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Churchill, Eisenhower, and the Making of the Modern World
It is often said that the special bond between Britain and the USA was forged in war between Roosevelt and Churchill. But the closer link in many ways was that between Churchill and Eisenhower, since it existed both in wartime 1941-1945 but also again in very different circumstances between 1951 and 1955, when Churchill was Prime Minister and Eisenhower was briefly the first Supreme Allied Commander NATO before going back to the USA to win the 1952 Presidential race and overlap in the White House with Churchill’s peacetime premiership from 1953-1955. And in 1945-1951 Churchill by his speeches and Eisenhower by his tenure as first ever Supreme Allied Commander Europe were continuing to create the new and stable global world order that held until now. In other words theirs was a much longer relationship than that between FDR and Churchill, and spanning peace as well as war. And it was the Eisenhower and Churchill relationship that essentially created the world order that lasted down until current times. Churchill and Eisenhower can also be seen as a passing of the baton, from Britain as the fading superpower to the dynamic new world of the USA. Churchill’s relationship with Eisenhower spans this transition perfectly and is the ideal prism through which to witness this change, in terms of how the balance between the UK and USA altered both as countries and in personal terms between the two men themselves.
- GenresWorld War IIHistory
280 pages, Hardcover
Published November 1, 2022
2 people are currently reading
15 people want to read
About the author
Christopher Catherwood
64 books15 followersChristopher Catherwood is a writer and historian based in Cambridge. He has taught at the University of Cambridge and the University of Richmond, Virginia. An expert on Winston Churchill, his previous books include the bestseller Winston’s Folly.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 3, 2022
Churchill, Eisenhower and the Making of the Modern World by Christopher Catherwood
I found this a very interesting and enjoyable book to read. Of course, everyone in the English- speaking world for sure knows Winston Churchill and his major role in the middle of the 20th Century. Less is known about David Eisenhower and his relationship with Churchill that goes back to 1941 and the planning for the invasion of Europe. This is a book not only about these two gentlemen but also the evolving relationship between the US and the UK. As Mr. Catherwood clearly points out the concept of a “Special Relationship” if it existed at all changed from 1941 when the UK was on top to 1943 when already the US was the leader. This gap grew with the war as well as afterwards. But there were still times when Britain acted as a break on US adventures to the good of both countries. As an example, Eisenhower wanted a coalition to fight in Vietnam in 1954 but the British refused and this was at least for a while a benefit to the West. There are many stories that illustrate the give and take between the two leaders and countries that were new to me. As an example, the US were keen to advance on Germany across the Channel in 1943 but the British prevailed and instead the Allied forces went into N. Africa and Italy delaying the advance into Germany until the actual D-Day in 1944. Did this matter? Mr. Catherwood makes a very clear timeline of the difference of one year. Would the Allies have been all the way to Poland meaning much of Central Europe would not have been under Soviet rule for 40 years. Was it wise to have let The Soviets take Berlin? They suffered over 340,000 casualties taken Berlin which was far greater than the US and the UK suffered in the entire war. The Cold War era and the H-Bomb also were major issues. Churchill was desperate to find a way for himself and the UK to be relevant in bringing peace to Europe especially after Stalin’s death. Eisenhower, correctly felt this was not the time and suggested Churchill could enhance his legacy if he focused on ending Colonialism. Shockingly at least to me we see bigotry and backwardness of Churchill who still saw the colonies as jungles and filled with Hottentots ! Mr. Catherwood is English but his wife was an American which gave him I believe a more fair and balanced view of these two leaders. I have read enough about Churchill but from this book I now need to read more about David Eisenhower. I highly recommend this book.
I found this a very interesting and enjoyable book to read. Of course, everyone in the English- speaking world for sure knows Winston Churchill and his major role in the middle of the 20th Century. Less is known about David Eisenhower and his relationship with Churchill that goes back to 1941 and the planning for the invasion of Europe. This is a book not only about these two gentlemen but also the evolving relationship between the US and the UK. As Mr. Catherwood clearly points out the concept of a “Special Relationship” if it existed at all changed from 1941 when the UK was on top to 1943 when already the US was the leader. This gap grew with the war as well as afterwards. But there were still times when Britain acted as a break on US adventures to the good of both countries. As an example, Eisenhower wanted a coalition to fight in Vietnam in 1954 but the British refused and this was at least for a while a benefit to the West. There are many stories that illustrate the give and take between the two leaders and countries that were new to me. As an example, the US were keen to advance on Germany across the Channel in 1943 but the British prevailed and instead the Allied forces went into N. Africa and Italy delaying the advance into Germany until the actual D-Day in 1944. Did this matter? Mr. Catherwood makes a very clear timeline of the difference of one year. Would the Allies have been all the way to Poland meaning much of Central Europe would not have been under Soviet rule for 40 years. Was it wise to have let The Soviets take Berlin? They suffered over 340,000 casualties taken Berlin which was far greater than the US and the UK suffered in the entire war. The Cold War era and the H-Bomb also were major issues. Churchill was desperate to find a way for himself and the UK to be relevant in bringing peace to Europe especially after Stalin’s death. Eisenhower, correctly felt this was not the time and suggested Churchill could enhance his legacy if he focused on ending Colonialism. Shockingly at least to me we see bigotry and backwardness of Churchill who still saw the colonies as jungles and filled with Hottentots ! Mr. Catherwood is English but his wife was an American which gave him I believe a more fair and balanced view of these two leaders. I have read enough about Churchill but from this book I now need to read more about David Eisenhower. I highly recommend this book.
September 26, 2022
I was so happy that I had the opportunity to read this book. I am a devoted anglophile who has visited the United Kingdom over ten times and traveled extensively through England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland. Always visiting battlegrounds, museums, both war and airplane, generally soaking up the sense of history that can not be found in the U.S. But the National WWII Museum in New Orleans is great(As a woman my husband is very happy that I enjoy tank museums, Dover's secret tunnels, Imperial War Museum to name a few)Mr. Catherwood immediately stirs my intellectual curiosity about a period of history I hadn't had the opportunity to delve into, yet. With the precision of a scalpel, this book that does not simply quote facts and minutiae but tells a story about two men and their relationship over a period of years. Having been born in 1953, I only know about this period through books. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in history and the US/UK relationship. Now my curiosity is piqued and I have to read more about Churchill and Eisenhower. Thank you NetGalley and Mr. Catherwood.
August 3, 2023
Christopher Catherwood’s Churchill and Eisenhower is a strange book. Filled with the author’s personal reflections and replete with his first and third person references this tome purports to show how these two figures shaped the modern world. In Churchill’s case yes but in Ike’s he dealt with the hand he was largely given. In fact the book explores how history might have been shaped if D-Day were in 1943, or the USSR had attacked Japan earlier. Over their 13 year political and military relationship Ike and Winston formed a bond but were frequently at odds (war strategy generally, Vietnam, co/existence with the Soviets, a post Stalin summit, colonialism and empire). Churchill remained a Victorian nostalgist for all things empire while Eisenhower was more the 20th c realist. Churchill was clear eyed about two threats: Hitler and the Cold War. Despite insisting on the preeminence of the “special relationship” Churchill developed Britain’s own nuclear capability and resisted John Foster Dulles’ entreaties to engage in Vietnam. But he wanted to always keep the American behemoth close.
November 4, 2022
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This book is well-researched, quotes from some of my favorite history books, and is thorough. It's academic, though, and not warm and fuzzy but a cold, dry read. As long as you know that going in, it's an enjoyable book. So much time was spent discussing World War II I wondered whether I was ever going to read about Eisenhower in his presidency, which is a favorite and not much explored topic by historians. But that's the crux of it. The cold war and how Ike and Churchill handled it during peacetime was the direct result of choices they made during World War II.
Give yourself time to slowly read through the book and absorb everything or you'll be overwhelmed. I read it in a few days and like I said, it's dry and academic, and ultimately affected how I felt about the book. 3.5 stars rounded up.
This book is well-researched, quotes from some of my favorite history books, and is thorough. It's academic, though, and not warm and fuzzy but a cold, dry read. As long as you know that going in, it's an enjoyable book. So much time was spent discussing World War II I wondered whether I was ever going to read about Eisenhower in his presidency, which is a favorite and not much explored topic by historians. But that's the crux of it. The cold war and how Ike and Churchill handled it during peacetime was the direct result of choices they made during World War II.
Give yourself time to slowly read through the book and absorb everything or you'll be overwhelmed. I read it in a few days and like I said, it's dry and academic, and ultimately affected how I felt about the book. 3.5 stars rounded up.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews