Hero of the Empire

The Making of Winston Churchill

By: Candice Millard

Narrated by: Mr Simon Vance

Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition Hero of the Empire by Candice Millard, read by Simon Vance.

From The New York Times bestselling author Candice Millard, this is the gripping true story of one dramatic - and emblematic - year in the early life of Winston Churchill

At the age of twenty-four, Winston Churchill believed that to achieve his ambition of becoming Prime Minister he must do something spectacular on the battlefield. Although he had put himself in real danger in colonial wars in India and Sudan, and as a journalist covering the Spanish-American War in Cuba, glory and fame had eluded him.

Churchill arrived in South Africa in 1899 to write about the brutal colonial war against the Boers. Just two weeks later, he was taken prisoner. Remarkably, he pulled off a daring escape - but then had to traverse hundreds of miles of enemy territory alone. The story of his escape is extraordinary enough, but then Churchill enlisted, returned to South Africa, fought in several battles and ultimately liberated the men with whom he had been imprisoned.

Churchill would later remark that this period, 'could I have seen my future, was to lay the foundations of my later life'. Candice Millard tells a magnificent story of bravery, savagery and chance encounters with a cast of historical characters - including Rudyard Kipling, Lord Kitchener and Gandhi - with whom he would later share the world stage, and gives us an unexpected perspective on one of the iconic figures in our history.

©2016 Candice Millard (P)2017 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

Completely engrossing (Andrew Roberts)

Combining vivid narrative and original scholarship, Candice Millard reveals how Winston Churchill laid the foundations of his political career during the Boer War. Supremely courageous, flagrantly ambitious and incredibly lucky, young Winston emerges as the authentic hero of this thrilling tale of imperial derring-do (Piers Brendon, Former Keeper of the Archives Centre, Churchill College, Cambridge)

With consummate narrative skill and admirable first-hand research, Candice Millard has added to the canon of great works on Winston Churchill a book essential to a better understanding of his life and personality. Hero of The Empire is both eminently readable and exceptionally informative about the evolution of one of Britain's greatest statesmen (Phil Reed, Director of the Churchill War Rooms)

Brilliantly Written

The research of this book is the best I heave ever came upon. The story is a balance between facts and a great narrative, making it great to listen to. As a Afrikaner South Afrikaner whose then 19! year old grandfather, Oupa, was wounded near Pretoria and send to Sri Lanka; and whose grandmother, Ouma, survived the concentration camps, this is really as good as it gets. My Ouma’s and Oupa’s families lost everything. My Ouma survived as an only child aged 14, losing her father and 4 siblings, 9 to 12 years old due to the systematic killing of the women and children by the British. They survived rape attempts by blacks and British soldiers I knew them for a short while. They were proud as humans but kind to Englishman and Black. Apartheid was harsh. It is a pity that people that suffered that much could not stop discriminating even after suffering so much. Or was it the unforgiving African way you have to survive Africa even today that shaped their politics? This book is great as an introduction to study the history of the Afrikaner. Herman Gilliomee wrote an excellent book called The Afrikaner. I would suggest it as a great follow up to this book.

Amazing chapter of an amazing life!!

A fascinating, expertly crafted and fascinating insight into Churchill's life. It's not really spoken about given all his other achievements. Couldn't stop listening.