Expansion and Contraction of the Empire 1914-1947 Flashcards
What role did Empire play in WWI
India - 1.4 million men died in the war effort
canada - 500,0000 men aided in war effort
420,000 Australian men aide din the war effort (30% of all eligible males)
South Africa - 160,000 men aiding in war effort
New Zealand - 140,000 men added in the war eff0r
Presidents and representatives of the dominions joined the war cabinet in 1919
Leo emery pointed that the paramount aim of the war policy was ‘the defence and welfare of the empire’
How did wWI affect the white dominions?
white dominoes considered conscription, Canada implemented it in 1916 and New Zealand implemented in in 1917
Australians and new Zealands were applauded for their efforts in the Gallipoli campaign
Canadians were recognised for their efforts in the Battle of Vimy Ridge in 1917
Canada had supplied 1/3 of the munitions for Brotoan in Franc
How did WWI affect India?
in 1914 1/3 of the soldiers in France were Indian or British who had served in India
Indian soldiers made a titanic effort the Middle East and Africa in 1917
India gave £100 million towards the war effort
in recognition of the War Effortt SoSfI Edwin Montague offered responsible self government in august 1917, with democratic representation for ordinary Indians
How did WWI affect the colonies in Africa?
Egypt became a protectorate in 1914, which caused resentment as it was clear that Egypt was under Imperial rule
400,000 africans fought in Europe and almost half of them were killed
some 70,000 African troops fought in west Africa
Black people were often not allowed to fight by were recruited as Labourers
some joined the millions of ‘human porters’ in East-Africa in the fight against the Germans in Tanganyika where 100,000 were killed
What were the League of Nations mandates?
the Treaty of Versailles I 1919
Germany were stripped of its colonies
as too were the colonies of the Ottoman Empire to be stripped from the The Treatuy of Sevres and the Treaty of Lausanne in 1920
known as mandates
1
mandates were supposed to help territories to become self governmeing and independent
yet practically gave imperial power
Empire had to meet certain requirements for their mandates, but were more interested in exploiting the opportunities it gave such as OIL IN THE MIDDEL EAST
GAINED 1.8M AQUARE MILES OF TERRITORIES AND GAINED 13 MILLION SUBJECTS
how did Britain involve then self in the Middle East?
Britain desired the mandates of Palestine and Mesopetonia for strategic reasons such as proximity to Suez and Oil prospects
Britain and France stuck to the Skyes-Picot agreement of 1915 and dived up the land between themself
What was the issue of the Middle-East?
Britain had promised Arabs in Palestine to stand up against Ottoman rule during the War, with individuals such as T.E. Lawrence being influential
However, Lord Balfour (foreign secretary) wrote a letter to Lord Rothschild of the Jewish community, expressing sympathy to zianist cause in the middle east, letter was leaked to the press
Balfour d=Deflation 1917, promised Jewish ‘national homeland’ but did not promise a separate jewish state
was motivated by wining support from anti-British Americans for British control in the areas
created great tension in the area of Palestine
Jewish Zionist Commission set up in 1918
Muslim Christian Association setup in 1919
1918-1920 violent clashes between Muslims and Jews
175,000 Jews moved into the area by 1931
How did Egypt gain independence?
Egypt became a protectorate in 1914
serious demonstrations in 1919, signalled that Britain did not need full imperial control
1922 Egypt became independent
remained a client state of Britain
Anglo-Eguyptian Treaty 1932 allowed for 10,000 British troops to remain in the Suez Canal Zone’
How did Ireland become independent?
Britain, ruled Ireland since 1801, failed to deliver independence under Gladstone
Irish volunteers organised an armed uprising against the British Easter Rising 1916
After WW1, IRA came into prominence and Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein set up Parliament
‘Black and Tans’ Irish fighters for the British
fighting ended in 1921, with the anglo-Irish Treaty
Ireland formed Catholic Free State
King remained the head of State
did not gain full independence aunl 1931
Eire (Ireland) became a Republic and left the commonwealth in 1949
In what way were the mandates of benefit to Britain?
beneficial to protect land routes to India and Asia
close strategical proximity to the Suez Canal
it wa important to prevent an absence of Empire in the Middle East
area of the Middle East was oil rich would dictate foreign policy in the coming future
IN what ways were th eMandates in the Middle East a burden to Britain?
conflict between the Arabs and the Jews, which the British created
Arabs detested ottoman rule, Britin simply shaped one imperialism for another
In what ways did the Empire contribute in WW2
Empire wasn’t the source for war that they hoped
stretched Britians resources as far as they could go
Empire contributed 5 million troops, half wee from India
What was the aftermath of WW!?
Britain faced no real international completion as Germany had been destroyed by the war, France were considerably weakened, Russia were receiving form war and civil war, the USA had retreated into isolation
Britain were economically weakened and power shifted to the USA
Britain’s total expenditure was just under 10 billion
costs of empire began to outweigh the benefits
How did WW2 effect empire in South East Asia and India?
2.5 million Indians volunteered to fight
Mohamed Ali Jinnah, Leader of the All Aidan Muslim league pledged support in hopes of a separate muslim state of Pakistan
Gandhi opposed the war.
Congress party refused support for the War, lead by Nehru, unless India was to be granted independence,, when this was refused, Congress called for provincial government to stand down
in 1942 Japan seized all European Imperial possessions in South East Asia
Britain lost Singapore in 1942, which as supposedly ‘invunerable’ the largest surrender of British troops 132,000
Japan seized Hong Kong, Malaya and Burma
Churchill reluctantly offered independence to India after the War, sent Lord Cripps to negotiate, yet congress party demanded immediate independence
‘wuit india’ campaign started following Cripps’ vist to India
Britain were able to quell an attempt to take control of THE AREA IN 1943
30,000 Indian troops were captured in Singapore
the INA, lead by Chandra Bose launched an attack of Britain in Burma
Bengal suffered a famine in the years 1943-44 and around 3 million died
How did WW2 effect the Empire in North Africa and the Middle East?
North Afric ad the Middle East in particular were a sought after region between Britain, Germany and Italy
Britain was desperate to maintain control in the area for strategic reasons, Suez, route to India, oil
germany was held back at the Battle of Al Amen
similar to WW1, tropical African fruits became sought after and therefore the industry boomed
concessions were made such as new constitutions for the Gold Coast and the Nigeria
What was the position of the empire after WW2?
colonial administrators continued forward with empire
pre war movements for colonial development continued after the war, the 1945 Colonial Development and Welfare Act
Empire had suffered economic blows following the war, the USA had emerged as the dominant power
1945 labour government under Atlee drew skeptics to empire
Independence movements grew in the Empire especially in India and th eMiddle East
International pressures by the USA and the USSR dictated the direction of imperial policy
How did Britain deal with India in the Inter-war periods?
Britain governed with a ‘twin track’ mentality
Attempt to appease the moderate nationalists with the 1919 Government of India Act, giving shared power with Indian ministers and the Viceroy
also administered the roulette Act which gave British harsh powers to arrest and imprison anyone who protested against British rule - proved a failure as nationalism grew and jhorrific incident occurred sucks the Amritsar massacre April 1919
Sir Reginald Dwyer
Gandhi led non-violent non-cooperation protest in 1919-1922
Lord Irwin expressed a desire to see India gain dominion status in 1929
Government of India act 1935 gave greater autonomy, full autonomy on provincial level and Muslim representation protected, but feeling ermine for fun independence
In what ways did Britain struggle to control India in WW2
civil disobedience campaign led by Gamdi in 1940, filled the prisons with 1400 protestors
the ‘quit India’ movement was the gravest threat towards the Raj since the Mutiny
Churchill sent Cripps to negotiate independence
in 1942, Gandhi and Nehru organised ‘quit India’ were imprisoned for the duration of the war
it was decided that India was to be partitioned in April 1947, forming Pakistan, to be independent by the date 15 August 1947
Lord Mountbatten was made \Viceroy, sole purpose was to withdraw form India
violence broke out with the partition and estimated 1 million people died in the violence leaving a bitter legacy between Pakistan and India
Britain withdrew from India honourably
commendable speed to which the withdrawal happened
Britain submitted to the wish of the Muslim league to partition, if Britain ha waited it could have evolved into a Civil war
Britain worked closely with the Indian National Congress and the All Indian Muslim League
Britain had listened to external pressures form USA and UN to make India independent
Britain were not honourable in their withdrawal from India?
Britain refused to commit troops to the transition of power
set the boundaries secretly to avoid tension
turned millions of pole into religious minorities on both sides of the boundaries
made 13million became refugees
Panjabi magistrates Court ruled that Britain had left India in the ‘chaos in which they found it”
pakistan and INDIA REFUSED TO SIGN A DEFENCE AGREEMENT WITH BRITIAN, PROVING DISTRUST
Partition was done irresponsibly, by using a map and not attentive to the religious and cultural differences of the area
