Born in 1874, on the 30 November, Churchill had a parliamentary career spanning sixty-four years. He was a soldier, writer and countryman who excelled at so much. In a political career of highs and massive lows he represented several constituencies, and served under thirteen Prime Ministers, including himself.
Churchill represented Oldham in 1900-06, briefly in Manchester, and then was MP for Dundee for over fourteen years, before losing both his seat, and his appendix, in the bitter fought election of 1922. He was out of the House of Commons and written off, but returned in 1924; he was adopted as the "Independent Constitutionalist anti-Socialist" candidate for Epping, which effectively remained his constituency for the rest of his political career.The wartime quotes are well known but I prefer some of the wiser assessments of life and the difficulties he overcome.
"All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honour, duty, mercy, hope."
And this on business: "Some people regard private enterprise as a predatory tiger to be shot. Others look on it as a cow they can milk. Not enough people see it as a healthy horse, pulling a sturdy wagon."
I have just read Boris Johnson's short biography of Churchill = The Churchill Factor. It is a great read. Make sure you buy it at an independent bookshop, not on Amazon!
Fuller details here: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Churchill
