British History: Topic 1 Flashcards
Who won the 1951 election
Conservatives
When was the UKs first atomic bomb tested
1952
Dates of the Korean War
1950-53
When was the UKs first hydrogen bomb tested
1957
When was the Suez Affair
1956
When was the Rent Act
1957
When were life peerages introduced
1958
Who won the 1959 election
Conservatives
When did Britain become a founding member of the EFTA
1959
When did the Labour Party adopt uni-lateralism
1960
When was Macmillan’s ‘Wind of Change’ speech
1960
When was the Cuban Missile crisis
1962
When was the Commonwealth Immigration Act
1962
When was the Profumo Affair
1963
When did MacMillan first apply to the EEC
1961
When was the first time DeGaulle used his veto to stop Britain joining the EEC
1963
How many seats and votes did conservatives win in the 1951 election
321 seat
48% of votes
How many seats and votes did Labour win in the 1951 election
295 seats
48.8% of votes
How many seats and votes did the Conservatives win in the 1955 election
344 seats
49.7% of votes
How many seats and votes did Labour win in the 1955 election
277 seats
46.4% of votes
How many votes and seats did Conservatives win in the 1959 election
365 seats
49.4% of votes
How many votes and seats did Labour win in the 1959 election
258 seat
43.8% of votes
How many seats and votes did Conservatives win in the 1964 election
304 seats
43.3% of votes
How many votes and seats did Labour win in the 1964 election
317 seats
44.1% of votes
Key features of Butskellism
- Britain should work as a mixed economy
- maintain full employment whilst delivering economic growth
- Expand welfare state
- Remain commited to Britain’s military defence programme
- develop nuclear weapons programme
Where did the term Butskellism come from
Was a compound word of Butler and Gaitkell coined by the journal ‘The Economist’
Rab Butler’s key roles in government
- Chancellor of the Exchequer
- Home secretary
- Foreign secretary
How many houses did the Conservatives have as their target to build each year
300,000
How many houses did the Conservative office witness being built between 1951-64
1.7 million (60% were private dwellings)
When and what was the Robbin’s Report
1963
* best seen as agrument for extending the comprehensive principle into higher education
* expansion of existing universities
* emphasis given to scientific education
* 12 existing colleges of advanced technology to be upgraded to university status
What did the rent act do
Abolish rent control putting 6 million houses on the market and making rents rise considerably
When was the White Defence League established
1957 it was a racist organisation formed in Notting HIll
When were the Race Riots
1958-59
Where did Race Riots most notably happen
Nottingham, Bristol and poorer districits in London
How many new Commonwealth Citizens arrived between 1960-62
230,000
How much did wages rise from 1950-84
£8.30 - £18.35
By 1960 how much of the workforce did women make up
1/3
What was the increase in car sales between 1950-65
1.5 million - 5.5 million
Budget politics
A short term measure to buy botes in elections
Stop-go economics
When the Government responds to the economic situation instead of getting infront of it and controlling it
Stagflation
When industry decline but inflation still persisted
What was Britain’s balance of payments defecit in 1964
£800 million
What were Britain and Italy’s industrial growth rate
Britain - 2.3%
Italy - 5.6%
How much of its GDP were Britain spending on defence at this time
10% which was £1.7 Billion
When were there clashes between British forces and Kenyan nationalists
1952-60
When was CND founded
1958
When was the signing of the Treaty of Rome and what did it do
1957
Created the EEC
Property owning democracy
Where most of the population could own houses because banks were giving out mortgages - and this was encouraged
On the principle that property is a necessary part of democracy
What prompted the Commonwealth Immigrations Act
Race riots and windrush
Why did colonisation happen
- it made moral sense
- it was important for the economy - Britain needed money
Mixed economy
A system in which the private and public sectors of the economy both operate
Why was suez unsuccessful
- USA condemned UK actions
- Opposition from BRitish people
- Fury of Eisenhower and the US
Report published on Britain’s railways (name+date)
Beeching report - 1963 - reduced number of railways (e.g okehampton to exeter line)
What Act put restrictions on would-be entrants to Britain acoording to their ethnic origin
Commonwealth Immigrants Act - 1962
When was and what are some aspects of the Conservative Party’s industrial charter
1947 - principles of keynesian economics, mixed economy, welfare state
Minis
What role did Harold Macmillan hold before being Prime Minister
Minister for Housing
When did Macmillan declare that Britain had ‘never had it so good’
July 1957
