Churchill's Speech at Westminster on March 5,1946

In a speech given by Winston Churchill on March 5,1946 at Westminster College, Churchill explains that a new war is imminent yet all possible actions must be taken to prevent this. He does not believe that the Soviet Union our former ally wants war but they are prepared for it, if that's what it will take to gain their spoils from the war and spread their power.

While explaining the current situation he uses the phrase "Iron Curtain" for the first time to represent the division of the Western Powers from the Soviet Union. Churchill further continues by making a statement that communism is a threat to the Christian civilization. He believes that only through a settlement with the Soviet Union will the threat of war evaporate. However, Churchill makes it clear that the Soviet Union only has respect for countries with military power. For this reason he has hopes that the United States who he states is the pinnacle of power in the world, will join the English-speaking Commonwealth with military, science, and industry so that their power will remain greater than that of the Soviet Union which would be another way to prevent any shots from being fired.

Before Churchill had concluded his speech he mentioned that it is his belief that if actions had been taken quicker the war which had just ended could have been prevented. For this reason the world must not have its eyes shut but instead take preemptive measures to assure that a third war would not happen.

The author of the speech is Winston Churchill. Winston Churchill was a soldier, a politician, twice a Prime Minister, and a historian. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, made an honorary citizen of the United States by President Kennedy, won the Nobel Prize, and received an honorary degree from Westminster College. Churchill was a highly respected leader that played a key role in twentieth century history.

Churchill's bias was that the spread of communism must be stopped. In addition he believed that the potential war against the Soviet Union could be prevented and it was the responsibility of those in power to take every action necessary to not allow another war to start. Churchill's bias was one of a Christian, a citizen in the United Kingdom, and well respected leader especially during and after WW II. Churchill is a very credible source.

The purpose of his speech was to inform the audience of what was going on in the world now that the war was over. His knowledge of the imminent war to come, gave him the responsibility to speak out and inform everyone of not only the dangers but also how to prevent them from becoming a reality. He also sought to explain that the previous war could have been prevented had actions been taken more swiftly. His reason for informing them of the world's short comings, which allowed the last war to take place, was so they would learn from prior mistakes.

After reading this document and doing additional research I learned more about the life and achievements of Winston Churchill. I came across information from different sources that contradicts one another as far as whether this was the first time the phrase, "Iron Curtain" was used, or whether it was just the first time that it was used publicly in a speech.

The significance of this document to the historian is that it gives insight to where mistakes and lack of actions allowed the Second World War to take place. It informs them of why another war may take place, in addition to the actions that he thought were necessary to prevent another war from happening.