Churchill's War, Vol 2: Triumph in Adversity

Churchill's War #2

by David Irving

Using diaries and official and unofficial records never published before, this second volume of 'Churchill's War' takes a close-quarters look at the middle years of the Second World War. Volume I chronicled a chain of disasters through the fall of France to the debacle in Greece; this second volume chronicles great naval victories, El Alamein and the landings in North Africa. The book contract was signed with a London publisher in 1972. Volume I (publ. 1987) attracted critical acclaim, sold 20,000 copies, and was widely translated. Major publishers in the UK and USA issued editions. Volume II appears 14 years later after an uneasy birth. During the 30 years of its writing the world has turned; the halls of historical research now tremble to the tread of political correctness. This work's author finds himself no longer the celebrated subject of reviewers. Major publishers who still aspire to print his works come under assault from international bodies. In July 1992 - even as he was returning from the KGB archives in Moscow with the secret Goebbels Diaries - the directors of Macmillan Ltd. were being forced to the secret decision to burn all stocks of his remaining works. This work benefits however from the release of thousands of secret files. At the author's request both the John Major and Tony Blair governments opened files previously thus we know more about Anthony Eden's role in the murder of Admiral Darlan. The human side of Winston Churchill reaches boldly out of these pages - lively, incorrigible, and sometimes callous; hectoring his ministers, but meek and subservient to Moscow and Washington. The picture of him that emerges in Real History is sometimes unpalatable - willingly fomenting and prolonging the war against Hitler, not in pursuit of any fundamental British interest but to acquire, consolidate, and enjoy power and its fruits after years spent in the political wilderness and relative poverty; he appears undismayed by the ruin of the British empire. In two appendices Mr. Irving reveals that Roosevelt and Churchill maintained top secret communications channels to exchange messages that are still not released to the public. Hardbound, 40 pages of black and white and color plates, 1072 pages.

Genres: World War II, History, Biography

1072 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 1997

About the author

David John Cawdell Irving is an English author who has written on the military and political history of World War II, especially Nazi Germany. He was found to be a Holocaust denier in a UK court in 2000 as a result of a failed libel case.

Irving's works include The Destruction of Dresden (1963), Hitler's War (1977), Churchill's War (1987) and Goebbels: Mastermind of the Third Reich (1996). In his works, he argued that Adolf Hitler did not know of the extermination of Jews, or, if he did, he opposed it. Though Irving's negationist claims and views of German war crimes in World War II (and Hitler's responsibility for them) were never taken seriously by mainstream historians, he was once recognised for his knowledge of Nazi Germany and his ability to unearth new historical documents, which he held closely but stated were fully supportive of his conclusions. His 1964 book The Mare's Nest about Germany's V-weapons campaign of 1944-45 was praised for its deep research but criticised for minimising Nazi slave labour programmes.

By the late 1980s, Irving had placed himself outside the mainstream of the study of history, and had begun to turn from "'soft-core' to 'hard-core' Holocaust denial", possibly influenced by the 1988 trial of Holocaust denier Ernst Zündel. That trial, and his reading of the pseudoscientific Leuchter report, led him to openly espouse Holocaust denial, specifically denying that Jews were murdered by gassing at the Auschwitz concentration camp.

Irving's reputation as a historian was further discredited in 2000, when, in the course of an unsuccessful libel case he filed against the American historian Deborah Lipstadt and Penguin Books, High Court Judge Charles Gray determined in his ruling that Irving willfully misrepresented historical evidence to promote Holocaust denial and whitewash the Nazis, a view shared by many prominent historians. The English court found that Irving was an active Holocaust denier, antisemite and racist, who "for his own ideological reasons persistently and deliberately misrepresented and manipulated historical evidence". In addition, the court found that Irving's books had distorted the history of Hitler's role in the Holocaust to depict Hitler in a favourable light.

Reviews

[Steven Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed Volume One, and found Triumph in Adversity to be a strong, intelligent, and happy read. Irving has a vast knowledge of the war and Churchill's role in it, and his sweep of events is never dull. For its size, it is a very fast read. The illustrations are rich and attractive.

I also liked Irving spending time on the bombing campaign, and how Churchill felt he needed it to keep Britain fighting, and how he enjoyed the destruction it brought on Germany. Also, this is a crucial volume, as part one showed Britain getting beaten over and over, Churchill making some bad tactical decisions, but in this book the tide begins to turn, Hitler now the one making eventually fatal errors. The problems of the allies, especially in dealing with De Gaulle and Vichy France, are especially well-described and documented. I also liked the study of the conflicts in the alliance between America and Britain, and Roosevelt is well described, as is a growing annoyance with Churchill. His visits to America were now referred to by Americans as 'The Man Who Came to Dinner,' a houseguest you can't get rid of.
This highlights something I enjoyed, and that is Irving's sense of humor. I've heard him lecture, and his style is very warm and humorous, and it comes out in Triumph in Adversity.
I'm looking forward to reading volume three of this wonderful series.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another book that is outstanding! Still waiting for Vol-iii. I emailed the Author several times. It’s supposed to be out after the Himmler bio. 14+years apart for these volumes. I have several 1st editions signed! Great book & still waiting for Vol-iii

[JW · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent second volume of Irving’s biography of Churchill in World War II. Over 800 pages of text provide an almost daily coverage of Churchill in this period. As usual, Irving relies on original sources, and as usual, his Churchill is a more flawed character than is usually presented. The book covers the two year period from the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941 to the death of General Sikorski in July 1943. Even if you’re not interested in checking his sources, the extensive footnotes are worth it for his comments. The final volume should be coming out later this year.