Dan Snow

There was a little local difficulty down there in Virginia in the early 1780s. Some of your listeners may remember. But this was a humiliation, a catastrophe. The British and French armies together combined, still on paper, there's still two great imperial states on earth. They were eviscerated, destroyed, humiliated by the German war machine in May 1780. 1940.

In the space of a couple of weeks, the Germans just run rings, literally run rings around them and reach the coast and divide great chunks of the force from each other. It's a complete defeat. It's a disaster.

In the space of a couple of weeks, the Germans just run rings, literally run rings around them and reach the coast and divide great chunks of the force from each other. It's a complete defeat. It's a disaster.

In the space of a couple of weeks, the Germans just run rings, literally run rings around them and reach the coast and divide great chunks of the force from each other. It's a complete defeat. It's a disaster.

Well, Churchill becomes Prime Minister on the day the Germans invade France and the Low Countries, right? So Churchill has been Prime Minister for a couple of weeks. He's staring down the barrel at the worst defeat in British history. Then France drops out of the war, signs a peace with Hitler.

Well, Churchill becomes Prime Minister on the day the Germans invade France and the Low Countries, right? So Churchill has been Prime Minister for a couple of weeks. He's staring down the barrel at the worst defeat in British history. Then France drops out of the war, signs a peace with Hitler.

Well, Churchill becomes Prime Minister on the day the Germans invade France and the Low Countries, right? So Churchill has been Prime Minister for a couple of weeks. He's staring down the barrel at the worst defeat in British history. Then France drops out of the war, signs a peace with Hitler.

And Britain and its empire, we should say huge empire, but Britain and its empire are alone fighting against Germany. And this is like, Churchill's waited his whole life. You said it in your brilliant introduction, like, Churchill's got fate or destiny on speed dial. He used to tell people when he was a kid, one day, one day I shall save the British Empire. He grew up in a palace.

And Britain and its empire, we should say huge empire, but Britain and its empire are alone fighting against Germany. And this is like, Churchill's waited his whole life. You said it in your brilliant introduction, like, Churchill's got fate or destiny on speed dial. He used to tell people when he was a kid, one day, one day I shall save the British Empire. He grew up in a palace.

And Britain and its empire, we should say huge empire, but Britain and its empire are alone fighting against Germany. And this is like, Churchill's waited his whole life. You said it in your brilliant introduction, like, Churchill's got fate or destiny on speed dial. He used to tell people when he was a kid, one day, one day I shall save the British Empire. He grew up in a palace.

He's the grandson of a duke. His forebears stretch back performing all sorts of important tasks through history. One of his ancestors was the greatest general in British history, the Duke of Marlborough. So he was trained and put pressure on himself to be a great man. That's all he wanted to do in his life. And now is his chance and it's all gone to ashes.

He's the grandson of a duke. His forebears stretch back performing all sorts of important tasks through history. One of his ancestors was the greatest general in British history, the Duke of Marlborough. So he was trained and put pressure on himself to be a great man. That's all he wanted to do in his life. And now is his chance and it's all gone to ashes.

He's the grandson of a duke. His forebears stretch back performing all sorts of important tasks through history. One of his ancestors was the greatest general in British history, the Duke of Marlborough. So he was trained and put pressure on himself to be a great man. That's all he wanted to do in his life. And now is his chance and it's all gone to ashes.

So Britain is fighting for its life against Germany. Churchill has two very simple ideas. This is what makes him a great man. He made many, many, many mistakes, but he had two very simple ideas in 1940. And on those two things rests his reputation. One is he knew he could not compromise with Hitler. Hitler represented an evil that was almost unprecedented in human affairs.

So Britain is fighting for its life against Germany. Churchill has two very simple ideas. This is what makes him a great man. He made many, many, many mistakes, but he had two very simple ideas in 1940. And on those two things rests his reputation. One is he knew he could not compromise with Hitler. Hitler represented an evil that was almost unprecedented in human affairs.

So Britain is fighting for its life against Germany. Churchill has two very simple ideas. This is what makes him a great man. He made many, many, many mistakes, but he had two very simple ideas in 1940. And on those two things rests his reputation. One is he knew he could not compromise with Hitler. Hitler represented an evil that was almost unprecedented in human affairs.

This was not like Napoleon, this was not like Kaiser Wilhelm, this was not like Louis XIV, this was not like King Philip of Spain. We could live with those guys. It would be awkward, but this is an existential threat to everything that Winston Churchill believes. Everything, liberal democracy, western democracy, everything that it stands for. So he's got that idea in his head.

This was not like Napoleon, this was not like Kaiser Wilhelm, this was not like Louis XIV, this was not like King Philip of Spain. We could live with those guys. It would be awkward, but this is an existential threat to everything that Winston Churchill believes. Everything, liberal democracy, western democracy, everything that it stands for. So he's got that idea in his head.

This was not like Napoleon, this was not like Kaiser Wilhelm, this was not like Louis XIV, this was not like King Philip of Spain. We could live with those guys. It would be awkward, but this is an existential threat to everything that Winston Churchill believes. Everything, liberal democracy, western democracy, everything that it stands for. So he's got that idea in his head.

So he's going to fight, even if he has to turn Britain into a graveyard, a bomb-blasted graveyard to do so, he's going to fight Hitler. His second idea is he's going to drag the Americans in. He knows he can't win without America. So he says to his son on 18th of May 1940, super early when you think about it, I shall drag the United States in.