CHURCHILL AND PORTAL
(ii) that a common expansion plan is necessary if
maximum effort is to be obtained with the forces
available;
(iii) that in constructing such a plan the aim should
be to secure the maximum impact of air power against
the enemy that production and shipping permit—ir-
respective of whether British or U.S. pilots man the
aircraft;
(iv) that the visit of Arnold and [US Navy aeronau-
tics bureau chief Adm. John] Towers is an essential
stage in the preparation of such a plan and is heartily
welcomed on that account;
(v) that we agree the final stages of the discussion will
probably have to be concluded in Washington and
that for this purpose I should return to the U.S. with
Arnold and Towers.^17
Portal’s minute perfectly encapsulates his person-
al qualities in action. He encouraged Churchill to build
bridges with Arnold rather than trying to maximize the
output of Lend-Lease for the Royal Air Force. It took
great self-confidence to send the minute in the first place,
but Portal’s strategic awareness and grand vision were
vital. Portal understood America would fight on its own
terms and realized that a close US-UK relationship was
in Britain’s best interests, even though this delayed the
build-up of Bomber Command. Portal was extremely
concerned about being able to strike Germany with an
enlarged bomber force, but building the alliance was more
important. He was willing to support the American point
of view despite a significant loss of materiel for Bomber
Command. In his own account of the negotiations, Ar-
nold describes Churchill and Portal as having been ex-
tremely willing to see things from his perspective.^18 Portal
pursued a strategic bargain, instrumental in forging the
Alliance relationship but which must have been, at some
level, a bitter pill to swallow.
Best of the Best
P
ortal’s ability to anticipate Churchill’s blind spots
made him a key advisor. He was patient where
Churchill was impetuous and logical where Chur-
chill was emotional. Churchill infused spirit into Britain
through force of personality, but men like Portal ensured
a strategic governor was applied to Churchill’s preternat-
ural thrust. This Portal did quietly and calmly but with
steely determination.
Lord Ismay, Churchill’s Chief of Staff during the war,
delivered his own assessment of Portal when asked: “I
know it is a very difficult question to answer, but who do
you consider to have been the greatest commander on
our side during the war?” Ismay answered, “It isn’t a diffi-
cult question to answer at all. The answer is Peter Portal:
quite easily.”^19 ,
Wing Commander Rich Milburn is an RAF officer and
current instructor at the Air War College in Alabama.
His doctoral dissertation will examine Portal’s leadership of
the RAF during the Second World War. He is grateful to
Dr. James Tucci of the School of Advanced Air and
Space Studies for helpful comments, while
acknowledging any errors to be entirely his own.
Endnotes
- Richard K. Betts, “Is Strategy an Illusion?” International
Security 25, no. 2 (2000), p. 6.
- Winston S. Churchill, Their Finest Hour (London: Cassell,
1951), p. 18.
- Ibid., p. 17.
- John Kennedy, The Business of War: The War Narrative of
Major-General Sir John Kennedy (London: Hutchinson, 1957),
p. 60.
- Gretchen Craft Rubin, Forty Ways to Look at Winston
Churchill: A Brief Account of a Long Life (New York: Ballantine,
2003), p. 29.
- Eliot A. Cohen, Supreme Command: Soldiers, Statesmen, and
Leadership in Wartime (New York: Anchor, 2003), p. 98.
- Churchill to Portal, 24 Oct 40, Archive 1, Folder 1, Minute
4A, Sir Charles Portal Papers, Christ Church (CC), Oxford.
- Portal to Churchill, 31 Oct. 40, CC 1/1/4B.
- Churchill to Portal, 17 Nov. 40, CC/1/1/14E.
- Ibid.
- Portal to Churchill, 1 Dec. 40, CC/1/1/14G.
- Ibid.
- Churchill to Portal, 1 May 41, CC/1/2/22.
- Portal to Churchill, 4 May 1941, CC/1/2/23.
- Dwight D. Eisenhower, Crusade in Europe (Garden City,
NY: Doubleday, 1948), p. 266.
- Portal to Churchill, 16 May 1942, CC/1/3/35.
- Ibid.
- Bill Yenne, Hap Arnold: The General Who Invented the
US Air Force (Washington: Regnery, 2013), p. 100.
- Letter from Gerald C. Williams to Denis Richards,
October 1972, CC/3/XVI.
CHURCHILL AND PORTAL
(ii) that a common expansion plan is necessary if
maximum effort is to be obtained with the forces
available;
(iii) that in constructing such a plan the aim should
be to secure the maximum impact of air power against
the enemy that production and shipping permit—ir-
respective of whether British or U.S. pilots man the
aircraft;
(iv) that the visit of Arnold and [US Navy aeronau-
tics bureau chief Adm. John] Towers is an essential
stage in the preparation of such a plan and is heartily
welcomed on that account;
(v) that we agree the final stages of the discussion will
probably have to be concluded in Washington and
that for this purpose I should return to the U.S. with
Arnold and Towers.^17
Portal’s minute perfectly encapsulates his person-
al qualities in action. He encouraged Churchill to build
bridges with Arnold rather than trying to maximize the
output of Lend-Lease for the Royal Air Force. It took
great self-confidence to send the minute in the first place,
but Portal’s strategic awareness and grand vision were
vital. Portal understood America would fight on its own
terms and realized that a close US-UK relationship was
in Britain’s best interests, even though this delayed the
build-up of Bomber Command. Portal was extremely
concerned about being able to strike Germany with an
enlarged bomber force, but building the alliance was more
important. He was willing to support the American point
of view despite a significant loss of materiel for Bomber
Command. In his own account of the negotiations, Ar-
nold describes Churchill and Portal as having been ex-
tremely willing to see things from his perspective.^18 Portal
pursued a strategic bargain, instrumental in forging the
Alliance relationship but which must have been, at some
level, a bitter pill to swallow.
Best of the Best
P
ortal’s ability to anticipate Churchill’s blind spots
made him a key advisor. He was patient where
Churchill was impetuous and logical where Chur-
chill was emotional. Churchill infused spirit into Britain
through force of personality, but men like Portal ensured
a strategic governor was applied to Churchill’s preternat-
ural thrust. This Portal did quietly and calmly but with
steely determination.
Lord Ismay, Churchill’s Chief of Staff during the war,
delivered his own assessment of Portal when asked: “I
know it is a very difficult question to answer, but who do
you consider to have been the greatest commander on
our side during the war?” Ismay answered, “It isn’t a diffi-
cult question to answer at all. The answer is Peter Portal:
quite easily.”^19 ,
Wing Commander Rich Milburn is an RAF officer and
current instructor at the Air War College in Alabama.
His doctoral dissertation will examine Portal’s leadership of
the RAF during the Second World War. He is grateful to
Dr. James Tucci of the School of Advanced Air and
Space Studies for helpful comments, while
acknowledginganyerrorstobeentirelyhisown.
Endnotes
- Richard K. Betts, “Is Strategy an Illusion?” International
Security 25, no. 2 (2000), p. 6.
- Winston S. Churchill, Their Finest Hour (London: Cassell,
1951), p. 18.
- Ibid., p. 17.
- John Kennedy, The Business of War: The War Narrative of
Major-General Sir John Kennedy (London: Hutchinson, 1957),
p. 60.
- Gretchen Craft Rubin, Forty Ways to Look at Winston
Churchill: A Brief Account of a Long Life (New York: Ballantine,
2003), p. 29.
- Eliot A. Cohen, Supreme Command: Soldiers, Statesmen, and
Leadership in Wartime (New York: Anchor, 2003), p. 98.
- Churchill to Portal, 24 Oct 40, Archive 1, Folder 1, Minute
4A, Sir Charles Portal Papers, Christ Church (CC), Oxford.
- Portal to Churchill, 31 Oct. 40, CC 1/1/4B.
- Churchill to Portal, 17 Nov. 40, CC/1/1/14E.
- Ibid.
- Portal to Churchill, 1 Dec. 40, CC/1/1/14G.
- Ibid.
- Churchill to Portal, 1 May 41, CC/1/2/22.
- Portal to Churchill, 4 May 1941, CC/1/2/23.
- Dwight D. Eisenhower, Crusade in Europe (Garden City,
NY: Doubleday, 1948), p. 266.
- Portal to Churchill, 16 May 1942, CC/1/3/35.
- Ibid.
- Bill Yenne, Hap Arnold: The General Who Invented the
US Air Force (Washington: Regnery, 2013), p. 100.
- Letter from Gerald C. Williams to Denis Richards,
October 1972, CC/3/XVI.
