Students of the man can fill in the rest: 1914, and so on. It established his national fame, connected his fate to that of the British Empire, introduced him to key figures who were to loom large later in his life, and set him on the road to his phenomenally successful political career.īusiness commentators who write about seminal “take-off” moments for companies or products will recognize the phenomenon whereby suddenly a brand goes spectacularly global: 1899 was just such a year for Winston Churchill, as, some would say, was 1895, when he first visited America and met a life’s mentor, Bourke Cockran. This book covers one year in the life of Winston Churchill-1899-and argues that those twelve months were absolutely epicentral to the man he later became. But Hero of the Empire is more than an adventure story, for the lessons Churchill took from the Boer War would profoundly affect 20th century history.Candice Millard, Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill. The story of his escape is incredible enough, but then Churchill enlisted, returned to South Africa, fought in several battles, and ultimately liberated the men with whom he had been imprisoned.Ĭhurchill would later remark that this period, 'could I have seen my future, was to lay the foundations of my later life.' Millard spins an epic story of bravery, savagery, and chance encounters with a cast of historical characters-including Rudyard Kipling, Lord Kitchener, and Mohandas Gandhi-with whom he would later share the world stage.

Remarkably, he pulled off a daring escape-but then had to traverse hundreds of miles of enemy territory, alone, with nothing but a crumpled wad of cash, four slabs of chocolate, and his wits to guide him. But just two weeks after his arrival, the soldiers he was accompanying on an armored train were ambushed, and Churchill was taken prisoner. Despite deliberately putting himself in extreme danger as a British Army officer in colonial wars in India and Sudan, and as a journalist covering a Cuban uprising against the Spanish, glory and fame had eluded him.Ĭhurchill arrived in South Africa in 1899, valet and crates of vintage wine in tow, there to cover the brutal colonial war the British were fighting with Boer rebels. He believed that to achieve his goal he must do something spectacular on the battlefield. From New York Times bestselling author of Destiny of the Republic and The River of Doubt, a thrilling narrative of Winston Churchill's extraordinary and little-known exploits during the Boer WarĪt age twenty-four, Winston Churchill was utterly convinced it was his destiny to become prime minister of England one day, despite the fact he had just lost his first election campaign for Parliament.

Hero of the empire by candice millard