Winston Churchill's First Year at Harrow: Essay Summary

First Year at Harrow by Sir Winston S. Churchill

Author: Sir Winston S. Churchill

About the Author

Sir Winston S. Churchill (30th November 1874 – 24th January 1965) was a British politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the 20th century and was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Notable Works

1. A History of the English-Speaking Peoples (1956–1958)
2. The Second World War (1948–1953)
3. Thoughts and Adventures (1932)
4. Painting as a Pastime (1948)

Summary of the Essay

The essay "First Year at Harrow" is written by Sir Winston Spencer Churchill. This essay describes Churchill's school life memories in a humorous way. Churchill was scarcely twelve years old when he entered the "unwelcoming regions of examination." He had to go through this trial of examination for the next seven years.

Churchill’s favorite subjects were History, Poetry, and Essay Writing, while Latin, Greek, and Mathematics were favored by the examiners. Churchill failed to satisfy the examiners. His entrance test at Harrow was conducted in Latin prose by the Headmaster, Mr. Welldon.

Churchill knew nothing; after much thinking, he was only able to write his own name and the question number in brackets. He wrote nothing else and gazed at his name and the question number for hours. Surprisingly, he qualified for the test and was granted admission to Harrow.

He was the weakest student in the class and was not allowed to learn Latin and Greek. Instead, he was taught English by Mr. Somervell, who was a most delightful English teacher. Mr. Somervell had his own system for teaching English. Churchill studied English for almost three years. He did not feel at any disadvantage for learning English; in fact, other intelligent and clever students eventually had to learn the same language for their living after studying Latin and Greek. In the end, Churchill shows great respect and regard for those who learn and love their mother tongue, i.e., English.

Study Questions and Answers

Q1. How old was Churchill when he entered "the inhospitable regions of examination"?

Ans. This question is taken from the chapter "First Year at Harrow" written by Sir Winston S. Churchill. Churchill was scarcely twelve years old when he entered the inhospitable regions of examination.

Q2. Which subjects were dearest to Churchill and which ones were fancied by the examiners?

Ans. Churchill’s choice was very different from that of the examiners. His dearest subjects were simple, such as History, Poetry, and Essay Writing. The examiners, on the other hand, fancied Latin and Mathematics. They asked questions from these subjects, but Churchill did not know anything about them. The subjects of Latin and Mathematics were very difficult for him, and he was not interested in them.

Q3. In what way did Mr. Welldon take a broad-minded view of Churchill’s Latin?

Ans. Churchill once appeared in an entry test to take admission to Harrow. He was unable to answer a single question in the Latin paper. However, the headmaster, Mr. Welldon, took a broad-minded view of his potential and admitted him based on his general ability rather than his failure in Latin.