SPRING 2006 â¢ NUMBER 130 - Winston Churchill

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2 2 N D I N T E R N AT I O N A L C H U R C H I L L C O N F E R E N C EEchoes andMemories:Quebec City2005BY TERRY REARDON“PLANNING FOR VICTORY”:A great theme, a grand hotel, thebest scholars, and the Great Man’sdaughter for company. It justdoesn’t get any better than that.“QUADRANT,” 1943. Seated (l-r): Mackenzie King, Roosevelt and Churchill.Standing (l-r): General “Hap” Arnold; Air Chief Marshal Sir Charles Portal; General SirAlan Brooke; Admiral Ernest King; Field Marshal Sir John Dill; General GeorgeMarshall; Admiral of the Fleet Sir Dudley Pound; Admiral Wlliam Leahy. PHOTOSBELOW: Jack Granatstein, Desmond Morton, Larry Bland, David Woolner.Some 230 Churchillians journeyed to historicQuebec City on the majestic St. Lawrence Riverand the fabled Le Chateau Frontenac Hotel for areassessment of the Conferences of 1943 and1944 which planned the invasion of northernFrance; and contemplated the postwar world.On Thursday afternoon 28 September, determineddelegates braved a torrential downpour for “Rendezvouswith History,” a bus tour of Quebec City. While theweather precluded scheduled stops and walkabouts, thegood humored guides provided a fascinating narrative onthe only remaining walled city in North America—especially on the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in1759. Here a dangerous and innovative ascent up thecity’s steep cliffs, by a British contingent led by GeneralJames Wolfe, captured Quebec from French forces underthe Marquis de Montcalm, and thereafter Canadaremained in British hands.That evening Churchill Centre President Bill Ivesformally opened the Conference and introducedAmbassador Paul Robinson, who remarked on the significanceof the 1943-44 meetings; followed by SolveigBarber (wife of ICS Canada President Randy Barber),resplendent in WW 2 uniform, who entertainingly reada letter from a stenographer, Margaret Cullen, recountingher personal experiences at the 1943 Conference.Mr. Reardon, a retired banker from Toronto, is RecordingSecretary of the International Churchill Society, Canada.On Friday Morning chairman Randy Barber welcomedall the delegates to the conference, which hadbeen in the planning stage for two years. He was especiallygratified with the attendance, which considerablyexceeded all projections. The first session, “TheCanadian Connection,” commenced with one of theplanning team, Prof. Barry Gough, introducing the twopresenters as Canada’s preeminent historians/authors.Jack Granatstein, former professorat York University in Toronto and CEOof the Canadian War Museum, and nowco-chair of the Council for CanadianSecurity in the 21st Century, commencedby remarking to the packed room:“When I have attended other conferencesat 8.30 in the morning there is usually ahandful of people; there’s something going on here!”Desmond Morton, Hiram MillsChair of Canadian History at McGillUniversity in Montreal, provided a richand colourful examination of Canadianhistory and the country’s part in WorldWar II. This included outlining theOgdensburg treaty of 1941 between theUSA and Canada, which set out a“Permanent Defense Relationship” in North America,and in some eyes, including Churchill’s, moved Canadaaway from Britain and towards the United States. WeFINEST HOUR 130 / 16
1943 - 2005“OCTAGON,” 1944. Seated (l-r): Gen. George Marshall, Admiral William Leahy,President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Churchill, Field Marshal Sir Alan Brooke,Field Marshal Sir John Dill. Standing (l-r): Major General Leslie Hollis, GeneralSir Hastings Ismay, Admiral Ernest King, Marshal of the RAF Sir Charles Portal,General H. H. Arnold, Admiral of the Fleet Sir Andrew Cunningham.were informed that ten percent of Canada’s populationwas in uniform during the war—an astonishing figure.The second session, moderated by James Thomas,examined “Quadrant: The First Quebec Conference” in1943. Larry Bland, editor and projectdirector of the Papers of GeneralGeorge Marshall; and David Woolner,executive director ofthe Franklin andEleanor RooseveltInstitute in HydePark, New York andassociate professor ofhistory at Poughkeepsie, outlined theobjectives of the British and Americans,and the fierce negotiations between thetwo allies, which resulted in General Sir Alan Brookebeing close to a nervous breakdown. Brooke’s subsequentcriticisms of Churchill were recounted, but also hisremark that “For all that I thank God that I was giventhe opportunity of working alongside of such a man,and of having my eyes opened to the fact that occasionallysuch supermen exist on this earth.”The afternoon session was “Churchill: YourQuestions Answered” moderated by Lady Soames who,in good humored fashion, reminded the panel ofRichard Langworth, Jim Muller and Paul Courtenay thatshe was just the moderator; however she did fully participate,aided by Richard’s laptop computer confirmingdates and events. This conversation delved into manyunexpected avenues, with the help of good questionsfrom the participating audience.At the gala black tie dinner on Friday eveningRandy Barber opened proceedings by reading a welcomingletter from the Premier of the Province of Quebec,Jean Charest. Guests at the dinner included thirty studentsand seven teachers representing nine differentschools in the Quebec City region. Also present wereMadame Bouchard, a “runner” for Churchill at the twoQuebec conferences; and Madame Brittle, whose husbandworked at the Chateau Frontenac at the time ofthe 1943 Conference.Monsieur Brittle, tidying up a room which hadbeen used for a meeting of the Normandy invasion planners,noticed that a number of documents had been leftbehind, which he took to one of the officials. The documentsturned out to be the actual invasion plans andMonsieur Brittle was closely watched until the invasioncommenced on 6 June 1944. Madame Brittle hadopined that over the years she thought that her husbandshould have been given some recognition for his action;thus her obvious delight at the prolonged applause at thedinner, hopefully rectifying this oversight.The toast to Sir Winston was given by JeanMacLeod (wife of Norman MacLeod, President of TheOther Club of Ontario) who spoke directly to the >>FINEST HOUR 130 / 17
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SPRING 2006 â¢ NUMBER 130 - Winston Churchill