In Lesson 11, titled “First Year at Harrow,” Sir Winston S. Churchill reflects on his experiences during his early years at Harrow School. He describes entering the challenging realm of examinations at the age of twelve, a journey that would last for the next seven years. Churchill expresses his preference for subjects like history, poetry, and essay writing, but laments that examiners often favored Latin and mathematics, which were not his strengths.
Despite struggling with Latin in his Entrance Examination to Harrow, the Headmaster, Mr. Welldon, took a broad view of Churchill’s abilities and showed discernment in assessing his general aptitude. Despite being unable to answer a single question in the Latin paper, Churchill’s effort, marked by his name and a few marks on the page, led Mr. Welldon to conclude that Churchill was worthy of admission to Harrow. Churchill appreciates Mr. Welldon’s ability to see beyond surface-level performances and values his decision.
As a result of Mr. Welldon’s judgment, Churchill was placed in the third, or lowest, division of the Fourth form. However, he notes that alphabetical order in the School List did not provide him any advantage, as his name, Spencer-Churchill, began with an ‘S’. Consequently, Churchill found himself near the bottom of the entire school. He mentions that two boys below him in the list disappeared shortly after due to illness or other reasons.