The World Crisis 1911-1914; The World Crisis 1915; The World Crisis 1916-1918 Part One and Part Two; The World Crisis. The Aftermath; The World Crisis. The Eastern Front.

CHURCHILL, Winston S.

$17,500.00

Item Number: 144259

London: Thornton Butterfield, 1923-31.

Complete first edition set of Churchill’s important history of World War I, with the first volume signed by Churchill and an autograph note signed by Jack Churchill. Octavo, six volumes, original publisher’s dark blue cloth, illustrated with numerous plans and folding maps. Vol. I second state, the others first state. Volume I is boldly signed by the author on the preliminary blank, “Winston S. Churchill 1925.” Vol. VI with a loosely inserted note in Jack Churchill’s hand, “The first chapters will interest you. J.S.C.” Each volume is in near fine condition. Volumes I-V in dust jackets (correct for the issue where present) with two dust jackets with loss at spine, volume VI lacking dust jacket. Ownership inscription “A.H.B.” to volumes II and III; bookplate to vol. IV; vol. IV presented by Jack Churchill, “From Jack Churchill” inscribed in pencil by the recipient. An exceptional set, rare and desirable signed.

His American biographer William Manchester wrote that: His masterpiece is The World Crisis, published over a period of several years, 1923 to 1931, a six-volume, 3,261-page account of the Great War, beginning with its origins in 1911 and ending with its repercussions in the 1920s. Magnificently written, it is enhanced by the presence of the author at the highest councils of war and in the trenches as a battalion commander. The British historian Robert Rhodes James wrote that: For all its pitfalls as history, The World Crisis must surely stand as Churchill’s masterpiece.As first lord of the admiralty and minister for war and air, Churchill stood resolute at the center of international affairs. In this classic account, he dramatically details how the tides of despair and triumph flowed and ebbed as the political and military leaders of the time navigated the dangerous currents of world conflict. Churchill vividly recounts the major campaigns that shaped the war: the furious attacks of the Marne, the naval maneuvers off Jutland, Verdun's "soul-stirring frenzy," and the surprising victory of Chemins des Dames. Here, too, he re-creates the dawn of modern warfare: the buzz of airplanes overhead, trench combat, artillery thunder, and the threat of chemical warfare. In Churchill's inimitable voice we hear how "the war to end all wars" instead gave birth to every war that would follow. "The World Crisis is at once an outstandingly readable history of the First World War -- the seminal drama of modern times -- and an eyewitness account, especially of its opening years. Whether as a statesman or an author, Churchill was a giant; and The World Crisis towers over most other books about the Great War" (David Fromkin). This comprehensive account of the War is both analytical and on occasions a justification from the author for his part in the proceedings. It is claimed that Churchill suggested this work was "not history, but a contribution to history." Since its publication both biographers and historians have considered it Churchill's masterpiece, eclipsing his better-known account 'The Second World War'; T. E. Lawrence regarded the second volume, 1915, as "far and away the best war-book I've yet read."