HE IS often regarded as Britain’s greatest ever leader and was Oxfordshire born and bred.

Now a new exhibition promises to shed fresh light on Sir Winston Churchill and illustrate his strong links with the county.

The free exhibition, put on by the Soldiers of Oxfordshire Trust, launches at the Oxfordshire Museum, in Woodstock, tomorrow and runs for a year.

Previously unseen documents will be on display for the first time, along with photographs, books and a dispatch case Churchill used during his time as a minister.

Churchill was born less than a mile from the museum at Blenheim Palace in 1874 and is buried at St Michael’s Church in Bladon.

He left the Army in 1900 to pursue a political career but joined the Queen’s Own Oxfordshire Hussars in 1901 as a Territorial Army officer. He remained a member until his death in 1965.

Colonel Tim May is a former member of the regiment and led the Hussar’s contingent at Churchill’s funeral 44 years ago.

He said: “Churchill was an Oxfordshire man, spending much of his youth in the county.

“He would have seen the regiment at camp and social activities throughout the year.

“It was only natural for him to join them – it was almost a family regiment.

“He remained a staunch supporter all his life and this exhibition puts a slightly different light on the great man.”

Work restoring the Churchill family graves at Bladon was finished in 1998 and was reported to have cost £500,000.

Up to 40 coach loads of tourists can visit every day in summer, according to the Churchill Society.

Blenheim Palace is also one of Oxfordshire’s most popular tourist attractions, with about 400,000 visitors every year.

Oxfordshire Museum curator Cherry Gray said: “This excellent exhibition will provide a new dimension for visitors to the museum as there are so few items in our permanent collection relating to Sir Winston Churchill.

“I am sure the exhibition will be a big draw for the museum as it provides a fascinating insight into Churchill’s military links with Oxfordshire.”

Judith Heathcoat, Oxfordshire County Council’s cabinet member for safer and stronger communities, added: “The exhibition promises to be a fascinating insight into a lesser known side of one of the icons of recent British history.”

The Soldiers of Oxfordshire Trust was formed in 2000 to establish a museum in the county. It aims to improve accessibility to the “military heritage of the county”.

The exhibition is open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 10am to 5pm, and on Sundays between 2pm and 5pm.