Winston Churchill’s Legacy to Cats
By Ruth aka Kattaddorra
I often use a saying by Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965) a very famous British Prime Minister:
‘Never never never give up’
I knew he was a great cat lover so I was very interested to read the latest news about his legacy to ginger and white cats.
Mr Churchill’s first cat Jock, a ginger tom with a white bib and four white socks, was a gift on his 88th birthday in 1962 from Jock Colville who was one of his private secretaries.
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He was thrilled with the cat and named him Jock after Mr Colville and it’s said that he loved the cat so much he wouldn’t even have his evening meal without him around.
After Mr Churchill’s death, the remaining Churchill family left their home Chartwell in Kent to the National Trust in 1966, along with a request that a ginger cat with a white bib and four white socks would always live there and always be named Jock.
There have been six Jocks so far, the latest being Jock the Sixth, a seven month old rescue kitten from Croydon Animal Samaritans.
This new Jock has taken the place of Jock the Fifth who left Chartwell with his caretaker, the former house and collections manager of the property who left and moved to Scotland.
Officials of the Trust said the latest Jock has settled in nicely and even has a green cat flap which was approved by an historic buildings inspector.
I remember being given the day off work and the schools being closed for Mr Churchill’s funeral, it seemed the whole of Britain came to a standstill in his honour that day.
I think it’s wonderful that up to now six ginger and white rescue cats have been given a home and the name Jock in honour of the first Jock who was much loved by Mr Churchill.
never get sick of your posters they are wonderful DONT STOP
Thank you Kylee it’s so nice to hear that 🙂
i know lots here appreciate all that yu do, myself included you make POC what it is which im sure michael & others agree.
Thank you 🙂
wow thats wonderful, he was a cat lover 🙂 great that the ginger and whites have a special forever home. Love this story. So nice to have a feel good story. Ginger cats are truly the best esp if they Tabbies as well.:) hope everyone is well.
Lovely story Ruth. I had no idea. It is really nice, wonderful actually, that this famous house is the home of a ginger tabby cat and will be “in perpetuity”.
Churchill is probably or possibly the most admired person in the world and in recent history and he loved cats! What about that? It is another confirmation that cats are great.
Thanks for the comments 🙂
Just a change writing a news story instead of my own imagination taking flight and crying out for a poster to go with it lol
It was very easy to do, no challenge at all 🙁
but I was a bit worried that people might be getting fed up of my posters.
It’s great, but love, love, love the posters and flights of fancy as well, x
FED UP WITH POSTERS? Not a chance!
It’s our imaginations that give us flight from some of the horrors of reality. We need that levity mixed with the reality to stay sane.
One coming for you in a few days Dee lol you inspired me once again 😉
Even though I was a kid, I remember Winston Churchill spoken of fondly here in America. His mother was American, and he was made an honorary American citizen at some point.
I never knew what a cat lover he was. Thanks, Ruth AKA. I’m happy to know that.
He reminds me a little of Earnest Hemingway and his cat Snowball, a polydactyl. His home and museum are in Key West Florida, and the property has around 50 polydactyls there, some of which are descendents of Snowball.
There we have it, real men who love cats and weren’t afraid to show it!
I like men who love cats and are not afraid to admit it 🙂
Me too, sensual….what?
There she goes… That Babz…SENSUAL, huh?
Getting off on real men who love cats!
Another piece that is the puzzle of Babz! LOL!
Oh yeah Dee, a man who loves cats and doesn’t care who knows it does it for me ;-)hows about yourself?
me too 🙂
This is lovely, I knew that Sir Winston Churchill, Winnie, as he was also known, was a great cat lover but not this great detail about the first Jock and his successors, how kind of the family to want to keep a cat similar to the first Jock at the family home for always and as Ruth said wonderful that several cats have been rescued and lived as aristocracy. The present Jock is a handsome chap I hope he has a long and happy reign at Chartwell. Thanks for this Ruth I enjoyed it.
I think you adopted his saying Babz ‘never never never give up’ as it’s you to a T
I’d like to think so! 🙂
What a stunning cat. Oh, would I love to have a Jock of my own! A great legacy he left, on so many fronts.
Yes a very handsome cat 🙂