In THE CHURCHILL SISTERS, prize-winning author and journalist Rachel Tretheway at last gives the Churchill daughters their place in the limelight as females remarkable for their time.

It would surprise few readers to learn that the daughters of Winston Churchill, the United Kingdom’s Prime Minister during the Second World War and later in the 1950s, were amazing people in their own right. Yet less has been written about them until now. Tretheway’s research and clear zest for her subjects reveal both their public and private accomplishments and secrets. Though generally overshadowed by their only brother, Randolph, because the trend of their era did not favor females in roles of power or publicity, Diana, Sarah and Mary were strong, passionate and, at times, tormented as heiresses to their famed father.

"Opening their exploits to a new generation is Tretheway’s gift to intelligent women who can imagine themselves bound by the restrictions of their era, retaining family ties and national zeal while pushing at the barriers for small but significant changes."

Their mother, Clementine, was a well-known figure, often sharing the stage of current events with her husband. But she privately suffered, as he did, from depression and doubt that deepened when their third daughter, Marigold, died, having gotten ill while in the care of one of several nannies. Clementine is shown by Tretheway to have been typical of her time and social class: emotionally distant, though caring.

Winston, though obviously often absent fulfilling his national duties, vested more professional hopes in Randolph but relied on the sisters for companionship, often having one or more of them accompany him on business or pleasure trips. They experienced marriages, divorces and widowhood, trying to follow the template of obedient wife and devoted mother as best they could. And all pitched in for their country during the war years: Sarah, nicknamed “the Bumblebee” as a child, had some success as an actress but willingly signed on in the auxiliary air force; Diana, called the “Gold Cream Kitten” as an infant, was an air raid warden; and “Baby Bud” Mary was in the thick of things making eloquent speeches, arguably the daughter best suited to a career in politics.

Drawing from private family letters and a wide range of archival materials, Tretheway’s dynamic portraits include small family incidents against the vast panorama of Winston’s calling to lead his country, making each of the girls vulnerable to the rewards and dangers of fame. Less spotlighted than their vivacious cousins, the Mitford sisters, the Churchill girls had a strong bond of sisterhood and an admirable sense of loyalty and duty to their parents, even as they sought their own, sometimes thorny paths to happiness.

Opening their exploits to a new generation is Tretheway’s gift to intelligent women who can imagine themselves bound by the restrictions of their era, retaining family ties and national zeal while pushing at the barriers for small but significant changes.