Williams 68 in Oxford – June 2017 Patti Dirlam (John Dirlam)

Spending a Day with Winston Churchill

Only on a Williams trip could you:

  1. Start the day with a lecture by an Oxford professor on the life and varied career of Winston Churchill.
  2. Visit St. Martin’s Church in the small town of Bladon where Winston (with his wife Clementine) chose to be buried, instead of in Westminster Abbey.
  3. Tour Blenheim Palace (the place of Churchill’s 1874 birth).
  4. Have an ongoing exchange throughout the day and during the traditional refreshment hour with many of the Class of 1968 fellow travelers on multiple British military, history, political stories and famous (and infamous) quotes of Churchill.
  5. Receive 3 additional reads for anyone who wants to learn more about this great man and important period of time. Cindy Piper recommends the autobiography: “The Glitter and The Gold’ (by Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsam, the Duchess of Marlborough). I found ‘Clementine: The Life of Mrs. Winston Churchill (biography y Sonia Pyrnell) a fascinating read of their 57 year marriage, and from my spouse, John, his choice: Churchill and Orwell- The Fight For Freedom (by Thomas E. Ricks)

(Editor’s Note: John Dirlam added that he loved the Winston Churchill comments mentioned by lecturer Dr. Tudor Jones about why Churchill preferred not to be buried in Westminster Abbey: “No one walked over me in life, and they’re not going to after death.” Churchill also quipped that he would not want to have afternoon tea with half the people buried in Westminster Abbey.)

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