Frederick Lindemann, 1st Viscount Cherwell
Encyclopedia
Frederick Alexander Lindemann, 1st Viscount Cherwell FRS PC CH (5 April 1886 – 3 July 1957) was an English physicist
who was an influential scientific adviser to the British government, particularly Winston Churchill
. He advocated the wartime "area" bombing of German cities
, and was a strong doubter of the existence of the Nazi "V" weapons programme.
in Germany where his American mother Olga Noble, the widow of a wealthy banker, was taking "the cure
".
After schooling in Scotland and Darmstadt
, he attended the University of Berlin. He did research in physics at the Sorbonne
that confirmed theories, first put forward by Albert Einstein
, on specific heats at very low temperature
s. For this and other scientific work, Lindemann was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1920.
In 1911 he was invited to the Solvay Conference
on "Radiation and the Quanta" where he was the youngest attendee.
Lindemann was a teetotaler, non-smoker, and a vegetarian, although Churchill would sometimes induce him to take a glass of brandy. He was an excellent pianist, and sufficiently able as a tennis player to compete at Wimbledon
.
, Lindemann was playing tennis in Germany and had to leave in haste to avoid internment
. In 1915, he joined the staff of the Royal Aircraft Factory at Farnborough
. He developed a mathematical theory of aircraft spin
recovery, and later learned to fly so that he could test his ideas himself. Prior to Lindemann's work, a spinning aircraft was almost invariably fatal.
In 1919 Lindemann was appointed professor of experimental philosophy at Oxford University and director of the Clarendon Laboratory
, largely on the recommendation of Henry Tizard
who had been a colleague in Berlin. In 1919, Lindemann was one of the first people to suggest that in the solar wind
particles of both polarities, proton
s as well as electron
s, come from the Sun
. He was probably not aware that Kristian Birkeland
had made the same prediction three years earlier in 1916.
Lindemann opposed the UK General Strike of 1926
and mobilised the reluctant staff of the Clarendon to produce copies of Churchill's anti-strike newspaper, the British Gazette
. He was also alarmed and fearful of political developments in Germany
. In the 1930s, Lindemann advised Winston Churchill when the latter was not in Government and leading a campaign for rearmament. Lindemann also helped a number of German Jewish physicists, primarily at the University of Göttingen, emigrate to England to work in the Clarendon Laboratory.
Churchill got Lindemann onto the "Committee for the Study of Aerial Defence" which under Sir Henry Tizard
was putting its resources behind the development of radar. Lindemann's presence was disruptive, insisting instead that his own ideas of aerial mines and infra-red beams be given priority over radar. To resolve the situation the committee dissolved itself and reformed as a new body without Lindemann.
, he appointed Lindemann as the British government's leading scientific adviser, with David Bensusan-Butt
as his private secretary. He would hold this office again in Churchill's peacetime administration (1951-3). At this point Lindemann was known to many simply as "the Prof".
Lindemann established a special statistical branch, known as 'S-Branch', within the government, constituted from subject specialists, and reporting directly to Churchill
. This branch distilled thousands of sources of data into succinct charts and figures, so that the status of the nation's food supplies (for example) could be instantly evaluated. Lindemann's statistical branch often caused tensions between government departments, but because it allowed Churchill to make quick decisions based on accurate data which directly affected the war effort, its importance should not be underestimated.
In 1940, Lindemann supported the experimental department MD1
. He worked on hollow charge weapons, the sticky bomb
and other new weapons. General Ismay
, who supervised MD1, recalled:
With power, Cherwell was able to sideline Tizard; especially after Tizard did not acknowledge that the Germans were using radio navigation to bomb Britain.
Lindemann wished to limit Germany's ability to re-arm, and was an enthusiastic backer of the Morgenthau Plan
, under which Germany would be partitioned and de-industrialised. In wartime Germany, Propaganda Minister
Joseph Goebbels
presented the plan as Jewish manipulation of Allied policy, and so was able to use the plan to bolster the German resistance on the Western front.
Lindemann has been described as having "an almost pathological hatred for Nazi Germany, and an almost medieval desire for revenge was a part of his character".
Area bombing directive
on 12 February 1942, Lindemann presented in a paper on "Dehousing
" to Churchill on 30 March 1942, which calculated the effects of area bombardment
by a massive bomber force of German cities to break the spirit of the people.
His proposal that "bombing must be directed to working class houses. Middle class houses have to much space round them, so are bound to waste bombs" changed accepted conventions of limiting civilian casualties in wartime. "It should be emphasized that the destruction of houses, public utilities, transport and lives, the creation of a refugee problem on an unprecedented scale, and the breakdown of morale both at home and at the battle fronts by fear of extended and intensified bombing, are accepted and intended aims of our bombing policy. They are not by-products of attempts to hit factories."
His dehousing paper was criticised by many other scientific minds in government service who felt such a force would be a waste of resources. Cherwell's paper was based on the false premise that bombing could cause a breakdown in society but was used in support of Bomber Command's claim for resources.
Lindemann also played a key part in the battle of the beams
, championing countermeasures to the Germans use of radio navigation
to increase the precision of their bombing campaigns.
evidence, such as inaccurately claiming "to put a four-thousand horsepower turbine in a twenty-inch space is lunacy: it couldn't be done, Mr. Lubbock" and that at the end of the war, the committee would find that the rocket was "a mare's nest".
Cherwell took the view that long-range military rockets were feasible only if they were propelled by solid fuels and would accordingly need to be of enormous size. He repeatedly rejected arguments that relatively compact liquid fuels could be used to propel such weapons. In fairness, "Cherwell had strong scientific grounds for doubting the forecasts that were being made of a 70-80 ton rocket with a 10 ton warhead."
A pivotal exchange where Churchill rebuffed Lindemann occurred at the Cabinet Defence Committee (Operations) meeting on 29 June 1943 and was dramatized in the film Operation Crossbow
.
, of Oxford
in the County of Oxford. The following year he was made Paymaster-General
by Churchill, an office he retained until 1945. In 1943 he was also sworn of the Privy Council. He enthusiastically supported the controversial Morgenthau Plan
, which Churchill subsequently endorsed on 15 September 1944. Following his 1945 return to Clarendon Laboratory
, Lindemann created the Atomic Energy Authority
. When Churchill returned as Prime Minister in 1951, Lord Cherwell was once again appointed Paymaster-General, this time with a seat in the cabinet. He continued in this post until 1953. In 1956 he was made Viscount Cherwell, of Oxford in the County of Oxford.
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
who was an influential scientific adviser to the British government, particularly Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
. He advocated the wartime "area" bombing of German cities
Aerial bombing of cities
A species of strategic bombing, the aerial bombing of cities began in 1915 during World War I, grew to a vast scale in World War II, and continues to the present day. The development of aerial bombardment marked an increased capacity of armed forces to deliver explosive weapons in populated areas...
, and was a strong doubter of the existence of the Nazi "V" weapons programme.
Early life, family and personality
Lindemann was the second of three sons of Adolphus Frederick Lindemann, who had emigrated to the United Kingdom circa 1871 and become naturalised. Frederick was born in Baden-BadenBaden-Baden
Baden-Baden is a spa town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located on the western foothills of the Black Forest, on the banks of the Oos River, in the region of Karlsruhe...
in Germany where his American mother Olga Noble, the widow of a wealthy banker, was taking "the cure
Cure
A cure is a completely effective treatment for a disease.The Cure is an English rock band.Cure, or similar, may also refer to:-Film and television:* The Cure , a short film starring Charlie Chaplin...
".
After schooling in Scotland and Darmstadt
Darmstadt
Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Rhine Main Area.The sandy soils in the Darmstadt area, ill-suited for agriculture in times before industrial fertilisation, prevented any larger settlement from developing, until the city became the seat...
, he attended the University of Berlin. He did research in physics at the Sorbonne
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
that confirmed theories, first put forward by Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history...
, on specific heats at very low temperature
Temperature
Temperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...
s. For this and other scientific work, Lindemann was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1920.
In 1911 he was invited to the Solvay Conference
Solvay Conference
The International Solvay Institutes for Physics and Chemistry, located in Brussels, were founded by the Belgian industrialist Ernest Solvay in 1912, following the historic invitation-only 1911 Conseil Solvay, the turning point in world physics...
on "Radiation and the Quanta" where he was the youngest attendee.
Lindemann was a teetotaler, non-smoker, and a vegetarian, although Churchill would sometimes induce him to take a glass of brandy. He was an excellent pianist, and sufficiently able as a tennis player to compete at Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
.
World War I and Oxford University
At the outbreak of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Lindemann was playing tennis in Germany and had to leave in haste to avoid internment
Internment
Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of 'interning'; confinement within the limits of a country or place." Most modern usage is about individuals, and there is a distinction...
. In 1915, he joined the staff of the Royal Aircraft Factory at Farnborough
Farnborough, Hampshire
-History:Name changes: Ferneberga ; Farnburghe, Farenberg ; Farnborowe, Fremborough, Fameborough .Tower Hill, Cove: There is substantial evidence...
. He developed a mathematical theory of aircraft spin
Spin (flight)
In aviation, a spin is an aggravated stall resulting in autorotation about the spin axis wherein the aircraft follows a corkscrew downward path. Spins can be entered intentionally or unintentionally, from any flight attitude and from practically any airspeed—all that is required is sufficient yaw...
recovery, and later learned to fly so that he could test his ideas himself. Prior to Lindemann's work, a spinning aircraft was almost invariably fatal.
In 1919 Lindemann was appointed professor of experimental philosophy at Oxford University and director of the Clarendon Laboratory
Clarendon Laboratory
The Clarendon Laboratory, located on Parks Road with the Science Area in Oxford, England , is part of the Physics Department at Oxford University...
, largely on the recommendation of Henry Tizard
Henry Tizard
Sir Henry Thomas Tizard FRS was an English chemist and inventor and past Rector of Imperial College....
who had been a colleague in Berlin. In 1919, Lindemann was one of the first people to suggest that in the solar wind
Solar wind
The solar wind is a stream of charged particles ejected from the upper atmosphere of the Sun. It mostly consists of electrons and protons with energies usually between 1.5 and 10 keV. The stream of particles varies in temperature and speed over time...
particles of both polarities, proton
Proton
The proton is a subatomic particle with the symbol or and a positive electric charge of 1 elementary charge. One or more protons are present in the nucleus of each atom, along with neutrons. The number of protons in each atom is its atomic number....
s as well as electron
Electron
The electron is a subatomic particle with a negative elementary electric charge. It has no known components or substructure; in other words, it is generally thought to be an elementary particle. An electron has a mass that is approximately 1/1836 that of the proton...
s, come from the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
. He was probably not aware that Kristian Birkeland
Kristian Birkeland
Kristian Olaf Birkeland was a Norwegian scientist. He is best remembered as the person who first elucidated the nature of the Aurora borealis. In order to fund his research on the aurorae, he invented the electromagnetic cannon and the Birkeland-Eyde process of fixing nitrogen from the air...
had made the same prediction three years earlier in 1916.
Lindemann opposed the UK General Strike of 1926
UK General Strike of 1926
The 1926 general strike in the United Kingdom was a general strike that lasted nine days, from 4 May 1926 to 13 May 1926. It was called by the general council of the Trades Union Congress in an unsuccessful attempt to force the British government to act to prevent wage reduction and worsening...
and mobilised the reluctant staff of the Clarendon to produce copies of Churchill's anti-strike newspaper, the British Gazette
British Gazette
The British Gazette was a short-lived British newspaper published by the Government during the General Strike of 1926.One of the first groups of workers called out by the Trades Union Congress when the general strike began on 3 May were the printers, and consequently most newspapers appeared only...
. He was also alarmed and fearful of political developments in Germany
Events preceding World War II in Europe
The events preceding World War II in Europe are closely tied to the rise of fascism, especially in Nazi Germany.-Aftermath of World War I:World War II is generally viewed as having its roots in the aftermath of the First World War...
. In the 1930s, Lindemann advised Winston Churchill when the latter was not in Government and leading a campaign for rearmament. Lindemann also helped a number of German Jewish physicists, primarily at the University of Göttingen, emigrate to England to work in the Clarendon Laboratory.
Churchill got Lindemann onto the "Committee for the Study of Aerial Defence" which under Sir Henry Tizard
Henry Tizard
Sir Henry Thomas Tizard FRS was an English chemist and inventor and past Rector of Imperial College....
was putting its resources behind the development of radar. Lindemann's presence was disruptive, insisting instead that his own ideas of aerial mines and infra-red beams be given priority over radar. To resolve the situation the committee dissolved itself and reformed as a new body without Lindemann.
World War II
When Churchill became Prime MinisterPrime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
, he appointed Lindemann as the British government's leading scientific adviser, with David Bensusan-Butt
David Bensusan-Butt
David Miles Bensusan-Butt was an English economist who spent much of his career in Australia. Known as David, he published his work as D. M...
as his private secretary. He would hold this office again in Churchill's peacetime administration (1951-3). At this point Lindemann was known to many simply as "the Prof".
Lindemann established a special statistical branch, known as 'S-Branch', within the government, constituted from subject specialists, and reporting directly to Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
. This branch distilled thousands of sources of data into succinct charts and figures, so that the status of the nation's food supplies (for example) could be instantly evaluated. Lindemann's statistical branch often caused tensions between government departments, but because it allowed Churchill to make quick decisions based on accurate data which directly affected the war effort, its importance should not be underestimated.
In 1940, Lindemann supported the experimental department MD1
MD1
Ministry of Defence 1 , also known as "Churchill's Toyshop" was a British weapon research and development organisation of the Second World War....
. He worked on hollow charge weapons, the sticky bomb
Sticky bomb
The Grenade, Hand, Anti-Tank No. 74, commonly known as the sticky bomb, was a British hand grenade designed and produced during the Second World War. The grenade was one of a number of anti-tank weapons developed for use by the British Army and Home Guard as an ad hoc solution to a lack of...
and other new weapons. General Ismay
Hastings Ismay, 1st Baron Ismay
General Hastings Lionel "Pug" Ismay, 1st Baron Ismay, KG, GCB, CH, DSO, PC was a British Indian Army officer and diplomat, remembered primarily for his role as Winston Churchill's chief military assistant during the Second World War and his service as the first Secretary General of NATO from 1952...
, who supervised MD1, recalled:
With power, Cherwell was able to sideline Tizard; especially after Tizard did not acknowledge that the Germans were using radio navigation to bomb Britain.
Lindemann wished to limit Germany's ability to re-arm, and was an enthusiastic backer of the Morgenthau Plan
Morgenthau Plan
The Morgenthau Plan, proposed by United States Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau, Jr., advocated that the Allied occupation of Germany following World War II include measures to eliminate Germany's ability to wage war.-Overview:...
, under which Germany would be partitioned and de-industrialised. In wartime Germany, Propaganda Minister
Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda
The Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda was Nazi Germany's ministry that enforced Nazi Party ideology in Germany and regulated its culture and society. Founded on March 13, 1933, by Adolf Hitler's new National Socialist government, the Ministry was headed by Dr...
Joseph Goebbels
Joseph Goebbels
Paul Joseph Goebbels was a German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. As one of Adolf Hitler's closest associates and most devout followers, he was known for his zealous oratory and anti-Semitism...
presented the plan as Jewish manipulation of Allied policy, and so was able to use the plan to bolster the German resistance on the Western front.
Lindemann has been described as having "an almost pathological hatred for Nazi Germany, and an almost medieval desire for revenge was a part of his character".
Strategic bombing
Following the Air MinistryAir Ministry
The Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...
Area bombing directive
Area bombing directive
The Area Bombing Directive was a directive from the wartime British Government's Air Ministry to the Royal Air Force which ordered RAF bombers to attack the German industrial workforce and the morale of the German populace through bombing German cities and their civilian inhabitants.- Background...
on 12 February 1942, Lindemann presented in a paper on "Dehousing
Dehousing
On 30 March 1942 Professor Frederick Lindemann, Baron Cherwell, the British government's chief scientific adviser, sent to the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill a memorandum which after it had become accepted by the Cabinet became known as the dehousing paper.Also known as the "dehousing...
" to Churchill on 30 March 1942, which calculated the effects of area bombardment
Area bombardment
In military aviation, area bombardment is aerial bombardment targeted indiscriminately at a large area, such as a city block or an entire city.Area bombing is a form of strategic bombing...
by a massive bomber force of German cities to break the spirit of the people.
His proposal that "bombing must be directed to working class houses. Middle class houses have to much space round them, so are bound to waste bombs" changed accepted conventions of limiting civilian casualties in wartime. "It should be emphasized that the destruction of houses, public utilities, transport and lives, the creation of a refugee problem on an unprecedented scale, and the breakdown of morale both at home and at the battle fronts by fear of extended and intensified bombing, are accepted and intended aims of our bombing policy. They are not by-products of attempts to hit factories."
His dehousing paper was criticised by many other scientific minds in government service who felt such a force would be a waste of resources. Cherwell's paper was based on the false premise that bombing could cause a breakdown in society but was used in support of Bomber Command's claim for resources.
Lindemann also played a key part in the battle of the beams
Battle of the beams
The Battle of the Beams was a period early in the Second World War when bombers of the German Air Force used a number of increasingly accurate systems of radio navigation for night bombing. British "scientific intelligence" at the Air Ministry fought back with a variety of increasingly effective...
, championing countermeasures to the Germans use of radio navigation
Radio navigation
Radio navigation or radionavigation is the application of radio frequencies to determine a position on the Earth. Like radiolocation, it is a type of radiodetermination.The basic principles are measurements from/to electric beacons, especially...
to increase the precision of their bombing campaigns.
V2 Rocket
Lindemann also repeatedly made arguments against V-2 rocketV-2 rocket
The V-2 rocket , technical name Aggregat-4 , was a ballistic missile that was developed at the beginning of the Second World War in Germany, specifically targeted at London and later Antwerp. The liquid-propellant rocket was the world's first long-range combat-ballistic missile and first known...
evidence, such as inaccurately claiming "to put a four-thousand horsepower turbine in a twenty-inch space is lunacy: it couldn't be done, Mr. Lubbock" and that at the end of the war, the committee would find that the rocket was "a mare's nest".
Cherwell took the view that long-range military rockets were feasible only if they were propelled by solid fuels and would accordingly need to be of enormous size. He repeatedly rejected arguments that relatively compact liquid fuels could be used to propel such weapons. In fairness, "Cherwell had strong scientific grounds for doubting the forecasts that were being made of a 70-80 ton rocket with a 10 ton warhead."
A pivotal exchange where Churchill rebuffed Lindemann occurred at the Cabinet Defence Committee (Operations) meeting on 29 June 1943 and was dramatized in the film Operation Crossbow
Operation Crossbow (film)
Operation Crossbow is a British 1965 spy thriller and World War II film, made from a story from Duilio Coletti and Vittoriano Petrilli and filmed at MGM-British Studios...
.
Political career
In July 1941 Lindemann was raised to the peerage as Baron CherwellRiver Cherwell
The River Cherwell is a river which flows through the Midlands of England. It is a major tributary of the River Thames.The general course of the River Cherwell is north to south and the 'straight-line' distance from its source to the Thames is about...
, of Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
in the County of Oxford. The following year he was made Paymaster-General
Paymaster-General
HM Paymaster General is a ministerial position in the United Kingdom. The Paymaster General is in charge of the Office of HM Paymaster General , which held accounts at the Bank of England on behalf of Government departments and selected other public bodies...
by Churchill, an office he retained until 1945. In 1943 he was also sworn of the Privy Council. He enthusiastically supported the controversial Morgenthau Plan
Morgenthau Plan
The Morgenthau Plan, proposed by United States Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau, Jr., advocated that the Allied occupation of Germany following World War II include measures to eliminate Germany's ability to wage war.-Overview:...
, which Churchill subsequently endorsed on 15 September 1944. Following his 1945 return to Clarendon Laboratory
Clarendon Laboratory
The Clarendon Laboratory, located on Parks Road with the Science Area in Oxford, England , is part of the Physics Department at Oxford University...
, Lindemann created the Atomic Energy Authority
United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority
The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is a UK government research organisation responsible for the development of nuclear fusion power. It is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and was formerly chaired by Lady Barbara Judge CBE...
. When Churchill returned as Prime Minister in 1951, Lord Cherwell was once again appointed Paymaster-General, this time with a seat in the cabinet. He continued in this post until 1953. In 1956 he was made Viscount Cherwell, of Oxford in the County of Oxford.
Personal life
Lord Cherwell never married. He died in July 1957, aged 71, at which point the barony and viscountcy became extinct.Honours
- 1941 June 4: Raised to the peerage as Baron Cherwell
- 1943: Appointed a Privy CounsellorPrivy Council of the United KingdomHer Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
- 1953: Companion of Honour
- 1956: Created Viscount Cherwell
Further reading
- Obituary: The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, 4 July 1957 - Obituary: NatureNature (journal)Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
180, 579–581. - For the Nernst-Lindemann melting point equation, see