A claim that Britain had never named a vessel after a political leader prompts the example of HMS Churchill. Winston Churchill is identified as the submarine's namesake, correcting a suggestion that it honoured John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough. The presence of Winston Churchill's portrait aboard is offered in support. In the accompanying account, choosing the name helped secure Conservative acceptance of the attack-submarine programme after Labour cancelled the fifth Resolution-class ballistic-missile submarine. Naming is therefore presented as part of that particular procurement compromise.
Notable Point · 8:56:01-8:57:32
HMS Churchill as a submarine-program compromise
HMS Churchill's namesake prompts an account linking the submarine's name to political acceptance of a changed building programme.