Back to results

Baylor University.

The wars of peoples : science, democracy, and international politics in the thought of Winston Churchill.

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

This dissertation investigates Churchill's understanding of international relations, primarily by reading and analyzing several of his war histories. The first chapter explains Churchill's historical philosophy, and reviews much of the secondary literature across the project as a whole. The second chapter looks at episodes from The World Crisis which teach important lessons about wartime statesmanship, or lack thereof. The third chapter examines the importance of peace-making as a part of the obligations of leaders in war. The failures of peace-making after World War I serve as urgent lessons for future leaders about the possibilities and limitations of peace-making, and particularly of what not to do, or what to seek to avoid. In seeking to understand Churchill's teachings on international relations, his prescriptions for international politics and diplomacy in the twentieth century cannot be understood apart from his fears about the dangers of science and democracy, especially when combined. This is a running theme throughout the dissertation, dealt with directly in the fourth chapter, concerning Churchill's most urgent warnings about science, democracy, and the future. In the fifth chapter, I turn to Churchill's practical prescriptions for improved relations between states with an investigation of what he means by stating that honor can be a guide for international relations.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Ph.D.
Level thesis:degree_level
Doctoral
Grantor
Baylor University.
Year dc:date.issued
2018

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Jeffrey, Marjorie L., 1990-
Advisor dc:contributor.advisor
  • Clinton, W. David.

Subjects

dc:subject × 5

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • Baylor University works are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. Contact libraryquestions@baylor.edu for inquiries about permission.
Language dc:language.iso
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Handle dc:identifier.uri
https://hdl.handle.net/2104/10490
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:baylor-ir.tdl.org:2104/10490

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Baylor University
Base URL
baylor-ir.tdl.org/server/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-24
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Jeffrey, Marjorie L., 1990-. The wars of peoples : science, democracy, and international politics in the thought of Winston Churchill.. Doctoral thesis, Baylor University., 2018. https://hdl.handle.net/2104/10490