Churchill, Roosevelt, and Harriman's daughters tell us
The untold story of the Yalta Conference

The Yalta Conference, considered the most important conference of the 20th century, was attended by hundreds of diplomatic and military advisors, including the "Big Three" Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin.
Also attending the meeting were three women: Anna Roosevelt, daughter of U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt; Sarah Churchill, daughter of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill; and Kathleen Harriman, daughter of U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union Averell Harriman.
This book tells the story of the Yalta Conference and its aftermath through the eyes of three women.
The three protagonists watched the meeting from beginning to end, recording everything that happened in the room and sending letters to their families and friends or keeping personal journals.
This book, which shows what significance the historic event of the Yalta Conference had on the lives of three women, while also meticulously depicting the scars that war left on people's lives, will reveal a new side of the Yalta Conference and provide clues to a three-dimensional understanding.

Although it would still take time for the war to be completely won, by the end of 1944 the Anglo-American Allies had driven the Germans and Italians out of Rome, Paris, Brussels, and Athens.
Meanwhile, Soviet troops were advancing westward across Poland and Romania.
In December of that year, the Germans launched a powerful counteroffensive in Belgium, France, and Luxembourg, nearly breaking the Western Allied defenses in the Ardennes Forest, but it was clear that the Allies had gained the upper hand.
Even on the Pacific front, the war was still far from over.
American generals estimated that the war would last more than 18 months unless they unleashed a secret, untested weapon that could change the course of events.


British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, and Soviet General Secretary Joseph Stalin realized that the war in Europe had reached a critical turning point.
As their armies raced toward Berlin, the complex problem of ending the war on the European continent loomed before them. This problem could only be resolved through face-to-face discussion.
---From "Chapter 1, February 1, 1945"

It was ironic that it became Kathleen's job to inspect the living environment and prepare for guests.
She had come to London as a journalist when the war began and had repeatedly emphasized that she was not her father's governess.
In fact, in her last letter to her sister Mary before coming to Moscow, she wrote, “I hope there will be no more parties and entertainment.”


But Kathleen was incredibly disappointed.
In Moscow, there were endless parties overflowing with caviar and vodka.
Now she found that managing the huge staff working in the palace and entertaining the guests was part of her job in Yalta.
But as time went on, she realized that her role as her father's hostess and second-in-command was much more complex than simply organizing parties and managing the house.
Although Kathleen never held an official title, she served as an important ceremonial officer for the Americans.
---From "Chapter 1, February 1, 1945"

From a young age, Sarah grew up feeling like an outcast.
Sarah was sensitive and shy, so she had difficulty socializing and forming friendships with other girls her age.
Even as a teenager, she spent her time holed up in the bathhouse playing cards with her cousin, Mitford, rather than chatting with other girls her age.
From a young age, she felt timid and awkward around her father.
Even when Sarah tried to muster up the courage to tell her father, she had to “collect” her thoughts before opening her mouth.
Important messages were written down in notes and delivered.


She knew that her father was much more eloquent and sensible than she was, but she believed that she understood him well, and that even when she remained silent, her father understood her.
When other family members tried to make fun of her reticence, her father would immediately step in and interrupt them, saying, “Sarah is like a clam, keeping her secrets inside.”
---From "Chapter 2, February 2, 1945"

But before the next page of history could be written, Franklin Roosevelt first had to survive the trip.
Something big could have happened before he got to Yalta.
For eleven days, Roosevelt was under the close observation of those aboard the Quincy.
Among them were friends like Watson, who had long been devoted to Roosevelt, as well as those with distinct political ambitions of their own.


Only a few days after the President's party set sail, people began asking about Roosevelt's health.
James Burns, a former South Carolina senator, Supreme Court associate justice, and Secretary of War Mobilization who attended the Yalta Conference, privately told Anna that Roosevelt's health did not appear to be improving.


He said that Roosevelt's pale face and perpetually open mouth suggested that he had more than just chronic sinusitis.
Anna dismissed his claims, saying Roosevelt simply suffered from a persistent sinus infection.
Although Roosevelt explained that he sat with his mouth open to breathe more easily, Burns did not take this at face value.
---From "Chapter 3, February 2, 1945"

Harriman was shocked when he learned that the Soviets were sitting quietly on the banks of the Vistula River, watching the Germans crush the Polish resistance.
He did not understand why the Soviet Union stood by and watched as the Germans recaptured Warsaw.
So, when the Soviet government asked Stalin to allow American and British military aircraft to use Soviet airbases to airlift supplies to the Polish resistance, Stalin refused.19 No amount of personal persuasion was going to work.


Harriman realized that the West had misread Soviet intentions.
The West had misunderstood Stalin, whom they jokingly called "Uncle Joe."
Churchill ordered the Royal Air Force to use all available means to deliver supplies to Stalin.
Harriman tried to persuade Roosevelt, who was then campaigning for a fourth term, to take a hard line against Stalin before the Soviet Union took over Eastern Europe.
But Roosevelt and the State Department had other priorities.
---From "Chapter 4, February 2, 1945"

But Stalin did not stop talking.
He had one more regret for the Poles in London.
“As a soldier, I demand of the countries liberated by the Soviet Red Army:
“There should be no civil war in the rear,” he continued.
“The Red Army soldiers are indifferent to the form of government as long as the new government maintains order and does not shoot them in the back.” According to him, the Lublin government has maintained order relatively well.
But this could not be applied to the Polish government-in-exile in London.


“The Poles in London claim to be the commanding officers of the underground resistance in Poland, but (…) this resistance has committed many atrocities.
(…) They killed 212 of our soldiers.
They attacked our supply base to seize weapons.
We have arrested some of them, and if they continue to disturb our rear, we will kill them all according to military law.” (…)

Churchill, determined to make his final remarks, emphasized one more point before the meeting ended.
“I would like to note in the meeting records that Britain and the Soviet Union have different sources of information and different facts within Poland,” he said.
For a time, the British had intelligence agents inside Poland.
According to their reports, the Soviet troops were drinking, pillaging, and, undoubtedly, raping as they advanced westward.
---From "Chapter 13, February 6-7, 1945"

“I am speaking on behalf of the three women here,” Kathleen began to speak in Russian.
She first proposed a toast “to those who have made such great efforts to ensure our comfortable stay in Crimea.”
She saw this work with her own eyes.
Politics aside, the Soviet effort to prepare the most basic needs at Yalta was remarkable.


“Seeing the destruction the Germans wrought here, I could fully understand what a great achievement had been made,” she said.
Kathleen expressed herself briefly and clearly.
I couldn't speak for long because I was nervous.
But her words were elegant, intimate, and not overly political, which suited her role in the conference well.
By pointing out the atrocities committed by the German army, she reaffirmed the solidarity of the Allies.
This was a very effective soft diplomacy.
---From "Chapter 15, February 8, 1945"

The next morning, Sarah woke up still wanting to share her impressions of Churchill's speech with him.
During the war, her confidence grew and she no longer hesitated to express her honest opinions to her father.
“Did you ask me if I was influenced by the speech?” Sarah began to make her case in the letter.
“If I was thinking of voting Labour, I’m not sure I’d vote Conservative after hearing this speech.”

Sarah knew Churchill's fear of socialism, especially after the Yalta conference.
Churchill's speeches may have made people think abstractly about socialism and accept his views, but abstractions meant little to voters struggling to feed their children.
“The Labour supporters I know don’t vote for Labour because of their ideals or beliefs.
“I just vote for that party because life is tough,” Sarah explained.


“They think that voting for the Labour Party will make their daily struggles easier.
(…) Socialism, which emerged during the war, did no harm to anyone and benefited quite a few people.
(…) milk is distributed fairly, and the rich don't die because they don't get as much meat as the poor.
Clearly, this shared sense of sacrifice was the strongest bond that united us.
And they say there is no reason why this universal sense of sacrifice should not work effectively in times of peace.”

---From "Chapter 18, April 12 - July 27, 1945"