TLS, one page, 4.75 x 7.5, embossed Prime Minister letterhead, February 1, 1952. Letter of thanks to Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Major General Leon W. Johnson. In full, “On my return from the United States I write to thank you for presenting me with such a fine record of the ceremony at St. Paul’s last July. It was indeed an occasion which I shall long remember.” The event referred to by Churchill was the American Roll of Honour in St Paul’s Cathedral on July 4, 1951 before an august audience of British and American dignitaries that included members of the Royal Family. On July 3, 1951, General and Mrs. Eisenhower were honored at a dinner hosted by the English Speaking Union at Grosvenor House in London. Over 1,000 guests were present for the event, including former Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the then current Prime Minister, Clement Atlee, and many other luminaries of the time. Eisenhower gave a speech that evening in which urged political unity and full economic integration of the free nations of Europe. The thrust of his speech was a call for European unity through a political federation. Winston Churchill later wrote General Eisenhower that his July 3rd speech was “one of the greatest speeches delivered by any American in my lifetime - which is a long one - and that it carries with it on strong wings the hope of salvation of the world from its perils and confusions.” In 1951, Churchill was re-elected as British Prime Minister and had visited the United States for talks with President Truman on building Anglo-American relations and the conflict in Korea. In America, Churchill had told a joint session of Congress that the British reaction, if the Chinese were to escalate the war in Korea, would be “prompt, resolute and effective.” Light paperclip impression and punch hole near top edge, otherwise condition is very fine. COA John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and R&R COA.
