Churchill's 21st birthday and baptism of fire both took place in Cuba in 1895. This was the year he went on his first international adventure, wrote his first military and political analysis and engaged in his first dicey diplomatic mission. Finding his footing as a journalist ? and, indeed, a war correspondent ? he also became the centre of controversy in the American and British press and, while shamelessly exploiting his connections and developing the famous "Churchill style", became known as a public figure in his own right. Attention has previously focused on Churchill's Indian frontier and Boer War experience as the most formative moments in his youth. But now, with original research through untapped access to Spanish and Cuban archives and interviews, this book shows that his much earlier Cuban trip was really the moment when he "came of age" and started down the path to become the man remembered throughout history. AUTHOR: Dr HAL KLEPAK is Professor Emeritus of History and Strategy, Royal Military College of Canada, Senior Research Associate, Institute for the Americas, University College London and Special Adviser to Commander of the Canadian Army for Inter-American Affairs. He spent eight years as a strategic analyst at the Canadian ministry of defence and NATO. He holds a variety of military decorations and was an infantry officer for 16 years. He is the author of nine books, including 'Cuba's Military 1990-2005: Revolutionary Soldiers during Counter-revolutionary Times', Palgrave/Macmillan. No one is better qualified to tell this story SELLING POINTS: ? Original research through untapped access to Spanish and Cuban archives and interviews. ? A major revision as to how and when Churchill began to develop. ? Illustrations by a professional photographer of the places Churchill visited on this adventure. 60 b/w illustrations
