Office of the Historian

The British Prime Minister (Churchill) to President Roosevelt 78

London, 30 December 1944.

864. 1. Anthony and I sat up with the King of Greece till 4:30 this morning at the end of which time His Majesty agreed to the announcement in my immediately following telegram.79 I have sent this to Ambassador Leeper in Athens in order that the Archbishop may go to work at once. The Greek translation is now being made and I will furnish you with a copy of it at the earliest moment.

This has been a very painful task to me. I had to tell the King that if he did not agree the matter would be settled without him and that we should recognise the new government instead of him. I hope you will be able to give every support and encouragement to the Archbishop and his government.

[Here follows comment by Prime Minister Churchill on telegram No. 681, December 29, from President Roosevelt on Polish affairs (not found in Department files); this section of the telegram is quoted in footnote 4 to the message from Soviet Chairman (Premier) Stalin to President Roosevelt, December 27, Foreign Relations, The Conferences at Malta and Yalta, 1945, page 223.]

  1. Copy of telegram obtained from the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, N.Y.↩
  2. For text of announcement, see Churchill, Triumph and Tragedy, p. 322.↩