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Churchill's Citadel: Chartwell and the Gatherings Before the Storm
A major new history of Churchill in the 1930s, showing how his meetings at Chartwell, his country home, strengthened his fight against the Nazis
In the 1930s, amidst an impending crisis in Europe, Winston Churchill found himself out of government and with little power. In these years, Chartwell, his country home in Kent, became the headquarters of his campaign against Nazi Germany. He invited trusted advisors and informants, including Albert Einstein and T. E. Lawrence, who could strengthen his hand as he worked tirelessly to sound the alarm at the prospect of war.
Katherine Carter tells the extraordinary story of the remarkable but little known meetings that took place behind closed doors at Chartwell. From household names to political leaders, diplomats to spies, Carter reveals a fascinating cast of characters, each of whom made their mark on Churchill's thinking and political strategy. With Chartwell as his base, Churchill gathered intelligence about Germany's preparations for war—and, in doing so, put himself in a position to change the course of history.
In the 1930s, amidst an impending crisis in Europe, Winston Churchill found himself out of government and with little power. In these years, Chartwell, his country home in Kent, became the headquarters of his campaign against Nazi Germany. He invited trusted advisors and informants, including Albert Einstein and T. E. Lawrence, who could strengthen his hand as he worked tirelessly to sound the alarm at the prospect of war.
Katherine Carter tells the extraordinary story of the remarkable but little known meetings that took place behind closed doors at Chartwell. From household names to political leaders, diplomats to spies, Carter reveals a fascinating cast of characters, each of whom made their mark on Churchill's thinking and political strategy. With Chartwell as his base, Churchill gathered intelligence about Germany's preparations for war—and, in doing so, put himself in a position to change the course of history.
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First published November 5, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
May 28, 2025
Anyone attempting a new biography of Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill faces two problems. The first is establishing their credentials in joining so many esteemed authors, a list beginning with the man himself. The second is to find a novel angle – some estimate there are now more than a thousand books on arguably the best-known Briton of all.
Katherine Carter has solid answers to both points. For the past decade she has also been the curator of Churchill’s Kent country house, Chartwell. She has therefore lived and breathed the life of Churchill in his own favourite setting, with access to priceless archival material.
Building on that experience, the angle she has developed for her book is the central role of Chartwell during Churchill’s ‘Wilderness years’, the period of the 1930s in which he was famously a backbench MP trying to sound warnings against the growing threat of the Third Reich as well as trying to find a way back into a senior government post. Chartwell was ideal for those purposes as it was within reach but still isolated from London, enabling easy access to his London flat and the Houses of Parliament but also discretion and secrecy when required.
If not the grandest of country houses, Chartwell was nevertheless of a reasonable size in a most attractive setting. Combined with Churchill’s famously generous and garrulous hosting, it enabled him to entertain many fascinating and important people. It was also the perfect facility, with its enviable library and study, for the prodigious literary output that formed a substantial source of his income.
Each chapter of Carter’s book is structured around a particular visitor, with an explanation of the person and how their interactions supported Churchill’s twin campaigns of rearming the nation and re-Churchilling the government.
Vivid descriptions are given of the house and the occupants. Carter describes not only the family and famous visitors but also the below-stairs staff, who quickly gain the reader’s sympathy when it is revealed how hard they had to work for a pittance. High standards were demanded from all staff, but the most pressure was on the secretaries responsible for taking down the relentless stream of dictation from Churchill, who was extraordinarily industrious in composing telegrams, letters, articles and books. Whenever the domestic staff did get any time to themselves, opportunities to socialise or find hobbies were limited by their minimal discretionary income and the fact that they were living in Westerham, not much more than a quiet village. Predictably, most tended not to stay at Chartwell for long, putting more pressure on the household management.
It is perhaps not surprising that Churchill headed his household like the descendant of the Duke of Marlborough that he was. At times, though, he did show awareness of the class system’s unfairness, such as in his short theological ponderings in his book My Early Life, or his occasional acts of generosity towards the less well off. Carter tells the story of him giving £10 (about two weeks’ wages) to a secretary to spend on a planned trip to the United States on which she was to accompany him. The excited retainer duly purchased some smart new dresses, only to find the trip cancelled due to extraneous factors. ‘Keep the £10’ said Churchill, realising her disappointment but not realising she had already spent the money anyway. On another occasion Churchill paid the funeral expenses of a Westerham indigent, ‘Donkey’ Jack Smith, to spare him the indignity of a pauper’s grave.
Churchill might have aspired to the lifestyle of a Duke but, as Carter makes clear, for much of his life he did not have the commensurate income. The cost of purchasing, renovating then maintaining Chartwell, added to his lavish hospitality, frequent travels and hefty losses on the stock market, meant he was frequently sailing uncomfortably close to the financial wind. The nadir came in the late 1930s when he was forced to call in estate agents to sell his beloved Chartwell – although he instructed them not to advertise it, just to have it on the books if a random buyer turned up. In the event, due to a combination of his prolific writing and some generous friends, he managed to keep the wolf (and the estate agents) from the door.
Interesting depictions of the house and occupants aside, the core of the book is the familiar story of Churchill spending the best part of a decade trying to shake the country from complacency and the government from appeasement. Following a prelude about the near meeting between Churchill and Hitler in Munich in 1932, chapter one concerns Albert Einstein’s visit in 1933. Carter movingly describes the rising concern amongst European Jews about persecution in Germany at the time, but also how many people outside Germany did not realise how horrific that persecution was (let alone how it would end).
Chapter two concerns TE Shaw, better known as Lawrence of Arabia. Churchill was both a friend and admirer, and had Shaw in mind for a potential senior post in a future government. Carter explains Shaw’s painfully shy personality, along with some amusing anecdotes about the inconveniences he suffered from when travelling by motorbike. That mode of transport was not conducive to carrying a dinner jacket or the other expected baggage of inter-war gentlemen. (Like London Gentlemen’s Clubs, male visitors to Chartwell who found themselves caught sartorially short could borrow a spare dinner jacket from the host, though there would be no guarantee it would actually fit them.)
Subsequent chapters cover a diverse cast: Senator Joseph Kennedy, father of America’s best-known political dynasty; Pierre-Étienne Flandin, the French politician who (unlike Kennedy) opposed appeasement but still served briefly in the Vichy government; Archibald Sinclair, the Liberal politician, former private secretary to Churchill and another staunch anti-appeaser; Heinrich Brüning, former German chancellor who had had to flee the Nazis; Count Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, an aristocrat firmly in favour of pan-European unity, though on very different terms to Hitler’s; Ewald von Kleist-Schmenzin, an implacable anti-Nazi German politician; the pioneering journalist Shiela Grant Duff; the photo-journalist Stefan Lorant; the future prime minister Harold Macmillan; and the Chinese diplomat Quo Tai-chi.
The collective efforts of those notables were of course in vain as Europe and Asia stumbled into the worst conflict in world history. There were some individual tragedies too: Shaw’s death at a young age caused by a motorcycle accident, and von Kleist-Schmenzin’s execution following the 20 July Plot. Carter tells the painful story of how a letter from Churchill inadvertently helped seal the latter’s fate, as its discovery led the Nazis to conclude von Kleist-Schmenzin had been a traitor.
The only problem with Carter’s interesting and authoritative sketches is that the reader is often left wanting more. She does not mention the controversy about Shaw’s Great War record, for example, which was substantially inflated by his friends including the military historian BH Liddell Hart. Knowing that he did not really deserve his reputation might well have caused or at least exacerbated Shaw’s crippling shyness – as would his alleged homosexuality, given that male homosexual acts were still illegal at the time and carried a crushing social stigma.
Similarly, the chapter on Joseph Kennedy goes rather light on his questionable business history and the unsavoury aspects of his personal life, not least his appalling mistreatment of his daughter, Rosemary, though Carter does make clear his Anglophobia and support for appeasement.
Another person featuring regularly in the book, although not the subject of a specific chapter, is Frederick Lindemann, who later became the government’s chief scientific advisor during the Second World War. Lindemann was an undeniably brilliant man, and Carter explains further how he was a gifted communicator of difficult scientific concepts, making him a most popular Chartwell visitor. But he also held views that were more extreme and offensive to modern readers even than Churchill’s. Lindemann despised the working class, homosexuals, and black people, supported eugenics and advocated sterilizing the mentally incompetent. He serves as a reminder that as much as lunch with all the luminaries at Chartwell might be high on the list for any time-travelling modern historians, it would not just be the tobacco smoke, calorie count or questionable kitchen hygiene that would likely bother them.
That said, identifying such omissions is intended less as a criticism and more as a recognition of the restrictions necessitated by a single volume – especially when Carter’s commendable research has required almost 100 pages of notes, bibliography and index, with first rate production by Yale University Press (regrettably not always a given even with scholarly books nowadays).
The eventual relinquishing of Chartwell by Churchill to the National Trust not only enabled the property to form one of the jewels in the latter’s crown, but also preserved priceless archival material and a strong sense of the ambience of the house as it was during the fateful decade before the war. Those factors have been crucial to the production of this book, which forms a valuable addition to the Churchill story.
Katherine Carter has solid answers to both points. For the past decade she has also been the curator of Churchill’s Kent country house, Chartwell. She has therefore lived and breathed the life of Churchill in his own favourite setting, with access to priceless archival material.
Building on that experience, the angle she has developed for her book is the central role of Chartwell during Churchill’s ‘Wilderness years’, the period of the 1930s in which he was famously a backbench MP trying to sound warnings against the growing threat of the Third Reich as well as trying to find a way back into a senior government post. Chartwell was ideal for those purposes as it was within reach but still isolated from London, enabling easy access to his London flat and the Houses of Parliament but also discretion and secrecy when required.
If not the grandest of country houses, Chartwell was nevertheless of a reasonable size in a most attractive setting. Combined with Churchill’s famously generous and garrulous hosting, it enabled him to entertain many fascinating and important people. It was also the perfect facility, with its enviable library and study, for the prodigious literary output that formed a substantial source of his income.
Each chapter of Carter’s book is structured around a particular visitor, with an explanation of the person and how their interactions supported Churchill’s twin campaigns of rearming the nation and re-Churchilling the government.
Vivid descriptions are given of the house and the occupants. Carter describes not only the family and famous visitors but also the below-stairs staff, who quickly gain the reader’s sympathy when it is revealed how hard they had to work for a pittance. High standards were demanded from all staff, but the most pressure was on the secretaries responsible for taking down the relentless stream of dictation from Churchill, who was extraordinarily industrious in composing telegrams, letters, articles and books. Whenever the domestic staff did get any time to themselves, opportunities to socialise or find hobbies were limited by their minimal discretionary income and the fact that they were living in Westerham, not much more than a quiet village. Predictably, most tended not to stay at Chartwell for long, putting more pressure on the household management.
It is perhaps not surprising that Churchill headed his household like the descendant of the Duke of Marlborough that he was. At times, though, he did show awareness of the class system’s unfairness, such as in his short theological ponderings in his book My Early Life, or his occasional acts of generosity towards the less well off. Carter tells the story of him giving £10 (about two weeks’ wages) to a secretary to spend on a planned trip to the United States on which she was to accompany him. The excited retainer duly purchased some smart new dresses, only to find the trip cancelled due to extraneous factors. ‘Keep the £10’ said Churchill, realising her disappointment but not realising she had already spent the money anyway. On another occasion Churchill paid the funeral expenses of a Westerham indigent, ‘Donkey’ Jack Smith, to spare him the indignity of a pauper’s grave.
Churchill might have aspired to the lifestyle of a Duke but, as Carter makes clear, for much of his life he did not have the commensurate income. The cost of purchasing, renovating then maintaining Chartwell, added to his lavish hospitality, frequent travels and hefty losses on the stock market, meant he was frequently sailing uncomfortably close to the financial wind. The nadir came in the late 1930s when he was forced to call in estate agents to sell his beloved Chartwell – although he instructed them not to advertise it, just to have it on the books if a random buyer turned up. In the event, due to a combination of his prolific writing and some generous friends, he managed to keep the wolf (and the estate agents) from the door.
Interesting depictions of the house and occupants aside, the core of the book is the familiar story of Churchill spending the best part of a decade trying to shake the country from complacency and the government from appeasement. Following a prelude about the near meeting between Churchill and Hitler in Munich in 1932, chapter one concerns Albert Einstein’s visit in 1933. Carter movingly describes the rising concern amongst European Jews about persecution in Germany at the time, but also how many people outside Germany did not realise how horrific that persecution was (let alone how it would end).
Chapter two concerns TE Shaw, better known as Lawrence of Arabia. Churchill was both a friend and admirer, and had Shaw in mind for a potential senior post in a future government. Carter explains Shaw’s painfully shy personality, along with some amusing anecdotes about the inconveniences he suffered from when travelling by motorbike. That mode of transport was not conducive to carrying a dinner jacket or the other expected baggage of inter-war gentlemen. (Like London Gentlemen’s Clubs, male visitors to Chartwell who found themselves caught sartorially short could borrow a spare dinner jacket from the host, though there would be no guarantee it would actually fit them.)
Subsequent chapters cover a diverse cast: Senator Joseph Kennedy, father of America’s best-known political dynasty; Pierre-Étienne Flandin, the French politician who (unlike Kennedy) opposed appeasement but still served briefly in the Vichy government; Archibald Sinclair, the Liberal politician, former private secretary to Churchill and another staunch anti-appeaser; Heinrich Brüning, former German chancellor who had had to flee the Nazis; Count Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, an aristocrat firmly in favour of pan-European unity, though on very different terms to Hitler’s; Ewald von Kleist-Schmenzin, an implacable anti-Nazi German politician; the pioneering journalist Shiela Grant Duff; the photo-journalist Stefan Lorant; the future prime minister Harold Macmillan; and the Chinese diplomat Quo Tai-chi.
The collective efforts of those notables were of course in vain as Europe and Asia stumbled into the worst conflict in world history. There were some individual tragedies too: Shaw’s death at a young age caused by a motorcycle accident, and von Kleist-Schmenzin’s execution following the 20 July Plot. Carter tells the painful story of how a letter from Churchill inadvertently helped seal the latter’s fate, as its discovery led the Nazis to conclude von Kleist-Schmenzin had been a traitor.
The only problem with Carter’s interesting and authoritative sketches is that the reader is often left wanting more. She does not mention the controversy about Shaw’s Great War record, for example, which was substantially inflated by his friends including the military historian BH Liddell Hart. Knowing that he did not really deserve his reputation might well have caused or at least exacerbated Shaw’s crippling shyness – as would his alleged homosexuality, given that male homosexual acts were still illegal at the time and carried a crushing social stigma.
Similarly, the chapter on Joseph Kennedy goes rather light on his questionable business history and the unsavoury aspects of his personal life, not least his appalling mistreatment of his daughter, Rosemary, though Carter does make clear his Anglophobia and support for appeasement.
Another person featuring regularly in the book, although not the subject of a specific chapter, is Frederick Lindemann, who later became the government’s chief scientific advisor during the Second World War. Lindemann was an undeniably brilliant man, and Carter explains further how he was a gifted communicator of difficult scientific concepts, making him a most popular Chartwell visitor. But he also held views that were more extreme and offensive to modern readers even than Churchill’s. Lindemann despised the working class, homosexuals, and black people, supported eugenics and advocated sterilizing the mentally incompetent. He serves as a reminder that as much as lunch with all the luminaries at Chartwell might be high on the list for any time-travelling modern historians, it would not just be the tobacco smoke, calorie count or questionable kitchen hygiene that would likely bother them.
That said, identifying such omissions is intended less as a criticism and more as a recognition of the restrictions necessitated by a single volume – especially when Carter’s commendable research has required almost 100 pages of notes, bibliography and index, with first rate production by Yale University Press (regrettably not always a given even with scholarly books nowadays).
The eventual relinquishing of Chartwell by Churchill to the National Trust not only enabled the property to form one of the jewels in the latter’s crown, but also preserved priceless archival material and a strong sense of the ambience of the house as it was during the fateful decade before the war. Those factors have been crucial to the production of this book, which forms a valuable addition to the Churchill story.
August 24, 2025
This is a great look of England’s government from 1932 until 1939. Great details of Churchill and his home when he was out of influence with the British government and how he maintained valuable connections not only in England but on the European continent and also China and shaped England for the war against fascism from Germany and the Axis powers.
December 30, 2024
You would think that everything that could have been written about the life and times of our wartime leaders has already been committed to paper, yet there remain surprising insights to be had about those who led their countries either to victory or catastrophic defeat. At a time when intolerance and division is on rise, never has it been more important to study those who defended the free world from the terror of unbridled fascism.
Katherine Carter’s book ‘Churchill’s Citadel’ gives its reader a unique insight into the private and professional world of Sir Winston Churchill through the prism of life at Chartwell, his family’s beloved home in Kent. It was here that Britain’s future wartime leader spent the 1930s warning the UK and foreign governments about the growing menace of Nazi Germany, advocating rearmament and arguing against appeasement.
It was also the place where he wrote the books, speeches, newspaper columns and letters which reflect the relentless work ethic of man whose hunger for information was matched only by his desire pass on it. Whether in face to face meetings with key figures of the time or, later, in radio broadcasts to eager audiences at home and abroad.
Winston Churchill and his wife Clementine acquired Chartwell in 1922, but ‘Churchill’s Citadel’ focuses primarily on the decade leading up to the outbreak of win and, in particularly, the stream of visitors who beat a path to their door. Despite being in the political wilderness, out of favour with the ruling Conservative Party, Churchill’s campaign to alert the nation to the threat of Nazi tyranny attracted the attention of a select band of politicians, ambassadors, military advisors, scientists and media.
Katherine Carter’s approach of theming each chapter around a specific visitor gives Churchill’s Citadel a structure, chronology and pace which leaves the reader almost as breathless as Chartwell’s household staff. As we read about Churchill’s fact finding meetings, visitor interrogations, speeches in Parliament and overseas trips, Carter cements her story telling with insights into the people who worked at Chartwell: the secretaries, chauffeurs, maids, cooks and gardeners.
It is in the chapters detailing the visits from such notables as Albert Einstein, Lawrence of Arabia, US Ambassador Joseph Kennedy and former German Chancellor Heinrich Brunning that the reader gains an understanding of how Churchill was able to gather and distill so much information into determining the political strategies which he deployed to such devastating effect when faced with Nazi tyranny.
‘Churchill’s Citadel’ is a highly accomplished work by Katherine Carter, Curator of Chartwell, and one which adds much to the understanding of what made Sir Winston Churchill a formidable leader.
Katherine Carter’s book ‘Churchill’s Citadel’ gives its reader a unique insight into the private and professional world of Sir Winston Churchill through the prism of life at Chartwell, his family’s beloved home in Kent. It was here that Britain’s future wartime leader spent the 1930s warning the UK and foreign governments about the growing menace of Nazi Germany, advocating rearmament and arguing against appeasement.
It was also the place where he wrote the books, speeches, newspaper columns and letters which reflect the relentless work ethic of man whose hunger for information was matched only by his desire pass on it. Whether in face to face meetings with key figures of the time or, later, in radio broadcasts to eager audiences at home and abroad.
Winston Churchill and his wife Clementine acquired Chartwell in 1922, but ‘Churchill’s Citadel’ focuses primarily on the decade leading up to the outbreak of win and, in particularly, the stream of visitors who beat a path to their door. Despite being in the political wilderness, out of favour with the ruling Conservative Party, Churchill’s campaign to alert the nation to the threat of Nazi tyranny attracted the attention of a select band of politicians, ambassadors, military advisors, scientists and media.
Katherine Carter’s approach of theming each chapter around a specific visitor gives Churchill’s Citadel a structure, chronology and pace which leaves the reader almost as breathless as Chartwell’s household staff. As we read about Churchill’s fact finding meetings, visitor interrogations, speeches in Parliament and overseas trips, Carter cements her story telling with insights into the people who worked at Chartwell: the secretaries, chauffeurs, maids, cooks and gardeners.
It is in the chapters detailing the visits from such notables as Albert Einstein, Lawrence of Arabia, US Ambassador Joseph Kennedy and former German Chancellor Heinrich Brunning that the reader gains an understanding of how Churchill was able to gather and distill so much information into determining the political strategies which he deployed to such devastating effect when faced with Nazi tyranny.
‘Churchill’s Citadel’ is a highly accomplished work by Katherine Carter, Curator of Chartwell, and one which adds much to the understanding of what made Sir Winston Churchill a formidable leader.
October 29, 2025
Churchill’s Citadel is a phenomenal read. Just when you think there could not possibly be another book about a famous leader, e.g., Winston Churchill, another one is published. The book by Katherine Carter, historian and curator of Chartwell collections, takes a fresh look at Churchill’s leadership through the lens of his home in Kent—Chartwell. It’s a unique approach to a biography, but it works due to Carter’s impeccable research. Carter provides insight into the eclectic stream of visitors to Chartwell and describes how Chartwell became a hub for intelligence gathering, meetings, discussions, entertaining, and thought by Churchill, his secretaries, politicians, journalists, and concerned citizens in the years leading up to WW II.
I enjoyed learning about Churchill’s family, his children, and in particular the youngest daughter, Mary, who often mingled with the visitors and showed them her favorite farm animals, namely the two goats, Milly and Molly. Also interesting was reading about food selections and menus of dinners served to important guests. Though Churchill’s wife, Clementine, didn’t cook the meals, she was most particular in selecting the dishes; she appeared to be concerned about creating the right atmosphere with food and thus tailored her menus to the visitors and purpose of the occasion. I was intrigued. Food, I believe, can be a bridge to relationship building; to that end, I want to learn more about the menus at the various occasions at Chartwell. I'm sure I'll be able to find one or more books written about this very topic.
Knowing the ending when I began reading the book, that WWII would begin as Churchill predicted, made it a heavy read at times. Britain in the early 1930s was on the path of political appeasement and disarmament. Would outcomes have been different had more people in power listened to Churchill and not written him off as an alarmist or warmonger? I’m not sure. But the book gives yet another perspective on the people in Churchill’s circle of influence in the years leading up to WW II.
There are several black and white photographs included and an excellent timeline featuring key dates related to Churchill, Chartwell, and political events between 1932 and 1939. Overall a terrific book for anyone interested in WW II history, history of Britain or Churchill.
I enjoyed learning about Churchill’s family, his children, and in particular the youngest daughter, Mary, who often mingled with the visitors and showed them her favorite farm animals, namely the two goats, Milly and Molly. Also interesting was reading about food selections and menus of dinners served to important guests. Though Churchill’s wife, Clementine, didn’t cook the meals, she was most particular in selecting the dishes; she appeared to be concerned about creating the right atmosphere with food and thus tailored her menus to the visitors and purpose of the occasion. I was intrigued. Food, I believe, can be a bridge to relationship building; to that end, I want to learn more about the menus at the various occasions at Chartwell. I'm sure I'll be able to find one or more books written about this very topic.
Knowing the ending when I began reading the book, that WWII would begin as Churchill predicted, made it a heavy read at times. Britain in the early 1930s was on the path of political appeasement and disarmament. Would outcomes have been different had more people in power listened to Churchill and not written him off as an alarmist or warmonger? I’m not sure. But the book gives yet another perspective on the people in Churchill’s circle of influence in the years leading up to WW II.
There are several black and white photographs included and an excellent timeline featuring key dates related to Churchill, Chartwell, and political events between 1932 and 1939. Overall a terrific book for anyone interested in WW II history, history of Britain or Churchill.
May 24, 2025
A brilliant idea for a new perspective on Churchill, and an even better execution. The author literally examines the guestbook over a ten-year period at Chartwell, Churchill's country home. Not only are the names of the guests fascinating, but the subjects of their discussions are eyebrow-raising in multitudes of ways. From Einstein to German spies, from politicians to celebrities, Churchill was not only busy maintaining connections he deemed useful, but his efforts to stay well-informed were Herculean.
He did not hold an elected office during these "wilderness years," but he dictated volumes of books (no doubt improving his oratory skill), built brick walls, gardened, painted, and traveled like his life depended on it. It is fascinating to gain these new insights into the man. Depressed by his recent failure to be re-elected, he went to work instead of retiring. He imposed upon himself a strict diet of information protein, personal network building, philosophical expansion, and extraordinary production.
All the visitors, discussions, and interactions ultimately resulted in the most fantastic preparation imaginable for a man destined to lead his country as Prime Minister during the greatest war the world has ever known. I found the book extremely well-written yet easy to read, finishing it in just two days.
He did not hold an elected office during these "wilderness years," but he dictated volumes of books (no doubt improving his oratory skill), built brick walls, gardened, painted, and traveled like his life depended on it. It is fascinating to gain these new insights into the man. Depressed by his recent failure to be re-elected, he went to work instead of retiring. He imposed upon himself a strict diet of information protein, personal network building, philosophical expansion, and extraordinary production.
All the visitors, discussions, and interactions ultimately resulted in the most fantastic preparation imaginable for a man destined to lead his country as Prime Minister during the greatest war the world has ever known. I found the book extremely well-written yet easy to read, finishing it in just two days.
April 15, 2025
There are tons and tons of English language books about Winston Churchill. This is one of the more unusual in that it considers an important period in Churchill's life - the so-called Wilderness Years from 1929 to 1939 when he was out of power - and examines how he used his Kent country home of Chartwell to gather first-hand information about conditions on mainland Europe and the growing threat from the Nazis and, to a lesser extent, Italians and Japanese. A mix of politicians, journalists and other people of knowledge and influence were invited to spend time at Chartwell and thereby to keep Churchill abreast of international developments. The chapters are chronological but focus on one specific guest invitation and from that, discuss the issues of particular concern.
I think that the reader unfamiliar with the outline of Churchill's story may not fully appreciate the narrative. But that is easily fixed with the plethora of short, entry-level books that are available. For now, as a picture of life at Chartwell, and how an almost rival operation to Government was conducted, this book by the curator of the house is excellent. Also, one can only admire the devotion and hard work of the secretaries and domestic staff that underpinned the Citadel.
I think that the reader unfamiliar with the outline of Churchill's story may not fully appreciate the narrative. But that is easily fixed with the plethora of short, entry-level books that are available. For now, as a picture of life at Chartwell, and how an almost rival operation to Government was conducted, this book by the curator of the house is excellent. Also, one can only admire the devotion and hard work of the secretaries and domestic staff that underpinned the Citadel.
January 8, 2025
A fantastic book detailing the meetings Churchill had at Chartwell during his wilderness years before the Second World War. It includes chapters on people we have all probably heard of and others many would have not. But as is shown they all influenced Churchill during this time when he was calling for re-armament and anti-appeasement policies. What I loved about the book was the little details, like what was served during the lunches or dinners or thoughts of the staff at Chartwell. The book is very well written and portrays the sense of drama and fear that the characters felt as war approached but unlike us with hindsight they didn't know when. Especially considering this is the author's first book it is brilliant and I have really enjoyed reading it. I cannot wait to visit Chartwell again armed with new knowledge and a better appreciation for the place and events that occured there.
March 30, 2025
Interesting viewpoint of the 1930s with the setting being Chuchill's home and visitors hosted there and how they added to Churchill's view of the Germany, Nazis and the upcoming war. Also included were the Chinese visitors who influenced his views on Japan. A different prespective and written by a woman who lived at Chartwell as a custodian for the National Trust. I also liked how glimpses of Churchill the man and father were weaved in. The epilogue was very good in that it talked about the what happened with the people who visited. I wish a little more was detail on how Chartwell came to the National Trust would have been included. A solid 3.5
January 3, 2026
We were fortunate enough to have heard Katherine Carter, the author, speak at an event soon after publishing her book. She spoke with such passion and having lived at Chartwell, for 10 years while doing her research and managing the vast Churchill collection, she brought a familiarity and depth to the book that others could not have. I was glad to have gotten a signed copy for our son to also enjoy. I highly recommend this book to any Churchill enthusiast or to someone like myself, who just wanted to learn more about the personal life of Churchill and what motivated him to make the decisions he did. Truly a wonderful book!
December 10, 2024
A superb book. Treading that fascinating meeting point of both domestic issues and the geo-political events at Churchill’s county home in the run-up to the Second World War. The comings and goings of members and employees as a backdrop to Churchill’s meetings, lunches and dinners with key figures. How a great statesmen resets his mind, how he works and plays and the impact upon those around him. It is all in this book. All backed-up by superb research set out in notes, timelines and an excellent index. My candidate for the Book of the Year.
April 17, 2025
Just finished reading “Churchill’s Citadel “ by Katherine Carter, the author I met at the gathering in Terrytown/New Rochelle of the New York State Winston Spencer Churchill Society on Armistice Day November 11, 2024, the very day our sweet granddaughter, Whitney Weidner was born! This is an outstanding book which lays out the 20 year role Churchill’s Estate played in providing the great man the sanctuary he needed to warn & prepare the world of the impending NAZI threat. The author brings Chartwell to life!
November 16, 2025
This book was a bit of a surprise for me, covering Churchill's pre-war years, spent much of the time at his estate outside of London. From this perspective, the author broadly covers his personal as well as professional life at his beloved Chartwell. In the process the reader is shown perhaps the single person who most thoroughly understands the dangers posed by Hitler, spending his time in political exile raising the alarm about the threat to Britain and the free world. Winston Churchill is an endlessly fascinating character, and Katherine Carter does justice to his story through the 1930s.
February 17, 2025
Churchill's Citadel is a well-researched account of Churchill's wilderness years in the 1930s when his power and influence waned. His prolific writing kept him afloat financially as he struggled to hold on to Chartwell. A helpful historical summary of major significant dates of the decade is provided at the book's end, allowing the reader to view the story from a higher-level perspective. If you are a history buff, then you will not be disappointed.
December 28, 2025
I have read a number of histories of WWII and Churchill, and this is one of the best. The idea of using Chartwell as the focal point of the narrative of Churchill's work in the 1930s to try to push the British government toward a more aggressive policy toward Hitler and Mussolini is genius, and of course Churchill is always a compelling character to read about. Highly recommend this for anyone with interest in this time period.
July 27, 2025
A gem of a book! A look at the period of Churchill's life that you would assume would be the least exciting - his "wilderness years" as a backbencher in the 1930s. The story told here is framed through his life at his home - Chartwell - and the dozens about dozens of important visitors throughout the years that kept him in the know about world events. A fascinating read.
November 23, 2024
What a great read! A very engaging book about Churchill in the 1930s. You feel you are at Chartwell with the Churchills, as they welcome a huge range of key UK and international politicians to discuss and debate the fraught international situation.
December 27, 2024
We visited Chartwell in 2023. Great home! We learned much of the history but nowhere near this book. I now wish I had read the book prior to my visit.
If you enjoy history and Churchill I highly recommend this book.
If you enjoy history and Churchill I highly recommend this book.
January 7, 2025
a great read
An easy and very interesting read. Highly recommend this book as it fills out Churchill ‘s history in a unique and well researched way. By concentrating on the house and his visiting characters, it brings insight and depth to the years before the war.
An easy and very interesting read. Highly recommend this book as it fills out Churchill ‘s history in a unique and well researched way. By concentrating on the house and his visiting characters, it brings insight and depth to the years before the war.
May 20, 2025
One of my favorite Churchill books, a history of Churchill in the 30s using Chartwell as a backdrop and showing how it was used by Churchill as the center of his political life rather than a retreat from it.
August 21, 2025
A wonderful new take on my all time hero. Having just been to Chartwell for the first time, during the summer of 2023, it was especially helpful to be able to picture aspects and locations in the house. Wonderful writing and stories. I highly recommend this book.
December 19, 2024
Very interesting and informative. A different take on Churchill history. Thoroughly enjoyed and would recommend.
January 27, 2025
Not as substantive as I had hoped.
April 24, 2025
Fascinated by Churchill and the history of WWII. This book puts you inside goings on at Chartwell leading up to WWII.
GREAT
GREAT
May 3, 2025
A total joy to read. Carter has done an outstanding job crafting a unique account of Churchill’s Wilderness Years, which is a tough task.
Want to read
September 15, 2025Lisa Ireland recommends
September 16, 2025
I’d read much of this before in other books. However, the fresh stuff for me was the deeper dive on Einstein and Lawrence of Arabia. Some of those stories I hadn’t heard before and they were worth the book!
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