A Study Of Churchill's Grand Strategy Thoughts: The Strategic And Political Leadership In Reining Violence And Passion

Grand strategy is"a plan of action that is based on the calculated relation of means to large ends", the fundamental principles which"require flexibility and constant adjustment"and"never an exact science". As most violent form of human activity, war has its distinct innate character that is a unity of the trinity of reason, violence and passion. It embodies the contradictory and unity of this reason-violence-passion trinity in every aspect of grand strategy, because involving the general planning and evaluating. Grand strategy problems are the most importance to both war and other political activity.As one of the most important statesmen in modern Britain, Churchill deeply involved in dealing with the war and the strategy. The Britain way of warfare, the tremendous changing of times, and Churchill's advantages and his multiple social identities'constructing are all defined his acknowledge about war and grand strategy. Firstly, having profound understanding of Britain way of warfare, there were marked Britain characters in Churchill's grand strategy thoughts: cautious in waging war to avoid unaffordable cost, forming grand coalition as broadly as possible, adopting indirect strategy in operation, aiding alliances through the economic and financial means, filling with magnanimity in victory. Secondly, the times of Churchill is a changing times. On one hand, he grew up under the glorious of Victorian Era. There were brands of Victorian Era in his mind which were characterized by the tension of the rational pragmatism and emotional romanticism which made him became a man of action. On the other hand, he is a modern statesman. What he deals with is in revolutionary changing. (1) Total war came into being as the result of grand development of war technology and weapon which made the scope of war wider and wider. (2) Modern mass politics was flourishing, which followed the advance of communication, arising of metropolis, and springing up of modern mass media. (3) Middle powers such as Britain fell into the shade facing the challenge of intercontinental super powers and the rebel of non-European world. All Britain statesmen of that times involving Churchill, had to deal with the declining of Great Britain. Finally, his advantages showed Churchill's genius on war and grand strategy. (1) As a soldier when he was young, his eager for glory, his courage, his humanity, and his rational savoir-faire were all cultivated by his advantages in colonial war and his wide reading. (2) As a biographer and a historian, Churchill had dual understanding of war, both in research and in reality. (3) As statesman, Churchill rolled up solid political and military experience. (4) Some hobby such as painting made his view of war more clear.The qualities of leader decide the making, operating and evaluating of grand strategy in some sense. As a statesman in a changing world, Churchill had find cognition of war's violence, of giant passion. He was sentient in the necessary of political reining in violence and passion. Moreover, Churchill himself could be seen as a unity of the trinity of reason, violence and passion. Churchill's abilities could be drawn as bravery, courageous, resolute and fortitude at first sight. But, influenced so deeply by Victorian patriotism and view of duty, Churchill could do well in channeling his emotional impulse by his reason under the giant incumbency of war. Compared with his aides and staffs, Churchill was more cautious in decision making. Churchill was more cautious and prudence in waging war. In practice, war is limited for the war destroying everything only a doom. As remarkable property and moderation he had, Churchill's war aims were reasonable, clear, focused, limited, sufficient, and inner balancing. The political consideration must put in the first place in Churchill's decision-making and even in dealing with detail.In the relationship of statesmen and soldiers, Churchill had faith in statesmen's leading position. For Churchill, the war was too important to leave to soldiers. Statesmen's mastery is coming from the global view of grand strategy and the belongingness of the war to the politics. Churchill's civil control had his personal code compared with other war leaders. It never stopped in define aims and strategy level of Churchill's control. Churchill's control of military operations ranged almost every field of war. That means the political antenna is wall-to-wall. In his relation with generals, Churchill was more like a supervisor and an examiner in supervising and examining his generals'operations. Furthermore, Churchill was partial to nominate those dissidents and expressers. The final strategy decision came into being under the quarrelling between Churchill and his generals.The relationship between statesmen and mass is the relation between conducting and conducted in Churchill's leadership. Churchill was not good at in reining the force of mass political parties, but he had profound understanding of the power of passion deeply containing in common people. For Churchill, the passion of common people should be under some right conduction if meeting with justice. Churchill used his power of oratory and his symbolized image to convey message and conduct common people's passion. There have few statesmen can acquire the achievement that Churchill have, who parlayed his oratory and his symbolized image to conduct common people's passion, while at the meantime he did not violence Britain's political and social regime.As most intensive human activity, war has it logic. Under the push of more and more intensive passion, violence has the tendency of self-fulfilling, especially under the condition of total war and modern mass politics, the self-fulfilling of war and mass enthusiasm make intensity and destructive effect of war bigger and bigger. Statesman's reining of violence and passion become more man more difficult under this circumstance. Though having drawback in his strategy and his behavior, Churchill's achievements in dealing with war filled with uncertainty and chance, are extraordinary not only in his times but also in our times. Churchill has the abilities of reining overall situation, violence and passion through creative use of reason and emotion. On one hand, it is a brilliant contribution to grand strategy thoughts of Churchill's political and strategic activities itself. On the other hand, later generations can borrow ideas from the principles draw out from his thoughts and practice.