When first this order was ordain'd, my lords, Knights of the garter were of noble birth, Valiant and virtuous, full of haughty courage, Such as were grown to credit by the wars ; Not fearing death, not shrinking for distress, But always resolute in most extremes.
—Henry VI Though Winston Churchill is not strictly of noble birth, few Britons better fulfill Shakespeare's qualifications for membership in England's oldest chivalric order.
This week, in the first Garter service of her reign, Britain's young Queen Elizabeth formally installed 79-year-old Sir Winston as a Knight Companion.
For the occasion, Churchill, the only living commoner in...
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