Following consternation over shadow chancellor John McDonnell’s judgment, experts have appealed for less simplistic appraisal
The political fallout over John McDonnell’s characterisation of Winston Churchill as a villain continued on Thursday, with Boris Johnson suggesting that the shadow chancellor “should be utterly ashamed of his remarks”. But historians have poured scorn on the idea that Churchill’s legacy can be reduced to one word, arguing that history “should never be reduced to soundbites”.
The row began after McDonnell was asked at an event organised by Politico to answer in one word whether Britain’s wartime prime minister was a hero or a villain. The shadow chancellor replied: “Villain – Tonypandy.” This was a reference to an incident in the south Wales town in 1910, when riots erupted after police attempted to break the miners’ picket line. The then home secretary Churchill sent 200 officers of the Metropolitan police and a detachment of Lancashire Fusiliers to stop the riots. One miner was killed and almost 600 people were injured.
Continue reading...
0 comments:
Post a Comment