"I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat." (Sir Winston Churchill)
Sir Winston Churchill stood up in the House of Commons and delivered this famous speech on May 13, 1940. Nazi Germany was goosestepping its way across Europe. Only three days had passed since the Nazis had invaded Holland. They had also invaded France and were only weeks away from a takeover of Paris. Britain was getting nervous. Would it be next?
After the appeasement policy of Neville Chamberlain, Britain needed a strong leader. Churchill was the man for the job. He had fought on the battlefield in the first World War. He knew what it was like to get his hands dirty. He brooked no opposition. When he stood up and delivered his speech, he rallied the troops, the country and the cause. Here is an excerpt from his address:
I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat. We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many long months of struggle and of suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I will say, it is to wage war by sea, land and air, with all of our might and with all the strength God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny; never surpassed in the dark and lamentable catalogue of crime. That is our policy. You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word: victory; victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road might be; for without victory, there is no survival. Let that be realized; no survival for the British Empire, no survival for all that the British Empire has stood for, no survival for the urge and impulse of the ages, that mankind will move forward towards its goal. But I take up my task with buoyancy and hope. I feel sure that our cause will not be suffered to fail among men. I this time I feel entitled to claim the aid of all and I say: Come then, let us go forward together with our united strength. (http://www.historyplace.com/speeches/churchill.htm)
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