(One of a series of daily posts about Winston S. Churchill.)
On November 9, 1940 Neville Chamberlain died of stomach cancer. Six months earlier, he’d been forced to resign as Prime Minister when Germany’s conquest of the Low Countries and France revealed to all the failure of his appeasement policy.
When he succeed Chamberlain, Churchill invited him to remain in Cabinet. Chamberlain served loyally as Lord President of the Council until a few weeks before his death.
On November 12, Churchill paid tribute to him in the House of Commons. After a formal mention of Chamberlain’s death and his service as Prime Minister, Churchill said
In paying a tribute of respect and of regard to an eminent man who has been taken from us, no one is obliged to alter the opinions which he has formed or expressed upon issues which have become a part of history.___________________________________________________
....
The only guide to a man is his conscience; the only shield to his memory is the rectitude and sincerity of his actions. It is very imprudent to walk through life without this shield, because we are so often mocked by the failure of our hopes and the upsetting of our calculations; but with this shield, however the fates may play, we march always in the ranks of honour.
Churchill's entire memorial tribute can be read here , courtesy of The Churchill Centre.
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