Second World War (1939-1945)
Subject
Subject Source: UK Archival Thesaurus
Found in 29 Collections and/or Records:
File
Literary: "The Second World War", Volume 2 "Their Finest Hour": Appendices., Oct 1940 - 27 Dec 1948
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 4/179A-I
Scope and Contents
Includes typescript and galley proofs of the appendices to Volume 2 including: Appendix A "Minutes and Telegrams, May - December 1940"; Appendix B "Loss by Enemy Action of British, Allied and Neutral Merchant Tonnage"; Appendix D "Correspondence Relating to Dakar [Senegal] between Mr Churchill and Mr [Robert] Menzies" [Prime Minister of Australia]; Appendix E "List of Operational Code Names"; Appendix F "List of Abbreviations". The proofs are annotated with suggested amendments and...
Dates:
Oct 1940 - 27 Dec 1948
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Literary: "The Second World War", Volume 2 "Their Finest Hour": Book 2 and appendices: Proofs for Sir Edward Marsh., 25 Feb 1948 - 25 Aug 1948
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 4/188A-C
Scope and Contents
Includes galley proofs of: contents tables for Book 2; Chapter 16 "The Battle of Britain"; Chapter 17 "The Blitz" (provisionally entitled "The Blitz Continues"); Chapter 18 "'London Can Take It'"; Chapter 19 "The Wizard War"; Chapter 20 "United States Destroyers and West Indian Bases"; Chapter 21 "Egypt and the Middle East"; Chapter 23 "September Tensions"; Chapter 24 "Dakar" [Senegal]; Chapter 25 "Mr Eden's Mission" [Anthony Eden, later 1st Lord Avon, Secretary of State for War]; Chapter 26...
Dates:
25 Feb 1948 - 25 Aug 1948
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Literary: "The Second World War", Volume 2 "Their Finest Hour": Notes and comments by Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Pownall., 02 Mar 1941 - 16 Jun 1949
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 4/196A-C
Scope and Contents
Includes notes and comments by Pownall on subjects including: factual and printing errors throughout Volume 2; the build-up to the German attack on the Soviet Union; the build-up to "Dynamo" [codename for the evacuation of Allied forces from Dunkirk, France]; the British Expedition Force; the meeting between 6th Lord Gort [Commander-in-Chief of British Field Force, earlier John Vereker] and General Maxime Weygand [Commander-in-Chief, French Army], May 1940; British casualties; the defence of...
Dates:
02 Mar 1941 - 16 Jun 1949
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Literary: "The Second World War", Volume 2 "Their Finest Hour": 'Superseded' proofs., 01 Mar 1948 - 27 Aug 1948
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 4/186
Scope and Contents
Includes galley proofs from: Chapter 12 "The Apparatus of Counter-Attack. 1940"; Chapter 16 "The Battle of Britain"; Chapter 19 "The Wizard War"; Chapter 20 "United States Destroyers and West Indian Bases"; Chapter 21 "Egypt and the Middle East"; Chapter 23 "September Tensions"; Chapter 25 "Mr Eden's Mission" [Anthony Eden, later 1st Lord Avon, Secretary of State for War]; Chapter 27 [Benito] "Mussolini Attacks Greece"; Chapter 28 "Lend-Lease"; Chapter 30 "Ocean Peril" (provisionally...
Dates:
01 Mar 1948 - 27 Aug 1948
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Chiefs of Staff Committee: weekly resumes., 30 May 1940 - 01 Aug 1940
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/5
Scope and Contents
Printed reviews of the naval, military and air situation, including: the evacuation of Dunkirk [France]; minelaying and minesweeping; Scandinavia; Italy; the Balkans; air defence; air attacks on Germany and Britain; losses of shipping; the Western Front; the Mediterranean; the North Sea; enemy naval intelligence; the French fleet; Africa; the German and Italian Air Forces.
Dates:
30 May 1940 - 01 Aug 1940
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Chiefs of Staff Committee: weekly resumes., 01 Aug 1940 - 03 Oct 1940
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/6
Scope and Contents
Printed reviews of the naval, military and air situation, including: home waters; the Mediterranean; attacks on shipping; enemy shipping; minelaying; minesweeping; Germany; the Middle East; Africa; air defence; air attacks on Germany and Italy; enemy intelligence; the Balkans; home security; economic warfare; Italy; the North Sea; the United States; the Soviet Union.
Dates:
01 Aug 1940 - 03 Oct 1940
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Chiefs of Staff Committee: weekly resumes., 03 Oct 1940 - 14 Nov 1940
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/7
Scope and Contents
Printed reviews of the naval, military and air situation, including: home waters; the Mediterranean; Africa; shipping losses; enemy intelligence; enemy shipping; minelaying and minesweeping; the Soviet fleet; Italy; the Balkans; the North Sea; air intelligence; home security; the Middle East; enemy air attacks; Germany; air operations.
Dates:
03 Oct 1940 - 14 Nov 1940
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Chiefs of Staff Committee: weekly resumes., 14 Nov 1940 - 26 Dec 1940
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/8
Scope and Contents
Printed reviews of the naval, military and air situation, including: home waters; the Mediterranean; enemy intelligence; shipping losses; enemy shipping; minelaying and minesweeping; Germany; the Balkans; the Middle East; air attacks on enemy territory; air attacks on Britain; Italy; Africa; air intelligence; home security.
Dates:
14 Nov 1940 - 26 Dec 1940
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Prime Minister's Directives., 27 Jun 1940 - 30 Dec 1940
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/4
Scope and Contents
Printed directives by the Prime Minister, WSC, on subjects including: War Cabinet arrangements; the brevity of reports; the unlikelihood of invasion from the sea, including a note by Sir Dudley Pound, 1st Sea Lord; draft notes on defence against invasion, including notes by the Chiefs of Staff; the priority of the air force; strengthening the army; munitions; the reinforcement of Malta; relations with Vichy France in the Mediterranean; strengthening the forces in the Mediterranean; the...
Dates:
27 Jun 1940 - 30 Dec 1940
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Prime Minister's Directives., 06 Mar 1941 - 12 Dec 1941
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/9
Scope and Contents
Printed directives by the Prime Minister, WSC, on subjects including: the battle of the Atlantic; food imports; army scales; the naval programme; the Mediterranean; warning Stalin against Germany (including extracts of correspondence between WSC, the Foreign Secretary [Anthony Eden, later 1st Lord Avon] and Sir Stafford Cripps [British Ambassador to the Soviet Union]; policy in Syria; Egypt and the Middle East; security of cabinet papers; the maintenance of forces in the Middle East; the...
Dates:
06 Mar 1941 - 12 Dec 1941
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Prime Minister's Directives., 18 Dec 1941 - 30 Dec 1942
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/10
Scope and Contents
Printed directives by the Prime Minister, WSC, on subjects including: the future conduct of the war; the Pacific and the Japanese fleet; the entry of the United States into the war; the Atlantic Front; the Indian Ocean; the function of the Minister of State in the Middle East [Richard Casey]; Vichy France's co-operation with Germany; the function of the Minister Resident in West Africa [1st Lord Swinton, earlier Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister, earlier Sir Philip Lloyd-Greame]; Fleet Air Arm...
Dates:
18 Dec 1941 - 30 Dec 1942
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Supreme War Council., 12 Sep 1939 - 13 Jun 1940
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/2
Scope and Contents
Printed records of the Council's meetings, on subjects including: the general situations in Britain; France; Germany; Poland; Italy; Spain; the Balkans; the Baltic; naval policy; the Eastern Front; the Western Front; air policy; South eastern Europe; Northern Europe; the Soviet Union; Scandinavia; British troops in France; the evacuation from Dunkirk [France]; appeals to the United States.Also includes: printed index.
Dates:
12 Sep 1939 - 13 Jun 1940
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Political: Constituency: Woodford [Essex]: correspondence with or on behalf of constituents, L-R., Jun 1945 - May 1946
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 3/26A-B
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: [Claud] Wright, [Principal] (3) and M L Elder (8) of the War Office; J H Hughes of the Air Ministry (9); constituent R W McOwen (5); Sir James Hawkey [Chairman of Woodford Conservative Association] (8); Leslie Rowan [Principal Private Secretary to Prime Minister Clement Attlee]; [Hugh] Farmar [Assistant Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for Air] (2); Sir George Harvie Watt; Archie Moore, Surgeon to the London Hospital, on a constituent's health; Joyce Gordon...
Dates:
Jun 1945 - May 1946
Conditions Governing Access:
Open, (folios 173-9 and 207-9 opened in 2022)
File
Public and Political: General: Defence., 06 Nov 1936 - 20 Jan 1942
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 2/371A-B
Scope and Contents
Correspondents on defence issues include: Sir Thomas Inskip [Minister for Co-ordination of Defence, later 1st Lord Caldecote]; Harry Sellar, Private Secretary to Inskip (2); Leslie Hore-Belisha, Secretary of State for War, on subjects including the arming of the Guards Battalions; Sir Kingsley Wood, Secretary of State for Air, on showing WSC [air construction graphs]; 1st Lord Swinton [former Secretary of State for Air, earlier Philip Cunliffe-Lister and Philip Lloyd-Greame] on the formation...
Dates:
06 Nov 1936 - 20 Jan 1942
Conditions Governing Access:
Open.
Fonds
The Papers of Sir Winston Churchill
Fonds
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR and CHUR
Scope and Contents
The papers consist of original documents accumulated by Sir Winston Churchill throughout his life (1874-1965). They have been divided into two sections: the Chartwell Papers (CHAR) and the Churchill Papers (CHUR). Together, the two sets of papers cover the following major areas:
Personal (CHAR 1 and CHUR 1), 1884-1965
The papers of Churchill as a private person. They include correspondence with or about his family and friends on non-public topics and papers relating to...
Dates:
The majority of files date from the 1870s to 1965.
Conditions Governing Access:
The Churchill Papers are made available to researchers using Churchill Archives Centre and worldwide in digital format. The digital edition of the Churchill Papers is published by Bloomsbury Academic and is available online to subscribing institutions at churchillarchive.com. The Churchill archive is freely available in our reading rooms and onsite at Churchill College (via the Churchill College wireless network). Researchers can download images of documents directly from churchillarchive.com and so are encouraged to consider bringing a laptop or other device for this purpose. For conservation reasons, the fragile originals are no longer issued to researchers.
This digital edition is open to researchers unless otherwise marked in the catalogue. Some material has been closed by the Cabinet Office or by Churchill Archives Centre in accordance with data protection legislation.
Found in:
Churchill Archives Centre
Item
(Untitled), 27 Oct 1944
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/232/89-90
Scope and Contents
Memorandum from the Commander in Chief, Middle East Forces [General Sir Bernard Paget] (General Headquarters, Middle East Forces) marked "Top Secret" on manpower levels in the Middle East Base, prepared on WSC's verbal instructions, with an appendix table setting out the relevant figures.
Dates:
27 Oct 1944
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
Item
(Untitled), [1948]
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/250A/3-48
Scope and Contents
Long galley proofs of a contemporary despatch by Air Chief Marshal Sir Robert Brooke-Popham [former Commander-in-Chief, Far East] covering the period 17 October 1940 to 27 December 1941, with sections on: the formation, problems, and work of General Headquarters, Far East; factors affecting the defence of Malaya and Borneo [later Malaysia], Burma [later Myanmar], and Hong Kong; neighbouring countries; the development of the British Air Forces in the Far East; army strength and requirements...
Dates:
[1948]
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
Found in:
Churchill Archives Centre
/
The Papers of Sir Winston Churchill
/
Chartwell Papers
/
Official: Prime Minister
/
Official: Prime Minister: Far East theatre, 1940-42: proofs of mainly contemporary despatches and reports for publication, with accompanying correspondence. [some material probably used in the production of WSC's "Second World War"].
Item
(Untitled), c 1947
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/251/10
Scope and Contents
Long galley proofs entitled "Air Operations in Burma and Bay of Bengal, January 1st to May 22nd 1942" reprinting a contemporary despatch by Air Vice-Marshal [Donald] Stevenson [Air Officer Commanding, Burma, later Myanmar] with sections setting out the situation, on Japanese air strength, the air superiority battle over and later evacuation of Rangoon, the land battle at Tenasserim, the withdrawal up the Prome Road, the reverse at Magwe, the withdrawal of the Burma Army to India, and...
Dates:
c 1947
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
Found in:
Churchill Archives Centre
/
The Papers of Sir Winston Churchill
/
Chartwell Papers
/
Official: Prime Minister
/
Official: Prime Minister: Far East theatre, 1941-42: proofs of mainly contemporary despatches and reports for publication, with accompanying correspondence. [some material probably used in the production of WSC's "Second World War"].
Item
(Untitled), 01 Jan 1941 - 31 Jan 1941
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/36/1
Scope and Contents
Prime Minister's printed personal minutes, January 1941.Includes texts of minutes from WSC (annotated with additional printed information) to: Sir Edward Bridges [Secretary to the War Cabinet]; General Sir Hastings Ismay [Chief of Staff to the Minister of Defence]; Eric Seal [WSC's Principal Private Secretary]; members of the Cabinet and other government ministers; the Chiefs of Staff; F A Lindemann [later 1st Lord Cherwell, Prime Minister's Personal Assistant]; James Stuart [Chief Whip] and...
Dates:
01 Jan 1941 - 31 Jan 1941
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
Item
(Untitled), 01 Mar 1941 - 31 Mar 1941
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/36/3
Scope and Contents
Prime Minister's printed personal minutes, March 1941.Includes texts of minutes from WSC (annotated with additional printed information) to: General Sir Hastings Ismay [Chief of Staff to the Minister of Defence]; members of the Cabinet and other government ministers; the Chiefs of Staff; senior civil servants including Sir Edward Bridges [Secretary to the War Cabinet], Sir Horace Wilson [Permanent Secretary of HM Treasury and official Head of HM Civil Service], and Sir Alexander Cadogan...
Dates:
01 Mar 1941 - 31 Mar 1941
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
Item
(Untitled), 20 Oct 1942
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/54B/150-163
Scope and Contents
Letter from WSC to [Franklin Roosevelt] President of the United States, detailing secret military plans, reorganisation of command, and projected course of the war: Major-General Sir Claude Auchinleck [Commander-in-Chief, Middle East] to attack Cyrenaica [Libya], then advance on Tripoli; invasion of Norway has been planned as a cover; reports of German preparation for invasion of Britain over North Sea; seeks introduction of American troops to Northern Ireland; command. structure between the...
Dates:
20 Oct 1942
Conditions Governing Access:
From the File:
Open
Item
(Untitled), 31 Dec 1941
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/68A/6
Scope and Contents
Telegram from General Sir Claude Auchinleck, Commander-in- Chief, Middle East, to WSC on subjects including a tank encounter to the south of Agedabia [Ajdabiyah, Libya], the accuracy of RAF bombing and the movement of enemy ships from Ras el Aali.
Dates:
31 Dec 1941
Conditions Governing Access:
From the File:
Open
Item
(Untitled), 02 Jul 1942 - 21 Sep 1942
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/56B/121-184
Scope and Contents
Correspondence between Sir Stafford Cripps [Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons], WSC and Sir Edward Bridges [Secretary to the Cabinet] on memoranda by Cripps on subjects including: dissatisfaction in Parliament, the vote of censure against the Government and public opinion over progress of war in the Middle East, including leadership, weaponry, research and invention and the RAF; lack of public morale, the direction of the war and need for improved co-operation between the...
Dates:
02 Jul 1942 - 21 Sep 1942
Conditions Governing Access:
From the File:
Open
Item
(Untitled), 23 Feb 1942 - 03 Aug 1942
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/61/1-13
Scope and Contents
Extract from Hansard with summary of Parliamentary questions from Major Charles Taylor and others to WSC about co-operation between the Army and RAF in the Middle East, and in their training; also includes copy of letter from Admiral Sir [William] Reginald Hall to Taylor on the control of air power in Egypt, with letters from Taylor to Brigadier George Harvie-Watt [Parliamentary Private Secretary to WSC], enclosing Hall's letter, thanking WSC for answering his questions, asking if he could...
Dates:
23 Feb 1942 - 03 Aug 1942
Conditions Governing Access:
From the File:
Open
Item
(Untitled), 24 Jan 1942
Item
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 20/69A/33-34
Scope and Contents
Telegram from Commanders in Chief (Middle East) to WSC giving details of German and Allied army strengths at the beginning of "Crusader" [codename for British North African operation], including details of losses on both sides and reasons for Allied success.
Dates:
24 Jan 1942
Conditions Governing Access:
From the File:
Open