Kemper Lectures
THE PERSONALITY OF SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL
Sir John R. Colville, C.B., C.V.O. , March 24, 1985
Sir John R. Colville, C.B., C.V.O. , March 24, 1985
Before all else, I want to express my pleasure and gratification at having this most welcome honorary degree bestowed on me. It is the first I have ever received. The only other one I have was not honorary, and I was actually expected to work for it. Nor am I anywhere near the category of those great men who are swamped with such honour. I remember a ceremony at Quebec when the Governor-General, Lord Athlone, conferred L.L.D.s on President Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. Turning to Churchill, Lord Athlone, a soldier by training, said: “The Prime Minister and I have this in common: we have charged with the cavalry and we have been educated by Degrees.”
It is my pleasant duty, on behalf of the National Trust of England and Wales, and the Royal Oak Society, to present to Westminster College, a beautifully-made replica of the writing table in the library at Chartwell. It comes to Westminster College through the generosity of Heritage Arts, Ltd., one of whose Directors, Mr. Shaifer, is here this afternoon, and it was actually made by the firm of Arthur Brett of Norwich. I know the National Trust, Mr. Shaifer, and all others concerned hope it will be regarded as a worthy addition to the Museum’s beautifully arranged treasures.
If I had my life all over again, I should probably opt for Holy Orders. How pleasant to be able to stand up once a week in a pulpit and address a captive audience, inhibited by the sanctity of the surroundings from throwing things at you or even interrupting.
Well, here I am, at long last, in a pulpit; though looking around, I am not quite sure how totally captive the audience is. Let me, however, now address myself to somewhat more serious matters.
In a great many classrooms and lecture-halls, in every country and in each succeeding generation, the question is asked: to what extent are great men fashioned by circumstances? Does the occasion create the man more often than the man the occasion? As with most generalized questions, there is generally no valid answer.