However, a sizeable portion of the radio audience was concerned that Churchill not only was wrong, but that he was willingly turning against an ally that had prevented Nazi expansion on the eastern front, and then liberated Poland and advanced on Hitler and the Nazi army. To be sure, many agreed with Churchill’s warning.
In the immediate aftermath, the response to the speech was measured. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia, all these famous cities and the populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere, and all are subject in one form or another, not only to Soviet influence but to a very high and, in many cases, increasing measure of control from Moscow.” The speech joined early declarations of the budding conflict between the world’s superpowers. Pulling no punches, Churchill issued the warning that “rom Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent.” He continued, describing continental stage behind the dropped curtain which held “…all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. On March 5, 1946, Winston Churchill, former British Prime Minister during World War II, came to Westminster College, in Fulton, Missouri and described the budding new threat of communist Soviet expansion across Europe. “And wherever men are fighting against barbarism, tyranny, and massacre, for freedom, law, and honour, let them remember that the fame of their deeds, even though they themselves be exterminated, may perhaps be celebrated as long as the world rolls round.” The Birth of Britain, Winston Churchill Sinews of Peace and the Importance of Churchill As you will read, both Churchill and his speech still have much meaning for us as we face the challenges of the 21st century. If that institution rings a bell, you may be recalling it was the site of Winston Churchill’s famous “ The Sinews of Peace” lecture or, as it is more commonly known, the “Iron Curtain” speech.Īs March is the 75th anniversary of the legendary address, it could not be more timely to hear Tobias’ thoughtful reflections on it (and Churchill).
Today’s guest post comes to us from Tobias Gibson who is Chair of the Political Science Department and the Director of the Security Studies Program at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri.
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