Analyse
The exact line from Churchill’s speech was: *‘Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, “This was their finest hour.”’* The speech was delivered during the *fall of France* (not the Battle of Britain), as Nazi Germany’s advance threatened invasion. While the phrase is iconic and often associated with the broader 1940 air campaign, the Battle of Britain had not yet begun when Churchill spoke these words. His intent was to rally morale amid imminent peril, not to reflect on a specific battle.
Achtergrond
Churchill’s 18 June 1940 address—his third as Prime Minister—came after France’s surrender to Germany (22 June 1940) and as the UK prepared for potential invasion. The *Battle of Britain* (the Luftwaffe’s air campaign against the RAF) officially spanned **10 July to 31 October 1940**, per RAF historiography. The phrase *‘finest hour’* later became shorthand for the UK’s defiance in 1940, though it was originally aspirational, not retrospective.
Samenvatting verdict
Churchill did say *‘this was their finest hour’* in his 18 June 1940 speech, but the phrasing was part of a longer sentence and the speech occurred *before* the Battle of Britain (July–October 1940).