God bless you all. This is your victory! It is
the victory of the cause of freedom in every land. In all our
long history we have never seen a greater day than this. Everyone,
man or woman, has done their best. Everyone has tried. Neither
the long years, nor the dangers, nor the fierce attacks of the
enemy, have in any way weakened the independent resolve of the
British nation. God bless you all.
Second Address :
My dear friends, this is your hour. This is not
victory of a party or of any class. It's a victory of the great
British nation as a whole. We were the first, in this ancient
island, to draw the sword against tyranny. After a while we were
left all alone against the most tremendous military power that
has been seen. We were all alone for a whole year.
There we stood, alone. Did anyone want to give
in? [The crowd shouted "No."] Were we downhearted? ["No!"]
The lights went out and the bombs came down. But every man, woman
and child in the country had no thought of quitting the struggle.
London can take it. So we came back after long months from the
jaws of death, out of the mouth of hell, while all the world wondered.
When shall the reputation and faith of this generation of English
men and women fail? I say that in the long years to come not only
will the people of this island but of the world, wherever the
bird of freedom chirps in human hearts, look back to what we've
done and they will say "do not despair, do not yield to violence
and tyranny, march straightforward and die if need be unconquered."
Now we have emerged from one deadly struggle-a terrible foe has
been cast on the ground and awaits our judgement and our mercy.
But there is another foe who occupies large portions
of the British Empire, a foe stained with cruelty and greed-the
Japanese. I rejoice we can all take a night off today and another
day tomorrow. Tomorrow our great Russian allies will also be celebrating
victory and after that we must begin the task of rebuilding our
heath and homes, doing our utmost to make this country a land
in which all have a chance, in which all have a duty, and we must
turn ourselves to fulfil our duty to our own countrymen, and to
our gallant allies of the United States who were so foully and
treacherously attacked by Japan.
We will go hand and hand with them. Even if it is a hard struggle
we will not be the ones who will fail.
