Churchill as wartime Prime Minister Flashcards
what was the name of the rapid advances German forces made into France in 1940?
Blitzkrieg
what was wrong in May 1940?
- it looked like Italy would join the war against Britain
- Britain’s gold reserves were running out
- there was a danger that obtaining war supplies from North America would not be possible
- by 28th May, British forces were cut off from the French and there was a danger they would be destroyed at Dunkirk
what was Churchill’s reaction to the events of May 1940?
- completely focused
- totally determined that the single aim of the war was victory
how many men were evacuated from Dunkirk?
300,000
what was Britain’s stance by the end of 1940?
- survived the fall of France
- survived the Battle of Britain
- was winning some victories against the Italians in North Africa
what was Churchill’s style of leadership after becoming PM?
- didn’t just chair discussions, but directed the war effort
- favoured daring actions and ideas
- frustrated by delays or signs of weakness
- believed in the power of personal contacts and relationships
- personally flamboyant - appeared in military uniforms to which he was not entitles
- vivid and dynamic leader
- sometimes ruthless - undermined and dismissed military leaders in whom he had lost confidence
- supported some extreme measures in the war (e.g. the destruction of the French fleet at Oran in 1940 and the civilian bombing of Germany)
- sense of humour
- personally brave
what was Churchill’s stance on political leaders in WW1?
he believed that they had lost control over military strategy and taken too much notice of military leaders like Haig
what effect did Churchill’s military experience have on his position as PM?
- confident in trying to influence military policy
- his experience was very out of date
what type of general did Churchill like?
- a ‘man of action’
- impatient of generals who were, in his view, over-cautious
who was the senior military figure in WW2?
Sir Alan Brooke
what type of relationship did Churchill and Brooke have?
a stormy relationship - Brooke was a dogged opponent of some ill-planned schemes favoured by the PM
what basic strategy did Churchill and Brooke agree on?
focusing the land war on the Mediterranean and delaying the opening of a second front in Europe until the chances of victory seemed strong
who was Sir Hugh Dowding and what significance did he have?
- the success of the Battle of Britain in 1940 owned much to his strategy - kept the RAF in small units
- an uncommunicative leader who did not engage Churchill’s sympathies
- removed from his command in November 1940
who was Sir Claude Auchinleck and what significance did he have?
- Churchill was anxious for a rapid attack on German forces in North Africa in 1942, but Auchinleck demanded strong preparations and also a defensive fallback if the attack failed
- Churchill insisted on Auchinleck’s removal
what three things in Africa were important to maintain control of in WW2?
- Egypt
- the Suez Canal
- oil fields of the Middle East
who was Montgomery and what significance did he have?
- flamboyant and eccentric
- replaced Auchinleck
- was victorious in defeating Rommel at El Alamein, who had previously dominated the war in North Africa
- Churchill did not control over-confident and dubious plans endorsed by Montgomery
why was the Suez Canal important?
- link to India and the parts of the Empire in south-east Asia and Australasia
- Britain obtained most of its oil supplies from the Middle East
why did lots of the British war effort take place in north Africa?
- an alternative to a costly attack in northern France
why did the Mediterranean take priority?
Churchill thought that a delay in invading France would benefit the Allies, as Germany would then be weakened by US and British bombing raids, as well as from losses of troops in the USSR
why were there objections to the Mediterranean Strategy from American military chiefs and Stalin?
- believed that Germany could only be defeated by invading the homeland and engaging with the bulk of the German forces
- the idea of invading Germany through Italy or southern Europe was deemed flawed
- fighting in the Mediterranean took away valuable resources, especially landing craft, from other campaigns for what was, at best, peripheral to the main struggle
what happened in the invasion of Italy?
- tied up valuable US and British forces
- not over as quickly as anticipated
- became a long, hard struggle - trench warfare
what was the impacted of a delayed invasion on France?
- by 1944, the Germans had built formidable defences on the French coast
- relations with Stalin had been weakened by the failure to open a second front in Europe (led to heavy Russian casualties)
give three reasons for Britain devoting so many of its resources in bombing Germany
- Blitz caused resentment - seen as justified revenge
- bombing was the only real way of striking at Germany itself
- strong belief in the Bomber Command that bombing was the way to win the war and to prevent large scale casualties
- if bombing could reduce German military capacity then it would be saving British forces from casualties suffered on Western Front in WWI
- implicit belief that the terror bombing of German cities would hit morale and somehow show the weaknesses of the Nazi regime
- RAF developed sophisticated techniques of maximising the effect of incendiary bombing of cities
how many British civilians were killed by bombing raids in WW2?
60,500
