Winston Churchill's wooden speech box, cow medal and books: Ten things from his Chartwell home

This article originally appeared on Culture24.

Curators at Chartwell, Winston Churchill's Kent home, have launched a £7.1 million appeal to buy many of his personal items and open more of the property

Medallions

Churchill received the Aachen Charlemagne Prize medallion in 1953 for his tireless post-war efforts to unite Europe for peace. Dozens of medallions reflect a long and varied life and career – including a fencing medallion Churchill received as a boy.

Painting of the port of Antwerp

This oil painting, signed by the artist Isidore Opsomer in 1945, was part of the freedom of the city award from the people of Antwerp to Churchill, whose “steadfast trust and fortitude paved the way to the liberation of our country, of our city, of our Port.”

Nobel Prize in Literature

This was awarded to Churchill in 1953 primarily for his oratory and iconic speeches. Many of these were composed at his Chartwell home, which features prominently in the design on the accompanying diploma.

House of Commons birthday book

An illuminated book in green leather was signed by almost every member of the House of Commons. It was presented to Churchill as a tribute of their affection on his 80th birthday in 1954. "When he was given it he said, 'I shall treasure it for as long as I live'," says Katherine Barnett, of the National Trust.

Armchair

A carved and gilt chair, upholstered in needlework, was given to Churchill as part of his Freedom Award from the people of Brighton in 1947. He assured them the chair would “always be cherished by me and my wife and by those who come after us.” "He’d spent a number of years there as a child, and was given this chair when returning for party conference," says Barnett.

Wooden speech box

Confidential notes from Churchill’s advisers were stored in this box – ready to be transformed into rousing speeches.

Sculpture of a lion

After the Second World War, the liberated people of Luxembourg gave Churchill a bronze sculpture of a lion. He often used the metaphor of the lion in his speeches. “It was the nation and the race dwelling all round the globe that had the lion’s heart,” he once exclaimed “I had the luck to be called upon to give the roar.”

The Shorthorn Society Medal

"Churchill was an international statesman, but also a farmer and an animal lover,"  "He was very proud of this medal given to him for his cow, Beatrice."

Miniature paint box

One of Churchill’s great passions was painting. “If it weren’t for painting, I couldn’t live,” he said. This tiny silver paint box is a powerful reminder of his prolific output as an artist, much of which can be seen in the house and studio at Chartwell.

Pair of hairbrushes

Among many personal items at Chartwell, these hairbrushes are made from wood from the deck of the Second World War ship HMS Exeter. Only two other pairs were made, for the captain of the ship and for King George VI.

• Visit nationaltrust.org.uk/chartwell-revive or telephone 0344 800 1895 to donate.

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Three places to follow in Churchill's footsteps

Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire
Sir Winston Churchill was born in the Palace in 1874 and a permanent exhibition about him is located next to his birth room – both are included in the Palace tour. He is buried in a simple grave in the nearby church at Bladon.

Churchill War Rooms, London
The original Cabinet War Rooms, the wartime bunker that sheltered Churchill and his government during the Blitz. Discover the stories of those who worked underground as London was being bombed above them, and then find out more about the life and legacy of Winston Churchill in the interactive Churchill Museum.

Churchill Archives Centre, Cambridge
The Archives Centre is situated within the grounds of Churchill College, itself the National and Commonwealth Memorial to Sir Winston. It includes air-conditioned reading rooms, a strong room with elaborate security systems and a sophisticated conservation laboratory and a sorting room in which raw history is put into boxes.

Source: http://www.culture24.org.uk/history-and-heritage/art561367-winston-churchill-chartwell-objects-cow-medals