Chartwell

At present I am reading one of Michael Dobbs' novels set around the life of Winston Churchill before and during World War II.  These are impressive books that really do, as the late Anthony Howard said in The Times, "bring historical happenings so vitally back to life."  The author describes Churchill's home at Chartwell with some affection.  It is a place I visited many times. when I lived in Sussex.  There was nothing I enjoyed more than to go down to Chartwell on a sunny summer day and spend many hours walking around the house and gardens and visiting the gallery in the garden where the great man's paintings were displayed.  Mrs Churchill never really liked Chartwell but the couple lived there from 1922 until Winston died in 1965.  Winston Churchill was never a very rich man and relied for the most part on his writings to make a living.  After his defeat in the General Election of 1945 it rapidly became clear that they could not afford the upkeep on this far from cheap to run rambling mansion..  Although they still owned the property they did so only because newspaper magnate, Viscount Camrose — owner of the Daily Telegraph — and nine other wealthy well-wishers gave Churchill £5,000 [equivalent to about £160,000 today] each, to help pay for the upkeep of the building, on the understanding that they paid a nominal rent and after they were both dead the house would be handed to the National Trust. In fact after the funeral of Sir Winston Churchill in 1965, Clementine Churchill handed the house to the National Trust, immediately.

But problems with debt and the cost of running the house were not new.  Back in 1938, when Churchill had been out of office for nearly a decade and living on his MP's salary and his journalism, he was pressed to put Chartwell up for sale.  It was said in the agent's description that Chartwell had 5 reception rooms, 19 bed rooms — with dressing rooms — 8 bathrooms, had three cottages set in an estate of 80 acres and included a swimming pool.  Sir Henry Strakosch bailed out Churchill by taking over his share portfolio for three years and paid off heavy debts so the house did not need to be sold.

Clemintine's objections to the house were mainly practical ones; it was big and rambling, prone to being drafty and cost a small fortune to keep warm — no double glazing, loft insulation or cavity wall insulation here.  But Winston Churchill's love for the house was that of a romantic.  Its location affords panoramic views across the Weald of Kent and Churchill was prone to waxing lyrical about the countryside that "we are fighting for."  Its location is truly splendid; to stand on the terrace and look out across Kent to the English Channel always sent shivers down my spine and made me proud to be an Englishman.

The house exudes Churchill in every room; all of which have been restored to the condition they would have been in during the years when Churchill lived there.  Being able to see his library, his work-room, the stand-up desk where he worked and the dining room with its seating for about ten people, it is easy to imagine Churchill leaning over your shoulder, pointing out many of the small mementos of his many visitors from Charlie Chaplin to President Eisenhower.

The gardens complete with Winston's brick walls are charming and relaxing and it was always a pleasure to look at his collection of paintings.  He was a competent artist rather than a great one but I suspect the he was a better artist than Claude Monet would have been a statesman. 

Now that I am living in the North of England, I don't suppose I will ever visit Chartwell again but I will always retain fond memories of this wonderful and very historic house.

Today, Churchill is remembered as a giant of British politics and a great man.  He was.  Although not always consistent, his politics came from the heart and he stood up for what he believed in and above all he believed in Great Britain.  In comparison, most of today's British politicians are mere pygmies wandering aimlessly, without ideas or principles, around the corridors of power.

But Chartweel, go there if ever you have the chance.

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