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Chartwell's new Sir Winston Churchill exhibition Into The Trenches opens at the National Trust property autumn 2015

Celia Sandys is in her element talking about her grandfather, Winston Churchill, in his Chartwell home.

“He was not an easy man to live with,” she said, with great affection, on a tour of the 80-acre grounds a couple miles south of Westerham, on the western edge of Kent.

“Everyone was always running around and he was the centre of every activity.”

Not much has changed in the many years since the former Prime Minister and war hero wandered the immaculate gardens of the home he bought with his wife Clementine in 1922.

Celia Sandys at Chartwell
Celia Sandys at Chartwell

This week, the National Trust, which runs the estate, opens its latest Churchill exhibition, marking 100 years since he made the decision to go and fight on the Western Front during the First World War.

Into The Trenches, which opens on Saturday, November 14, tells the story of the events, adventures and trials of his early military life that would give him the strength, courage and conviction he is famous for today.

“He had this self-belief,” said Celia after a walk around the house, still decorated as Churchill left it – packed with relics of early 20th century history.

Winston Churchill and grandaughter Celia Sandys
Winston Churchill and grandaughter Celia Sandys

“If he could believe in himself, then other people could believe in him.”

For Celia, however, it is the memories that bring her back to Chartwell several times each year.

“Chartwell means a lot to me because as a child I used to spend a lot of my school holidays here with my grandparents. It is always lovely to come back.

“We used to go and feed the fish with our grandfather and I can really picture him sitting in his chair throwing food into the water. I also like the lake. My sister and I used to sink many boats on the lake.”

The exhibition explores the early military career of Churchill through keepsakes such as his childhood toy soldiers, Boer War satchel and the shrapnel-damaged torch he used on night patrol in the trenches.

The glorious view towards the lake at Chartwell
The glorious view towards the lake at Chartwell
Explore Chartwell this autumn
Explore Chartwell this autumn

“All over the world people are fascinated by Winston Churchill,” said Celia, who has published five books on her grandfather’s life.

“It is incredible. After he died, little by little he went into the history books, but after 9/11 he seems to have jumped out again and is at the forefront of a lot of people’s minds.

“People are always saying ‘Why can’t we have another Churchill?’.”

Churchill and his wife had always planned to be buried by the dogs’ graves at Chartwell, according to his granddaughter, but he changed his mind after a visit to his birthplace Blenheim Palace.

A happy Winston Churchill during a visit to Deal
A happy Winston Churchill during a visit to Deal

Yet he never lost his love for the Grade I listed mansion, which is also home to more than 130 paintings he made through his life, many created in the grounds.

“He once said a day away from Chartwell is a day wasted,” said Celia, the daughter of Churchill’s oldest child Diana, who married Baron Duncan Sandys.

“He really loved it here. He didn’t buy a house. He bought a view. He was brought up by a nanny who came from Kent. She told him Kent was the best place in England and he obviously listened to her.”

Inside the exhibition

Winston Churchill was a war correspondent in the Second Boer War and also served in the South African Light Horse regiment. Objects on display in the Into The Trenches exhibition include a wanted poster issued in December 1899 offering £25 for Churchill’s capture ‘dead or alive’ after he escaped from a PoW camp.

After his resignation from the government in 1915, Churchill rejoined the British Army, eventually commanding the 6th Battalion, Royal Scots Fusiliers. During his time on the Western Front he made 36 forays into No Man’s Land.

The Grade I listed mansion at Chartwell
The Grade I listed mansion at Chartwell

The latest Chartwell exhibition also features a French steel helmet, which was Churchill’s primary headgear when he took command on January 6, 1916. Visitors can also see a fragment of shrapnel that almost hit the future war leader.

His cousin engraved the shrapnel “This fragment of a shell fell between us and might have separated us for ever, but is now a token of Union”.

Accompanying the exhibition is a family trail set in the garden at Chartwell where families can make their own great escape as Churchill did in the Boer War when he was taken prisoner.

Exhibition details

Into The Trenches runs at Chartwell, Westerham, from Saturday, November 14, until Sunday, February 21. The National Trust property is open daily from 11am to 3pm except Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Admission costs £7.15, children £3.60, families £17.90.

Visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/chartwell for more details.

Churchill pictured in his study at Chartwell in 1951
Churchill pictured in his study at Chartwell in 1951
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