Mr. Churchill in the White House

Scores of biographies have been written about Winston Churchill, yet none examine his frequent, sometimes furtive, trips to the White House, where he resided for weeks on end. These extended visits during his two terms as prime minister were spirited, even entertaining, occasions. Yet, in retrospect, they take on a new level of diplomatic significance, demonstrating just how influential a foreign leader can become in shaping American foreign policy. Drawing on years of research, Robert Schmuhl not only contextualises the days Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Dwight D. Eisenhower spent together but also vividly portrays the individual characters, from Churchill himself—a devoted fisherman who never stopped “angling”—to a resentful Eleanor Roosevelt. Diaries, letters, government documents and memoirs supply the archival foundation and colour for each Churchill visit, providing a wholly novel perspective on one of history’s most perplexing and many-faceted figures.