The Standard at War

With war having been declared, one of Chamberlain’s initial moves was to invite Winston Churchill into the Cabinet to serve as First Lord of the Admiralty. But for Beaverbrook there was to be no place; instead, he was sent to the United States to find out what President Roosevelt thought about the war. One of Beaverbrook’s last acts before leaving was to inform Robertson of the need for American support. On 19 September, Robertson replied: ‘A written instruction has been given to Christiansen, Gordon [editor Sunday Express] and Frank Owen, making it clear that Mr Kennedy [the American Ambassador] is not to be criticised in the columns of our papers, but that he is to receive favourable comment. Also that this applied to all Americans.’1