Where did the term Iron Curtain originate

�A.� The question came from MissDon and was ably answered by Piljim. Winston Churchill first described an Iron Curtain falling across Europe. He was describing the forming of two distinct power blocs in Europe, the capitalist, American-dominated West, and the communist, Soviet-dominated East. < xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

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Q.� He delivered this famous speech at Westminster

A.� Yes, but not at the place you're thinking of.

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Q. How so

A.� This was at Westminster College, in Missouri. In 1946 Churchill toured the United States with President Truman. He delivered the speech at the college after accepting an honorary degree.

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Q.� What was the gist of his speech, then

A.� He said we had won the war and it was time for Britain and the USA to keep the peace. He called for the United Nations to have an armed force.

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Q.� When did he have a go at the Rusians

A.� OK. I'll give you a taste of it: 'A shadow has fallen upon the scenes so lately lighted by the Allied victory. Nobody knows what Soviet Russia and its communist international organisation intends to do in the immediate future, or what are the limits.'

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Q.� But surely, Stalin's Soviet Russia had been an ally the previous year

A.� Let him finish: 'I have a strong admiration and regard for the valiant Russian people and for my war-time comrade, Marshal Stalin. There is deep sympathy and goodwill in Britain, and I doubt not here also towards the people of all the Russias. 'It is my duty, however, to place before you certain facts about the present position in Europe.'

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Q.� And then he lets rip

A.� And only as Churchill could: 'From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia, all these famous cities, and the populations around them, are subject to increasing measure of control from Moscow�. The Communist parties, which were very small in all these eastern states of Europe, have been raised to pre-eminence and power far beyond their numbers and are seeking everywhere to obtain totalitarian control.'

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Q. Strong stuff. What happened next

A.� The Cold War. It lasted until the late 1980s.

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Q.� So, it must have been a pretty grim tour for Churchill and his American host.

A.� Well, the great man could still crack a joke. On the train journey to, Missouri for the Iron Curtain speech, Churchill told Truman that if he were born again he would want to live in the United States, despite some of its deplorable customs. Asked which customs he abhorred, Churchill replied: 'You stop drinking with your meals.'

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By Steve Cunningham

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