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It’s easy when we look at war, to develop pictures of good versus evil. The images of Hitler as the most evil person in history are popular and common. However, there are arguments to be made that Stalin was far more evil in his dealings with his own people, and even Churchill is not quite as rosy when we allow the full story of history to be told.
Stalin
Stalin is a very complicated individual and there are two narratives about him being told.
After World War II, Stalin was painted after his death as a crazed maniac who murdered tens of millions of his own people in Gulag prisons. This was the message not only propagated in the west where it would be expected, but even by his very successor, Nikita Khrushchev, who enacted many reforms after Stalin’s death.
But after the fall of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, Vladimir Putin came to power and the villainization of Stalin ceased. Today, you can see statues of Stalin in Russia and he is celebrated as a hero who established Russia as a great world power.
So, which is it? My western sensibilities, disdain of communism, and suspicion of Putin, lead me towards the former, but history is not always cut and dry.
Churchill
But what about Churchill? I mean, he’s the hero of Britain who stood strong in the face of the terror of Hitler’s onslaught. He was the one that we just looked at in previous weeks as having prayed for and thanked God for his delivering miracle at Dunkirk. Are we missing part of his story?
It’s easy to forget that the biggest empire in the whole of World War II was by far the British. Without the support of troops and resources from the far reaches of their empire (Southern Africa, Canada, Australia, and India), it is hard to believe that they could have held out against Germany’s blitzkrieg.
But what if I told you that as the war raged, Churchill signed off on the starvation of as many as 4 million British colonists in Bengal? Let’s make sure we don’t become hero worshipers in our telling of history.
Share your thoughts below. I’m interested to know what you think.
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ive seen those photos of the famine stricken people when i was a bit younger and never knew where they were from. i honestly put the blame on both churchill and the indian government because yes they should have done things to prepare, but churchill also had the ability to help while still putting his main focus on europe and he chose not to. its heart breaking to think how many people had to starve because the people in power just didnt do anything.
When you think about it, you can manipulate the truth by manipulating the facts. In both Stalin’s and Churchill’s cases they were portrayed as heroes to their respective countries. Somehow in Russia 50% of the population actually like and respect him. This is because they took out the bad things he did to his own people. And Churchill was supposedly a racist, not helping the people in Bengal when they were under his control. He took their soldiers for the war but refused to help them in their time of need, yet when everyone hears his name they think of a holy man who prayed all the time and did nothing wrong.
It is sad to hear what happened in Stalin’s camps and what he did to those innocent people. that is crazy that 50% of the people agree to what Stalin did and then 50% still do not know about his camps. It is also crazy on how the Indians helped Britain for food the Churchill came in and did not help at all
While Stalin undoubtedly contributed to the victory of World War II, something which puts him in a positive light, he also needlessly murdered millions of his countrymen. That wasn’t a necessary factor to winning the war or promoting true peace, making his legacy, in my opinion, that of a tyrant. I believe Churchill could have at least accepted others’ help, even if he didn’t feel equipped to provide his own. As the political head of the British empire, he had a responsibility to help all within it’s reach, especially when Britain’s actions partially caused the problems that sought outside help. At the same time, if India’s leaders had prepared for the worst, all of India would have been the better for it. Both Churchill and the Indian government played a part in India getting to the dire state that it did.
Churchill and the Indian government both messed up. But, I believe when the Indian government failed, Britain should have stepped in. Unfortunately, Churchill was racist and didn’t care about the people; he just cared about winning the war. Stalin also did not care for the people.
Stalin was truly insane. Reading this reminded me of an old interview I saw of Stalin where he was asked how he keeps peace (or something like that. I don’t remember the actual question.) But he picked up a chicken, ripped about a fistful of its feathers out, and then set it down for it to run around squawking only to come right back to him when he held out a hand of chicken feed. It was a while ago, and I don’t remember his exact words, but it was something along the line of, “They always come back.”
Wow. I haven’t seen that, but it sounds like him.
Everything that Vera Golubeva went through is so tough to see. From her parents being taken, to having her house searched, being taken to Lubyanka and doing this while being eight months pregnant, giving birth and then her son dying, and being in the Stalin camps for over six years. The pipeline were treated so poorly. All Vera had to eat was rotten fish and worm. All this stuff people that do go through then was so tragic and I can’t imagine the pain, suffering and bad memories they have from this time.
i wonder if social medias talk about people as good/bad people compared to how they actually are?
It is crazy that the same person can have 2 very different stories. Both of these men are viewed as heroes by some and villains by others. This just shows how you never get the full story from the media.
I find it crazy to think that just three people abusing their power in office killed over 30 MILLION innocent people and while doing this they thought that they were right in doing so. I wonder what they would think if they were in a concentration camp or in a Gulag prison
I never thought of Churchill as bad i had always heard how wonderful he is. Also i was confused why did they stick matches in there eyes
It was very scary to hear that when you were in prison t hat you couldn’t sleep at all and would get in trouble if you did. It must have been so torturous for people to go day in and day out without sleep.
its easy to forget that the biggest empire in the whole of World War II was easily the British.without the support of troops and recourses from the far reaches of the empires, its hard to believe that they could have held out against germanys blitzkrieg