@Balla You know that Churchill can't be "cancelled", right? Being as how he is dead. He has his legacy. If you don't think it can stand up to the truth from a RUclips random, you clearly don't think much of that legacy.
@@jonnylumberjack6223 Churchill was quite the controversial figure, no doubt. However despite his flaws which in some aspects were dark and outdated for the time, his good side stood as a beacon to the British people during our darkest hours. With anything throughout human history, there is always a negative and positive with everything, people need to acknowledge both before making a decision, and not to make a biased one sided descion. In my mind, on one hand Churchill was a racist, he was a white supremacist like Hitler in that sense. However, on the otherhand he rallied Britain to never surrender, but to fight on through her darkest hours, and for that I respect him for it deeply, otherwise our lives would be much, much different today if it wasn't for him.
@@arfgrogue5735 seems a long winded way to say what I said ...he did a great thing, but he was a cunt. Also, no way of telling what would have happened if he wasn't around, I don't think we can say that if it wasn't for him we would have lost. But we'll never know 🙂
I'm proud to say that I went to Winston Churchill's funeral. A 10 year old boy, I took my younger brother on a number 78 bus from the Old Kent Road to Tower Bridge. The whole bridge was full of people and Scots Guards, with a tear in my eye the Scots Guards gave us room to look onto the river where the barge was. I witnessed all the cranes being lowered in honour of this great man. Not a dry pair of eyes to be seen. Thank you Scots Guards. The allies fortunately won the 2nd World War but Winnie was there, an incomparable man, a heroic man and inspirational as a man and an orator.
@@gleadhill79 Thank you Lozza. It was a very sad day indeed. The Scots Guards were brilliant, I remember it all like it was yesterday and will never fade from my memory. Something very special about being British.
@@ziglarurquhart42 I’m a peace and love San Francisco person and fuck yea man! Shoulder to shoulder in the fucking trenches with our mother county’s men and now woman. The nazi scums used to say “a thousand year reich (empire)” during Hitler’s rule. Fuck that, a thousand year friendship with my 🇬🇧 bros and sisters. ✌🏼 & ❤
Just found out that Winston Churchills funeral was witnessed by 350 million people. The largest state funeral in history. Well deserved Winston, well deserved.
@@eddhardy1054 No way. There were more than 350 million people watching her funeral. The population of the United States is about that. The commonwealth with India getting on for 1 and a half billion.
@@gleadhill79 yeah it seems that stoic selfless attitude is rare in this world full of sociopaths... it's the Internet. We weren't ready for it. It has created so much cognitive dissonance in the world, selfishness, and it allows people to tailor their propaganda and cause mass confusion. It has become uncivilised. Too many variables to consider when everyone can spout any old crap and call it fact. 🤷♂️
@@braddo7270 it makes me laugh when people reply on Wikipedia as a legitimate source of information, especially since anyone can edit the topic content. Daft sods! It's like people of today have just totally lost touch with any sign of reality, or they just don't care anymore.
Even today there are fresh flowers on his grave. I live around 40 miles from the church-yard where he is buried. People still go to pay respect to him.
There are two things about Churchill that cannot be denied. One is that he had some ideals that would not sit well in today's society, but were commonplace at the time. Secondly, we would not be the country or even the world that we are today had it not been for his leadership. We owe him everything, even though we disagree with some of the things he stood for.
Exactly I don’t agree with his way of thinking but he came into the situation against the Germans when many thought we had no hope but gave the whole country hope, we owe him everything and not just us most of the world
Thank you for taking a sensible view because it is becoming rarer every day. Too many people like to see someone as either perfect or irredeemably awful. It's always great to look at someone as a whole and not for 1 thing they did wrong
you got me crying. I was 5years old at the time and my mother said I used to carry the newspaper with His death in and would not let any one take it from me, I remember it well.
I got the off school and my family sat and watched it on TV (black and white) The whole country came to a standstill. Not a single car passed our house during the whole day. The country was totally silent. Great man
I have seen this I loved the way the dockers lowered there cranes this was a state funeral not all British PM’s get state funerals . He was prime minister twice his second term was difficult for him as the years had set in , this is beautiful I don’t think this will ever happen again for a prime minister , he was the Queens first prime minister she is now on her 14th Boris Johnson. It is said she was very fond of him, Margaret Thatcher got a ceremonial funeral as she was such a divisive and controversial PM although she almost got one but Churchill to my knowledge is the only British Prime-minister to receives British state funeral because he was the war time leader and he stood up to Germany.
Ah yes, the cranes. You are obviously unaware Churchill was despised by the crane operators and their fellow dockers. Indeed they had to be coerced into being involved by the promise of a pay bonus to perform. 😐 My grandad was a docker in Liverpool and also had a very low opinion of him
@@steddie4514 That all rests on the testimony of John Lynch, a single docker interviewed for a 2015 BBC documentary. While there's certainly some truth to it, Mr Lynch indicated that there were rows about the gesture which says to me some were happy to do while others didn't want to. As it was their afternoon off they asked to be paid for the day which given the unionised climate at the time is not surprising even if it bursts the poignancy somewhat. In the event even Mr Lynch admitted to being very moved by the day and the gesture despite not liking Churchill
His second term was when George the 6th died and he met the Queen on her return from Kenya ,as the new monarch. It had to be his meeting her as PM ,after he and her parents showed magnificent leadership in WW2. He wrote, ‘For Valour’ on the King’s wreath .The words on the Victoria Cross. It is a very moving piece of history. No monarch in our history endured what George the 6th endured, He came close to seeing Britain destroyed and ruined. His remarkable tenacity was beyond heroic, along with his amazing wife. We will never see their like again.
@steddie4514 My dad was a stevedore in the London docks and a Royal Navy veteran and he and his mates had a great deal of respect for Churchill. Churchill wasn't perfect but he made decisions in one afternoon that you would have to live 20 lifetimes and still you wouldn't even come close.
I was 9 at the time, he'd been ill for about a week and everyone knew the end was coming. We were at Mass that Sunday morning and the priest told us the news had just been announced that he was dead. I still remember the collective groan among the adults, and the cold January air when we got outside. Even at that age, I already knew his "Finest Hour" speech and how he'd led our country during its darkest hours. Kids my age, or at least boys my age, were raised on stories of The Few, El Alemain, Dunkirk and D-Day. The War was among the most significant events in our lives, even though it had ended 10 years before I was born. We were surrounded by people who were heroes in The War, people who were damaged in and by The War, and people who had lost people.
Girls too- in those days we were taught our history and having parents, uncles and aunts who had served in WW2 you were brought up on the stories of the war, and yes, could recite various bits of his speeches. Funny how it is almost impossible to quite the words 'people will still say, THIS was their finest hour' without going into Churchill impersonation mode......
As a 9 year old I remember my mum and dad standing upright while we all watched the tele . Mum had tears in her eyes and dad stood motionless. My dad had served in the Royal Navy and my best friend's dad served in the army . As children we were more than aware of the war as you only had to visit London to see the waste land. We as 9 year old's were already veteran's of many wars (German's, Zulu's, Romans ,Red Indian's) you name it we fought it . Strange that over time there has been a change in the way things are described ie Nazi seems to have taken the place of Germans which wasn't the case back in the day .
I watched it on the TV as a nine year old. I remember a short while before his death he wasn't very well but he managed to summon the energy to get to the window of the building he was living in in London to make a final wave to the crowds who were waiting in the street. I am pretty sure they gave him 3 rousing cheers. The final performance of a most amazing historical figure who despite his several failings had a massive role in keeping the world free from tyranny.
It's a very stirring piece of music used on this film, I vow to thee my country is the title, very fitting. In the long history of britain, he was only the third person to be granted a full state funeral, the others being The Duke of Wellington and Horatio Nelson. When the late Robert Francis Kennedy made a visit to britain, he made a point of visiting the grave and leaving some flowers, a nice gesture. My favourite quote from him is ; It is no bad thing to have made enemies, it means you have stood up for something in your life. 👍
What interests me about Churchill is the fact he was a son of the Victorian age , born 1874 ,lived through the fascinating times of Jack The Ripper ,The Elephant Man and dealt with the war . I wonder if the last people from the 1900's will be regarded with a touch of astonishment - can't find the word I need !
those folk in those times 1800 -1950s where strong in body and mind. they was the greater generations of human kind. take someone off the tv show love island and transport them back to that time era and leave them there. they would not be able to survive with life of those times. everything today is super easy and super convenient. they would not last a week in those times because people today for most part have become made soft.
@@harbourwoodlandvisitor2445 Some of the older cast in the 1948 Oliver Twist were genuine Victorians playing out an era they actually witnessed . Love that film .
@@harbourwoodlandvisitor2445 True, but it's what people are used to. They can't help it if they were born today. Those strong people from the 1800 - 1950s wouldn't be able to survive in the 1600s.
I watched Churchill's funeral on black and white television, an 11 year old then. Both my mother and father fought in the 2nd World War. Churchill was a great man. Probably the greatest of Englishmen
I was an 18 year young man at a Sunday night movie theater in Wanganui New Zealand, A notice was flashed onto the screen during the movie stating IT HAS JUST BEEN ANNOUNCED THAT SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL HAS PASSED AWAY There was an audible gasp and murmuring from the audience and the film continued playing
@@markscouler2534 I mean, they can't actually do anything. I had them come because I went in on a group of islamists online and they tried to call me racist. I threatened them with a lawsuit and they left. 🤷♂️
@@braddo7270 it's looney land in the UK now even when I was a kid back in 80s you had respect for the police as they were firm but fair but now they are just to politically correct
@@markscouler2534 we have 3 opposing systems in the UK. 1. Socialism 2. Capitalism 3. Communism. All three contradict eachother. Capitalism causes unfair advantages (and that's politicians and the rich) communism creates unrest and is obviously just a fancy dictatorship (and that's the police force and some unfavourable, authoritarian politicians) and the socialists are everyone else who just want everyone to have the same opportunities and to keep the government powerless to the people. These conflicts are what is causing the lunacy. And the Internet being used to spout any old crap as fact and allowing politicians to tailor their propaganda directly to the most vulnerable and impressionable. It's a mess. But it won't last long. Socialism will win out. 👌👍
@@markscouler2534 but yeah my point is that you can use the ideological trump card to get yourself out of these situations. Right now nobody even knows what right and wrong is. Which is sad coming from a nation who once had the strongest of all moral values.
I remember watching this on tv. It was a state funeral, and virtually the whole of London came to a standstill. The Queen & royal family attended, but the bit that really got to me was when his coffin was lowered onto the barge, taking his body up river to Waterloo Station and all the cranes along the riverbank dipped in unison as a sign of respect to the man who it was felt had got us through the war.
A great man. I remember watching his funeral on telly. I was 4 years old. My mum was crying. He inspired a nation , his speeches made us believe anything was possible. We could do with him now.
The Funeral was on Saturday 30th January 1965, and I remember the day well - Our first television was delivered! Churchill's funeral was the first programme I saw at home. 'The music to 'I vow the thee my country' is by Gustav Holst and taken from the Planet Suite (Jupiter).
I saw it in Scotland on TV (B&W of course) at home. Popularity is easily won, Winston was quite something else. Beloved and respected for how he steered a whole, tiny country, and more, through and out from the most extreme of dark times into the light.
I live a couple of miles away from Winston Churchill's grave, it's in a tiny village called Bladon and close to his family home Blenhiem Palace. I was 10 years old at the time of his funeral, still moves me today.
The funeral service was held in St Paul’s Cathedral, which was appropriate because during the heavy bombing of London during World War Two ( The Blitz) , St Paul’s survived and became a symbol for the British determination to survive the constant onslaught of war. Amongst the congregation were prominent members of the Royal Family, including the Queen and Queen Mother, who was Queen Consort to King George VI during the war. Amongst the foreign dignitaries present was President Charles de Gaulle of France, who knew Winston Churchill well. The scenes on the River Thames were also very poignant and full of meaning. Winston Churchill served as First Lord of the Admiralty ( Head of the Royal Navy) twice, at the beginning of World War One and World War Two. The cranes on the docks next to Tower Bridge were lowered as a mark of respect. Winston Churchill didn’t want to be buried in St Paul’s Cathedral or Westminster Abbey as he could have been, he wanted a simple burial plot near to his family in the small churchyard at Bladon in Oxfordshire, which is just over a mile from where he was born, at Blenheim Palace, the ancestral home of the Dukes of Marlborough, who were all Churchill’s. His full name was Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, so that when Prince William becomes King, there will a member of the Churchill family on the throne, because his mother was a member of the Spencer family, and a distant cousin of Sir Winston. In this world of political correctness some people criticise Winston Churchill for some of the things he did during his life, but they were different times from today. For my part, he was the greatest Briton who ever lived.
Honestly it touches us as a nation when we see people not from here so respectful of our proudest figure heads. We come under a lot of unwarranted fire in the world after doing so much for everyone at our own expense... so occasionally it's really nice to see a warm reaction to the people who really changed the world. 👌 if it wasn't for that man, we would all be speaking German here. You included JPS. He stood alone in the grandest battle ever known when the rest of Europe fell and allied with the capitalist Americans, who originally weren't interested, which saved us all. Including the Americans.
@@alimar0604 we will be proud again. We are going through a phase right now with the Internet and false history being spouted as fact. When it all dies down and the world sees clearly again, we will be seen equally as grand and philosophical and world changing, if not more, than the Greeks and romans. We were the last and the grandest empire the world has ever known. 👌
We also would not be speaking German as that was never Hitlerz intention. If it was then it would be impossible to replace a language that quickly and easily so if would be a hybrid of German and English from generations before the German takeover. Speaking German is the only good thing from a German invasion or if Gemany won WW2
For a man who kept the light of freedom burning in times or great darkness he has a modest grave, a great man indeed. I was about 7 years old and saw this live on a grainy shadowed 405 line tv. Every adult was so sad at his loss.
All credit to this remarkable young American, moved as I was, at the events of this video. And his interest and respect for the traditions of Great Britain. As a young Australian, I filed past the Bier as it lay in State in Westminster Hall one Thursday afternoon in 1965.......along with what seemed like the rest of the world. Thank you sincerely for this. Les Griffiths
Watched the funeral as a 10 year old boy. Can remember it as if it was yesterday on Black and white TV. The nations greatest prime minister with out his leadership we would not have the freedom what we have today. Brought tears to my eyes. Love the respect you showed when reacting to this video. Joel. Thank you.
I remember it. I was a teenager. It was as if the impossible had happened because I thought Winston Churchill would live forever. He was a national institution. This post is a reminder of that sad event.
I was almost 14 at the time of his death and remember it well. Very sad. I remember his funeral train was hauled by the express steam locomotive already named Winston Churchill as steam was still common on our railways at the time. I think you are a very kind and sensitive young man to show such respect in your reaction to the video and I love you for it. But your reactions are always the best possible ones.
He was a great man, and I don't think anyone else would have been more suited to bring our country through the war. What I loved about the funeral was whilst the barge carrying his coffin past the dockyards of London, all of the cranes lowered their jibs in unison. Must have been quite a sight. I myself am not old enough to remember the event, in fact I was not born until a few months after his death. But I do still have the specially minted crown coin from 1965 which my uncle gave me when I was born. I remember in my early childhood never really understanding the significance of the coin - other than it was minted in the year I was born. Even through school where we learned about WW2 I was still not really aware of what a great man he was. But now that I am much older and have found a love for history, especially the second world war, I come to realise just what a fantastic gift my uncle gave me when I was born. The coin is not really that valuable, they were minted in the thousands, but it represents a man who brought us through those terrible times, plus it represents a time when this country was proud of who we were as a nation. When being British meant something to just about everyone in the country. Sadly, the events of recent years regarding Brexit shows just how different this nation is today. I am proud to be British, and it saddened me to see the demonstrations in London and around the country with people carrying banners stating that they were Europeans, not British. I think that would have had Winston turning in his grave.
His funeral was my first recollection of TV, I was 4 and the whole family watched it. The curtains in the house were closed out of repeat. I still find it very moving to watch .
Here are my two favourite Winston Churchill's retorts. "Madam, I may be drunk but in the morning I shall be sober but you will still be ugly" And Lady Nancy Astor said to Churchill "You are an intolerable man, if I was your wife I'd poison you". To which Winston replied "Nancy, if you were my wife I'd drink it" Absolutely brilliant.
@itschad1954 "A empty car drew up at 10 Downing Street, and Mr Atlee* got out" was another of his sharp comments. * Clement Atlee (1883 -1967) leader of the Labour Party.
The first quotation is slightly wrong in that it was a lady (Lady Astor, I think) who said to Winston after he had had a few too many "Sir, you are drunk" to which Winnie replied "Madam, you are ugly, but tomorrow I shall be sober". His other great response was to an invitation received from George Bernard Shaw which said "enclosed are two tickets for my opening night, bring a friend, if you have one" to which Winston replied "Regret cannot attend but will be able to come on the second night, if you have one".
The newspaper writers ask Churchill what they should write about bombings in London and other parts. Churchill answered "always tell the truth, because if there will be one time you have to lie, everyone will believe you". He was so right.
What ever political party you were behind there was so much respect for this man,mostly due to the way he led the country through WW2. To have a state funeral reflects that respect. What an incredible life he led. I was born the year he died so interesting for me to see how people dressed etc in that time
Winston was the most consequential world leader of the 20th century, he had a life like no other and is never lightly to be surpassed, as a young man he took part in the last carvery charge in the Sudan, He was in the Boar war and escaped from captivity and was the most wanted man in South Africa, He was the home secretary during the Latvian revolutionaries in London. he was first sea lord at the start of WW1 after Gallipoli he fought on the western front and gave the idea to invent the TANK. He warned of Hitler in the early 30s, He again became 1st sea lord on the outbreak of WW2. He was appointed prime minister just before Dunkirk. He refused to sue for peace with the Axis powers, If he had the world would be a very dark place today. He stopped the Americans from trying to invade Europe in 42 & 43 as we were not ready and it would have resulted in hundreds of thousands British and American dead that equates to Millions of people alive today who wouldn't be. travelled to
Just watched this. I remember as a small kid watching the whole funeral live on tv. Joel you realise that your Peace Out V sign outro gives you something in common with the great man! His V for Victory hand gesture was use as both a rallying call to the British - and when the hand was reversed - as an insult to the Germans.
Didn't see the departure from Waterloo Stn' in the clip, where you see the soldiers carry his coffin onto the train, that long ramp was built by myself and the carpenter when I worked in the building Dept' at Waterloo Station back then.
I was 25 when Winston Churchill passed, it must have been a blow for him to be voted out just after WW2 having taken this country through six years of fighting the Nazi threat, and if some people think he was a war criminal need to remember that Hitler and his thugs were by far the worse kind of criminals, if there was a loss of life on Churchill,s watch it was to save numerous other lives, ive read quite a lot about his personal life and how he agonised about decisions that had to be made for the greater good, which were proved to be correct, to me he stands head and shoulders above any other statesman before or since, he and your own Franklin Roosevelt were from the same mold, incidently JPS Even though I'm in my 80s I think you are a very decent young man, and I do enjoy your videos, when we think of the whole spectrum of humanity we are all pretty much the same whether we were born here or the USA or any other part of the world for that matter and your videos brings people together, and for that I thank you, good luck in all your endeavours.
Well said! When he died I was Severn! My parents said the same as you! sadly My mum died in 2019 reaching 95! (I wish you sir a long life! Go for it please) having served in the WRAF and my dad was in the building industry he dealt with building runways and looked after 3 mulberry floating harbours! Thank you for saying what I was wanting to say but saw you post! Bravo!!!
I was sixteen and I have never seen so many sad faces ever. I have a photo of him alongside my late wife to remind of courage and fortitude, qualities they both shared.
This is one of my first memories. I was recovering from pneumonia aged about 5, . It was profound and moving I wasn't awake for all of it, epilepsy and stuff But it is absolutely moving still.
I was 12yrs old at the time and I remember watching it on tv 📺 it was really sad I’d never seen anything like this before I remember seeing my mum crying 😢 and my dad made us all keep quiet as we were watching as a mark of respect Did you know his mum was American Love 💕 from Denise in Yorkshire England 🏴🌹🌹🌹😢🙏🙏🙏
It is worth noting that his final resting place is in a small country churchyard (Bladon, near Woodstock) relatively close to his birthplace. The grave stone is not enormous or heavy handed, it just states who he was and an indication of his achievement. There's something I like about that. Similarly, while exploring a country churchyard with my kids we followed a brick path that led to some surrounding foliage. Inside was the modest final resting place of Lord Montgomery of Alamein. I could be wrong, but I think his Garter Banner or a replica hangs in the church. Men remembered for their deeds, not "Whited Sepulchres" .
Once again I saw tears of sadness in my dear great-grandmother's eyes! For two reasons, first because she is English and young, second because of the music I Vow To Thee My Country. That so many past memories bring her sadness and pain!
Sir Winston Churchill has not always been the best lots of controversial things in his life ( india starvation etc ) but he was the greatest man for the greatest challenge we ever faced I believe we may of lost the ww2 if it was not for this man this national hero
Those cranes saluting him were something special,,and yes he was VERY controversial before WWII (my Grandparents were alive but my Dad was born in 1967, so a few years after this)
Me too - I GENUINELY thought they were trying to make sure he was dead! I thought they were firing at the coffin. Then again, I ALSO believe a man came and installed a new FILM REEL in the back of the telly while we were asleep - My brother laughed, saying there were little men in the TV. that might have been less remarkable than electromagnetic radiation.
I was around then, and a couple of years ago, went to pay my respect to him, at his grave, in the most beautiful small country churchyard. It was a perfect place for him. Where he was brought up. I took a couple of Italian students with me, as well.
Well done and thank you Joel for all the respect you pay to our great leaders, culture and people . It is really noted and appreciated. You are doing well with preparations for a British Citizenship test should you ever want to move in our direction.
A man of his time. Awarded Nobel prize for literature. Although went to one of the best schools, didn't do well there but self educated himself, later. You should watch the film Darkest Hour about him becoming PM and run up to war. He was also the Master of Trinity House, which he was very proud of. A lesser known institution with a fascinating history. Watched his funeral on TV, as a child.
Thank you for doing this - this brings the great man to an audience that may not know a thing about him, but should thank him. We all owe this man a debt of gratitude for eternity.
Absolute respect for Sir Winston Churchill; wish that we had leaders with a fraction of his courage, example and inspiration today. My grandfather went to see Churchill's coffin lying in state in Westminster Hall (Parliament) before the funeral, and said what impressed him most was the absolute patience of the crowds queuing for literal miles uncomplainingly to come and pay respects to the great man, and in the hall, silence, apart from the shuffling of feet, and weeping. Anyone who had endured the Second World War lost something of themselves the day Churchill died. Thankyou JPS for your respect. When you visit St Paul's Cathedral and are up in the whispering gallery, consider the solitary trumpeter who played the last post as Churchill's body was brought into that incredible place. It would have been a hugely moving experience.
Winston Churchill developed dementia toward the end of his life. Also, look at the Thames when the funeral boat takes Sir Winston up the Thames, all the cranes bow in honor of Sir Winston Churchill. He's also the only Prime Minister in history to ever be given a State Funeral befitting someone of the Royal family. Queen Elizabeth usually follows the coffin into the church and then the family follows. But she broke with protocol and stood aside as she let the family of Winston Churchill to go in first. Queen Elizabeth and Winston Churchill remained very close friends until his death. He was also a huge alley with the US and he loved Battle Hymn of the Republic and he requested that it be sung at his funeral.
I loved seeing your sensitive reaction to this video, one that I have treasured for years. Yes, WC was a beloved figure, you can say that he was fundamental in the fight against Nazism. You're correct, the piece is "I Vow To Thee My Country". It's so beautiful to see the quiet dignity of the public, the bowed heads of the Royal Navy officers around the casket. You can see a 16 year old Prince Charles attending together with HM the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, and that last magnificent detail of the cranes of the Port of London bowing in respect as the boat with his casket passed by. A truly memorable video. Thank you!
I was 5 when Churchill's funeral took place and it is the first memory I have of any television as I watched the funeral with my parents in our remote hamlet on the Lincolnshire/Leicestershire borders. It was a very small black and white television but it is still imprinted on my memory.
I was in London and with thousands of others stood on the cold streets in utter silence. You could hear a pin drop but eventually we could hear the approaching crunch of marching boots echoing off the London buildings as the Royal Navy drew his remains towards and then away from us
State funerals are very rare in Britain. Normally the Sovereign would not attend the funeral of a commoner either. The fact that Sir Winston was granted a State funeral AND that the Queen attended it; speaks volumes of the high esteem in which the great man was held. Not only did the Queen attend, the whole Royal Family attended, including Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother.
I was 15 when he died and watched the funeral on television... it was all black and white then. I remember how moving it was... and especially the cranes on the banks of the Thames dipping in respect to him and his life. A memorable occasion.
Churchill served as Prime Minister for two terms. The first was during 1940-45, during WWII. The second was from 1951-55. It was during this second term that he was taken ill. He actually had a stroke, but this was kept secret. A part of the funeral coverage, only briefly shown in the video, was the dipping of the jibs of the dockside cranes as the funeral barge went past. At the time this was portrayed as a spontaneous act by the dockworkers. However, it later came out that the crane operators had been paid to do it and there had been considerable opposition from the dock workers to doing it. Churchill was a very complex person and is not universally admired. However, he was the right man in the right place at the right time when it came to World War II.
The crane operators were only paid in the sense that they were on strike at the time, so were not receiving their wages. They reluctantly agreed to lower the gibs, so were given the wages for that period.
...that's the point, he was the right man, at the time, to do the job...we all have feet of clay... We're all products of our own generation. Re the revisionists/wokeists.
Thank you once again Joel for the respect and regard you show when watching these video footages of iconic moments in British history. I was one month old when Winston Churchill died, but watching this along with you reminds me of times back then. The men who wore hats took them off to show respect and women wore hats or head scarves. I'm not sure these days how many people have hats including myself. Even the tall cranes bowed as a show of respect as his coffin passed by. I sincerely hope that one day you will be able to come over and spend time not only experiencing the pomp and pageantry but also to spend time exploring the whole of the UK (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England).
JPS: I was 21 when he died. I remember the funeral well. Seeing that clip brought it all back and I don't mind telling you I had a lump in my throat. I actually saw Churchill when he was a very old man. I was walking along on a not particularly busy street in south London about three or four years earlier when his large black car passed me. He was riding in the back and frankly looked out it so sadly he never returned the wave I gave him.
What a man. Didn't always get it right, but literally saved this country with his leadership and passion. The things that you saw being lowered were cranes along the banks of the river Thames. His first term as PM was during WW2, then he lost the election after the war but stood again several years later and was PM for a second term. He actually suffered a stroke in his first term (not really surprising given the hours he worked and the stress,) but it was kept hush hush to protect the country's morale.
The man that saved us made us believe that as a country we would not go under without a fight my wonderful strong man yes he had his faults like us all But thank the lord he was there when we needed him 🙏🏽🌹
Unfortunately, and it pains me to say this, but we were within 2 weeks of being starved out as the Atlantic convoys weren't getting through. It was the Yanks entry into the war that saved us. It makes you wonder what on earth Japan thought it was gaining by bombing Pearl Harbour.
@@dannycarter1966 no the yanks were scared to meet the Nazis head on ,. Us Brits defeated and weakened the Nazis at the battle of Britain , same as the Soviets did at Stalingrad, Funny how USA wanted no part of the Nazis while they were at there strongest , but soon as the Nazis were weakened here came the USA to easily squash them and claim they won the war, It's actually pathetic if you think about
I remember the funeral. We had a religious service in school in the afternoon as the funeral took place on the following morning. Most of the teachers were children during the war so it meant so much to them to listen to the story of Winston Churchill that was being read out. The funeral must have been a huge event for television in those days. At its narrowest point, the English Channel was 20 miles away from occupied northern France. Winston 'Winnie' Churchill told it like it was with no fluff, no spin, no smoothness - the Nazis were 20 miles away and he said 'I have nothing to offer you but blood, sweat, tears and toil'. Can you imagine a politician being that brutally honest and that transparent these days? He cared about the country and not about getting elected again though he did lead a coalition government. We baby boomers owe him a great deal for our lives have been blessed with peace and freedom. As for the hymn 'I vow to thee my country', it was often played in school religious assembly and some of my contemporaries just didn't understand it but I did. It is as relevant today as when it was composed after the First World War. Today, an interpretation would be about being a good citizen, looking after the environment, respecting democracy and so forth.
Churchill was a controversial figure, and with current trends he is more so today. A lot of the modern stuff is the result of grievance mining the enormous amount of material he wrote and said through a 70 years in public life. He was well known as a journalist and author in the 1890s. He expressed views commonplace at the time, which of course would be unacceptable today, and he had and recorded an opinion on almost everything, and everyone, as he was a writer before everything else. At the time of his death, there were plenty of people who disagreed with him over a wide range of issues, and he was often proved wrong, but overwhelmingly they recognised he had been right about the most important issue of his life, and that without him history would have been very different. What he had was enormous physical courage, his early life was like an episode from Indiana Jones. When he resigned in failure from the Cabinet during WW1, he didn't sneek away, he volunteer for the front, a senior national figure in his 40s and served in the trenches. The time he spent on warships and in military planes exposed to enemy attack, always surprises me, we are used to the idea of leaders in bunkers, and on D Day he had to be stopped from going with the troops by the King. He also had political courage, he said what he thought was right, even when no one else was saying it. He not only saw tye threat of Hitler before others, but also of the Soviets while people were still calling Stalin Uncle Joe. He warned the dying Roosevelt, to little effect, but it was he who coined the phrase The Iron Curtain in 1947, a refocused minds. The result was the Cold War, rather than a hot war, which the west won 24 years after his death.
Can't disagree with most of that,but one important point,for all his "greatness" never won an election to be PM,first election after the war ,he lost.The bulk of the votes that lost him the election came from the serving military,I don't know what it proves but I would like to give my own opinion,under non wartime press rules I don't think he would have been able to garner the propoganda idealised image.
I was 16 at the time of Winston Churchill's funeral and remember the conflicting feelings of my parents. My father was deeply saddened at his death but my mother who had served in the WAAF with Sarah Churchill, Winston's daughter, whom she disliked, appeared not to be affected at all. Having grown up immediately after the war, I had great admiration, gratitude and respect for the man who had helped keep Britain free from tyranny.
I remember Winston Churchill’s death & his funeral. I was only 10, but I remember everyone’s sadness, reverence & respect of this great man. I remember crying at his loss ~ Where I lived the wartime sirens sounded off which was eerie. There is a brilliant film made a few years ago about his political life & his incredible leadership during World War 2 called ‘The Darkest Hour’. Really worth a watch. Lots of love xXx
I was 1 when he died, so don't remember it. His state funeral plans had been on the back burner for many years, given his advanced age. They were codenamed "Operation Hope Not".
I watched the Funeral on TV with most of my family in 1965, when I was 14. We had been sad for some time as we knew Mr Churchill was very ill by then. AS I was small not long after the war, I was brought up often discussing the war at home as most my relatives were away fighting all over the world. Not all returned. So Mr Churchill was part of that story. WE believed then as now that his leadership n strength plus the stoic attitude of us, the British, never to be slaves, gave this small island the will to fight on with the support of the Empire, and allies, such as Yourselves. {USA}. So his funeral was then the biggest thing that had happened to me in my young life, The streets were empty as everyone was upset and so sad that day and after. We were all subdued for days after but I knew I had witnessed something special on that day. SF-H
Hi JP, the things lowering were cranes used to load cargo ships in the Port of London. Every world leader attended. The man in the round hat with the uniform and glasses was Charles De Gaulle, President of France. Churchill was widely adored by us and greatest politician globally ever as his resolve and sacrifice of brave soldiers led to the freedom today across Europe. Thanks for your kind respect of our history. Nice videos!
Thanks for reminding me. Pretty surprising neither the President or VP attended. I suppose he wasn’t a head of state but given his role in The War, a pity they didn’t. I seem to remember it was LBJ who didn’t like Britain much.
Hallo. Yes, not only was I alive at the time of Sir Winston's funeral, but even at the time of WW11. I was of course, a small child then, but still retain vivid memories of those years. I also remember the time of his death and funeral. I was a young cop in London then, but I missed being on duty because I was on sick leave.This has always been a matter of some regret to me. I would have felt it a privilege to have been assigned to any duty connected to the ceremonials, just so that I could have been able to tell my Grandchildren, " I was there...."
He fought in the Second Boer War, Served as a minister in both World Wars, including as First Lord of the Admiralty in both wars, and of course as Prime Minister after the resignation of Chamberlain and the realisation by the other Tory grandees including Lord Halifax that there was no-one, absolutely no-one, better fitted for the herculean task of leading this country - a task that he undertook at the age of 66 at the time of the fall of France. (You saw General De Gaulle standing near Harold Wilson (then the PM in 1965) at his funeral). I do remember the day of his death and of his funeral. He laid in state in Westminster Hall (which was where the people were passing by his catafalque, guarded by Royal Navy Officers) - the queues were reputedly as much as five miles in length at one stage - but such was the admiration for the man (although, not always for his politics!). I was not able to travel to Westminster to see it. The jibs that you saw being lowered were the dockside cranes at the pool of London. The cranes were manned by volunteers who came in to show their respect to this great man. He was transported by boat and later by road. His destination was the local parish church to his birthplace, Blenheim Palace near Woodstock in Oxfordshire.
I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test That lays upon the altar, the dearest and the best The love that never falters, the love that pays the price The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice And there's another country, I've heard of long ago Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know We may not count her armies, we may not see her king Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering And soul by soul, and silently her shining bounds increase And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace. Rip Mr Churchill sir.
And the middle third verse, which is never sung nowadays as it is considered too jingoistic. I hear my Mother calling, away across the seas, Across the wastes of water, She calls and calls to me, Her sword is girded at her side, Her helmet on Her head, around he feet are lying the dying and the dead, I hear the sounds of battle, the thunder of Her guns, I haste to the my Mother, A son amongst thy sons.
Success is not final, failure is not fatal, it is the courage to continue that counts ~ Winston Churchill. What a great man!
This is so true 👍
A racist alcoholic English toff
@Balla You know that Churchill can't be "cancelled", right? Being as how he is dead. He has his legacy. If you don't think it can stand up to the truth from a RUclips random, you clearly don't think much of that legacy.
@@jonnylumberjack6223 Churchill was quite the controversial figure, no doubt. However despite his flaws which in some aspects were dark and outdated for the time, his good side stood as a beacon to the British people during our darkest hours.
With anything throughout human history, there is always a negative and positive with everything, people need to acknowledge both before making a decision, and not to make a biased one sided descion.
In my mind, on one hand Churchill was a racist, he was a white supremacist like Hitler in that sense. However, on the otherhand he rallied Britain to never surrender, but to fight on through her darkest hours, and for that I respect him for it deeply, otherwise our lives would be much, much different today if it wasn't for him.
@@arfgrogue5735 seems a long winded way to say what I said ...he did a great thing, but he was a cunt. Also, no way of telling what would have happened if he wasn't around, I don't think we can say that if it wasn't for him we would have lost. But we'll never know 🙂
I'm proud to say that I went to Winston Churchill's funeral. A 10 year old boy, I took my younger brother on a number 78 bus from the Old Kent Road to Tower Bridge. The whole bridge was full of people and Scots Guards, with a tear in my eye the Scots Guards gave us room to look onto the river where the barge was. I witnessed all the cranes being lowered in honour of this great man. Not a dry pair of eyes to be seen. Thank you Scots Guards. The allies fortunately won the 2nd World War but Winnie was there, an incomparable man, a heroic man and inspirational as a man and an orator.
you are the same age as me. Well done.
@Itschad1954 Your comment is so touching to read, thank you for sharing your story!
Me too, remember it clearly.
@@gleadhill79 Thank you Lozza. It was a very sad day indeed. The Scots Guards were brilliant, I remember it all like it was yesterday and will never fade from my memory. Something very special about being British.
@@mariahoulihan9483 Maria I was born July 1954 hence it's itschad1954, glad we both made it thus far.
I was not alive when Sir Winston Churchill died.. I am however, alive today because of him! ✌ 🇬🇧🇺🇸
Amen.
@@ziglarurquhart42 I’m a peace and love San Francisco person and fuck yea man! Shoulder to shoulder in the fucking trenches with our mother county’s men and now woman. The nazi scums used to say “a thousand year reich (empire)” during Hitler’s rule. Fuck that, a thousand year friendship with my 🇬🇧 bros and sisters. ✌🏼 & ❤
Just found out that Winston Churchills funeral was witnessed by 350 million people. The largest state funeral in history. Well deserved Winston, well deserved.
More than the Princess of Wales?
Yes!
@@eddhardy1054 No way. There were more than 350 million people watching her funeral. The population of the United States is about that. The commonwealth with India getting on for 1 and a half billion.
@@paulwild3676 was the exact same for Winston Churchill.
@@paulwild3676 she was no princess
What a man, what a leader! Without this hero, we wouldn’t have anywhere near the freedom take for granted here in the UK.
Or anywhere else for that matter. Without Churchill we'd all be speaking German.
I wish we could find another like him as a prime minister, our political parties are a mess these days and nobody seems to take their role serious!
@@gleadhill79 yeah it seems that stoic selfless attitude is rare in this world full of sociopaths... it's the Internet. We weren't ready for it. It has created so much cognitive dissonance in the world, selfishness, and it allows people to tailor their propaganda and cause mass confusion. It has become uncivilised. Too many variables to consider when everyone can spout any old crap and call it fact. 🤷♂️
@@gleadhill79 Yes, we need another Churchill 🇬🇧
@@braddo7270 it makes me laugh when people reply on Wikipedia as a legitimate source of information, especially since anyone can edit the topic content. Daft sods! It's like people of today have just totally lost touch with any sign of reality, or they just don't care anymore.
Even today there are fresh flowers on his grave. I live around 40 miles from the church-yard where he is buried. People still go to pay respect to him.
There are two things about Churchill that cannot be denied. One is that he had some ideals that would not sit well in today's society, but were commonplace at the time. Secondly, we would not be the country or even the world that we are today had it not been for his leadership.
We owe him everything, even though we disagree with some of the things he stood for.
Exactly I don’t agree with his way of thinking but he came into the situation against the Germans when many thought we had no hope but gave the whole country hope, we owe him everything and not just us most of the world
Thank you for taking a sensible view because it is becoming rarer every day. Too many people like to see someone as either perfect or irredeemably awful. It's always great to look at someone as a whole and not for 1 thing they did wrong
He was a human being, flaws and all. I just am thankful that he happened to be one of the greatest.
It would have been a better country without him. He was a warmonger.
@@seansmith445 It would be a better world without you, but we can't all have what we want.
I would like to say as an English man it touches me that you show so much respect towards my country Thank you all best wishes from Southampton UK
you got me crying. I was 5years old at the time and my mother said I used to carry the newspaper with His death in and would not let any one take it from me, I remember it well.
I got the off school and my family sat and watched it on TV (black and white) The whole country came to a standstill. Not a single car passed our house during the whole day. The country was totally silent. Great man
I remember it well .It was a very sad day for UK.Both my parents were in world war 2 and seeing that brought tears to my dad's eyes
I have seen this I loved the way the dockers lowered there cranes this was a state funeral not all British PM’s get state funerals . He was prime minister twice his second term was difficult for him as the years had set in , this is beautiful I don’t think this will ever happen again for a prime minister , he was the Queens first prime minister she is now on her 14th Boris Johnson. It is said she was very fond of him, Margaret Thatcher got a ceremonial funeral as she was such a divisive and controversial PM although she almost got one but Churchill to my knowledge is the only British Prime-minister to receives British state funeral because he was the war time leader and he stood up to Germany.
Ah yes, the cranes. You are obviously unaware Churchill was despised by the crane operators and their fellow dockers. Indeed they had to be coerced into being involved by the promise of a pay bonus to perform. 😐 My grandad was a docker in Liverpool and also had a very low opinion of him
@@steddie4514 They were paid, because it was Saturday, their day off.
@@steddie4514 That all rests on the testimony of John Lynch, a single docker interviewed for a 2015 BBC documentary. While there's certainly some truth to it, Mr Lynch indicated that there were rows about the gesture which says to me some were happy to do while others didn't want to. As it was their afternoon off they asked to be paid for the day which given the unionised climate at the time is not surprising even if it bursts the poignancy somewhat.
In the event even Mr Lynch admitted to being very moved by the day and the gesture despite not liking Churchill
His second term was when George the 6th died and he met the Queen on her return from Kenya ,as the new monarch. It had to be his meeting her as PM ,after he and her parents showed magnificent leadership in WW2. He wrote, ‘For Valour’ on the King’s wreath .The words on the Victoria Cross. It is a very moving piece of history. No monarch in our history endured what George the 6th endured, He came close to seeing Britain destroyed and ruined. His remarkable tenacity was beyond heroic, along with his amazing wife. We will never see their like again.
@steddie4514 My dad was a stevedore in the London docks and a Royal Navy veteran and he and his mates had a great deal of respect for Churchill. Churchill wasn't perfect but he made decisions in one afternoon that you would have to live 20 lifetimes and still you wouldn't even come close.
I was 9 at the time, he'd been ill for about a week and everyone knew the end was coming. We were at Mass that Sunday morning and the priest told us the news had just been announced that he was dead. I still remember the collective groan among the adults, and the cold January air when we got outside. Even at that age, I already knew his "Finest Hour" speech and how he'd led our country during its darkest hours. Kids my age, or at least boys my age, were raised on stories of The Few, El Alemain, Dunkirk and D-Day. The War was among the most significant events in our lives, even though it had ended 10 years before I was born. We were surrounded by people who were heroes in The War, people who were damaged in and by The War, and people who had lost people.
Sir, thats an amazing story. Thanks you so much for sharing this.
Girls too- in those days we were taught our history and having parents, uncles and aunts who had served in WW2 you were brought up on the stories of the war, and yes, could recite various bits of his speeches. Funny how it is almost impossible to quite the words 'people will still say, THIS was their finest hour' without going into Churchill impersonation mode......
As a 9 year old I remember my mum and dad standing upright while we all watched the tele . Mum had tears in her eyes and dad stood motionless. My dad had served in the Royal Navy and my best friend's dad served in the army . As children we were more than aware of the war as you only had to visit London to see the waste land. We as 9 year old's were already veteran's of many wars (German's, Zulu's, Romans ,Red Indian's) you name it we fought it . Strange that over time there has been a change in the way things are described ie Nazi seems to have taken the place of Germans which wasn't the case back in the day .
I watched it on the TV as a nine year old.
I remember a short while before his death he wasn't very well but he managed to summon the energy to get to the window of the building he was living in in London to make a final wave to the crowds who were waiting in the street. I am pretty sure they gave him 3 rousing cheers. The final performance of a most amazing historical figure who despite his several failings had a massive role in keeping the world free from tyranny.
Hey Sir, thats awesome. this memory should be recorded for history. Thanks for sharing. He must have been a great man!
It's a very stirring piece of music used on this film, I vow to thee my country is the title, very fitting.
In the long history of britain, he was only the third person to be granted a full state funeral, the others being The Duke of Wellington and Horatio Nelson.
When the late Robert Francis Kennedy made a visit to britain, he made a point of visiting the grave and leaving some flowers, a nice gesture.
My favourite quote from him is ;
It is no bad thing to have made enemies, it means you have stood up for something in your life. 👍
The cranes bowing to his funeral barge is the most iconic part of his funeral.
What interests me about Churchill is the fact he was a son of the Victorian age , born 1874 ,lived through the fascinating times of Jack The Ripper ,The Elephant Man and dealt with the war . I wonder if the last people from the 1900's will be regarded with a touch of astonishment - can't find the word I need !
those folk in those times 1800 -1950s where strong in body and mind. they was the greater generations of human kind. take someone off the tv show love island and transport them back to that time era and leave them there. they would not be able to survive with life of those times. everything today is super easy and super convenient. they would not last a week in those times because people today for most part have become made soft.
@@harbourwoodlandvisitor2445 And entitled.
@@harbourwoodlandvisitor2445 Some of the older cast in the 1948 Oliver Twist were genuine Victorians playing out an era they actually witnessed . Love that film .
@@harbourwoodlandvisitor2445 True, but it's what people are used to. They can't help it if they were born today. Those strong people from the 1800 - 1950s wouldn't be able to survive in the 1600s.
I watched Churchill's funeral on black and white television, an 11 year old then. Both my mother and father fought in the 2nd World War. Churchill was a great man. Probably the greatest of Englishmen
My dad's uncle was one of the pall bearers. We still have his uniform and parapharnalia from the day.
So was my Cousin
I was an 18 year young man at a Sunday night movie theater in Wanganui New Zealand,
A notice was flashed onto the screen during the movie stating
IT HAS JUST BEEN ANNOUNCED THAT SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL HAS PASSED AWAY
There was an audible gasp and murmuring from the audience and the film continued playing
My darling dad was a young policeman in that procession. He passed a few years ago now but it was one of his first duties as a metropolitan policeman.
Real coppers back then now we have uni educated woke Muppets who come to your house when you post nasty tweets
@@markscouler2534 I mean, they can't actually do anything. I had them come because I went in on a group of islamists online and they tried to call me racist. I threatened them with a lawsuit and they left. 🤷♂️
@@braddo7270 it's looney land in the UK now even when I was a kid back in 80s you had respect for the police as they were firm but fair but now they are just to politically correct
@@markscouler2534 we have 3 opposing systems in the UK. 1. Socialism 2. Capitalism 3. Communism. All three contradict eachother. Capitalism causes unfair advantages (and that's politicians and the rich) communism creates unrest and is obviously just a fancy dictatorship (and that's the police force and some unfavourable, authoritarian politicians) and the socialists are everyone else who just want everyone to have the same opportunities and to keep the government powerless to the people. These conflicts are what is causing the lunacy. And the Internet being used to spout any old crap as fact and allowing politicians to tailor their propaganda directly to the most vulnerable and impressionable. It's a mess. But it won't last long. Socialism will win out. 👌👍
@@markscouler2534 but yeah my point is that you can use the ideological trump card to get yourself out of these situations. Right now nobody even knows what right and wrong is. Which is sad coming from a nation who once had the strongest of all moral values.
I remember watching this on tv. It was a state funeral, and virtually the whole of London came to a standstill. The Queen & royal family attended, but the bit that really got to me was when his coffin was lowered onto the barge, taking his body up river to Waterloo Station and all the cranes along the riverbank dipped in unison as a sign of respect to the man who it was felt had got us through the war.
A great man. I remember watching his funeral on telly. I was 4 years old. My mum was crying. He inspired a nation , his speeches made us believe anything was possible. We could do with him now.
He kept us going through wwll,He loved this country and it’s people❤️🇬🇧🇬🇧
The Funeral was on Saturday 30th January 1965, and I remember the day well - Our first television was delivered! Churchill's funeral was the first programme I saw at home. 'The music to 'I vow the thee my country' is by Gustav Holst and taken from the Planet Suite (Jupiter).
I saw it in Scotland on TV (B&W of course) at home. Popularity is easily won, Winston was quite something else. Beloved and respected for how he steered a whole, tiny country, and more, through and out from the most extreme of dark times into the light.
I live a couple of miles away from Winston Churchill's grave, it's in a tiny village called Bladon and close to his family home Blenhiem Palace. I was 10 years old at the time of his funeral, still moves me today.
The funeral service was held in St Paul’s Cathedral, which was appropriate because during the heavy bombing of London during World War Two ( The Blitz) , St Paul’s survived and became a symbol for the British determination to survive the constant onslaught of war. Amongst the congregation were prominent members of the Royal Family, including the Queen and Queen Mother, who was Queen Consort to King George VI during the war. Amongst the foreign dignitaries present was President Charles de Gaulle of France, who knew Winston Churchill well. The scenes on the River Thames were also very poignant and full of meaning. Winston Churchill served as First Lord of the Admiralty ( Head of the Royal Navy) twice, at the beginning of World War One and World War Two. The cranes on the docks next to Tower Bridge were lowered as a mark of respect. Winston Churchill didn’t want to be buried in St Paul’s Cathedral or Westminster Abbey as he could have been, he wanted a simple burial plot near to his family in the small churchyard at Bladon in Oxfordshire, which is just over a mile from where he was born, at Blenheim Palace, the ancestral home of the Dukes of Marlborough, who were all Churchill’s. His full name was Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, so that when Prince William becomes King, there will a member of the Churchill family on the throne, because his mother was a member of the Spencer family, and a distant cousin of Sir Winston.
In this world of political correctness some people criticise Winston Churchill for some of the things he did during his life, but they were different times from today. For my part, he was the greatest Briton who ever lived.
John, wonderful comment 🇬🇧
I agree and he died 2 years before I was born but I have respected and have had great admiration for him my whole life. Thank you Sir Winston.
Well said certainly the greatest Briton of all time
Honestly it touches us as a nation when we see people not from here so respectful of our proudest figure heads. We come under a lot of unwarranted fire in the world after doing so much for everyone at our own expense... so occasionally it's really nice to see a warm reaction to the people who really changed the world. 👌 if it wasn't for that man, we would all be speaking German here. You included JPS. He stood alone in the grandest battle ever known when the rest of Europe fell and allied with the capitalist Americans, who originally weren't interested, which saved us all. Including the Americans.
Excellent comment Dan. We should be proud 🇬🇧
@@alimar0604 we will be proud again. We are going through a phase right now with the Internet and false history being spouted as fact. When it all dies down and the world sees clearly again, we will be seen equally as grand and philosophical and world changing, if not more, than the Greeks and romans. We were the last and the grandest empire the world has ever known. 👌
Well said my fellow countrymen 👏👏👏👏
We come under a lot of unwarranted fire in the world after doing so much TO everyone. Not for.
We also would not be speaking German as that was never Hitlerz intention. If it was then it would be impossible to replace a language that quickly and easily so if would be a hybrid of German and English from generations before the German takeover. Speaking German is the only good thing from a German invasion or if Gemany won WW2
For a man who kept the light of freedom burning in times or great darkness he has a modest grave, a great man indeed.
I was about 7 years old and saw this live on a grainy shadowed 405 line tv.
Every adult was so sad at his loss.
I was 7 when he died and watched the funeral on TV with my parents, I remember Mum had her Rosary out and praying all the way through.
All credit to this remarkable young American, moved as I was, at the events of this video. And his interest and respect for the traditions of Great Britain. As a young Australian, I filed past the Bier as it lay in State in Westminster Hall one Thursday afternoon in 1965.......along with what seemed like the rest of the world. Thank you sincerely for this.
Les Griffiths
Watched the funeral as a 10 year old boy. Can remember it as if it was yesterday on Black and white TV. The nations greatest prime minister with out his leadership we would not have the freedom what we have today. Brought tears to my eyes. Love the respect you showed when reacting to this video. Joel. Thank you.
I remember it. I was a teenager. It was as if the impossible had happened because I thought Winston Churchill would live forever. He was a national institution.
This post is a reminder of that sad event.
I was almost 14 at the time of his death and remember it well.
Very sad.
I remember his funeral train was hauled by the express steam locomotive already named Winston Churchill as steam was still common on our railways at the time.
I think you are a very kind and sensitive young man to show such respect in your reaction to the video and I love you for it.
But your reactions are always the best possible ones.
He was a great man, and I don't think anyone else would have been more suited to bring our country through the war. What I loved about the funeral was whilst the barge carrying his coffin past the dockyards of London, all of the cranes lowered their jibs in unison. Must have been quite a sight. I myself am not old enough to remember the event, in fact I was not born until a few months after his death. But I do still have the specially minted crown coin from 1965 which my uncle gave me when I was born. I remember in my early childhood never really understanding the significance of the coin - other than it was minted in the year I was born. Even through school where we learned about WW2 I was still not really aware of what a great man he was. But now that I am much older and have found a love for history, especially the second world war, I come to realise just what a fantastic gift my uncle gave me when I was born. The coin is not really that valuable, they were minted in the thousands, but it represents a man who brought us through those terrible times, plus it represents a time when this country was proud of who we were as a nation. When being British meant something to just about everyone in the country. Sadly, the events of recent years regarding Brexit shows just how different this nation is today. I am proud to be British, and it saddened me to see the demonstrations in London and around the country with people carrying banners stating that they were Europeans, not British. I think that would have had Winston turning in his grave.
Thank you for this. There will never be another Churchill!
I remember having to sit very quietly watching this with my mother when I was 7yrs old.and my mother cried ,
I have been volunteering at Chartwell today (The Churchill family home in Kent). Absolute privilege to be able to do so.
His funeral was my first recollection of TV, I was 4 and the whole family watched it. The curtains in the house were closed out of repeat. I still find it very moving to watch
.
Here are my two favourite Winston Churchill's retorts.
"Madam, I may be drunk but in the morning I shall be sober but you will still be ugly"
And
Lady Nancy Astor said to Churchill "You are an intolerable man, if I was your wife I'd poison you". To which Winston replied "Nancy, if you were my wife I'd drink it"
Absolutely brilliant.
@itschad1954
"A empty car drew up at 10 Downing Street, and Mr Atlee* got out" was another of his sharp comments.
* Clement Atlee (1883 -1967) leader of the Labour Party.
@@gordonsmith8899 The man was pure genius and brilliance.
The first quotation is slightly wrong in that it was a lady (Lady Astor, I think) who said to Winston after he had had a few too many "Sir, you are drunk" to which Winnie replied "Madam, you are ugly, but tomorrow I shall be sober". His other great response was to an invitation received from George Bernard Shaw which said "enclosed are two tickets for my opening night, bring a friend, if you have one" to which Winston replied "Regret cannot attend but will be able to come on the second night, if you have one".
The newspaper writers ask Churchill what they should write about bombings in London and other parts. Churchill answered "always tell the truth, because if there will be one time you have to lie, everyone will believe you". He was so right.
What ever political party you were behind there was so much respect for this man,mostly due to the way he led the country through WW2. To have a state funeral reflects that respect. What an incredible life he led. I was born the year he died so interesting for me to see how people dressed etc in that time
Winston was the most consequential world leader of the 20th century, he had a life like no other and is never lightly to be surpassed, as a young man he took part in the last carvery charge in the Sudan, He was in the Boar war and escaped from captivity and was the most wanted man in South Africa, He was the home secretary during the Latvian revolutionaries in London. he was first sea lord at the start of WW1 after Gallipoli he fought on the western front and gave the idea to invent the TANK. He warned of Hitler in the early 30s, He again became 1st sea lord on the outbreak of WW2.
He was appointed prime minister just before Dunkirk. He refused to sue for peace with the Axis powers, If he had the world would be a very dark place today. He stopped the Americans from trying to invade Europe in 42 & 43 as we were not ready and it would have resulted in hundreds of thousands British and American dead that equates to Millions of people alive today who wouldn't be.
travelled to
Just watched this. I remember as a small kid watching the whole funeral live on tv.
Joel you realise that your Peace Out V sign outro gives you something in common with the great man! His V for Victory hand gesture was use as both a rallying call to the British - and when the hand was reversed - as an insult to the Germans.
Didn't see the departure from Waterloo Stn' in the clip, where you see the soldiers carry his coffin onto the train, that long ramp was built by myself and the carpenter when I worked in the building Dept' at Waterloo Station back then.
I was 25 when Winston Churchill passed, it must have been a blow for him to be voted out just after WW2 having taken this country through six years of fighting the Nazi threat, and if some people think he was a war criminal need to remember that Hitler and his thugs were by far the worse kind of criminals, if there was a loss of life on Churchill,s watch it was to save numerous other lives, ive read quite a lot about his personal life and how he agonised about decisions that had to be made for the greater good, which were proved to be correct, to me he stands head and shoulders above any other statesman before or since, he and your own Franklin Roosevelt were from the same mold, incidently JPS Even though I'm in my 80s I think you are a very decent young man, and I do enjoy your videos, when we think of the whole spectrum of humanity we are all pretty much the same whether we were born here or the USA or any other part of the world for that matter and your videos brings people together, and for that I thank you, good luck in all your endeavours.
Well said! When he died I was Severn! My parents said the same as you! sadly My mum died in 2019 reaching 95! (I wish you sir a long life! Go for it please) having served in the WRAF and my dad was in the building industry he dealt with building runways and looked after 3 mulberry floating harbours! Thank you for saying what I was wanting to say but saw you post! Bravo!!!
Very well put Alec, on all points.
Well said indeed on all counts x
I was sixteen and I have never seen so many sad faces ever. I have a photo of him alongside my late wife to remind of courage and fortitude, qualities they both shared.
This is one of my first memories.
I was recovering from pneumonia
aged about 5, .
It was profound and moving
I wasn't awake for all of it,
epilepsy and stuff
But it is absolutely moving still.
I was 12yrs old at the time and I remember watching it on tv 📺 it was really sad I’d never seen anything like this before I remember seeing my mum crying 😢 and my dad made us all keep quiet as we were watching as a mark of respect Did you know his mum was American Love 💕 from Denise in Yorkshire England 🏴🌹🌹🌹😢🙏🙏🙏
@ Denise Perryman. Did you know butch Cassidy(famous American outlaw) mom was a Brit from Newcastle
It is worth noting that his final resting place is in a small country churchyard (Bladon, near Woodstock) relatively close to his birthplace. The grave stone is not enormous or heavy handed, it just states who he was and an indication of his achievement. There's something I like about that. Similarly, while exploring a country churchyard with my kids we followed a brick path that led to some surrounding foliage. Inside was the modest final resting place of Lord Montgomery of Alamein. I could be wrong, but I think his Garter Banner or a replica hangs in the church. Men remembered for their deeds, not "Whited Sepulchres" .
Very well said.
Once again I saw tears of sadness in my dear great-grandmother's eyes! For two reasons, first because she is English and young, second because of the music I Vow To Thee My Country. That so many past memories bring her sadness and pain!
Sir Winston Churchill has not always been the best lots of controversial things in his life ( india starvation etc ) but he was the greatest man for the greatest challenge we ever faced I believe we may of lost the ww2 if it was not for this man this national hero
Always makes me cry. The combination of the song and the atmosphere of the day just too emotional.
Those cranes saluting him were something special,,and yes he was VERY controversial before WWII (my Grandparents were alive but my Dad was born in 1967, so a few years after this)
I was there in the crowd on my mums shoulders. I have a clear memory of it… the gun salute sticks in my mind most.
Me too - I GENUINELY thought they were trying to make sure he was dead! I thought they were firing at the coffin. Then again, I ALSO believe a man came and installed a new FILM REEL in the back of the telly while we were asleep - My brother laughed, saying there were little men in the TV. that might have been less remarkable than electromagnetic radiation.
The first time I ever saw my mum crying was when Churchill died I was eight and the image has stayed with me she was so upset
I was only three months old so I don't remember it but I was brought up having great respect for him.
I was around then, and a couple of years ago, went to pay my respect to him, at his grave, in the most beautiful small country churchyard. It was a perfect place for him. Where he was brought up. I took a couple of Italian students with me, as well.
Well done and thank you Joel for all the respect you pay to our great leaders, culture and people . It is really noted and appreciated. You are doing well with preparations for a British Citizenship test should you ever want to move in our direction.
I was 16 nd watched this on TV.MY mum and I both cried the whole way through. He was the emdodiment of our country.
A man of his time. Awarded Nobel prize for literature. Although went to one of the best schools, didn't do well there but self educated himself, later. You should watch the film Darkest Hour about him becoming PM and run up to war. He was also the Master of Trinity House, which he was very proud of. A lesser known institution with a fascinating history. Watched his funeral on TV, as a child.
Darkest Hour is a truly phenomenal piece of cinema.
Thank you for doing this - this brings the great man to an audience that may not know a thing about him, but should thank him. We all owe this man a debt of gratitude for eternity.
Absolute respect for Sir Winston Churchill; wish that we had leaders with a fraction of his courage, example and inspiration today. My grandfather went to see Churchill's coffin lying in state in Westminster Hall (Parliament) before the funeral, and said what impressed him most was the absolute patience of the crowds queuing for literal miles uncomplainingly to come and pay respects to the great man, and in the hall, silence, apart from the shuffling of feet, and weeping. Anyone who had endured the Second World War lost something of themselves the day Churchill died. Thankyou JPS for your respect. When you visit St Paul's Cathedral and are up in the whispering gallery, consider the solitary trumpeter who played the last post as Churchill's body was brought into that incredible place. It would have been a hugely moving experience.
Winston Churchill developed dementia toward the end of his life. Also, look at the Thames when the funeral boat takes Sir Winston up the Thames, all the cranes bow in honor of Sir Winston Churchill. He's also the only Prime Minister in history to ever be given a State Funeral befitting someone of the Royal family. Queen Elizabeth usually follows the coffin into the church and then the family follows. But she broke with protocol and stood aside as she let the family of Winston Churchill to go in first. Queen Elizabeth and Winston Churchill remained very close friends until his death. He was also a huge alley with the US and he loved Battle Hymn of the Republic and he requested that it be sung at his funeral.
I loved seeing your sensitive reaction to this video, one that I have treasured for years. Yes, WC was a beloved figure, you can say that he was fundamental in the fight against Nazism. You're correct, the piece is "I Vow To Thee My Country". It's so beautiful to see the quiet dignity of the public, the bowed heads of the Royal Navy officers around the casket. You can see a 16 year old Prince Charles attending together with HM the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, and that last magnificent detail of the cranes of the Port of London bowing in respect as the boat with his casket passed by. A truly memorable video. Thank you!
I was 11 at the time of his funeral, still remember it vividly. The first person outside the Royal family to have a state funeral.
I was 5 when Churchill's funeral took place and it is the first memory I have of any television as I watched the funeral with my parents in our remote hamlet on the Lincolnshire/Leicestershire borders. It was a very small black and white television but it is still imprinted on my memory.
I was in London and with thousands of others stood on the cold streets in utter silence. You could hear a pin drop but eventually we could hear the approaching crunch of marching boots echoing off the London buildings as the Royal Navy drew his remains towards and then away from us
I was only l6 but one thing stood out was the cranes bowing on the river, I always remember that one small thing🇬🇧🙏👏👏
The Greatest Brit ever. RIP Sir Winston Churchill 🇬🇧
State funerals are very rare in Britain. Normally the Sovereign would not attend the funeral of a commoner either. The fact that Sir Winston was granted a State funeral AND that the Queen attended it; speaks volumes of the high esteem in which the great man was held. Not only did the Queen attend, the whole Royal Family attended, including Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother.
I was 15 when he died and watched the funeral on television... it was all black and white then. I remember how moving it was... and especially the cranes on the banks of the Thames dipping in respect to him and his life. A memorable occasion.
Churchill served as Prime Minister for two terms. The first was during 1940-45, during WWII. The second was from 1951-55. It was during this second term that he was taken ill. He actually had a stroke, but this was kept secret.
A part of the funeral coverage, only briefly shown in the video, was the dipping of the jibs of the dockside cranes as the funeral barge went past. At the time this was portrayed as a spontaneous act by the dockworkers. However, it later came out that the crane operators had been paid to do it and there had been considerable opposition from the dock workers to doing it.
Churchill was a very complex person and is not universally admired. However, he was the right man in the right place at the right time when it came to World War II.
The crane operators were only paid in the sense that they were on strike at the time, so were not receiving their wages. They reluctantly agreed to lower the gibs, so were given the wages for that period.
...that's the point, he was the right man, at the time, to do the job...we all have feet of clay... We're all products of our own generation. Re the revisionists/wokeists.
@@archiebald4717 Er.............The crane operators were only paid, because it was a Saturday and they didn’t work weekends…………
Thank you once again Joel for the respect and regard you show when watching these video footages of iconic moments in British history. I was one month old when Winston Churchill died, but watching this along with you reminds me of times back then. The men who wore hats took them off to show respect and women wore hats or head scarves. I'm not sure these days how many people have hats including myself. Even the tall cranes bowed as a show of respect as his coffin passed by.
I sincerely hope that one day you will be able to come over and spend time not only experiencing the pomp and pageantry but also to spend time exploring the whole of the UK (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England).
JPS: I was 21 when he died. I remember the funeral well. Seeing that clip brought it all back and I don't mind telling you I had a lump in my throat. I actually saw Churchill when he was a very old man. I was walking along on a not particularly busy street in south London about three or four years earlier when his large black car passed me. He was riding in the back and frankly looked out it so sadly he never returned the wave I gave him.
What a man. Didn't always get it right, but literally saved this country with his leadership and passion. The things that you saw being lowered were cranes along the banks of the river Thames. His first term as PM was during WW2, then he lost the election after the war but stood again several years later and was PM for a second term. He actually suffered a stroke in his first term (not really surprising given the hours he worked and the stress,) but it was kept hush hush to protect the country's morale.
The man that saved us made us believe that as a country we would not go under without a fight my wonderful strong man yes he had his faults like us all But thank the lord he was there when we needed him 🙏🏽🌹
Unfortunately, and it pains me to say this, but we were within 2 weeks of being starved out as the Atlantic convoys weren't getting through. It was the Yanks entry into the war that saved us. It makes you wonder what on earth Japan thought it was gaining by bombing Pearl Harbour.
@@dannycarter1966 no the yanks were scared to meet the Nazis head on ,. Us Brits defeated and weakened the Nazis at the battle of Britain , same as the Soviets did at Stalingrad,
Funny how USA wanted no part of the Nazis while they were at there strongest , but soon as the Nazis were weakened here came the USA to easily squash them and claim they won the war,
It's actually pathetic if you think about
I remember the funeral. We had a religious service in school in the afternoon as the funeral took place on the following morning. Most of the teachers were children during the war so it meant so much to them to listen to the story of Winston Churchill that was being read out. The funeral must have been a huge event for television in those days. At its narrowest point, the English Channel was 20 miles away from occupied northern France. Winston 'Winnie' Churchill told it like it was with no fluff, no spin, no smoothness - the Nazis were 20 miles away and he said 'I have nothing to offer you but blood, sweat, tears and toil'. Can you imagine a politician being that brutally honest and that transparent these days? He cared about the country and not about getting elected again though he did lead a coalition government. We baby boomers owe him a great deal for our lives have been blessed with peace and freedom. As for the hymn 'I vow to thee my country', it was often played in school religious assembly and some of my contemporaries just didn't understand it but I did. It is as relevant today as when it was composed after the First World War. Today, an interpretation would be about being a good citizen, looking after the environment, respecting democracy and so forth.
So touching. A giant of a man.
Sir Winston Churchill was also the Queen’s first Prime Minister and they are said to have had an especially close bond.
Apparently he said the Queens understanding of politics was mature
I have never watched Winston Churchill's funeral.The cranes lowering sent shivers down my spine.
Churchill was a controversial figure, and with current trends he is more so today. A lot of the modern stuff is the result of grievance mining the enormous amount of material he wrote and said through a 70 years in public life. He was well known as a journalist and author in the 1890s. He expressed views commonplace at the time, which of course would be unacceptable today, and he had and recorded an opinion on almost everything, and everyone, as he was a writer before everything else. At the time of his death, there were plenty of people who disagreed with him over a wide range of issues, and he was often proved wrong, but overwhelmingly they recognised he had been right about the most important issue of his life, and that without him history would have been very different.
What he had was enormous physical courage, his early life was like an episode from Indiana Jones. When he resigned in failure from the Cabinet during WW1, he didn't sneek away, he volunteer for the front, a senior national figure in his 40s and served in the trenches. The time he spent on warships and in military planes exposed to enemy attack, always surprises me, we are used to the idea of leaders in bunkers, and on D Day he had to be stopped from going with the troops by the King. He also had political courage, he said what he thought was right, even when no one else was saying it. He not only saw tye threat of Hitler before others, but also of the Soviets while people were still calling Stalin Uncle Joe. He warned the dying Roosevelt, to little effect, but it was he who coined the phrase The Iron Curtain in 1947, a refocused minds. The result was the Cold War, rather than a hot war, which the west won 24 years after his death.
Can't disagree with most of that,but one important point,for all his "greatness" never won an election to be PM,first election after the war ,he lost.The bulk of the votes that lost him the election came from the serving military,I don't know what it proves but I would like to give my own opinion,under non wartime press rules I don't think he would have been able to garner the propoganda idealised image.
Interesting, thanks Lee.
Well said.
I was 16 at the time of Winston Churchill's funeral and remember the conflicting feelings of my parents. My father was deeply saddened at his death but my mother who had served in the WAAF with Sarah Churchill, Winston's daughter, whom she disliked, appeared not to be affected at all. Having grown up immediately after the war, I had great admiration, gratitude and respect for the man who had helped keep Britain free from tyranny.
You're a wonderfully empathetic young man , please never lose that quality
So lovely of you to put this up xxx
I was 11 and watched the funeral on the television, it was very moving.
I think one of the most touching moments was the lowering of the cranes as the cortege passed on the river. I was 7 years old when he died.
I remember Winston Churchill’s death & his funeral. I was only 10, but I remember everyone’s sadness, reverence & respect of this great man. I remember crying at his loss ~ Where I lived the wartime sirens sounded off which was eerie. There is a brilliant film made a few years ago about his political life & his incredible leadership during World War 2 called ‘The Darkest Hour’. Really worth a watch. Lots of love xXx
I was 1 when he died, so don't remember it. His state funeral plans had been on the back burner for many years, given his advanced age. They were codenamed "Operation Hope Not".
I watched the Funeral on TV with most of my family in 1965, when I was 14. We had been sad for some time as we knew Mr Churchill was very ill by then. AS I was small not long after the war, I was brought up often discussing the war at home as most my relatives were away fighting all over the world. Not all returned. So Mr Churchill was part of that story. WE believed then as now that his leadership n strength plus the stoic attitude of us, the British, never to be slaves, gave this small island the will to fight on with the support of the Empire, and allies, such as Yourselves. {USA}. So his funeral was then the biggest thing that had happened to me in my young life, The streets were empty as everyone was upset and so sad that day and after. We were all subdued for days after but I knew I had witnessed something special on that day. SF-H
Yes it was "I vow to thee my country" ...my favourite British Hymn 💕
Hi JP, the things lowering were cranes used to load cargo ships in the Port of London. Every world leader attended. The man in the round hat with the uniform and glasses was Charles De Gaulle, President of France. Churchill was widely adored by us and greatest politician globally ever as his resolve and sacrifice of brave soldiers led to the freedom today across Europe. Thanks for your kind respect of our history. Nice videos!
Neither the President nor the VP of the US attended. Chief Justice Warren was delegated to represent the US.
Thanks for reminding me. Pretty surprising neither the President or VP attended. I suppose he wasn’t a head of state but given his role in The War, a pity they didn’t. I seem to remember it was LBJ who didn’t like Britain much.
Sir Churchill led his people through their darkest history and has no equal in history.
I remember seeing this event as a child. I was eight years old. It made a big impression on me.
Hallo. Yes, not only was I alive at the time of Sir Winston's funeral, but even at the time of WW11. I was of course, a small child then, but still retain vivid memories of those years.
I also remember the time of his death and funeral. I was a young cop in London then, but I missed being on duty because I was on sick leave.This has always been a matter of some regret to me. I would have felt it a privilege to have been assigned to any duty connected to the ceremonials, just so that I could have been able to tell my Grandchildren, " I was there...."
All the Cranes were lowered as the ship with his coffin passed. I was 12 years old in 1965 and even at that age I remember i and my parents being sad.
He fought in the Second Boer War, Served as a minister in both World Wars, including as First Lord of the Admiralty in both wars, and of course as Prime Minister after the resignation of Chamberlain and the realisation by the other Tory grandees including Lord Halifax that there was no-one, absolutely no-one, better fitted for the herculean task of leading this country - a task that he undertook at the age of 66 at the time of the fall of France. (You saw General De Gaulle standing near Harold Wilson (then the PM in 1965) at his funeral).
I do remember the day of his death and of his funeral. He laid in state in Westminster Hall (which was where the people were passing by his catafalque, guarded by Royal Navy Officers) - the queues were reputedly as much as five miles in length at one stage - but such was the admiration for the man (although, not always for his politics!). I was not able to travel to Westminster to see it.
The jibs that you saw being lowered were the dockside cranes at the pool of London. The cranes were manned by volunteers who came in to show their respect to this great man. He was transported by boat and later by road. His destination was the local parish church to his birthplace, Blenheim Palace near Woodstock in Oxfordshire.
Love the way the Cranes on the Thames bow
I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test
That lays upon the altar, the dearest and the best
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice
And there's another country, I've heard of long ago
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know
We may not count her armies, we may not see her king
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering
And soul by soul, and silently her shining bounds increase
And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.
Rip Mr Churchill sir.
And the middle third verse, which is never sung nowadays as it is considered too jingoistic.
I hear my Mother calling, away across the seas,
Across the wastes of water, She calls and calls to me,
Her sword is girded at her side, Her helmet on Her head,
around he feet are lying the dying and the dead,
I hear the sounds of battle, the thunder of Her guns,
I haste to the my Mother,
A son amongst thy sons.
@@sirderam1 oh I love that.