The Battle of Britain Five Months That Changed History, May—October 1940 by James Holland (z-lib.org).epub

prevalent gloom. One’s worst fears were confirmed each hour by friends
and news bulletins.’
By the time war had broken out in September 1939, Cecil was thirtyfive
and, with recent commissions to photograph the Queen, his reputation
had never been higher. He had turned to photography as an amateur after
dropping out of Cambridge, but had soon risen to prominence through his
daring portraits of the young, rich and fashionable. A certain notoriety from
his association with the Bright Young Things – a group of young
aristocratic men and women who had scandalized London society with their
camp theatrics and extravagance – did him no harm. More work followed;
then trips to Hollywood, contracts with Vogue and, finally, commissions
from the British Royal Family. For someone who worshipped beauty and
glamour as much as Beaton, his was a thrilling lifestyle: friendships with
artists, movie stars and the richest in the land; and near-constant travel – to
New York, Paris, Hollywood, Rome.
It was also a lifestyle that came to a crashing halt with the outbreak of
war. Hearing the news that Germany had invaded Poland had been ‘like a
death knell’, and affected him profoundly. Rather than mourning the
passing of a way of life, however, he discovered he no longer had an
‘appetite for the sort of things that had been fun. They were remote.’
Rather, his concern came primarily from his fear for Britain’s future. His
reaction was entirely typical of most people of his age, who could no longer
rely on the callowness and naivety they had possessed at nineteen or twenty.
To the middle-aged man, war spelled doom. To the younger man, still
flushed with youth, thoughts of potential death and destruction registered
less acutely.
Cecil Beaton had very quickly begun to feel both frustrated and
ashamed. ‘This war, as far as I can see,’ he confided to his diary, ‘is
something specifically designed to show up my inadequacy in every
possible capacity.’ He offered his services as a driver, then as a camouflage
designer, and finally took work as a telephonist at an Air Raid Precaution
unit. It did not last long, however, and soon he was back to photography
and theatre work.
His work in New York was now done, however. His friends tried to
persuade him to stay. ‘England will probably be invaded any day now,’ they
said, ‘and there can’t be much resistance.’ Surely it made more sense to stay
where he was? Although tempted, Cecil knew that at this ‘worst moment’ in