Winston Churchill as a young officer (left) and a little before the time when he wrote about his observations on Islam and, on the right, as the older statesman we know better.
If you ask me, Islam is an ideology that must be opposed and stopped throughout the free world and at every opportunity. 1400 years of Islamic history clearly shows that Islam is, overwhelmingly, an ideology hell-bent on conquest, oppression, invasion and totalitarianism. There are thousands and thousands of historical examples to demonstrate this, and I will discuss many of them in coming weeks, but, for now, let’s step back just 118 years to hear what Sir Winston Churchill had to say about Islam.
What would Churchill know about Islam, you might ask? Well, in 1881 there was an Islamic uprising in the Sudan that forcibly, and brutally, expelled the corrupt and oppressive Egyptian occupiers, and saw the entire country fall under the control of the Mahdi, a religious man who claimed to be the prophesized redeemer who would rule Islam in the years before the Day of Judgement. I won’t go into too much detail about this history, in this post, but the short version of the story is:
Following the uprising, there were many non-Muslims, Europeans and other races, trapped in besieged towns and cities throughout Sudan. The governments of Egypt and Great Britain initially decided to evacuate all of the non-Sudanese peoples and leave the Sudan to the Mahdi and his followers. However, a complete evacuation proved impossible, partly because of the presence of the Madhi’s followers, and partly because many of the military and diplomatic attempts, at rescue, failed. When those that could be saved, had been saved, the Sudan remained under the control of the Mahdi, and his successor the Khalifa Abdullah, for many years and, during that time, the country descended into deprivation and totalitarianism.
Not content with control of the Sudan, the Khalifa’s army had been warring against neighbouring countries and even preparing to invade and convert all of Egypt. In response, Great Britain decided on military action and the liberation of the Sudan from it’s despotic, Islamic ruler. It would be naïve to believe that the campaign was solely for the purpose of liberating the Sudan and the desire to restore the reputation of the British Empire while forestalling any French presence in the region, were undoubtedly two key issues in this matter. Whatever the case, the British Government instructed Brigadier Horatio Herbert Kitchener, Sirdar (Commander) of the Egyptian army, to liberate the Sudan using a mixed force of Egyptian, Sudanese and British troops under the command of British officers.
When this force invaded the Sudan, a young Winston Churchill went with them as a Subaltern with the 21st Lancers. So Churchill was an active participant, and eye witness, to much of the Sudan campaign and had a chance to view, first hand, the state of the country and its people under the rule of the Khalifa. In 1899, Churchill’s book ‘The River War’ was first published and this was his account of the campaign. It was in this book that Churchill wrote the comments about Islam that this post is based upon.
This would be a good place to mention that Churchill’s reports and writings, about this particular history, are probably more even-handed than you would expect from a member of the victorious British forces. Indeed, ‘The River War’ was edited and republished in 1902 and the comments about Islam and Churchill’s criticism of Lord Kitchener’s brutal handling of the tens of thousands of wounded prisoners were quietly deleted from the new edition.
Why were these comments deleted? If you look at the history of that time, the British Empire was embroiled in the Second Boer War. The Boer War began in 1899 and ended in 1902 which, coincidentally, are the same dates as publication of ‘The River War’. Initially, the British forces were commanded by General Buller who, after several failures, was replaced by Lord Roberts. When Lord Roberts also failed to bring the war to a successful conclusion, he was replaced by Lord Kitchener in November 1900. In addition, British troop numbers were greatly increased with soldiers from all over The Empire, including India. Further, hundreds of Indians, from the Cape Colony and who were led by no less than Ghandi, also volunteered to act as stretcher bearers. At least some of these Indians, whether they were soldiers or stretcher bearers, would likely have been Muslims. Accordingly, it was not politically acceptable that Churchill, who was also present during the Boer War as a correspondent, was in print as being extremely critical of the British commander and also of the nature of some of the British forces. Hence, the second edition of ‘The River War’ was amended.
Nevertheless, in the 1899 edition, the following is what Churchill had to say about Muslims and Islam:
How dreadful are the curses which Mohammedanism lays on its votaries! Besides the fanatical frenzy, which is as dangerous in a man as hydrophobia in a dog, there is this fearful fatalistic apathy. The effects are apparent in many countries, improvident habits, slovenly systems of agriculture, sluggish methods of commerce, and insecurity of property exist wherever the followers of the Prophet rule or live.
A degraded sensualism deprives this life of its grace and refinement, the next of its dignity and sanctity. The fact that in Mohammedan law every woman must belong to some man as his absolute property, either as a child, a wife, or a concubine, must delay the final extinction of slavery until the faith of Islam has ceased to be a great power among men.
Individual Moslems may show splendid qualities. Thousands become the brave and loyal soldiers of the Queen, all know how to die; but the influence of the religion paralyses the social development of those who follow it. No stronger retrograde force exists in the world. Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science, the science against which it had vainly struggled, the civilization of modern Europe might fall, as fell the civilization of ancient Rome.
If you read these comments, there are several points that stand out and which, today, are absolutely relevant to the current international situation, and every bit as much as they were when Churchill penned these words.
The reference to the oppression of woman is clearly made. Indeed, Churchill accurately compares the Islamic status of women to slavery. This point should not be taken lightly, especially when, at this time, slavery was the most financially viable and important enterprise throughout the Sudan. Britain may have been opposed to slavery, and Egypt may have been a member of the International League against slavery but, in the Sudan, this evil practice was widespread. Indeed, without slavery, the Sudan could not afford to pay its taxes to Egypt, when the Egyptians were the masters of the Sudan, so the Egyptians ignored the problem of slavery and their responsibility to end it. The Sudan, following the uprising and the ousting of the Egyptians, only increased its investment in the traffic of human beings.
In the last paragraph, there are some very important points. Firstly, note that Churchill makes some positive observations about Muslims, so it isn’t as if he is totally opposed to them. You cannot accuse Winston of being a racist and, indeed, his comments reflect a degree of admiration when he says that “individuals….show splendid qualities” and that “thousands become the brave and loyal soldiers of the Queen”. However, he then goes on to say that these individuals, who show splendid qualities, are also paralysed in their social development by the ‘militant and proselytizing‘nature of Islam.
The next sentence, of his quote, is, in my opinion, the most pertinent and most profound of all of his comments on Islam. In reference to Islam, Churchill said “No stronger retrograde force exists in the world.” This comment is, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the most accurate comments on Islam that you will find anywhere and is just as true today as it was then or at any time in Islam’s 1400 year history.
This quote by Winston Churchill sums up the issue that it is not Muslims who are the problem but that Islam is undoubtedly a huge problem.
Islam, if allowed to dominate the world, would return the world to the middle ages. The Quran’s dictates are directed at retaining, and maintaining, a middle ages view of the world. Numerous Imams, Islamic speakers and, of course, lunatic groups such as ISIS, have repeatedly called for a world-wide caliphate that would propagate these middle ages views. These monsters would see the world turned backwards and their words and actions clearly show that their ideology is, without a doubt, the most retrograde force the world has ever seen.
The next comment of significance, by Churchill, is the statement “Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith.” Here Churchill is making the clear point that Islam is militant and actively seeking to convert any, and all, non-Muslims. This conversion is either through coercion or through force; convert or die is the modus operandi of Islam and that has been the way for the entire 1400 years of Islam’s existence. To believe that Islam has suddenly, and miraculously, reformed and is now an ideology of peace is, quite frankly, delusional. You only have to look at history, and current world events, with an open mind and free from wishful thinking, to see that this is so.
More than 100 years ago, Sir Winston Churchill put his finger, most accurately, on the real issues with Islam; individual Muslims are not the problem but Islam, itself, is a huge problem. Until Islam is reformed, from within, then this ideology will remain the ‘most retrograde force’ in the world, and we admit Islam to our countries, and ignore the very real threat that it represents, at great risk to our freedoms, our lives and our societies.
For more comment about Islam, and the problems that Islam presents to the rest of the world, you might also like to read:
Please.Those that are in power find the strength to repel the islamic ideology in the world.
Absolutely, I am with you. Our leaders need to wake up to reality and stop playing political games with our safety and the safety of the world.
The Prophet Mohammad never tell his army to kill random people, or destroy buildings, but today’s most Middle Eastern governments don’t take obedient from the Prophet himself. The late Sir Winston Churchill seemed clueless or overreacted about the Islam thing.
The prophet Mohammad did tell his followers to enslave or kill non-believers.