Imperial changes in the run up to WW1 Flashcards

1
Q

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

A

the failures evident during the Boer War were thoroughly investigated

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2
Q

what did government investigations look into?

A

military planning
recruitment
army and navy organisation
home defence

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3
Q

who was St John Broderick?

A

Secretary of State for War
between 1900 to 1903

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4
Q

what did Broderick propose?

A

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

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5
Q

why did Broderick’s reform never take off?

A

he recieved criticism from the government and press

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6
Q

why were Broderick’s reforms criticised?

A

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

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7
Q

who replaced Broderick as Secretary of State for War?

A

Hugh Arnold-Forster

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8
Q

what did Arnold-Forster immediately do?

A

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

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9
Q

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

A

The Esher Commmittee

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10
Q

what did Esher’s committee reccomend?

A
  • 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
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11
Q

why was the CID set up in 1902?

A

Selborne and Broderick refused to resolve strategic difficulties

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12
Q

what reforms did Arnold-Forster look to introduce?

A

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

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13
Q

what were the short-term battalions?

A

3 year
home defence corps
30 battalions

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14
Q

what were the long-term battalions?

A

9 year
overseas operations
112 battalions

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15
Q

how did Arnold-Forster look to save money?

A

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

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16
Q

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

A

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

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17
Q

who opposed Arnold-Forster’s reforms?

A

the CID
the cabinet
the New Army Council
the Parliament

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18
Q

which of Arnold-Forster’s reforms were passed?

A
  • long service enlistments in 1904
  • short service recruiting in 1905
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19
Q

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

A

Balfour’s government fell in December 1905

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20
Q

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

A

Entente Cordiale in 1904 with France

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21
Q

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

A

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

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22
Q

what did Navalists in Britain believe?

A

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

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23
Q

what did British Army officers believe?

A

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

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24
Q

when was the National Service League formed?

A

1902

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25
Q

what was the National Service League?

A

organisation which campaigned for compulsory military service

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26
Q

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

A

they had little support from Parliament

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27
Q

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

A

1905 election

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28
Q

who was the Liberal PM elected in 1905?

A

Henry Campbell-Bannerman

29
Q

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

A

reducing military expenditure

30
Q

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

A

Richard Haldane

31
Q

what was Haldane budget for the Army?

A

28 million a year

32
Q

what was the budget for the Army under the Conservatives?

A

£30 million

33
Q

what was the Amry which Haldane envisaged?

A

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

34
Q

which system did Haldane revert back to?

A

the Cardwellian System

35
Q

what balance of overseas-home battalions did Haldane achieve?

A

74 at home
74 abroad

36
Q

why was Haldane able to push for these changes?

A

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

37
Q

which act led to the launch of the Territorial Amry?

A

the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act of 1907

38
Q

was the Territorial Amry a success?

A

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

39
Q

how many men did the Territorial Army have by 1913?

A

236,000

40
Q

what led to a rise in cadet corps across Britain?

A

the Boer War
imcreased rivalry with Germany

41
Q

when was the Officer Training Corps established?

A

1908

42
Q

what was the Officer Training Corps?

A

the merging of all the cadet corps in Britain

43
Q

how many students were enrolled in the OTC by 1914?

A

25,000

44
Q

which army officers were important in Haldane’s reforms?

A

General Douglas Haig
General Henry Wilson

45
Q

how was Haig involved in military reform?

A

was director of military training

often held large-scale manouveres for training

46
Q

how did Henry Wilson reform the Army?

A

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

47
Q

what problems remained in the army?

A
  • 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
48
Q

by mid-1914 how many battalions did Germany have?

A

84

49
Q

by mid-1914 how many battalions did France have?

A

66

50
Q

by mid-1914 how many battalions did Britain have?

A

6

51
Q

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

A

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

52
Q

what law did Germany pass in 19898?

A

the First Fleet Act

53
Q

what did the First Fleet Act lead to?

A

the German Navy was to be doubled in size

54
Q

who was the second naval lord between 1902-03?

A

Admiral Fisher

55
Q

what did Admiral Fisher do as the second naval lord?

A

he introduced the Selbourne Scheme

56
Q

what was the Selbourne Scheme?

A

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

57
Q

what did Fischer hope the Selbourne Scheme would do?

A

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

58
Q

when did Fischer become first sea lord?

A

1904
till 1909

59
Q

what did Fischer do to save money?

A

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

60
Q

what did Fischer especially advocate for during his tenure?

A

the mass construction of submarines

61
Q

why did Fischer believe submarines were better than battleships?

A

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

62
Q

what did Fischer want to work WITH the submarines?

A

battlecruisers

a hybrid between a battleship and crusier
speed + firepower

63
Q

what did the Admirality prefer over a battlecruiser?

A

a Dreadnought

64
Q

when was the Dreadnought brought into commission?

A

1906

65
Q

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

A

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

66
Q

what was the Naval League?

A

an organisation set up to promoted the interests of the navy

67
Q

by 1914 what was the Navy’s budget?

A

£48.8 million

68
Q

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

A

40