Churchill's Hour (34 page)
Finally, I want to express my best wishes to Lady Soames, Churchill's daughter, and Mr Winston Churchill, the son of Randolph and Pamela, who find their way into the pages of this book. I have trespassed into their private lives, and done so without seeking their permission. I decided at the start of this enterprise that it would be wrong to ask them for their help; if I hadn't agreed with their conclusions, it might have caused much greater
offence than not asking them at all. Yet the problem for those who want to write about their father and grandfather is that it is impossible to do so in a rounded manner without taking into account the private life of the Churchill familyâand during 1941 that private life was, at times, tempestuous. He was a father as well as a statesman; the roles did not always sit comfortably with each other. It took a great man to deal with the conflicts that arose, and I hope Lady Soames and the current Winston Churchill will forgive any indelicacies or inaccuracies that might have crept into this book as a result of my trying to portray those elusive âinner' events.
As the old man said himself: âOne of the most misleading factors in history is the practice of historians to build a story exclusively out of the records which have come down to them.' Well, I've taken Winston at his word. I like to think he wouldn't have minded.
MICHAEL DOBBS
Hanging Langford, July 2004.
Michael Dobbs has been an academic, a broadcaster, a senior corporate executive and an advisor to two Prime Ministers. He is the author of many novels, including the award-winning
House of Cards
trilogy.
Churchill's Hour
is the third in his series of Winston Churchill novels, the previous two being
Winston's War
and
Never Surrender.
Michael Dobbs lives with his family in Wiltshire.
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WINSTON CHURCHILL NOVELS
Winston's War
Never Surrender
THE TOM GOODFELLOWE SERIES
Goodfellowe MP
The Buddha of Brewer Street
Whispers of Betrayal
THE FRANCIS URQUHART TRILOGY
House of Cards
To Play the King
The Final Cut
OTHER TITLES
Wall Games
Last Man to Die
The Touch of Innocents
This is a work of fiction.
Apart from well-known historical figures and events, the names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
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FIRST EDITION
First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins
Publishers
2004
Copyright © Michael Dobbs 2004
Michael Dobbs asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
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EPub Edition © SEPTEMBER 2009 ISBN: 978-0-007-34748-3
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