Candice Millard, Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of
Winston Churchill (New York: Anchor Books, 2017), 382 pages including
index, notes and a selective bibliography plus 16 pages of black and white
photos and two pages of maps.
As the 19th Century
drew to a close, Great Britain was as powerful as ever and a young Winston
Churchill was dying (or at least willing to risk death) for fame. His goals were
set high. After serving in the military in India and the Sudan and as a
military observer with the Spanish in Cuba during the revolution there just
before the Spanish American War, the young Churchill ran for parliament. He
lost, but this was first displayed his unusual talents of public speaking.
Although he was only in his mid-20s, Churchill felt that his life was rushing
away. He was also more than a little disturbed by his beautiful American mother
(his father was deceased by this time) flirting with men not much older than
him. So when war broke out in South Africa with the Boers, Churchill took
the first ship he could find to head south as a war correspondent.
At first the war
wasn’t going very well for the British. The Boers were fiercely independent and
loyal to their homeland and were armed with better weapons than the British.
Although the British had finally given up their red coats for khaki, they still
fought as they had in the American Revolution, in lines that marched toward the
enemy. The Boers were masters at concealment (which the British felt was
cowardly). But concealment was effective against the British discipline.
Churchill traveled
across the country by train and then ship to arrive where the fighting was
underway. Once there, he volunteered to go along with risky missions
including riding an armored train that would be used to spy upon the Boer’s
movements. Of course, the train being limited to tracks, provided little useful
information and made itself a sitting duck.
As the train was heading down a hill, the Boers caused it to jump track
and then attacked, killing and capturing many of the British soldiers. Among those
captured was a war correspondent, Churchill, who had essentially taken over command
of the train and helped get it back on track allowing for part of the
detachment to escape. The rest were taken to Pretoria where they were held as
POWs.
As a POW, Churchill
was in danger. First, the Boers knew that he had been involved in the
fighting even though he was a civilian, which was against the rules of
war. Those who made it back to the safety of the British lines spoke of
his bravery, which reached back to Britain. He was also the son of Lord
Churchill, who had spent time in South Africa before his death and seemed to
have upset everyone, especially the Boer population. But after a few uncertain
days, the Boers allowed Churchill to stay with the officers, who were given a
lot of privileges including buying luxuries, such as liquor and cigars, as well
as receiving packages. While imprisoned, Churchill developed a wild plan for an
escape. The officers would overpower the guards, then free the enlisted men. Together
they would capture the Boer capital and end the war. That idea was shot down,
but eventually another plan developed where three of them would escape
together.
Of the three, only Churchill was able to
make it over the wall and then had to find a way to travel 100s of miles to
reach Portuguese East Africa. Stealing away in a train, he headed across the
country, which got him out of Pretoria.
He eventually finds his way to an English mine superintendent who, with
the help of a merchant who exported wool, managed to slip Churchill out of the
country.
Churchill, once he
made his way back to the British forces, is commissioned an officer and
continues to fight (but we are only provided a brief summary of his war
experiences). After the war is over, Churchill returns to Britain as a
hero and begins his rise in the political ranks.
This was a book I
read for a men’s book club of which I’m a member. I enjoyed it and found it a
fast read. However, there are some gaps. As this is a story about
Churchill, Millard never really tells us how Britain’s as able to gain the
upper hand in South Africa. She tells some of Churchill’s military
involvement in India and mentions the Sudan, but I found myself wanting to know
more. She tells enough to make the point that Churchill (who wasn’t that religious)
did feel he had survived because something great was expected from him. I found
Churchill a bit annoying, partly because he felt his greatness was
foreordained. Had I been those guys trying to escape the POW prison, I would
have probably encouraged Churchill to go off along for it appears he couldn’t
keep his mouth shut. In the movie, “Darkest Hour” which I watched with my
daughter after Christmas, Churchill is recalling for his wife how he was so
struck by her beauty that he was speechless. His wife laughs and said in that
case she must have been very beautiful because it would have been the only time
in his life in which he was speechless. I also was shocked with how hard
Churchill worked at giving speeches. A close friend remarked that he spent
the best years of his life composing impromptu speeches. He also had a
mild speech and struggled to pronounce the letter “s”, but this he overcame.
I recommend this book to anyone interested
in Churchill. I now need to learn more
of the Boer War! This is the second book I've ready by Candice Millard. In 2006, I reviewed her book on Teddy Roosevelt's South America's Expedition, River of Doubt. I like her writing style and will read more!
