Britain: Foreign & Imperial Affairs 1919-39
A. Farmer

Chapter One – The Making of British Foreign Policy

Britain’s Position in 1919

·         Lloyd George: “A land fit for heroes”

·         Loss of active male population:

§  Britain:                  5%

§  France                  10%

§  Germany             15%

·         Britain ended war with:

§  Army of 5,500,000 men

§  58 capital ships

§  Over 100 cruisers

§  20000 planes

·         Empire provided raw materials and 2,500,000 colonial troops

·         German fleet captured at Scapa Flow, empire lost, economy near collapse

·         Japan and Britain allied since 1902

·         In spite of millions of men being mobilised for armed forces, industrial output barely fell

·         Britain was owed more money than she owed America

Problems Facing British Statesmen in the Inter-war Years

·         PMs: Bonar Law, Stanley Baldwin, Ramsay MacDonald, Neville Chamberlain

·         Industrial Revolution ensured Britain was workshop and banking house before 1870

·         Economic and naval supremacy helped Britain acquire more extensive empire

·         Financial costs of war - £7,000,000 a day

·         Elevenfold increase in National Debt

·         1920s – British manufacturers had a poor export record, high rate of unemployment

·         Clear limits to amount Britain could afford to spend on defence

·         Left thought Britain should enforce decisions of the League of Nations

·         1913 – 30% Britain’s government expenditure had been on defence. 1933 - fallen to 10%

·         1930s army under 400,000 strong, RAF fifth largest in the world

·         1935 – one arms manufacturer (Vickers-Armstrong) was still in business

·         Baldwin (1932): ‘You will get nothing from America but words: big words but only words’

Who Made British Foreign Policy?

·         Feeling in House of Commons - Chamberlain would have found it difficult not to declare war.

·         1918 extension of franchise, larger electorate (rise of Labour)

·         Most wanted tax spent on health, social services and education

·         Collective security (League of Nations) popular

·         1937 over 1500 newspapers and 3000 weekly periodicals

·         Late 1930s – some 9 million homes owned a radio

·         Mid-1930s – over 4300 cinemas, 23 million people went at least once a week

·         1938 – Chamberlain: well-intentioned peacemaker supported by patriotic and united Britain.

·         Some historians think ‘elite’ controlled foreign policy in their own ‘class’ interests

·         British foreign policy was largely shaped and determined by actions on non-Britons

British Interests

·         Labour – come to terms with USSR, greater faith in disarmament and League of Nations

·         Majority of MPs supported appeasement

·         Foreign Office memorandum 4/26 - “keep what we have and live in peace… our foreign policy may appear to lack consistency and continuity, but both are there”

·         Maintain balance of power in Europe as best insurance against renewal of war

·         British interests were global rather than just continental

·         Defence policy based on four main objectives

§  Protection of essential British trade routes

§  Security of UK

§  Defence of the empire

§  Readiness to co-operate defence of British allies

·         Reverted to pre-war role of imperial police force

·         Appeasement can be used to cover every manifestation of British’s diplomacy between wars

·         Mainly Chamberlain’s policies to Germany 1937-38

Chapter Two – The Versailles Peace Settlement

Problems of Peace-Making

·         32 countries representing 75% world population assembled for Paris Peace Conference

·         Breakdown on German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman empires resulted in economic chaos, famine, outbursts of nationalism throughout central and Eastern Europe

·         Big Three held different views to ensure durable peace settlement

The Aims of the Peacemakers

·         Wilson talked terms of peace based on justice, equality and democracy

·         Wilson’s 14 Points: regarded as idealistic pipedreams by more hard-headed statesmen

·         All had to retain support of USA

·         Most people in Britain and France wanted a harsh peace

·         Even Wilson accepted Germany should pay compensations ‘for all damage’

·         All held very different views in part reflecting popular pressure to which they were subjected

·         French casualties were highest sustained by Allied powers

·         Germany should be reduced so all prospect of future military threat was eliminated

·         No more than Frenchman expected

·         Wilson was less interested in punishing Germany; no immediate military threat

·         Wilson primarily concerned with equitable and lasting system of international relations

·         Favoured League of Nations, principle of self-determination

·         Lloyd George was anxious to preserve Britain’s naval supremacy and enlarge Empire

·         1918 election campaign: expected Germany to pay “to the limit of her capacity”

·         Ready to destroy German militarism and support demands Kaiser should be hanged

·         Lloyd George conscious of danger of leaving an embittered Germany, inclined to leniency

·         Also feared if Germany was excessively humiliated she might be driven to arms of Bolsheviks

·         J.M. Keynes (on Lloyd George): “rooted in nothing” “void and without content”

·         Some believe principal aim was simply to win popularity at home

·         Others regard him as most inspired and creative British statesman of 20^th Century

·         Lloyd George found himself able to mediate between Clemenceau and Wilson

The Main Terms of the Treaty of Versailles

·         Territorial Changes

§  French frontier fixed on River Rhine

§  Germany should return Alsace-Lorraine

§  Rhineland occupied by Allies for 15 years

§  Saar region placed under League of Nations control for 15 years

§  Fourteen Points promised to create an independent Poland

§  French wanted strong Poland, supported most extreme Polish territorial claims

§  Danzig was made a Free City

§  1921 plebiscite – 1/3 of Upper Silesia went to Poland

§  Polish Corridor separated East Prussia from rest of Germany

§  Germany lost all colonies

§  Britain gained German East Africa and the Cameroons

§  Australia took New Guinea

§  South Africa acquired South-West Africa

§  New Zealand got Samoa

§  Japan took all German possessions in China and Pacific north

§  Lloyd George: “virtually a codification of existing British practice”

·         Armaments

§  No heavy artillery, tanks or aeroplanes

§  Army limited to 100,000 men

§  No capital ships and no submarines

§  Allied Control Commission was set up to police arrangements

·         Reparations and War Guilt

§  231 – “Germany accepts the responsibility of Germany and her allies for all the loss”

§  Provided moral basis for Allied demands for Germany to pay reparations

§  Terms of Armistice would pay compensation

§  Sir Auckland Geddes: “to squeeze the German lemon till the pips squeaked”

§  Should include merchant shipping losses and costs of pensions

§  1918 election Lloyd George promised to screw Germany “to the uttermost farthing”

§  1921 – Reparations Commission recommended sum of £6.6bn (Britain get 22%)

·         The League of Nations

§  Was Woodrow Wilson’s obsession

§  Germany should not be allowed to join

§  End of April 1919 – nobody had actually read the 440 clauses in full

§  Treaty of Versailles signed on 28^th June 1919

Criticisms of Versailles

·         Britain seemed to have gained what she wanted; German naval power destroyed

·         Britain and her Dominions acquired German colonies

·         British view – firm but just

·         German view – major departure from Wilson’s Fourteen Points

·         J.M. Keynes The Economic Consequences of the Peace – Wilson had been forced by a vindictive Clemenceau and scheming Lloyd George to over-harsh peace

·         Condemned unworkability of the reparations clauses

·         Germany lost 13% of pre-war territory and 10% of population

·         Wilson and Lloyd George had offered France a defensive alliance

·         US Senate refused to ratify the guarantee, British government did same

·         A.J.P. Taylor – Allies failure to solve German problem in 1919 that laid foundations to WW2

·         Others claim not the terms of Versailles but rather German hostility to the treaty

·         Adamthwaite: “brave attempt to deal with intractable, perhaps insoluble problems”

·         Lloyd George: “be there as a Court of Appeal to readjust crudities, irregularities, injustices”

·         League lacked enforcement powers

·         American Senate refused to ratify Treaty of Versailles, thus USA didn’t become a member

The Settlement of Eastern Europe

·         Late 1918 Habsburg Empire fallen

·         British and French statesmen would have liked to retain Habsburg Empire in some form

·         French favoured creation of sizeable, economically viable and strategically defensible states

·         1920 treaties:

§  Treaty of St Germain      Austria

§  Treaty of Trianon             Hungary

§  Treaty of Neuilly               Bulgaria

§  Treaty of Sevres                               Turkey

·         Austria’s population fell from 28 million to less than 8 million

·         Austria was left bitter and resentful

·         Social, economic and political tensions in almost every Eastern European state

Turkey

·         Treaty of Sevres signed in 1920

·         The Straits (linking Black Sea and Mediterranean) de-militaries

·         Arab areas of Ottoman Empire given as mandates to Britain and France

·         1922 – Turkish forces launched a major offensive in Asia Minor

·         Britain could expect no help from France and lukewarm support from British Dominions

·         End of September – Turkish forces reached Chanal, British base

·         The Turks agreed to respect the international zone

·         Treaty of Lausanne signed 1923

·         Turkey retained Eastern Thrace, Smyrna, the Aegean islands, no longer pay reparations

Chapter Three – The Illusion of Peace 1919-31

Introduction

·         Concerned with economic problems Law/Baldwin/MacDonald rejected adventurism

Anglo-Soviet Relations 1917-31

·         Hostility to Bolshevism

§  British left sympathised with communism and extolled proletarian triumph

§  General public opinion was hostile

§  Lenin made peace with Germany at Treaty of Brest Litovsk in March 1918

§  Russia had no intention of repaying the war debts due to Britain

§  Churchill:”the foul baboonery of Bolshevism”

§  March 1918 – Britain sent troops to Murmansk and Archangel to ensure war supplies didn’t fall into Bolshevik hands

§  Sent 30,000 troops and £100million

·         Divided Opinion in Britain

§  Left wing condemned British intervention in Russia

§  1920 Polish forces tried to take over Ukraine from Russia

§  London dockers refused to load ship carrying munitions bought by Polish gov’t

§  General support for a ‘Hands of Soviet Russia’ general strike

§  British Communist Party – 4000 members in 1920

§  Comintern founded in 1919 preached World Revolution

§  Comintern claimed Britain was spearhead of capitalist-imperialist aggression

§  Soviet government urged need for normal relations

·         Conciliatory Moves

§  March 1921 – Anglo-Soviet trade agreement, refrain from hostile propaganda

§  1922 World Economic Conference at Geneva

§  Treaty of Rapallo – substantial economic/military benefits to Germany and Russia

§  1924 – Labour Party came to power

§  August 1924 – Anglo-Soviet Agreement, guarantee a loan of £30,000,000

·         Anglo-Soviet Problems 1924-31

§  Baldwin did not ratify Anglo-Soviet Agreement

§  Soviet donation to Miners’ Federation during 1926 General Strike angered gov’t

§  1929 Labour gov’t restored diplomatic contacts, signed new commercial treaty 1930

The Problem of Italy

·         Ambitions in Mediterranean seemed to pose a direct threat to British Empire

·         Modest gains in Africa, annexed port of Fiume, strengthened Italy’s hold over Albania

The German Question in the 1920s

·         Allied Disagreement

§  Enforcement of Treaty required same determination as war had done

§  America divorced herself from events in Europe

§  Germany had 50% more people and four times France’s heavy industry

§  1920 – Channel Tunnel project was rejected by the Foreign Office

§  23 summit conferences were held 1920-22

§  British representatives urged the French to relax the provisions of Versailles

§  1920 and 1921 France occupied many German cities

§  Bonar Law and Baldwin wanted to adopt policies which would appease Germany

§  Wanted to reduce reparations and promote German economic recovery, help trade

§  Britain was owed 4x as much as she owed USA

·         The Occupation of the Ruhr

§  January 1923 – French and Belgian forces occupy Ruhr

§  Passive resistance – production stopped, economy collapsed, hyper-inflation

§  British exports soared and unemployment fell as German competition disappeared

§  April 1924 – Dawes Committee proposed payments reduced and extended

·         Locarno

§  Britain opposed French efforts to strengthen coercive powers of League of Nations

§  1925 – Chamberlain took up offer with German Foreign Minister Gustav Stresemann

§  September 1925 met at Locarno

§  Germany to be welcomed into League of Nations in 1926

§  Germany’s western frontiers with France and Belgium accepted as final

§  Frontiers should not be altered by force

§  Locarno Pact was seen as a diplomatic triumph and a great landmark

§  Chamberlain, Briand and Stresemann were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

§  1926 – Chief of Staff revealed no plans to give substance to new obligations

§  Locarno Pact did not denote any fundamental change in British policy

§  1927 – French construction of Maginot Line

§  1928 – Kellogg-Briand Pact outlawing war

§  1929 – Young Plan extended period of reparation payments by 60 years

§  Britain and France agreed to end occupation of Rhineland 5 years early

The League of Nations

·         Britain, France, Italy and Japan had permanent seats of Council of the League

·         Council made majority of League’s decisions

·         Article 16 – if member went to war, other states impose economic sanctions/military action

·         Many believed no aggressor would dare risk war with the 50 League states

·         Few Tory politicians really disputed in its efficacy for solving international disputes

·         Military leaders pointed out League had no army of its own

·         Most politicians wanted it to be an instrument for peaceful adjustment of international boundaries and other disputed matters

·         Geneva Protocol – dispute to arbitration/rejecting decision of arbitrator would be regarded as an aggressor and liable to economic sanctions/military force

·         Geneva Protocol rejected by Conservative government 1925

·         Wide range of humanitarian and economic activities

·         Leagues’ status further enhanced when Germany joined

Disarmament

·         1919 – Allies disarmed Germany

·         By 1932 Britain was spending £102million on defence, compared with £760million 1919-20

·         Naval Disarmament

§  American naval building programme aimed to create fleet larger than Royal Navy

§  America wanted Anglo-Japanese treaty of 1902 to end

§  Washington Naval Agreement, no of capital ships allowed:

ü  USA                       5

ü  Britain                   5

ü  Japan                    3

ü  Italy                       1.75

ü  France                  1.75

§  1902 alliance replaced by Four Power Treaty signed by Britain, USA, France, Japan

§  Britain no longer had naval superiority

§  Avoided a wasteful and unnecessary naval race

§  1927 – attempt to limit number of cruisers broke down

§  1930 – USA, Britain and Japan agreed to limit cruisers to 10:10:7

§  Prolong the moratorium on the building of capital ships for a further five years

·         Military Disarmament

§  1926 - Preparatory Commission on Disarmament (mutual suspicion)

Conclusion

·         Friendly feeling existed towards Germany following Locarno

·         By 1931 Germany had secured substantial revision of the Treaty of Versailes

Chapter Four – The Empire 1919-39

The British Empire in 1919

·         Lord Curzon ‘18 “The British flag has never flown over a more powerful and united empire”

·         ¼ of world’s land surface was part of British Empire, no competition

·         Had financial and commercial pre-eminence in many areas

·         Small uprisings e.g. Egypt 1919

·         Few questioned the moral and technical superiority of Britain’s civilisation

·         By 1919 some countries acquired a large degree of independence

The Importance of the Empire 1919-39

·         Empire was increasing important to Britain’s trading position

·         Imports from the Empire:

§  1910-14                25%

§  1935-39                39.5%

·         Exports to the Empire:

§  1910-14                36%

§  1935-39                49%

·         1926 – an Empire Marketing Board set up to ‘bring the Empire alive’

·         Some saw Empire as solution to economic problems and an antidote to socialism

·         Imperialist groups such as Royal Empire Society and British Empire Union set up

·         Empire Day 24^th May

·         Feature films such as The Drum and The Four Feathers gave a positive image of Empire

Imperial Weaknesses

·         The Dominions were more or less self-governing

·         Status of other 80 territories differed

·         Most had governor who has small council for day-to-day policy and larger assembly to give legal validity to laws and taxes

·         Dominion Office dealt with Dominions

·         Indian Viceroy supervised by India Office

·         Rest over-seen by Colonial Office

·         Grandiose schemes for an imperial economic system never matures

·         Africa and Asia new educated elites increasingly resented British rule

·         Anti-British riots in Egypt 1919

·         Expenditure on imperial defence rather than welfare was seen in Britain’s best interest

·         Britain’s old industries: textiles, iron, steel, engineering – less competitive.

·         Other industries slow to develop

·         British army under 200,000 strong

·         From 1860s Irish nationalists had been vociferously demanding home rule

·         1916 – role in rebellion in Dublin (‘Easter rising’)

·         1918 general election – Sinn Fein set up Irish Parliament in Dublin, declared independence

·         British government prepared to use terror against the terrorists

·         Economic situation: Britain’s dependence on imported food, need for export markets = reason for maintenance of Empire

·         Decolonisation after 1945 was effected by course and impact of WW2

The Dominions

·         The Situation in 1919

§  Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Free Irish State after 1922

§  Had own parliaments

§  Britain still controlled their foreign policies

§  Decision for Dominions to go to war was taken by British Cabinet alone

§  Dominions were represented separately at Paris Peace Conference and League

§  1917 – Lloyd George established an Imperial War Cabinet

§  Dominion leaders met in Conference in London

·         Disunity

§  Not prepared to accept limits of freedom ‘continuous consultation’ would involve

§  1922 Chanak crisis – Britain could not expect automatic support from Dominions

§  Diplomatic unity of British Commonwealth was fiction

§  1923 – Canada signed fishing agreement with USA without reference to Britain

§  1930s most Dominion leaders favoured appeasement

·         The Balfour Declaration and Statute of Westminster

§  1926 – Commonwealth Conference agreed on Balfour Declaration

§  Dominion “Autonomous communities within the British Empire, equal in status”

§  Churchill had no sympathy with idea of imperial unity by free cooperation

§  Almost unanimous chorus of approval to Balfour Report

§  Statute of Westminster 1931 – Dominions given right to change own constitution

·         Imperial Preference

§  1932 – Britain officially abandoned free triage, introduced Import Duties Act, (imposing 10% tariff on imports”

·         Britain’s Relations with the Dominions

§  1932 – Fianna Fail became largest party in Ireland

§  De Valera wanted a united and independent Ireland

§  End of 1932 – ‘trade war’ (increasing duties against goods from each other)

§  1937 – new Irish Constitution laid claim to all 32 countries of Ireland

§  South Africa 1924 – coming to power of Nationalist Party

·         Loyalty to the Mother Country

§  British government spent £6m encouraging emigration to Dominions in 1920s

§  Britain remained vital market and important source of capital

§  1939 Mr Menzies of Australia immediately announced they too were at war

§  1939 South Africa supported a policy of neutrality

§  General Smuts forced a debate, majority for war 80 votes to 67

§  Only EIRE stood for neutrality

India

·         The Situation in 1919

§  1921 – 150,000 Europeans living in India, ruling native population of 250m

§  10 provinces under direct British administration

§  Most of India ruled by Indian princes with whom British had treaties

§  Acute poverty and ignorance were massive

§  Afghan invasion in 1919 was easily defe4ated

§  Indian National Congress Party, formed in 1880s, supported independence for India

§  Muslim League founded in 1906

§  Political concessions were demanded as price for continued support in war

§  Few people believed India was ready for real democracy

§  1919 Government of India Act – Indians allowed some power to determine policy

§  Viceroy given power to legislate by decree for six months in case of emergency

·         Gandhi and Passive Resistance

§  Qualified as barrister in London

§  1915 – Joined Congress Party

§  Devised and instigated new methods of civil disobedience to disrupt British rule:

ü  Days of fasting and prayer

ü  Refusal to pay taxes

ü  Boycotting of British goods

ü  Deliberate flouting of law

§  Often spilled into violence (Gandhi seen as a hypocrite)

·         Amritsar

§  1918-19 – economic problems, global influenza epidemic killed millions of Indians

§  Rowlatt Acts gave provincial governors power to imprison without trial

§  Amritsar, Punjab region – several Europeans killed in rioting

§  13/4/1919 – defiance of a ban on public meetings, large crowd assembled. Soldiers were ordered by General Dyer to fire. 379 people killed, 1200 wounded

§  Official enquiry criticised Dyer

§  Many saw him as ‘saviour of India’ and fund to pay defence costs raised £26000

·         Talk of Reform

§  Less dependent on London

§  1927 – review of workings of 1919 Act led by Sir John Simon (no Indian members)

§  Dominion status was ‘natural issue of India’s constitutional progress’

§  Churchill found himself at odds with Baldwin, resigning from shadow cabinet

§  Churchill not included in new administration until after outbreak of war 1939

§  1930 - Gandhi’s 241 mile march make salt without paying salt tax attracted attention

§  World-wide slump in agricultural prices effected Indian peasantry who were concerned with rent and interest rates rather than home rule

·         The 1935 Government of India Act

§  Envisaged all-India federation including princely states

§  Would be elected Indian parliament, British viceroy remain head of state

§  Widening of franchise

·         The Outbreak of the Second World War

§  Viceroy Lord Linlithgow announced India at war without consulting Indian leaders

§  Congress leaders refused support unless it could participate as an independent state

§  Called on all Congress provincial governments to resign office

British Dependencies

·         1919 – 80 British colonies/dependencies

·         Most cases economy was primitive

·         Little pressure for ‘home rule’

·         Colonies thought too valuable to be voluntarily given up

·         Only colonial people granted self-rule: 30,000 whites ruling 1m blacks (Southern Rhodesia)

·         Colonial governors had considerable freedom and often acted without reference to London

·         Colonial rule had to rely upon locally recruited subordinates

·         Official gov’t policy – colonies should be financially self supporting

The Middle East

·         British Influence

§  Security of Suez Canal was fundamental

§  Discovery of oil made region important economically

§  Few politicians supported T.E. Lawrence who dream of Arab states becoming “our first brown dominions and not our last brown colonies”

§  Interference with local society was generally kept to a minimum

·         Egypt, Iraq and Trans-Jordan

§  1922 – Egypt’s independence, Sultan became King Fuad I

§  1936 – Egypt control over its own army, 10,000 British troops in Suez Canal Zone

§  1922 – Iraq granted independence

§  Mandate formally ended 1930, Iraq accepted presence of British military bases

·         Palestine

§  1917 Balfour – “establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish People”

§  1925 – Considerable Jewish immigration

§  1929 – Serious anti-Jewish riots

§  1930 – White Paper proposed limit on future Jewish immigration – no further action

§  Palestine seen as Jewish sanctuary

§  1936 – Arab revolt

§  1937 – Peel Commission recommended partition into Arab and Jewish state

§  1939 – White Paper abandoned idea of partition; unpopular with Arabs

§  Jewish immigration limited to 10,000 a year for 5 years, additional 25,000 in 1^st year

·         Conclusion

§  Pre-1939  Britain confident she could preserve her dominance

Chapter Five – The Gathering Storm 1931-6

Depression and Disarmament

·         Depression

§  From 1931 there were to be increasing threats to international peace

§  1929 – Coal, textile, shipbuilding, iron, steel industries badly affected

§  Trade fell by 10%

§  By 1932 – 20% of British work force was unemployed

§  1931 – Britain was forced to come off Gold Standard

§  8/1931 – general election asked electors asked to give National Gov’t free hand

§  National Gov’t won 554 MPs against 61 (largest majority)

§  Conservatives won 473 seats – 75% of House of Commons

§  Depression encouraged all countries to think of themselves

§  Import Duties Act 2/32 imposed 10% tax on imported goods not from Empire

§  Established imperial economic bloc

·         Disarmament

§  Reluctant to maintain defence expenditure

§  Labour/Liberal politicians for disarmament as the chief element of foreign policy

§  8/1933 – East Fulham by-election a Conservative was defeated by a pacifist

§  1933 Oxford Union resolved 257-153 “this house will not fight for King or Country”

§  World Disarmament Conference met at Geneva in February 1932

§  French leaders were not prepared to reduce forces without guarantees of security

·         Increasing Problems

§  Germany – 5,000,000 unemployed in 1932

§  June 1932 – met at Lausanne.

§  Germany agreed to final payment of 2.6m marks to European Reconstruction Fund

§  Depression made some countries more peaceful

§  Others undermined democracy, led to gov’ts coming to power which favoured war and foreign conquest as means of acquiring new lands, markets and raw materials

The Problem of Japan

·         1920s – Japan major imperial power

·         Secured Formosa from China in 1895, Korea from Russia in 1905, German colonies in China and pacific north after 1918

·         Japan was nominally a constitutional monarchy governed by liberal coalitions

·         Japanese disappointed by their gains from WW1, favoured expansion

·         Territorial expansion could provide raw materials Japan lacked

·         September 1931 – units in Japanese army seized a number of points in Manchuria

·         China appealed to League of Nations – fear Article 16, all to war. Economic sanctions.

·         China did not immediately appeal to invoke Article 16.

·         League of Nations did little, appeal to China and Japan to refrain from worsening situation

·         February 1932 – Japan occupy whole of Manchuria

·         British politicians were critical of Japan, particularly when Chinese forces were attacked near Shanghai (Singapore had oil). Not prepared to recognise Manchukuo

·         Japan had brought prosperity to part of Manchuria she controlled

·         1931-2 British forces in Far East small. Singapore and Hong Kong undefended

·         British navy wasn’t strong enough to enforce sanctions

·         USA, Japan’s biggest trading partner, didn’t support League actions

·         October 1932 – Lytton Commission – accepted Japan’s grievances condemned  methods

·         Recommended Manchuria should have autonomous status under Chinese supervision (42:1)

·         Britain accepted Japan’s take-over and hoped Japanese threat wouldn’t develop

·         ’10 Year Rule’ –assumption that no major war would occur in 10 years abandoned

·         Neville Chamberlain was keen to r4estore friendly relations with Japan ASAP

·         This might reduce cost of improving defences to combat Japan

·         Japan made it clear she would end existing naval agreements and increase navy

·         Anti-Comintern Pact, November 1936 (Germany-Japan) alarmed Britain. Although  aimed against USSR, posed threat to Britain

The Problems of Germany

·         Adolf Hitler

§  1933 – Hitler comes to power

§  End restrictions on German rearmament and her right to remilitarise the Rhineland

§  Aim for lebensraum (living space) for Germany in east, at the expense of Russia

§  In Mein Kampf he spoke of Britain as a potential ally

§  A.J.P. Taylor I The Origins of the Second World War – claimed Hitler was an ordinary German statesman with a rather ordinary mission

§  Most think Hitler was a clear and cold-blooded general purpose

§  Sir Robert Vansittart, civil servant in Foreign Office, warned ministers in 1933

§  Defence Requirements Committee 1934: ‘We take Germany as the ultimate potential enemy against whom out long-range defensive policy must be directed’

§  Some thought Britain should help German recovery

§  This was supported by Bank of England and Board of Trade

·         Hitler’s First Moves 1933-4

§  Hitler admired Britain, hoped ‘two great Germanic nations’ could work together

§  October 1933 – Germany withdraw from League and Disarmament Conference

§  Excuse was neither treated Germany as equal

§  Churchill 1934 “Germany is arming fast and no one is going to stop her”

§  Sir John Simon 1934 “Germany already has in effect a fleet of 600 military aeroplanes and facilities for its very rapid expansion… three times as great as that authorised by the treaty”

§  In 1934 Britain began to spend more money on the RAF

§  Labour: rearmament “jeopardising the prospects of international disarmament”

§  1934 – French push ahead the building of Maginot Line

§  Italy rushed 100,000 troops to Austrian border as warning against Hitler

§  Hitler did nothing to help the Austrian Nazis and the putsch failed

·         Germany Rearms

§  March 1935 – Hitler declared Germany had air force, introduction of conscription

§  Germany army would be increased to about 500,000 men

§  Heads of gov’t and foreign ministers of Britain, France, Italy met at Stresa April 1935

§  Agreement known as Stresa Front

§  May 1935 – France and Russia concluded treaty of mutual assistance

§  June 1935 – Britain signed a Naval Agreement with Germany (right to build up to 35% of Britain’s capital ships and to be allowed parity in submarines)

§  Seemed to be condoning Germany’s rearmament after Stresa Front’s condemnation

§  In 1935 it had approval of Admiralty, Foreign Office and entire Cabinet

§  Given Japanese threat Britain had no wish to face a greater danger in home waters

§  Britain maintained a naval superiority twice as great as in 1914

§  Nazi dictatorship was unpopular in many quarters in Britain, especially on the left

The Problems of Italy 1935-6

·         Anglo-Italian Relations before 1935

§  Mussolini had ambitions of making Mediterranean an ‘Italian lake’

§  Mediterranean was seen as vital to British trade routes

§  Italy saw herself as a ‘have-not’ power rather than committed to status quo

§  By 1935, Italy wanted to increase Italian Empire in Africa by taking over Abyssinia

§  1934 – skirmish over border water-holes at Wal Wal, excuse to prepare attack 8/35

·         March

§  January 1935 – Laval visited Rome, promised Mussolini free hand in Abyssinia

§  No ‘formal’ mention of Abyssinia in Stresa Conference April 1935

§  Britain made it clear - not approve of Italian annexation of whole of Abyssinia

§  June 1935 – Stanley Baldwin replaced MacDonald as Prime Minister

§  Vansittart considered Germany main threat to Britain – appease Italy

§  Abyssinian Emperor, Selassie, prepared to accept some loss of land

·         British Reaction to the Italian Invasion of Abyssinia

§  Britain had unsuccessfully opposed Abyssinia’s entry into League 1923

§  Public opinion in Britain strongly opposed Italian invasion

§  Peace Ballot 1934  - 11,500,000 votes, 95% thought Britain should stay in League

§  Imports from Italy exports to her banned by virtually all members of League

§  70% of Italy’s trades was with League members

§  Labour and National Gov’t supported collective security, benefits of disarmament

§  National Gov’t won a handsome victory, 11.8 million votes winning 432 seats

§  Britain and France applied trade embargo against Italy

§  Hoare-Laval Plan

ü  Italy would receive one third of Abyssinia

ü  Selassie would remain Emperor and be ceded strip of Italian territory

ü  Plan was leaked to press, storm of indignation

§  Hoare said he had no regrets and claimed policy offered best solution

§  March 1936 – Britain voted for oil sanctions but refused naval blockade

·         The Situation by 1936

§  May 1936 – Selassie fled and Abyssinia became part of Italian Empire

§  June 1936 – Chamberlain: continuation of sanctions ‘midsummer of madness’

§  Abyssinian crisis death blow to League of Nations; failed to deter or halt aggressor

§  Mussolini felt bitter at the way he had been treated by western powers

§  Churchill’s view – failure to check Mussolini was step on way to world war

§  Britain failed to uphold collective security of appease Mussolini

The Rhineland, Spain and Rearmament

·         The Rhineland

§  March 1936 – German remilitarise Rhineland, violating Versailles and Locarno

§  Excuse was ratification of 1935 Franco-Soviet alliance, claimed it was a threat

§  German forces had orders to withdraw at first sign of French opposition

§  France had forces available, unstable political situation made call to arms unlikely

§  British opinion: Regrettable matter, not particularly threatening

§  Lord Lothian: Germany had every right to walk into its own ‘backyard’

§  German troops began to build fortifications along French frontier

§  Many historians regard Rhineland was ‘last chance’ to stop Hitler without war

§  Only a few British politicians, e.g. Churchill, pressed for resolute stand

§  Eden – much to gain by accepting German move and take seriously Hitler’s new proposals for a 25-year non-aggression pact

§  Britain and Germany remained on reasonably good terms between 1936-7

§  Germany continued to rearm but not to scale that many in west believed

·         The Spanish Civil War

§  Right-wing nationalists, led by General Franco, supported by monarchists, Catholic Church and most of armed forces

§  2000 from Britain went to Spain to enjoy International Brigade against Franco

§  Britain’s aim was to prevent war spreading, becoming a general European conflict

§  Non-Intervention Committee discouraged intervention on either side

§  League of Nations was largely ignored

§  Mussolini supplied aircraft, armaments, 100,000 men to help Nationalists

§  Germany sent fewer men, used it to test value of new weapons/military techniques

§  Russia sent men and weapons in effort to help communists on Republican side

§  Forces of communism against the forces of fascism

§  Civil war lasted three years

§  Many in Britain were convinced that should a general war occur, the line-up would be on ideological grounds rather than on grounds of ‘national interest’

§  Let to improved relations between Italy and Germany

§  November 1936 – Mussolini proclaimed Rome-Berlin Axis

§  1937 – Italy joined Germany and Japan in Anti-Comintern Pact

·         Rearmament

§  Germany rearming, Italy potential threat in Mediterranean, Japan had large army

§  League system was bankrupt

§  Extra military spending would mean sacrificing more popular programmes

§  1935 Defence White Paper concluded “Additional expenditure on the armaments of the three Defence Services can no longer be postponed”

§  1936 Minister for Co-ordination of Defence, Sir Thomas Inskip appointed

§  Cherwell described appointment as: “the most cynical thing that has been done since Caligula appointed his horse as a consul”

§  1936 – four-year plan for rearmament including tax on tea

§  Introduction of conscription in 1939

§  Prepare for several different types of war: colonial/naval/great European war

§  Air defences were concern, far less money was spent on army

§  Gov’t began to stockpile strategic materials, detailed plans - economic mobilisation

§  Economic rearmament was hidden from public

§  Britain’s population was small (47m, Germany’s was 67m)

§  Rearmament was a slow and limited process

§  Treasury officials and military experts realised economic strength, 4^th arm of defence

§  Churchill favoured defence spending, ignoring constraints of industrial capability

Chapter Six – Chamberlain and Appeasement: 1937-8

Neville Chamberlain

·         Background

§  1937 Stanley Baldwin retired

§  Chamberlain wasn’t a politician until 1918 when he was nearly 50

§  Was patriots who wedded idea of British Empire, hated socialism

§  Baldwin had lacked dynamism, after 1935 accused of allowing policy to drift

§  Determined to control foreign policy not civil servants, Foreign Secretary or Cabinet

§  His leadership was autocratic

·         Aims

§  Those who supported appeasement seen as ‘Guilty men’ after WW2

§  Chamberlain seen as Guilty Man Number 1

§  Many historians now view appeasement in a more positive light

§  As Chancellor had been good at noting interconnections of foreign/financial policy

§  War “wins nothing, cures nothing, ends nothing”

§  Believed that settlement of many grievances of Germany/Italy/Japan was possible

§  Had been a businessman, liked idea of face-to-face business-like discussions

§  1930s France ruled by weak and short-lived gov’t, Chamberlain had no confidence

§  1930s USA was overwhelming isolationist, had no wish for foreign entanglements

§  Neutrality Acts preventing USA from selling arms/giving loans to countries in war

§  USA would not stand against Japanese aggression

§  Canada and South Africa reluctant to be involved in European problems

§  Australia and New Zealand more worried about threat from Japan

§  Chamberlain believed Hitler “utterly untrustworthy and dishonest”

§  Until adequately armed “we must adjust our foreign policy to our circumstances and even bear with patience and good humour actions which we would like to treat in a very different fashion”

§  Suspicious of Foreign Office, claimed in private it has “no imagination [or] courage”

§  Sir Nevile Henderson – British ambassador in Berlin

§  Winston Churchill was the most prominent anti-appeaser

§  Churchill seen as a right-wing maverick and war-monger

§  Labour proposed no real alternative course of action

§  They preached a strong policy supported only by strong words

The Problem of Japan 1937-9

·         July 1937 – Chinese-Japanese hostility escalated into full-scale war

·         Japan proclaimed her intention of securing new order in East Asia

·         USA showed no signs of wanting to play a decisive role in East Asia

·         Fear of Japanese aggression = Britain wanted to conciliate Italy and Germany

Chamberlain’s Initiatives in Europe 1937-8

·         July 1937 – impossible to fight Germany, Italy and Japan

·         Only solution was separating these powers by diplomatic means

·         Autumn 1937 – Chamberlain sent Lord Halifax to visit Hitler

·         Britain was ready to consider giving Germany some colonies in Africa

·         Britain continued to provide Germany considerable economic assistance

·         January 1938 – Chamberlain imitated Anglo-Italian talks but outcome was inconclusive

·         Eden felt his authority as Foreign Secretary was being undermined

·         Eden disliked Chamberlain’s attempts to appease Mussolini

·         Eden: Mussolini “complete gangster whose pledged word means nothing”

·         Eden resigned in February 1938, replaced by Lord Halifax

·         Replaced anti-German Sir Robert Vansittart with Under-Secretary of State Sir Alec Cadogan

·         April 1938 – Britain would recognise Italy in Abyssinia for withdrawing troops from Spain

·         Spring 1938 German actions in central Europe assumed greater significance

The Anschluss

·         Since 1934 – Austrian gov’t struggled to keep Austrian Nazis under control

·         Until 1936 gov’t had support of Italy. Closer Italy/Germany became, less support for Austria

·         February 1938 – Austrian Chancellor visited Hitler at Berchtesgaden

·         Seyss-Inquart, Austrian Nazi leader became Minister of Interior

·         Plebiscite enabled Austrian people decide whether they wished to become part of Germany

·         Germany invaded; feared plebiscite would go against him

·         Chamberlain was not opposed to the Anschluss but the way it happened

·         France without gov’t simply protested

The Problem of Czechoslovakia

·         The Situation in Czechoslovakia

§  Creation of Czechoslovakia has been “affront to self-determination” (Churchill)

§  Half of 15m population had been Czechs

ü  2m Slovaks

ü  750,000 Hungarians

ü  500,000 Ruthenians

ü  100,000 Poles

ü  3.25m Germans (mostly in Sudetenland)

§  Nazi press increasingly bitter attacks on Czech gov’t

§  Benes – if all ethnic groups were given independence, Czechoslovakia wouldn’t exist

§  Czechoslovakia had preserved a democratic constitution

§  It treated its minorities better than other countries

§  Churchill thought Czechoslovakia was worth fighting for, Chamberlain didn’t

§  Chamberlain had sympathy for Sudeten Germans

§  Wanted Sudetenland given to Germany without force

·         Chamberlain’s Policy

§  Britain had no Treaty obligation to defend Czechoslovakia

§  Chamberlain 3/1938: “abandoned any idea of giving guarantees to Czechoslovakia”

§  Early spring 1938 Hitler had appeared to have no designs on Czechoslovakia

§  Chamberlain’s main policy was to get concessions from Czech gov’t without force

§  This had support of Lord Halifax, Cabinet and Foreign Office

·         Increased Tension

§  Czech gov’t wasn’t in any mood to make concessions

§  May – after false reports of German movements, Czech mobilised reserves

§  May crisis critical factor into persuading Hitler towards military confrontation

§  “It is my unalterable decision to smash Czechoslovakia by military action”

§  It might be a way by which France could escape from responsibilities of its alliance

§  August – mission by Lord Runciman met the vaious parties, no agreement

§  British intelligence suggested Germany planning war early autumn

§  Inconceivable Czechoslovakia would give up large amount of territory

§  Czechoslovakia quickly declared martial law

The Munich Conference

·         Plan Z

§  Chamberlain would fly to meet Hitler face-to-face and ask what his demands were

§  Chamberlain: the proposal was “unconventional and daring that it rather took Halifax’s breath away”

§  Plan Z received “unanimous and enthusiastic” approval from Cabinet

§  Accepted Hitler’s main demands that areas with German majority given to Germany

§  Cabinet and French won over with comparative ease

§  Czech government appalled at situation

·         Godesberg

§  22/9/38 – Chamberlain flew back to Germany

§  Hitler demanded to right to occupy the Sudetenland by no later than 1 October

§  Cabinet, angry at Hitler’s bullying tactics, rejected Godesberg proposals

§  France would honour commitments to Czechoslovakia

§  Britain and France began to mobilise

ü  Trenches dug in London parks

ü  38 million gas masks distributed

§  Chamberlain’s personal envoy Horace Wilson went to talk to Hitler – failed

§  27/9 British ambassador in Italy asked Mussolini to use his influence

·         Munich

§  Hitler accepted Mussolini’s suggestion of Four-Power Conference

§  29/9 Chamberlain, Daldier, Hitler and Mussolini met at Munich

§  12 hours of talks – early hours of 30^th September

§  German occupation of Sudetenland was to be carried out in 5 stages over 10 days

Munich: Success of Failure?

·         Many historians think Chamberlain was outplayed by Hitler

·         German military superiority over western powers would never again be so great

·         1938 – most people in Britain and France thought of Munich as a triumph

·         President Roosevelt sent Chamberlain telegram with words “Good man”

·         Germany was not as strong in 1938. Short of

§  Tanks

§  Fuel

§  Ammunition

§  Trained officers

§  Reserves

§  Luftwaffe was not ready or able to launch serious attack

·         French army was still best in Europe

·         Neither France or Britain were prepared for war

·         Britain had few fighter aircraft and little radar defence

·         Britain lacked support of several of her Dominions

The Aftermath of Munich

·         In private, Chamberlain regretted using terms “peace with honour” and “peace for our time”

·         It might be possible to make progress “along the road to sanity”

·         Churchill described it as “total and unmitigated disaster”

·         Duff Cooper, First Lord of the Admiralty resigned. 30 Conservatives abstained

·         Daily Worker, Reynolds News, Manchester Guardian had reservations.

·         Majority of newspapers supported

·         Poll results

§  10/1938                believing Hitler                                                  93% No

§  10/1938                increased expenditure on armaments   72% Yes

§  02/1939                Views on appeasement                                                46% Give us time

·         December 1938 Franco-German agreement expressing mutual goodwill, respect frontiers

·         Hitler made a number of anti-British speeches

·         German press continued to make venomous attacks on Britain

Chapter Seven – The Coming War 1939

The Uneasy Peace, January-March 1939

·         February, Cabinet agreed that a German attack on Holland/Switzerland = declaration of war

·         Britain drew closer to France

·         British not prepared to repeat great “effort of blood” made in WW1

·         Chamberlain: France “never can keep a secret for more than half an hour – nor a government for more than nine months”

·         November 1938 – British Chief of Staffs opposed to conducting talks with France

·         Britain committed itself to raising an army of 32 divisions

·         Best policy was “to hope for the best but be prepared for the worst”

·         Rearmament had long been geared to reach its peak in 1939-40

·         Production of aircraft increased from 240 a month in 1938 to 660 a month in 1939

·         9/1938 only Thames estuary had radar, 9/1939 – radar chain from Orkneys to Isle of Wight

·         11/38 – Sir John Anderson brought into Cabinet, in charge of air raid precautions

·         Britain and France’s economic strength and power of naval blockade should ensure victory

·         Chamberlain was much more confident of Britain’s capacity to fight

The End of Czechoslovakia

·         Slovaks had little love for Czech-dominated state

·         Early March President Hacha proclaimed martial law

·         Hitler met Hacha on 15^th March

·         Hacha suffered minor heart attack

·         15^th March – German troops entered Czechoslovakia, pretext that it was on verge of civil war

·         German protectorate Bohemia and Moravia. Slovakia independent under German protection

·         Hitler ignored Munich agreement, broken signed agreement with Chamberlain, dismembered neighbour without warning or provocation

·         Czechoslovakia collapsed because of internal disruption

·         This freed British government of any obligation

·         “No reliance could be placed on any of the assurances given by the Nazi leaders”

The Polish Guarantee

·         German-Polish Relations

§  21^st March – Lithuania returned Memel. Britain/France took no action

§  800,000 Germans in Poland

§  Danzig 96% German, although a Free City had been run by Nazis since 1934

§  No German gov’t was likely to accept Danzig solution as permanent

§  German-Polish non-aggression treaty in 1934

§  October 1938 – Ribbentrop asked Poles to give up Danzig. In return Poland receive border guarantees, German friendship and territory in Ukraine

§  1/1939 – Hitler met Colonel Beck demanding road/rail link across Polish Corridor

§  Hitler admitted wasn’t all he wanted – needed Poland’s economic/labour resources

·         The Guarantee: Wise or Foolish?

§  31^st March – Britain offered guarantee to Poland

§  Poland was a right-wing military dictatorship

§  Until 1939 Poland had few friends except Germany

§  Poland had distanced herself from League of Nations, accepted Japanese/Italian expansion, won territory from Czechoslovakia in 1938-9

§  Chamberlain did not see the guarantee as a total commitment of Poland

§  March 1939 Hitler’s Chief of Staff prepare for war with Poland by end of August

The Drift to War

·         Mussolini’s Actions

§  April 1939 – Italian forces occupied Albania

§  Definite breach of Anglo-Italian agreement

§  Chamberlain hoped Mussolini would be restraining influence on Hitler

§  ‘Pact of Steel’ – further military alliance May 1939 between Italy and Germany

·         The Mood in Britain

§  Public opinion – standing firm

§  Faster rearmament, alliance with USSR, broadening National Gov’t inc. Churchill

§  March 1939 – doubling of territorial army

§  April 1939 – Conscription

·         Hitler’s Actions

§  5/1939 – Told generals intended to attack Poland “at the first available opportunity”

§  June 1939 – Goebbels conducted anti-British campaign

·         Chamberlain’s Position

§  Japan imposed a blockade on Tietsin, important centre of British trade in China

Anglo-Soviet Relations

·         Relations 1931-8

§  USSR seen as hostile and dangerous to traditional British values and interests

§  Faced with Nazi threat abandoned hostility to League, supporting collective security

§  1935 USSR signed defence pacts with France and Czechoslovakia

§  Russia’s appeal international conference after Anschluss dismissed as premature

·         Chamberlain’s Policy in 1939

§  Chamberlain, March 1939: “profound distrust of Russia”

§  He believed policy of encirclement might lead to rather than prevent war

§  80% of Russia’s senior army officials killed/imprisoned in purges

§  F.A. Voight: “persons living even under the Nazi terror could hardly conceive of such a thing” (terror in Russia)

§  Opinion polls:

ü  Side would you see win                                                Russia:Germany               85:15

ü  Fascism vs Communism                                                Communism                      74%

ü  UK/USSR more friendly                                 Yes                                         84%

ü  Military alliance UK/USSR/France             Yes                                         84%

·         Anglo-Soviet Negotiations in 1939

§  April 1939 Chamberlain agrees to negotiations with Russia

§  Favoured ‘association’ not fully-fledged Soviet alliance

§  Halifax invited to Moscow declined invitation. Eden offered, turned down

§  British mission led by Admiral Reginald Alymer Ranfurly Pluckertt-Ernle-Erle-Drax

§  Did not see why Russian troops in Poland should be necessary or desirable

·         The Nazi-Soviet Pact

§  Nazi-Soviet agreement made no sense in ideological terms

§  January 1939 – German diplomats began to make overtures to Russia

§  23/8/1939 – Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact signed

§  Stalin’s PoV Nazi-Soviet Pact best to protect Soviet interests

The Outbreak of War

·         Chamberlain believed Britain, France and Poland strong enough to deter Hitler

·         22^nd August sent letter to Hitler stating if German attacked Poland Britain would fight

·         52/8/1939 – Britain and Poland signed treaty of alliance

·         Mussolini’s announced Italy intended to remain neutral despite Pact of Steel

·         Hitler – If Germany given free hand in Danzig and Corridor he would agree to guarantee British Empire and agreement on disarmament

·         Attacked Poland 1^st September

·         Line of contact were kept open in case of sudden change of heart

·         31/8 Mussolini proposed conference to try to resolve Polish crisis – too late

·         Germany claimed wireless stations near Polish border had been attacked (LIE)

·         2^nd September – Britain still had not declared war or sent an ultimatum to Germany

·         3^rd September – 9am – Britain delivered ultimatum

·         3^rd September – 11am – Britain declared war

·         3^rd September – 5pm – France declared war

·         Within one weeks Australia, New Zealand , South Africa and Canada had declared war

·         Gallup Poll – 89% in favour of “fighting until Hitlerism was done away with”

An Assessment of Neville Chamberlain

·         The Case Against Neville Chamberlain

§  One of main ‘guilty men’ who failed to stand up to Hitler

§  Churchill thought Second World War was “unnecessary” (The Gathering Storm)

§  Only correct policy was to stand firm against Hitler at earliest opportunity

§  Some historians think we had no moral obligation or self-evident interest to Poland

§  Appeasement “crashed in ruins”

·         The Case for Neville Chamberlain

§  Policy of avoiding confrontation by negotiation/concession was British tradition

§  Justice didn’t become injustice because it was demanded by a dictator

§  750,000 lives lost ion WW1

§  Another war would be ruinously expensive, damaging Britain’s economic position

§  Hoped that active diplomacy would reduce threat of war

§  France had more tanks and troops than Germany, soon have more planes

§  For Hitler, war was a historical and racial necessity

§  Chamberlain’s declaration of war: “You can imagine what a bitter blow it is to me that all my long struggle to win peace has failed. Yet I cannot believe that there is anything more or anything different I could have done that would have been more successful.

Chapter Eight - Conclusion

The Guilty Men

·         Churchill, March 1938: “Historians a thousand years hence will still be baffled by the mystery of our affairs”

How Great was Britain?

·         Her economy was strong enough to bind all countries of Empire to British imperial system

·         1932, at its peak, Empire covered ¼ of land surface and ¼ of world population

·         By 1931 most developed parts of Empire – ‘white’ Dominions – effectively independent

·         ‘Great’ British Empire was something of a ‘paper tiger’

·         Britain’s declining ability to shape world affairs owed much to economic strength

·         Poor management, inability to exploit ideas, outdated technology, poor salesmanship, low rate of investment, overpowerful trade unions shoddy workmanship, bad labour relations = downturn in economy

·         Unemployment reached peak of 3m in early 1930s

·         During WW1 German submarines had threatened to starve Britain into surrender

·         Baldwin 1934: “The old frontiers are gone. When you think of the defence of England you no longer think of the chalk cliffs of Dover; you think of the Rhine.”

·         London: home of 1/5 of British population, centre of gov’t, finance and trade made it target

·         1937 Chief of Staff estimated 20,000 casualties in London in 24 hours, rising to 150,000 in a week

·         There was only 147,000 casualties in WW2

·         Chamberlain 1938: “we were in no position to justify waging a war today in order to prevent a war hereafter”

What Alternative Policies Might Britain Have Adopted?

·         Gov’t critics in late 30s demanded Britain should play tough world policeman role

·         Left believed League would preserve peace

·         Politicians such as Churchill tended to overestimate Britain’s strength

·         Treasury officials argued war would weaken an already strained economy

·         Economic strength was Britain’s fourth arm of defence

·         Public opinion preferred government spending on social welfare

Blame or Sympathy?

·         Most British statesman accepted Britain had no interest in central/eastern Europe

·         By allying with Poland, Britain broke one of cardinal tenets of her foreign policy: no commitments in Eastern Europe

·         Given the problems faced, they seem to deserve sympathy as well as blame