Why not blame Germany for speeding up the decline of the British Empire and for the loss of Britain’s status as a global power which is a direct consequence of WW I and WW II?
This would be more obvious (the abstract play of thought of the professor was not meant seriosly, i guess) :
(Excerpt from
http://www.learningcurve.gov.uk/empire/g3/overview.htm
“Historians disagree about how and why Britain's empire declined and ended. However, most would agree that factors like war and a changing world economy played a key role in the decline of the British empire. Before the Great War (1914-18) Britain was one of the richest countries of the world. Its strongest industry was the banking and finance trade - everyone owed Britain money! After 4 years of fighting, Britain's wealth was virtually all gone. Most of Britain's debts were with the USA. Britain was greatly weakened by the war.
Although Britain recovered some of its strength after the Great War, it was completely bankrupted by the end of the Second World War. Its debts were even greater and it needed huge loans and grants from the USA to get back on its feet. The empire and its peoples played a crucial role in Britain's survival and victory in both world wars. However, by the end of the Second World War, most British people felt that rebuilding their own country was more important than holding on to distant lands. At the same time, Britain's economy was changing. Its trade with Europe and America became far more important than its trade with the empire”.)
While everyone was exhausted because of the war, Churchill in 1946 was already thinking ahead and had a vision of a “United States of Europe” and -leaving several options open- Britain’s relation to it.
His Zurich speech adressing "the tragedy of Europe" is indeed astonishing:
http://www.churchill-society-london..../astonish.html
He was hoping to preserve Britain’s role as a world power, but there were the superpowers USA and CCCP. Britain became a regional power instead and an not overly enthusiastic EU member. The decline of the empire which was depending on the markets of the colonies to a large degree, was inevitable.
If Britain does not want to be an EU member anymore, it still has the option to group up with the “English-speaking world” and try revive the Commonwealth of British Nations in some way.
Europe did not become the “United States of Europe” by creating a new sovereign state but a union of states that transfer part of the sovereignty to the EU bodies if it is to share common interests (defense etc.) Whatever, the centuries of bloody European wars have ended.
What strikes me most about this great man, was his sense of humour.
tommygun
He did not win the Nobel Prize for Peace but the one for Literature for his monumental history of WW II (6 volumes). Fantastic read, he has a feel for language.