely that, in order to avoid mistakes, he instructed his wife to personally see and describe to him the consequences of the world massacre where they were most palpable.
It is known that, being an unusually witty man, Churchill became the author of many expressions and witticisms that became winged in his homeland and did not sink into oblivion due to the fact that Clementine saved them in her notes and collected by her, today they have found independent life and are often used by people who are not even aware of their authorship.
She willingly shared her art of creating long and lasting marital relationships with young women who were just about to build a family. For many of them, Clementine Churchill was the undisputed authority on this issue. "How not to get bored with a husband for half a century" - this was the theme of her repeated speeches to various female audiences, in particular to students of the famous Oxford University. In them, the thought of the perniciousness of attempts to impose one's opinion on a husband was always a common thread, but at the same time, recommendations were given on how to lead him with patience and gentleness to the realization of his own wrong.
After the death of her husband, which followed on January 24, 1965, Clementine Churchill, whose biography throughout her life is associated with the highest state policy, was awarded the honor of becoming a member and the title of a life peer with the title of Baroness Spencer-Churchill-Chartwell. She completed her amazing life in 1977, at the age of ninety-two.
Having outlived her husband by twelve years, last years she devoted her life to publishing memoirs, in which she described long haul passed by them together. She often repeated that life had lost all meaning for her, and she wanted to get to her Winston as soon as possible. After death last will, which was expressed by Clementine Churchill, was performed - she was buried in the Woodstock cemetery in Oxfordshire next to her husband. There they found the last refuge and their children.
Winston Churchill and Clementine Hozier lived together for 57 years. They were the perfect couple. The secret of their marital happiness is simple. "Never force your husband to do THIS!" - once opened family secret Clementine.
13:21 13.05.2015
He was not ideal husband. First, he constantly grumbled when he returned from work. Secondly, he smoked endlessly, not releasing a cigar from his fleshy lips. He smoked at the table, in the car, on the go and even in the bedroom. He was distracted and dropped ashes everywhere: on carpets, antique furniture, on his prominent belly - falling asleep with an outstanding cigar, he burned through shirts and trousers.
Too perfect for men
Clementine Ogilvie Hozier was born into an aristocratic London family on April 1, 1885.
She was distinguished by amazing restraint and not girlishly serious disposition, she was diligent, she never was impudent to teachers, she did not idle talk. Among her peers, she stood out for her courtesy, obeyed her parents and always kept her word. In addition, Clem had stunning beauty, which for some reason she never used.
Clementine was too perfect to be loved, and therefore she was lonely. However, the guardians of morality were able to find stains on her crystal clear reputation.
Classmates whispered behind her back that Sir Henry Hozier was not her father at all. Say, her mother, the frivolous Lady Henrietta, gave birth to a daughter from one of her lovers. Clementine pretended not to hear, but her treacherous blush betrayed her girlish secrets.
After the Sorbonne, while her prosperous peers fluttered from party to party, she plowed like hell, giving lessons.
The irrepressible appetites of Lady Henrietta had a disgusting effect on the budget of the Hozier family, and therefore their noble daughter was forced to earn French lessons. However, she did not grumble about her fate, she did not complain about her parents - perhaps that is why fortune had mercy on the girl, giving her a meeting with ... Mr. Churchill.
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Strange cavalier
Surprisingly, it is a fact: the same Churchill, known as an unsurpassed orator and author of immortal aphorisms, a brilliant politician and statesman, in secular life was clumsy and stingy with words.
By the time he met Clementine Hozier, 29-year-old Winston had already been rejected by actress Mabel Love, with whom he was in love with no memory; proud beauty Pamela Plowden, with whom he even managed to witness the engagement; the heiress of the tanker empire, Muriel Wilson, who answered him with a decisive refusal; as well as the American Ethel Barrymore, known for her tough temper.
None of the secular beauties saw any special prospects in this boring young politician: she doesn’t know how to care, she doesn’t talk about love, she doesn’t show perseverance and always mumbles about some kind of party subventions. “No, this rokhla should not be a worthy husband or a promising politician!” the women sighed, not realizing how fatally wrong they were.
Everyone failed, except for one - the one who, behind her baggy appearance, managed to discern his passionate nature. Clementine met Winston at a social reception. She was introduced to Churchill as an aspiring politician, a man of extraordinary intelligence and heir to the noble family of the Dukes of Marlborough. She held out her hand - he kissed him, was silent for a while, and, embarrassedly pulling his head into his shoulders, stepped back deep into the hall. All evening he looked at her from his hiding place and finally dared to ask her to dance. Winston stood up abruptly, strode over to Clementine and, as soon as she smiled reassuringly, turned abruptly and hurriedly fled to his secluded corner.
“He acted so strangely,” Clementine later recalled. - He never asked me to dance, although the other gentlemen were much more agile. I have never met such shy young people before. Then I thought that being so constrained for politician just indecent…”
Four years passed before they met again. This happened in March 1908. At a gala dinner, where the most powerful people, Winston Churchill (already undersecretary for the colonies) did not want to go. But loyal secretary Eddie Marsh persuaded the chief to spend a couple of hours on small talk - solely for the purpose of getting to know the voters.
He reluctantly gave in. Came. He was formally led into the hall. Seated. He flopped down on a chair, turned the knife and fork in his hands, then lazily turned his head ... and met the eyes of Clementine - the very girl whom he once never dared to invite to the dance. Winston blushed. He muttered something unintelligible and fell silent. For a long time. When the silence became indecent, she had to speak for herself. About weather? - No, he is silent. About the latest fashion? - Sniffles and sluggishly assents. About politics? - Finally! He instantly changed: his haggard back straightened, his eyes shone feverishly, his speech became bright and contagious - at that moment he was beautiful.
“It seems that I fell in love,” Clementine will later say to her sister, and she will immediately believe her.
“Success is the ability to move from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm,” he will later declare to all of humanity, and for some reason it will not argue with him either.
Winston was more agile
Six months later, he invited her to Blenheim Palace, the family estate of the Dukes of Marlborough. Everyone knew for sure: Winston had called Clementine to propose. For two days he took the girl around the well-groomed estate, talking with inspiration about politics and admiring nature. He talked about anything but the most important things. In the end, the indecisive Winston was so exhausted that he hid in bed, as in a lair, and refused to come out even for tea. But the Duke of Marlborough still convinced his nephew to confess everything to Clementine. "I'm afraid you won't get that opportunity again," he reasoned.
Winston obeyed. He took Clementine by the hand and ... silently led her for a walk around the neighborhood of Blenheim Palace. Again - fine weather, crappy politics, ancient history... But then, like in a movie, the sky suddenly darkened, and a terrible thunderstorm broke out.
They took refuge in the temple of Diana - a small stone gazebo located on a hill near the lake. The storm has passed. Five minutes have passed. Winston was silent. Ten is silence. Half an hour later Clem got up, was about to leave - but suddenly she saw a huge beetle slowly dragging itself along the railing. If this beetle crawls to the crack and Winston never proposes to me, then he will never propose to me, she thought. Winston was quicker, ahead of the beetle by only a couple of minutes ...
“I got married in September 1908 and have lived happily ever since,” Winston Churchill would later write in his memoirs, and this would be the purest truth.
"Power is a drug"
They lived together for 57 years. Clementine was the perfect wife. Winston made a career, wrote books, saved the country from war, made fiery speeches, spent nights in casinos, drank excessively, smoked (the whole world remembers his famous phrase: “Five or six cigars a day, three or four glasses of whiskey and no physical education!”), besides, he liked to eat well and never limited himself.
It was not easy with him. Another, perhaps, would have tried to tame such a savage: not to drink, not to smoke, to come back for dinner, to read a book under a night lampshade, and then peacefully fall asleep with his wife in a warm bed. But Clementine never tried to remake it. Didn't change his character. Didn't teach you how to live. On the contrary, she accepted Winston for who he was: her husband seemed perfect to her.
However, one day she pulled him back. In the early 1940s, when Churchill was dizzy from the omnipotence that came with the post of Prime Minister, Clem wrote her husband an extremely harsh letter. "You're just impossible!" she began without any preamble. Clementine wrote that it became difficult to communicate with him, that he did not pay attention to others, that he needed to be more attentive to people. This letter sobered him - intoxication with power did not occur.
In all other respects, Clementine always supported her husband. She did charity work, spoke with appeals to English women, and in general became Winston's best friend: many political decisions Churchill accepted only after consulting with his wife.
She bore him four children - three girls and a boy. He did not nurse them, did not educate them, but he was attached to the children by some kind of tight ringing thread. “It is easier to govern a nation than to raise four children,” he once said with a gentle smile. When Clem gave birth to her fifth child, a girl, he was beside himself with happiness - little Marigold turned out to be surprisingly similar to her mother. But in 1921 the family befell terrible blow: The girl fell ill and died a few days later. Churchill, this all-powerful politician, a prominent statesman and thinker on a planetary scale, suddenly broke down overnight. For days on end he sat in his office, smoking cigar after cigar, drinking whiskey and cognac, receiving no one, talking to no one. Except Clem.
She saved him. Grey, haggard, with sunken cheeks and dry, unseeing eyes, she walked around the house like a shadow. Her daughter's death bent her but did not break her. One day, she softly knocked on her husband's office, entered and calmly said: "We will have a baby!"
"Girl," Winston said confidently. “And she will look like our Marigold!” He guessed. In 1921, Clementine gave birth to a daughter, who was named Mary.
For 57 years of marriage, they wrote each other 1,700 letters, postcards, telegrams, notes: “I love you ...” - “My beloved pug ...” - “My tender kitty ...” - “I miss you. ..” - “I am waiting for your letters, I am rereading them again...”
“My dear, for all the years that we have been together, I have caught myself many times thinking that I love you too much, so much that it seems impossible to love more,” she received such a letter 40 years after the wedding. This was written by her husband - the same clumsy Winston, who once could not even connect two words about love. And now he was a brilliant speaker, a brilliant politician, a predictor of the main milestones in the development of history, Nobel Laureate in the field of literature, the most great person in the history of Britain, who led his country through the Second world war.
His wife was constantly pestered with one banal question: “What is the secret of your family happiness?” Clementine laughed it off, denied it - did everything to get away from the answer. But one day, when she was speaking to Oxford students, a young girl stood up and said: “I am not married yet. But I want to find that man with whom once - and for life ... - She stumbled, unable to cope with excitement. And after a couple of seconds she quietly added: - How to make me ... so that he ... so that we are happy? Clementine looked at her, smiled and replied: "It's simple: never force a husband ... to agree with you."
Afterword He was not a perfect husband. First, he constantly grumbled when he returned from work. Secondly, he smoked endlessly, not releasing a cigar from his fleshy lips. He smoked at the table, in the car, on the go and even in the bedroom. He was distracted and dropped ashes everywhere: on carpets, antique furniture, on his prominent belly - falling asleep with an outstanding cigar, he burned through shirts and trousers.
He was prone to gluttony, ate a lot, and drank even more. He started the day with the French “Napoleon”, skipped a couple of glasses of Scotch whiskey for lunch, and could end the evening with the Armenian “Dvin” skate. A couple of times the wife tried to instill secular manners in her husband and even sat him down for a common breakfast. Alas ... "My wife and I two or three times in 40 years life together we tried to have breakfast together, but it turned out to be so unpleasant that we had to stop,” he said simply and cynically.
Yes, he was a cynic, a prideful, epicurean, besides an avid gambler, who disappeared all night in the casino. Nobody could curb him. And only she, his wife, dear cat Clem, knew exactly how to turn this imposing bumpkin into a real genius - the one whom his compatriots would call the greatest Briton in history.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill is still considered one of the leading politicians of the 20th century. But it is not in vain that the British say that the success of a man is three-quarters of the merit of his wife. And in general, Clementine Churchill is worth remembering about her.
Clementine Hozier was born on April 1, 1885 in the family of a retired colonel G.M. Hozier and Lady B.G. Ogilvie. We can say that the future spouses were brought together by chance. The first time they saw each other at the ball, but did not pay attention to each other. At that time, Clementine was 19 years old, and Winston was already an adult man prone to baldness - of course, not every girl could quickly become interested in him. The second meeting took place four years later. During a meal with mutual friends, W. Churchill and Clementine were seated side by side. But she could not get into this house at all - she was invited at the last moment, because one lady was missing, there were 13 guests, and this violated the decorum that is reverently observed in English secular society.
Churchill at that time already held a serious post in the government and managed to attract the attention of a young lady. In general, quite successful in his career, Winston Churchill was not popular with the ladies. He did not know how to communicate with them at ease, awkwardly courted, did not indulge representatives of the opposite sex with signs of attention, did not master the art of dancing - in general, he was a very mediocre gentleman. And although he tried to arrange his personal life, he did not succeed. But Clementine not only sincerely fell in love with Winston, but also managed to discern his virtues. At the same time, she was not blinded by feelings, but perfectly saw all the flaws of her chosen one.
Their romance developed more through correspondence. At some point, Clementine already thought that W. Churchill would never ask her hand and heart. And when he nevertheless proposed to her, she immediately agreed to the marriage. Their wedding took place on September 12, 1908. There were fifteen thousand guests. The ceremony was magnificent and open, as is customary in an aristocratic environment. A large crowd gathered to admire the newlyweds. But then no one could have predicted that this union would become one of the most durable (it lasted 57 years) and very happy. Love, fidelity, devotion, understanding and care - that's what distinguished him. But many acquaintances considered Churchill completely uncreated for family life. But later, the biographers of the famous politician admitted that he was extremely lucky with his wife.
| And W. Churchill himself wrote in his memoirs that since he got married, he was always happy, and considered his main achievement that he managed to win Clementine. |
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Such a case is also indicative. In the mid 1950s. in the Churchill house, in a friendly company, they started the game "Who would you like to be if you had not become who you are?". The guests competed in wit and fantasized with might and main. But Winston won the unspoken victory when he said: "If I did not become who I am, I would gladly become ... the second husband of Mrs. Churchill."
The couple corresponded all their lives - they had little personal communication and had to constantly maintain close contact. Here are a few lines from Sir Churchill's messages to his wife: "My dear, in all the years that we have been together, many times I have caught myself thinking that I love you too much, so much that it seems impossible to love more." And further: "I will always be indebted to you. You gave me an unearthly pleasure from life. And if love exists, then know that we have it the most real."
But the couple's relationship was still not cloudless. And Clementine was the exact opposite of her husband.
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He is an owl, she is a lark. He is not very outwardly attractive, plump, heavy, prone to gluttony, addicted to alcohol and gambling. She is tall, slender, beautiful green-eyed brown-haired, always tastefully and elegantly dressed.
He is capricious, unpredictable, ambitious, ambitious, domineering to the point of despotism, capricious, a spendthrift with lordly manners, uncompromising, stubborn and busy more with politics than with his family. She is restrained, unspoiled, patient, thrifty, independent and active. And at the same time, persistent, purposeful, strong-willed Mrs. Churchill had strong moral principles and her own views. She had a sharp mind and a subtle sense of humor in English and spoke several foreign languages.
They say that with her virtues, Mrs. Churchill softened and leveled the shortcomings of her husband and positively influenced him. She was for Winston a true friend, a wise companion and a good adviser. Clementine told her husband the truth to her face, no matter how bitter she was, for example, that he knew nothing about the lives of ordinary people.
There were ups and downs in the political career of W. Churchill. He managed to visit many posts, but became famous as the Prime Minister of Great Britain and gained popularity among the people, showing himself to be a bold and enterprising leader after the entry of Great Britain into the Second World War. When Germany attacked the USSR, W. Churchill declared that Hitler was the common enemy of Great Britain and the USSR and promised support for the Soviet state.
But the Prime Minister was in no hurry to open a second front. And when he told his wife that it would take a long time to wait for this event, she wondered how she herself and - most importantly - could immediately help the Soviet Union. After all, she received letters from many English women who asked her to persuade her husband to send troops to support the Red Army and were ready to send their beloved men - husbands, sons, brothers - to help the country desperately fighting the invaders. And then Clementine, independent by nature, created and headed the "Red Cross Fund for Aid to Russia" and herself made the first contribution to it. Then this initiative was picked up by members of her husband's government and also contributed their personal funds.
In September 1941, Mrs. Churchill appealed to her compatriots to support the USSR. She was so convincing that fellow citizens began to actively promote her. Initially, Mrs. Churchill planned to raise 1 million pounds, but 8 million was raised very quickly. And the money kept coming in. They bought everything you needed: equipment for hospitals, medicines, prostheses, clothes, food. We can say that this lady had her own front - she fought for the recovery of wounded Soviet soldiers.
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| K. Churchill showed herself as an excellent organizer, principled, honest and noble person. She managed the fund until 1946 and defended her offspring in every possible way, and deliveries along this line went to the USSR until the summer of 1948. |
In the spring of 1945, Clementine Churchill paid a visit to the USSR. She wanted to see with her own eyes where the aid she collected went, and to get to know better those who for several years in a row selflessly resisted fascism and whom she admired so much. She visited several cities (Leningrad, Stalingrad, Odessa, Kislovodsk, Pyatigorsk and others), visited many hospitals, where she talked with the wounded, and spent a month and a half in the USSR. In Rostov-on-Don, K. Churchill is still remembered, because thanks to the equipment sent by her and consumables two hospitals were equipped. And the beds, which are called "Churchellikhins", were used until recently - their quality turned out to be so high. A memorial plaque hangs on one of the buildings of the Central City Hospital No. 1, on which the following inscription is carved: "Clementine Churchill, the founder of the Russian Relief Fund, was here in April 1945." beds".
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Those who met Madame Churchill said that it was difficult to recognize a foreigner in her - she behaved so simply and was so modestly dressed. Although at the same time the host side tried in every possible way to ensure the comfort of the guest, and even special chefs and pastry chefs were assigned to her, who accompanied her on a trip around the country. Mrs. Clementina also visited the house-museum of A.P. Chekhov in Yalta, where she left an entry in the book of honored guests. And thanks to this, we can learn that this wonderful lady considered the Russian writer a genius.
On May 9, K. Churchill met the victory in Moscow and on the same day spoke on the radio, reading out an open message from W. Churchill to I. Stalin. And then on May 11 she herself wrote a letter to the leader of the Land of Soviets, in which she wrote that she was happy to be in the days of Victory in the USSR. And also to Clementine Churchill for her great services to Soviet state and society and activities to assist our country was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor. Upon her return to her homeland, the wife of the British Prime Minister wrote the book "My Visit to Russia". And, according to experts, she did not sin against the truth in anything.
The Churchills had five children - one son and four daughters. And it is difficult to say what more they brought to parents - joy or grief.
Baby Marigold died at the age of three from meningitis.
The eldest daughter Diana did not get along with her mother. She was fond of art, but did not achieve success in this field. When she got married, she gave birth to three children. But her marriage fell apart. And then depression, psychiatric hospitals and suicide followed.
Wayward Sarah - a real beauty - dreamed of theater career, but her "star" plans were not destined to come true. Three marriages also did not live up to bright hopes. The woman was looking for consolation in alcohol. And although she outlived her parents and went into another world at the age of 68, she lived out her days in complete solitude.
Son Randolph also did not become the pride of the family. And, according to historians, from childhood he had a bad temper, was spoiled, arrogant, uncontrollable and did not really try to make an effort to achieve something. He served in the army, was engaged in diplomacy, politics, journalism. But not only to surpass, even to equal his father was beyond his power. It is said that, in the end, the father even broke off relations with him. What Clementine thought about this is hard to say. In a decent society, it was not customary to "wash dirty linen in public" and publicly complain about family troubles. And even after the death of her son, the mother continued to remain silent.
Parents.
| After the end of World War II, Clementine advised her husband to retire and thus remain on top of fame. |
But he continued political activity and gave rise to the Cold War, delivering the so-called Fulton speech on March 5, 1946. However, health increasingly failed the stubborn W. Churchill. And finally, in April 1955, he left the post of Prime Minister of Great Britain, and in July 1964, in last time attended a meeting of the House of Commons. He died on January 24, 1965. Left alone, Clementine in every possible way cherished the memory of her husband and unusually missed him. Mrs Churchill survived her husband by 12 years. She passed away on December 12, 1977 at the age of 92.
“My own wife was completely Sovietised. He only talks about the Soviet Red Cross, about the Red Army, about the wife of the Soviet ambassador ... Can you choose her in any of your councils? Really, she deserves it." So in the midst of the hot battles of World War II, Winston Churchill complained to the Soviet ambassador Ivan Maisky.
In just a few years, the front of the Cold War will pass through the continents, countries and ... the family of the British Prime Minister.
An American, a Briton and a Russian met
At a time when the hot war was already ending, and the cold one had not yet begun, the fate of the world at the Yalta Conference flocked to decide the chairman of the Council people's commissars Soviet Union, United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The son of a Georgian shoemaker, the heir to a wealthy American and a hereditary English aristocrat. Absolutely different people, but each went through his natural selection on the way to power. In the memory of posterity, they will remain the "big three" of politicians.
In 1945, this triumvirate fought in a diplomatic war - for the division of the world into spheres of influence.
At the initiative of Prime Minister Churchill, the Yalta meeting was given the code name Argonaut. It was the Argonauts who sailed to the Black Sea for the Golden Fleece that they and Roosevelt saw in the members of the Anglo-American delegation.
However, Winston Churchill was not the only member of his family to visit the peninsula. His wife Clementine also visited here. In the Crimea - and also in Leningrad, Rostov-on-Don, Odessa, Kislovodsk and Pyatigorsk. Relief Foundation Founder Soviet Russia, she even met Victory Day on May 9 in Moscow.
Of course, there is a “conspiracy theory” that Clementine was in Russia not at the call of her soul, but with a secret assignment from Winston Churchill - to look closely, listen and distract the thoughts of Comrade Stalin from the preparation by the British of a future sharp change in course (after all, already in 1947, Churchill, in the tradition English decency, began to insist that the United States nuclear bombing USSR, and in that very May, it was hatching the insane Operation Unthinkable, which planned for July 1, 1945, the start of offensive hostilities by the Western Allies against the USSR with the participation of 10-12 German divisions).
However, their daughter Sarah later wrote in her memoirs: « Post-war father's course on cold war my mother did not support the Soviet Union and was glad of his resignation ... She treated Russia after her trips differently than her father. Mom did not believe that a country that had endured so much and lost so much could wish to continue. Mom kept saying that Russia wants peace, peace and only peace.
Women's history
Clementine Hozier from the noble Scottish family of Airlie, the future Mrs. Churchill, was 11 years younger than Winston. Fluent in German and French, had a sharp mind and a subtle sense of humor, was interested in politics. The family was not rich, and Clementine gave private lessons.
By the age of 23 - the moment they met Churchill - the girl had already broken off three engagements.
With Winston, too, could not work out. At the first meeting at the ball, he was too shy to invite her to dance. Both of them did not want to go to the second one for “very good reasons”: he was too lazy to leave the hot bath, and Clementine did not know what to wear - she simply did not have a fashionable dress.
Six months after they met, Winston Churchill decided to marry Miss Hozier, but ... he could not gather his strength. To explain, he invited her to Blenheim Palace, the family estate of the Dukes of Marlborough. Everyone, and even Clementine herself, understood that she should return from a walk in the garden in the status of a bride.
But they sat on the bench for more than half an hour, and there was no offer. Clementine later described how she watched the beetle move as slowly as Churchill himself: "I thought that if the beetle crawled to that junction and Winston did not make an offer, then he would never make it."
A brilliant orator and determined politician clumsily, but nevertheless, revealed his feelings to Clementine. It was perhaps his most unfortunate and most successful speech at the same time. As he would write in his memoirs decades later, "I married in September 1908 and have lived happily ever since."
Clementine bore him five children - four girls and a boy. One of the daughters died in childhood.
The Churchills lived together for 57 years. Of course they had disagreements. Once, speaking to Oxford students, Clementine said: “Never force husbands to agree with you. You will achieve more by continuing to calmly adhere to your beliefs, and after a while you will see how your spouse will quietly come to the conclusion that you are right.
In the early 1940s, as Churchill began his "dizziness with success," Clementine wrote her husband a sobering letter that began, "You're simply impossible." In it, she pointed out how it became difficult to communicate with Winston, that he does not pay attention to others and urged to be more attentive to people.
Of course, Clementine Churchill supported her husband, but she had her own opinion, character and tried to implement them for the good.
Clementine and the Russians
Russian Relief Fund of the British Red Cross and the Order of St. John of Jerusalem was created by Clementine Churchill in September 1941.
« I was terribly worried about the great drama that broke out in your country immediately after Hitler's attack, - Mrs. Churchill quotes Ivan Maisky, Soviet Ambassador to Great Britain, in her memoirs. I kept thinking how we could help you. At that time the question of a second front was being widely discussed in England. One day I received a letter from a group of women whose husbands and sons were serving in English army. They insisted on opening a second front. I then thought: “If these women demand a second front, that is, they are ready to risk the lives of their loved ones, then we must immediately help Russia.”
I showed the letter I received to my husband. He replied that the second front was still very far away. This alarmed me greatly, and I began to think that such a thing could be done now, immediately, to help your country? Then the idea of the Red Cross fund came to my mind..
In September 1941, Clementine Churchill made the first installment, setting an example for members of her husband's government. And appealed to the nation to support Soviet Union: “There is not a single person in our country who would not be deeply moved by the terrible drama that is happening now in Russia. We are amazed at the strength of the Russian resistance.”
As she herself wrote later, the response to her call “was instantaneous and unprecedented in strength. At first, we set ourselves the goal of raising a million (with current money - close to a hundred million, - Red.) pounds, although at the time it seemed a bit unrealistic. In less than a few months, the original goal was achieved.
In total, over the years of its work, the Russian Relief Fund has delivered supplies to the USSR in the amount of approximately 8 million pounds sterling. He helped with medicines, hospital equipment, surgical instruments, x-ray machines, food, clothes, blankets, prostheses for the disabled, and more. No "illiquid assets", everything is only high-quality and the most necessary.
Toward the end of the war, Clementine Churchill conceived a project that symbolized the solidarity of the two countries during the Second World War. As a result, two military hospitals appeared in Rostov-on-Don, which were fully staffed by the fund headed by her. Reminds me of this today .
Before the victory itself, Clementine spent a month and a half, from April 2 to mid-May, in the Soviet Union, calling her visit to the country "one of the most inspiring and exciting moments in her life."
On Victory Day, she spoke on Moscow radio with an open message from her husband, Winston Churchill.
During her stay in the Soviet Union, the wife of the British Prime Minister met Joseph Stalin several times. During one of these meetings, he gave her a gold ring with a diamond. So part of the Soviet subsoil still went to British imperialism. However, not for long: information about it is lost, as, apparently, the gift itself.
No one believed that Winston Churchill would ever marry. Nobody believed that Clementine Hozier would agree to become his wife. But everything in the life of the great Prime Minister of England, Winston Churchill and his wife Clementine, did not happen at all as it was seen by most of their entourage.
The future great English politician Winston Churchill was born at a secular ball. His mother, a secular beauty, even being on demolitions, decided to have fun. When she began to give birth prematurely, she only managed to run to the room, where the guests' outerwear was piled up like a mountain. On this pile of coats, in November 1874, a newborn seven-month-old boy saw the light: red, terribly ugly, with a flattened bulldog nose. In appearance - a typical Duke of Marlborough (his father belonged to this ancient and noble family).
Randolph Churchill, the father of the one who many years later, according to polls, was named the most prominent Briton, noted that his son, apart from an excellent memory and interest in history, has no special abilities to nothing. Ultimately, Winston was sent to study at a cavalry school.
born military
A military career was given to him quite easily: he was brave, prudent and smart. But Churchill quickly got bored with the officer's path. And he chose military journalism for himself. And he has been very successful in this field. His book "War on the River", which tells about the conquest of Sudan, became a bestseller. 
And then Churchill became interested in politics. And I realized: this is his true calling. In 1908, he took the rather modest and low-paid post of Minister of Commerce. But the Cabinet member's ambitions stretched much further. All in all, his career took off.
But personal life did not get better. There were various assumptions about this. Some said: Winston, accustomed to a single life, is not adapted to family life. Others suggested that he was too clumsy in dealing with women. Still others thought: Churchill simply does not need a family and wants to die a bachelor.
In fact, the brave warrior was simply insanely afraid of women. He couldn't dance. He didn't know how to flirt. And he considered himself outwardly very unattractive.
About Clementine Hozier in the world held directly a different opinion. Many considered her beautiful girl in the world. Her profile was considered the most beautiful in Britain. Clemmie was not of the same high birth as Winston, but good manners and aristocracy she was not to occupy. Graceful, restrained, educated - she, despite the fact that she belonged to a practically ruined family, was considered one of the most enviable brides. But, nevertheless, Clemmie refused several suitors.
Clementine's mother was friendly with Churchill's mother, a well-known socialite. So the young people met at one of the receptions back in 1904. And what? But nothing: nineteen-year-old Clementine, in her opinion, made absolutely no impression on Winston. During the conversation, he did not say a couple of phrases to her. Miss Hozier was wrong: the young politician was simply speechless from her beauty...
Another four years have passed. And they met again. By this point, the clumsy Churchill, despite the ridicule of his friends, had made a firm decision to marry. And ... received several refusals. Neither his post nor his high birth could make a proper impression on potential brides.
Victory Name - Clementine
In the case of Clementine, he decided to go to the bitter end. Although this decision did not give Winston gallantry. And, nevertheless, Miss Hozier for some reason was imbued with sympathy for the timid gentleman. Why? Most likely, a smart girl managed to discern in him what the whole world later noticed. She realized that his straightforwardness speaks of courage. His lack of gallantry speaks of his seriousness and lack of the habit of dragging behind every skirt. And short temper does not speak of anger, but of a choleric temperament.
During the rain, Winston and Clementine hid in the gazebo. On that day, the girl made a wish: if he does not propose to her, then she will stop all relations with Churchill. He made an offer.
Their wedding in September 1908 was one of the most high-profile events. Secular rakes made bets on how long this marriage would last. The terms were from six months to a year. Clementine and Churchill lived in marriage for fifty-seven years in complete peace and harmony.
During parting, they exchanged letters. There are about two thousand messages that the Churchill spouses wrote to each other.
“My dear, my gentle cat Clemm ... for all the years that we have been together, many times I caught myself thinking that I love you too much, so much that it would seem impossible to love more,” in fact, there is nothing surprising in such a message loving husband wife. If Winston Churchill had not written this letter after forty years of marriage, in which five children were born.
Their eldest daughter Diana was born in 1909. It was a child of passion. From honeymoon trip Winston wrote a letter to his mother-in-law, which shocked even the far from chaste Mrs. Hozier (she was known as one of the most unfaithful wives in London's high society) with her frankness: “We make a lot of love. I find this occupation serious and delightfully pleasant. In this confession keyword should be considered "serious". Spouses from the first days considered their union a rather serious decision. They remained faithful to each other all their lives: neither one nor the other even thought of betrayal could come to mind. 
What was Clemmie and Winnie's marriage based on? On his mind and on her peace of mind. His career knew both ups and downs. The Churchills lived both richly and not very well. In 1921 they experienced a tragedy. Their youngest daughter Marigold, the fourth child and third girl born in this marriage, died. There was no limit to Clementine's grief. She screamed like a wounded animal. Winston experienced loss in his own way. He closed himself in a room with whiskey and cigars. And what about the wife? She - the mother - was the first to pull herself together and forced her husband to come out of captivity. Born next year last child of this couple is Mary's daughter.
In general, Clementine was perfectly able to stop attacks of both her husband's anger and his depression. During recessions political career Churchill "under the guidance" of his wife indulged in other activities. He drew quite well and was as happy as a child when he managed to sell one of his paintings a painting. In 1953 Winston Churchill received Nobel Prize on literature.
"You're just impossible!"
He was first elected Prime Minister of Great Britain in 1940. Churchill was then sixty-five - the time of his retirement. He smoked a dozen cigars a day and could drink a bottle of cognac. The husband did not like this way of life for the husband. But she never tried to change him. As well as he - her. Much more, Clementine was worried that her husband could become arrogant and corrupted by power. She wrote to him: “You are simply impossible!” And the husband moderated his imperious ardor. However, if the relationship of the couple can be called serene, then in terms of raising children, they were pursued by continuous failures. Their only son became a social rake, who was most interested in drinking and entertainment. He, unlike his father, alcohol prevented to take place in life. Daughter Sarah turned into a drunken alcoholic. Diana committed suicide due to disorder in her personal life. Only the youngest daughter - Mary - became not only a happy mother and wife, but also a famous biographer of her parents. Clementine was very worried about the children. And Winston consoled her with characteristic irony: it is easier to rule a nation than to raise four children. He believed that children can be controlled only while they are in the womb. When Churchill turned eighty, a group was quietly created on English television, which began to prepare documentary to his demise. Team members also had to film the funeral of a great politician. No one doubted the imminent death of the great Winston: he had health problems. And smoking and drinking did not make him stronger physically. But the man-paradox "deceived" the nation in this too. He died in 1965 at the age of ninety, outliving many of the crew members. Clementine lived for ninety-two years and passed away in 1977. When asked about the promise of a happy marriage, Clementine replied: - Never force husbands to agree with you. You will achieve much more by continuing to calmly adhere to your beliefs, and after a while you yourself will see how your spouse will imperceptibly come to the conclusion that you are right.
