Imperial changes in the run up to WW1

Question 1

why was there a need for reorganisation of the British Armed Forces?

Answer 1

the failures evident during the Boer War were thoroughly investigated

Question 2

what did government investigations look into?

Answer 2

military planning
recruitment
army and navy organisation
home defence

Question 3

who was St John Broderick?

Answer 3

Secretary of State for War
between 1900 to 1903

Question 4

what did Broderick propose?

Answer 4

creation of 6 self-contained army corps
- 3x regulars
- 3x auxiliary

Question 5

why did Broderick’s reform never take off?

Answer 5

he recieved criticism from the government and press

Question 6

why were Broderick’s reforms criticised?

Answer 6

the proposed army corps would have been too small for a European War
AND
too big for a colonial war

Question 7

who replaced Broderick as Secretary of State for War?

Answer 7

Hugh Arnold-Forster

Question 8

what did Arnold-Forster immediately do?

Answer 8

he appointed a small committee to report on reform in the War Office

Question 9

what was the name of the committe set up by Arnold-Forster?

Answer 9

The Esher Commmittee

Question 10

what did Esher’s committee reccomend?

Answer 10

• the need for a clean sweep of the War Office (removal of Lord Roberts from CiC)
• the replacement of the CiC with an inspector-general of the forces
• the formation of an Army Council
• formation of the Commitee of Imperial Defence

Question 11

why was the CID set up in 1902?

Answer 11

Selborne and Broderick refused to resolve strategic difficulties

Question 12

what reforms did Arnold-Forster look to introduce?

Answer 12

he wanted to abandon both Broderick’s system and the Cardwellian System
- he wanted to divide the army into long-term and short-term battalions

Question 13

what were the short-term battalions?

Answer 13

3 year
home defence corps
30 battalions

Question 14

what were the long-term battalions?

Answer 14

9 year
overseas operations
112 battalions

Question 15

how did Arnold-Forster look to save money?

Answer 15

he reduced the number of volunteers
he disbanded half of the militia
absorbed the rest of the militia into the Army

Question 16

why did Arnold-Forster believe a large auxillary force was not needed?

Answer 16

he believed the Navy was strong enough to defend Britain from a land invasion

Question 17

who opposed Arnold-Forster’s reforms?

Answer 17

the CID
the cabinet
the New Army Council
the Parliament

Question 18

which of Arnold-Forster’s reforms were passed?

Answer 18

• long service enlistments in 1904
• short service recruiting in 1905

Question 19

why were Arnold-Forster’s reforms never fully implemented?

Answer 19

Balfour’s government fell in December 1905

Question 20

what did Britain sign in response to the threat which Germany posed?

Answer 20

Entente Cordiale in 1904 with France

Question 21

what was the main issue in the run up to WW1 in the armed forces?

Answer 21

should Britain spend more on:
- the army
or
- the navy

Question 22

what did Navalists in Britain believe?

Answer 22

that France should deal with land warfare while Britain kept control of the seas if war broke out with Germany

they believed that money spent on a large army would be subtracted from the Navy which they thought was the main factor keeping Britain safe

Question 23

what did British Army officers believe?

Answer 23

they believed that the British Army could make a big difference in Europe

Question 24

when was the National Service League formed?

Answer 24

1902

Question 25

what was the National Service League?

Answer 25

organisation which campaigned for compulsory military service

Question 26

why did the NSL struggle to push for conscription in Britain?

Answer 26

they had little support from Parliament

Question 27

when did the Liberals beat the Conservatives in the 1900s?

Answer 27

1905 election

Question 28

who was the Liberal PM elected in 1905?

Answer 28

Henry Campbell-Bannerman

Question 29

what were the Liberals committed to with regards to the Armed Forces?

Answer 29

reducing military expenditure

Question 30

who was the Liberal’s Secretary of State for War?

Answer 30

Richard Haldane

Question 31

what was Haldane budget for the Army?

Answer 31

28 million a year

Question 32

what was the budget for the Army under the Conservatives?

Answer 32

£30 million

Question 33

what was the Amry which Haldane envisaged?

Answer 33

a two-line army: - an expeditionary force of three army corps (150,000) - a territorial force composed of militia and volunteers

Question 34

which system did Haldane revert back to?

Answer 34

the Cardwellian System

Question 35

what balance of overseas-home battalions did Haldane achieve?

Answer 35

74 at home 74 abroad

Question 36

why was Haldane able to push for these changes?

Answer 36

he had the support of BOTH the Army as well as the cabinet

Question 37

which act led to the launch of the Territorial Amry?

Answer 37

the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act of 1907

Question 38

was the Territorial Amry a success?

Answer 38

YES it was a major improvement on the previous volunteer force was more complete in its arms and equipment

Question 39

how many men did the Territorial Army have by 1913?

Answer 39

236,000

Question 40

what led to a rise in cadet corps across Britain?

Answer 40

the Boer War imcreased rivalry with Germany

Question 41

when was the Officer Training Corps established?

Answer 41

1908

Question 42

what was the Officer Training Corps?

Answer 42

the merging of all the cadet corps in Britain

Question 43

how many students were enrolled in the OTC by 1914?

Answer 43

25,000

Question 44

which army officers were important in Haldane’s reforms?

Answer 44

General Douglas Haig General Henry Wilson

Question 45

how was Haig involved in military reform?

Answer 45

was director of military training often held large-scale manouveres for training

Question 46

how did Henry Wilson reform the Army?

Answer 46

formulated mobilisation plans his work led to the overall transportation of the BEF to France in August 1914

Question 47

what problems remained in the army?

Answer 47

- army commanders had understimated the power of machine guns - commanders still believed in a cavalry charge and swords - British Army was much smaller in size compared to European rivals

Question 48

by mid-1914 how many battalions did Germany have?

Answer 48

84

Question 49

by mid-1914 how many battalions did France have?

Answer 49

66

Question 50

by mid-1914 how many battalions did Britain have?

Answer 50

6

Question 51

what was the ‘two power standard’ which Britain tried to maintain?

Answer 51

that the RN had to keep up with the combined strength of it’s 2 largest naval powers

Question 52

what law did Germany pass in 19898?

Answer 52

the First Fleet Act

Question 53

what did the First Fleet Act lead to?

Answer 53

the German Navy was to be doubled in size

Question 54

who was the second naval lord between 1902-03?

Answer 54

Admiral Fisher

Question 55

what did Admiral Fisher do as the second naval lord?

Answer 55

he introduced the Selbourne Scheme

Question 56

what was the Selbourne Scheme?

Answer 56

all naval officers were trained in common they could then later specialise in either: - engineering - gunnery - navigation eventually once at a higher rank, officers would be eligible to command ships

Question 57

what did Fischer hope the Selbourne Scheme would do?

Answer 57

he hoped to create a more meritocratic navy which was no longer bound by class

Question 58

when did Fischer become first sea lord?

Answer 58

1904 till 1909

Question 59

what did Fischer do to save money?

Answer 59

he overhauled the Fleet Reserve meant that only 2/5 of the manpower needed for the reserve ships were available (saved money)

Question 60

what did Fischer especially advocate for during his tenure?

Answer 60

the mass construction of submarines

Question 61

why did Fischer believe submarines were better than battleships?

Answer 61

they were 25x cheaper they could both be a threat in attack as well as to neutralise a threat when defending

Question 62

what did Fischer want to work WITH the submarines?

Answer 62

battlecruisers a hybrid between a battleship and crusier speed + firepower

Question 63

what did the Admirality prefer over a battlecruiser?

Answer 63

a Dreadnought

Question 64

when was the Dreadnought brought into commission?

Answer 64

1906

Question 65

what had the Dreadnought done to the rest of Britain’s naval fleet?

Answer 65

made many of the other ships redundant and allowed Germany to catch up

Question 66

what was the Naval League?

Answer 66

an organisation set up to promoted the interests of the navy

Question 67

by 1914 what was the Navy’s budget?

Answer 67

£48.8 million

Question 68

by August 1914 how many Dreadnoughts and battlecruisers had the Royal Navy built?

Answer 68

40