Churchill, Winston | The Second World War: Volume I, The Gathering Storm, Lord Beaverbrook's copy

Churchill, Winston

The Second World War: Volume I, The Gathering Storm. London: Cassell & Co. Ltd., 1948

8vo. Half-title, author's note tipped into p. ix, and errata slip and errata leaf tipped onto p. 610, all edges gilt; minor transfer of binding to pastedowns. Maroon red morocco gilt by Bumpus; small circular stain to upper cover, a few light scratches. Collector's chemise and slipcase.

Lord Beaverbrook's copy of the first book of Churchill's most successful series, signed by the author.

"In War: Resolution

In Defeat: Defiance

In Victory: Magnanimity

In Peace: Goodwill"

Churchill's "Moral of the Work" for The Second World War appears in this first volume, providing a message of warning to the world to learn from the events of 1939 to 1945. Written with unparalleled access to official documentation on the war as well as his own diaries, the six volume series intended to be a comprehensive history of the war and its buildup. This was Churchill's most commercially successful work, and the one that made him financially independent. "Churchill the historian lies at the very heart of all historiography of the Second World War, and will always remain there... [we still] move down the broad avenues which he drove through war's confusion and complexity." (J. H. Plumb)

Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook, known as Lord Beaverbrook (or "The Beaver"), was a Canadian-British newspaper magnate and politician. One of Churchill's closest friends, he was appointed as head of the Ministry of Aircraft Production and part of Churchill's wartime cabinet, enormously important positions. Beaverbrook described his wartime work as “the most glittering, glorious, glamorous era of my whole life.” The pair enjoyed a friendship that lasted decades, starting with Beaverbrook's election to the House of Commons in 1910. Beaverbrook was a controversial figure; Clement Attlee and Evelyn Waugh both thought him contemptible. In later years, Beaverbrook himself noted: “Churchill was always a better friend to his friends than they were to him.”

REFERENCE:

Cohen A240.4(I).a; Woods A123(b)

PROVENANCE:

Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (presentation inscription, Christmas 1948 and bookplate to pastedown)