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OTD 1940 Churchill visited Park’s HQ at Uxbridge on his way from London to Chequers. What he saw left him profoundly moved and in the car afterwards he said to General Ismay ‘Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few’ [Thread]
![OTD 1940 Churchill visited Park’s HQ at Uxbridge on his way from London to Chequers. What he saw left him profoundly moved and in the car afterwards he said to General Ismay ‘Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few’ [Thread]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EfhvUBdXgAA-4zy.jpg "OTD 1940 Churchill visited Park’s HQ at Uxbridge on his way from London to Chequers. What he saw left him profoundly moved and in the car afterwards he said to General Ismay ‘Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few’ [Thread]")
Churchill incorporated this phrase into his famous speech to Parliament on 20 August:
However, contrary to the claims of some, the ‘few’ is not meant to exclude the contributions of the many (rather it was to contrast the BoB with the attritional slaughter of WW1 which had been experienced by many of his audience).
He emphasises this is a struggle for the whole nation:
Earlier in the speech he highlights the importance of the Army & Navy in repelling invasion:
He also pays tribute to the crews of Bomber Command:
And our allies
And he ends the speech with an appeal to a new one:
It is a magnificent speech, made at a time of huge pressure both for Churchill and the UK at the height of the Battle. It can be read in full here: https://winstonchurchill.org/resources/speeches/1940-the-finest-hour/the-few/
