This is the first part of my Churchill biography. It covers Winston's life before he went into politics covering the years 1874 to 1899. This includes his early family life, schooling and military career in Cuba, India, The Sudan and The Boer War.
When was Churchill born?
Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill was born at Blenheim Palace on 30th November 1874. Queen Victoria was on the throne of the British Empire just as she would be by the time Churchill first took his seat in parliament 25 years later. Churchill, through his father , Lord Randolph Churchill, was descended from John Churchill the first Duke of Marlborough. Queen Anne had rewarded her faithful Captain General John Churchill with a Dukedom and with the Royal Manor of Woodstock in Oxfordshire. It is here that the first Duke built Blenheim palace (named after his famous battle.)
Churchill's mother and father
Largely raised in Paris, Jennie Jerome, Winston's mother was a beautiful American (her alluring beauty was said to be all the more exotic because of the rumoured native American Iroquois blood in her veins). She and Winston's father Lord Randolph Churchill were married at the British Embassy in Paris in April 1874. Lord Randolph was the younger son of the 7th Duke - and as such would not inherit the family estate of Blenheim, instead he made his living in politics being the member of parliament for Woodstock.
Young Winston
Even by upper class Victorian standards, Winston didn't see much of his parents. His father was heavily involved in the politics of the time and his mother lead a hectic social life. Instead Winston grew close to Mrs Everest his beloved nanny. Winston's early schooling was in Brighton on the South coast of England, to be followed by school at the highly prestigious Harrow School. There is a myth that Churchill was hopeless at school (though like most children he had some lessons he hated: maths and classics... and some he loved: English and history). In reality he was an average pupil - though he did excel at fencing, winning the public schools championships.
Churchill joins the army
After Harrow School, it took Winston 3 attempts to pass his entrance examination to The Royal Military Academy of Sandhurst. There was also some concern about the young Churchill's physical robustness - he had a rather puny chest measurement and was generally rather sickly. However the young Churchill did rather well at sandhurst, passing out with honours. In February 1895 Winston joined his cavalry regiment the 4th Hussars - one month after the death of his father. Every Churchill biography places significant emphasis on Winston's time in the army: the experiences he had shaped his later years greatly.
Churchill in Cuba
As a young officer, Churchill craved excitement and took the opportunity to travel to Cuba to get involved in the war going on there between rebels and the government. He came under fire for the first time on his 21st birthday. While in Cuba he developed 2 habits that were to last him the rest of his life: smoking Cuban cigars and taking regular siestas!
India
After Cuba Winston was posted to India, where life for a cavalry officer was none too taxing. During this period Winston expanded his education by reading widely on a variety of subjects and by playing his favorite sport polo. He also maintained a (usually) long distance relationship with the only other "romantic" girlfriend in his whole life other than his wife Clemmie, a Miss Pamela Plowden. In 1897, there was an uprising in the Malakand valley and the adrenalin junkie Winston applied to go along. However there was no vacancy - he therefore got a commission to go as a journalist and went anyway! When one of the British officers was killed the "journalist" took his place. He had many daring adventures in the Malakand and they formed the narrative of his first book: "The Malakand Field Force"
