THE COLLECTED ESSAYS OF SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL
[1976]
(Cohen A286) (ICS A146)
Upon publication of the Collected Works (1974), it was observed that those thirty-four volumes did not comprise the complete canon, since Churchill had written hundreds of essays for periodicals which he did not include in compilations such as Thoughts and Adventures. Accordingly, the publishers of the Collected Works commissioned Michael Wolff, one of Randolph Churchill’s former assistants (“young gentlemen”) on the Official Biography, to compile all the essays not already contained within the thirty-four Collected Works. The result was four satisfying volumes of material that would cost $20,000 or more to acquire in its original form, assuming one could locate all of the many periodicals which had published Churchill for sixty years.
The Collected Essays comprise genuine Churchill material, published for the first time in volume form. Wolff fastidiously grouped the articles into separate volumes for War, Politics and People, with a catch-all “Churchill At Large” volume as the finale. He also provides an erudite and useful foreword to the work in Volume I. Here Wolff suggests that these articles, written quickly and raced into print are more a reflection of our author’s true opinions than his books, which were exhaustively edited and revised before Churchill released them to publishers. Whether or not that is so, the Essays are a stunning and important addition to the Churchill canon; quite indispensable.
-Richard M. Langworth
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Editions
Centenary Limited Edition
Cohen A286 / ICS A146a
Publisher: Library of Imperial History, London 1976
Four volumes
Elaborately bound in full vellum blocked gilt with titles on spine and Churchill arms on cover. All edges gilt, inside edges of boards tooled gilt, silk page markers, marbled endpapers, head- and footbands, etc. Each volume houses in a dark green leatherette slipcase with the Churchill Arms gilt on top panel.
Vol. I, Churchill and War, 510 pages numbered (i)-xviii and 1-492 (+2). Vol. II, Churchill and Politics, 494 pages numbered (i)-(xii) and 1-477 (+5). Vol. III, Churchill and People, 362 pages numbered (i)-(xii) and 1-347 (+3). Vol. IV, Churchill at Large, 530 pages numbered (i)-(xii) and 1-511 (+7).
Variants
A number of sets were made up, bound in materials other than the original vellum. Chief among these are full cream morocco (green slipcases) and full red morocco (red slipcases). Note that this production differs from a more cheaply bound variant below, but can be identified by the words “Centenary Limited Edition” on the half title and title page.
Appraisal
With the supply of unbound sheets exhausted, this set is now extremely scarce and desirable.
Centenary Edition
ICS A146b
Publisher: Library of Imperial History, London, 1976
Four volumes
Internally the same as the above, this version is bound differently, and can also be identified by the words “Centenary Edition” on the half title and title page. Bound in quarter navy morocco and blue cloth, a circular version of the Churchill Arms blocked gilt on the top board and the titles blocked gilt on the spine. While equipped with page markers and marbled endpapers, the volumes lack the fancy gilt tooling on the inside of the boards and only the top page edges are gilt. Now out of print and extremely desirable. Like the Centenary Limited Edition, some of these unbound sheets were also later bound in full red morocco, and in goatskin.
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