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Britain 1930-1997 > Churchill as wartime Prime Minister > Flashcards

Churchill as wartime Prime Minister Flashcards

1
Q

what was the name of the rapid advances German forces made into France in 1940?

A

Blitzkrieg

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2
Q

what was wrong in May 1940?

A
  • 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
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3
Q

what was Churchill’s reaction to the events of May 1940?

A
  • completely focused

- totally determined that the single aim of the war was victory

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4
Q

how many men were evacuated from Dunkirk?

A

300,000

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5
Q

what was Britain’s stance by the end of 1940?

A
  • survived the fall of France
  • survived the Battle of Britain
  • was winning some victories against the Italians in North Africa
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6
Q

what was Churchill’s style of leadership after becoming PM?

A
  • 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
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7
Q

what was Churchill’s stance on political leaders in WW1?

A

he believed that they had lost control over military strategy and taken too much notice of military leaders like Haig

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8
Q

what effect did Churchill’s military experience have on his position as PM?

A
  • confident in trying to influence military policy

- his experience was very out of date

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9
Q

what type of general did Churchill like?

A
  • a ‘man of action’

- impatient of generals who were, in his view, over-cautious

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10
Q

who was the senior military figure in WW2?

A

Sir Alan Brooke

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11
Q

what type of relationship did Churchill and Brooke have?

A

a stormy relationship - Brooke was a dogged opponent of some ill-planned schemes favoured by the PM

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12
Q

what basic strategy did Churchill and Brooke agree on?

A

focusing the land war on the Mediterranean and delaying the opening of a second front in Europe until the chances of victory seemed strong

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13
Q

who was Sir Hugh Dowding and what significance did he have?

A
  • 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
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14
Q

who was Sir Claude Auchinleck and what significance did he have?

A
  • 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
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15
Q

what three things in Africa were important to maintain control of in WW2?

A
  • Egypt
  • the Suez Canal
  • oil fields of the Middle East
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16
Q

who was Montgomery and what significance did he have?

A
  • 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
17
Q

why was the Suez Canal important?

A
  • 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
18
Q

why did lots of the British war effort take place in north Africa?

A
  • an alternative to a costly attack in northern France
19
Q

why did the Mediterranean take priority?

A

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

20
Q

why were there objections to the Mediterranean Strategy from American military chiefs and Stalin?

A
  • 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
21
Q

what happened in the invasion of Italy?

A
  • tied up valuable US and British forces
  • not over as quickly as anticipated
  • became a long, hard struggle - trench warfare
22
Q

what was the impacted of a delayed invasion on France?

A
  • 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)
23
Q

give three reasons for Britain devoting so many of its resources in bombing Germany

A
  • 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
24
Q

how many British civilians were killed by bombing raids in WW2?

A

60,500

25
Q

how many German civilians were killed by bombing raids in WW2?

A

between 400,000 and 600,000

26
Q

what was Churchill’s attitude to the bombing of civilians?

A
  • supported initiatives to bomb key German military and industrial targets (Dambusters raid)
  • also supported bombing of civilian targets
  • was distressed by the effects of the Blitz on Britain
  • may have been over-influenced by optimistic estimates of the effects of bombing
  • in public, Churchill was dismissive of criticism of bombing on ethical grounds (such as that made by the Bishop Bell of Chichester)
  • in private he expressed concerns about Dresden and the policy of terror bombing later in the war
27
Q

why did Arthur Harris not receive public acknowledgement?

A

he was the leader of Bomber Command

28
Q

why was there post-war planning during WW2?

A
  • Government was conscious that there had been disappointment when plans for a better Britain were not implemented after WWI
  • important for morale to give British people a sense of hope that, after the defeat of Germany, there would not simply be a return to the hardships of the 1930s
29
Q

name three key wartime domestic policies that influenced what happened after the war

A
  • agreement that the Beveridge Report of 1942 (proposed a ‘cradle to grave’ plan for social welfare to eliminate poor health, ignorance and poverty) should be enacted
  • commitment to ending the old system of help for the poor and to create a new system of National Assistance
  • influential reports on town planning and industrial development
  • hospitals and railways were run by the state
  • National Insurance had been reformed and a new ministry created to run it
  • the Education Act of 1944 reorganised education, ended fees and promised to raise the school leaving age to 15
30
Q

what was Churchill view on creating a welfare state?

A

not enthusiastic, but accepted key measures and recommendations

31
Q

who won the 1945 election?

A

Labour

32
Q

why did the winners of the 1945 election win?

A
  • popular dislike of the Conservatives
  • Labour fought a well focused campaign - stressed domestic change (appealed to a general public who did not want a return to the hardships of the 30s
  • Labour were seen as more likely to pass reforms after the war
  • Conservative campaign was heavily reliant on Churchill’s reputation
  • Conservative Party was associated with the unemployment and hardships of the 30s
33
Q

what percentage of the vote, and how many seats, did Labour win in the 1945 election and why was it significant?

A
  • 47% of vote
  • 61% of seats
    it was the biggest Labour victory ever

Britain 1930-1997 (3 decks)

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