NOTE: This speech was given by Winston Churchill at the House of Commons after the Munich Pact was signed. Those are only excerpts, transcripted from the remarkable http://library.byu.edu/~rdh/eurodocs/uk.html . The full version may be found at http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/munich.htm .
Having thus fortified myself by the example of others, I will proceed to emulate them. I will, therefore, begin by saying the most unpopular and most unwelcome thing. I will
begin by saying what everybody would like to ignore or forget but which I must nevertheless be stated, namely, that we have sustained a total and unmitigated defeat, and that
France has suffered even more than we have.
Viscoutess Astor: Nonsense.
When the Noble Lady cries "Nonsense," she could not have heard the
Chancellor of the Exchequer (Sir John Simon) admit in his illuminating and comprehensive speech just
now that Herr
Hitler had gained in this particular leap forward in substance all he set out to gain. ...
We are in the presence of a disaster of the first magnitude which has befallen
Great Britain and France. Do not let us blind ourselves to that. It must now be accepted that all
the countries of Central and Eastern Europe will make the best terms they can with the triumphant
Nazi Power. The system of alliances in Central Europe upon which France
has relied for her safety has been swept away, and I can see no means by which it can be reconstituted. The road down the Danube Valley to the black Sea, the resources of
corn and oil, the road which leads as far as
Turkey, has been opened. In fact, if not in form, it seems to me that all those countries of Middle Europe, all those Danubian
countries, will, one after another, be drawn into this vast system of power politics -- not only power military politics but power economic politics -- radiating from
Berlin, and
I believe this can be achieved quite smoothly and swiftly and will not necessarily entail the firing of a single shot....
I do not grudge our loyal, brave people, who were ready to do their duty no matter what the cost, who never flinched under the strain of last week -- I do not grudge them the
natural, spontaneous outburst of joy and relief when they learned that the hard ordeal would no longer be required of them at the moment; but they should know the truth.
They should know that there has been gross neglect and deficiency in our defences; they should know that we have sustained a defeat without a war, the consequences of
which will travel far with us along our road; they should know that we have passed an awful milestone in our history, when the whole equilibrium of
Europe has been deranged,
and that the terrible words have for the time being been pronounced against the Western democracies:
"Thou are weighed in the balance and found wanting."
And do not suppose that this is
the end.
This is only the beginning of the reckoning.This is only the first sip, the first foretaste of a bitter cup which will be proffered to us year
by year unless by a supreme recovery of moral health and martial vigour, we arise again and take our stand for
freedom as in the olden time.