British Foreign Policy 1914-1939 Flashcards
What contributed towards the formulation of foreign policy?
The Foreign Secretary
The Government/Cabinet (inc. the PM)
Parliament
Advisers/staff (civil servants) within the Foreign Office
Staff overseas - diplomatic and consular staff
Other depts - e.g. Treasury, War Office, India Office, Colonial Office - in wartime the War Office gaining importance
When was the Foreign Office established? And what did it consist of?
1782
Headed by permanent Under Secretary who was assisted by a staff of civil servants
Top officials, and occasionally lesser officials, advised Foreign Secretary
What was the main aim of foreign policy in this period? And what do some historians argue?
Foriegn policy subsumed into task of winning war
That the FO was in eclipse - and that Lloyd George’s Secretariat sidelined it
What was there a massive increase in and what did this result in?
Massive increase in bureaucracy - Lloyd George noticed this – cabinet was too big to make military decisions - on a day to day basis
War Council, Dardanelles Committee, War Committee and Imperial War Cabinet directed overseas policy - made decisions regarding the war - thereby dictating foreign policy
In order to fight and win the war - needed support of the dominions - wanted involvement in decision-making - various imperial states were represented on imperial war cabinet
What was the Ministry of Blockade responsible for?
They discussed blocking things such as sausage, butter and guns etc - the things the FO didn’t want to discuss. Argued to be the most important department
What was central to the aims of foreign policy?
The Defeat of the Central Powers and the restoration of Belgium’s independence
What other arguments were there within foreign policy discussions and what held them back?
Assisting allies like Russia by opening another front - the Eastern Front. However this was expensive and required a lot of resources - could be scarce for island nation
In what ways did foreign policy and imperial policy intertwine?
Imperial security - the Territorial Committee (1917) - what areas could Britain secure
The war imperialists: the war presented opportunities - take territory, expand empire
Persuading neutrals to join the fight - Italy, the Balkan states, USA, South American - to get allies and resources
What was another incentive of allying with the Balkan States?
Getting Balkan states on side could shorten the war by a couple years - stop Germany from supplying Turkey
What did Britain want to do regarding foreign policy which also allowed them to make territorial/imperial gains?
They wanted to prevent areas from coming under Central Power control
What concerns were there for Britain after WW1 regarding Russia?
That they might get involved with Russian Revolution
As there were revolts in Egypt and Palestine as well as the war in Afghanistan
