Uncommon House
September 10, 2005
A stray German bomb destroyed the Commons Chamber of the Palace of Parliament in London on May 10, 1941. The building traced its roots to the year 1099, and it’s loss was a big blow to the embattled Londoners.
In October, 1943, Winston Churchill, then the British Prime Minister and Minister of Defence and in complete charge of his country, decided to rebuild the destroyed House of Commons. He did it in a typical Churchillian manner. In his memoirs he says,
I had the power at this moment to shape things in a way that would last. Supported by my colleagues, mostly old Parliamentarians, and with Mr. Atlee’s cordial aid, I sought to re-establish for what well may be a long period the two great principles on which the British House of Commons stands in its physical aspect. The first is that it must be oblong, and not semicircular, and the second that it must only be big enough to give seats to about two-thirds of its Members. As this argument has long surprised foreigners, I record it here.
I bet you were surprised, you foreigner, you.
Why oblong?
The semicircular assembly, which appeals to political theorists, enables every individual or every group to move around the centre, adopting various shades of pink according as the weather changes. …It is easy for an individual to move through those insensible gradations from Left to Right, but the act of crossing the Floor is one which requires serious consideration. …Logic is a poor guide compared with custom. Logic, which has created in so many countries semicircular assemblies with buildings that give to every member not only a seat to sit in, but often a desk to write at, with a lid to bang, has proved fatal to Parliamentary government as we know it here in its home and in the land of its birth.
Why too small for all its Members?
If the House is big enough to contain all its Members, nine-tenths of its debates will be conducted in the depressing atmosphere of an almost empty or half-empty chamber. The essence of good House of Commons speaking is the conversational style, the facility for quick, informal interruptions and interchanges. …and there should be on great occasions a sense of crowd and urgency.
I just have to admire a leader who not only can propose uncommon action but has the political skill to make it happen. Winston S. Churchill was certainly that!
Dave
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