Talk:Lord Randolph Churchill

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[edit] Death

I've added the possiblity of Lord Churchill dying of a brain tumor. The Churchill Center website offers a plausible analysis that strongly suggests he died of a brain tumor, though, one could suggest they may have a bias in favor of an alternate diagnosis. This can be found here: http://www.winstonchurchill.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=105

That's the Mather article, isn't it? Yes. I've read about this, too. I think the entry is somewhat coloured by the diagnosis of the specialist in charge of Lord Randolph; he did indeed diagnose syphilis. However, Lord Randolph's wife never contracted the disease - despite it being, apparently, highly contagious. Richard Holmes advances the theory that he died of some other cause, probably a left brain tumour, in "In the Footsteps of Churchill", p.32.

[edit] Winston premature?

How could he have married her in June if his son was born in November of that year? I read somewhere else that he wedded Miss Jerome in April. Still, that suggests that Sir Winston was, sir-reverence, illegitimately conceived. Anglius

Pre-marital conception was not uncommon in those days, though I believe the official version is something like destiny could not wait! Timrollpickering 20:42, 1 August 2005 (UTC)

I disagree, Mr. Pickering, for the vast majority of Victorians were moral, but I appreciate your reply. However, please do not make a vulgar jest. --Anglius 20:57, 1 November 2005 (UTC)

I believe that he married in April. Here's the ODNB, from its article on Randolph:

Randolph and Jennie [see Churchill, Jeanette] were married at the British embassy in Paris on 15 April 1874, and their first child, Winston Churchill (the future prime minister), was born prematurely at Blenheim Palace on 30 November 1874. Their younger child, John (Jack), was born in February 1880.

The article on Winston goes into somewhat more detail.

Jennie and Lord Randolph were married at the British embassy in Paris on 15 April 1874. Winston Churchill's date of birth has given rise to speculation that he was conceived before the wedding, but the only certainty is that he was born prematurely. Preparations were made for the birth to take place in London, but after slipping and falling during a visit to Blenheim Jennie went into labour, the local doctor was summoned, and the baby was delivered at 1.30 a.m. on 30 November.

7.5 months is at least plausible, especially if the birth was clearly premature, as it seems to be. john k 22:42, 1 November 2005 (UTC)

From recollection various Winston biographies are in disagreement on this. Jenkins (the only one on my shelf at the moment) goes for premature but doesn't delve into this (instead giving space to the question of Jack Churchill's paternity) whilst My Early Life ignores this completely. I think Pelling and/or Ponting goes to pre-marital conception and also argues that the Churchill family hid the real cause of Randolph's illness and death for decades. Timrollpickering 23:41, 1 November 2005 (UTC)

I thank you for your information, Mr. Pickering and Mr. Kenney.Anglius 00:18, 2 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Without comment

His widow, Lady Randolph Churchill, married George Cornwallis-West in 1900, yet retained her noble prerogative earned through her marriage to Lord Randolph.In addition,in his 1995 book "Bloody Red Baron" novelist Kim Newman described Randolph's son,later prime-minister Winston Churchill as a vampire, personally devoted to sucking a blood of previously whiskey-drunked rabbits.This surprisingly reminds of sir Winston's most famous personal habbits. 213.240.6.72 19:24, 26 October 2006 (UTC)