Paper 3 Depth 5 Flashcards
What was impact of the depression in different areas
impact in the North, Wales and N.Ireland:
- 1 million unemployed in 1929, 3 million by 1931
- over 20% of the workforce unemployed in Wales and N.Ireland in the 1920s and 30s, ‘distressed’ areas had most unemployment e.g Merthyr Tydfil (Wales), Clydeside (Glasgow), Jarrow (Newcastle)
- 1932- 35% of coalminers out of work, 46% of iron and steel workers, 62% of shipbuilders
- 1934- 62% of workers unemployed in Merthyr Tydfil, 1935 73% of workers in Jarrow unemployed- orders for British ships dropped badly in the 1930s, by 1936 Britain imported more ships than exported
- production in cotton industry fell by 50% in the 1930s, exports fell from 3800 million square yards in 1929 to 2,000 million in 1937
- India was once a market for Lancashire textiles, eventually exported cotton goods to Britain
- in worst months, around 8 million people on the dole
lack of impact of the depression in the South:
- steel production rose from 5.2 million tonnes (1932) to 13 million tonnes (1937)
- motor industry was successful- Morris in Oxford, Ford in Dagenham, Essex & Austin in Birmingham dominated production- output rose from 95,000 vehicles in 1923 to over 500,000 in 1937 (Oxford 6.1% workers unemployed)
- aircraft industry expanded at Coventry and Bristol (Birmingham 6% of workers unemployed)
- new industries tended to be in the South East and Midlands
- 80% of new factories built 1932-1937 were in Greater London
- building industry increased by 1/3 which created jobs- new houses were wired with electricity which stimulated electricity industry
- number of electric cookers rose from 73,000 in 1930 to 250,000 in 1935
- 325,000 people worked for electricity industry and by 1939, 2 out of 3 houses had it
- between 1932 and 1937 industrial production rose y 46%
How and why did staple industries decline and what was the impact?
- short term economic boom in 1919-20 after WW1, main competitors e.g Germany suffered from economic problems and losing ships after the war
- there was a slump in manufacturing in the 1920s which caused long term economic problems
shipbuilding: depression caused a collapse in world trade and no demand for new ships e.g 1933 British shipyards produced only 7% of their pre-war output
- 1924 there were 254,000 employees, 205,000 by 1934
iron and steel: cheap iron and steel from Europe led to decline in demand for British steel e.g production of steel fell from 45% in 1929 and production of iron fell 54%
- no. of employees fell from 313,00 in 1924 to 287,000 in 1934
coal: exports fell from 100 million tonnes per year to 50 million by 1930, due to European countries reviving their own industries and because of under-investment in the coal industry
- employees fell from 1.26 million in 1924 to just over 1 million in 1934
textiles: rise of cheaper cotton from Far East and India led to a decreased demand of British cotton
- by 1938 number of employees fell by 50% and Britain’s share of world trade had fallen from 65% in 1911 to 28% in 1938
- number of employees fell from 572,000 in 1924 to 240,000 in 1934
How were tariffs increased and what was the impact?
tariffs- adding extra costs on foreign goods, imports are more expensive due to taxes so people are encouraged to buy British goods
positive impact: (people buying British goods)
- 1915 McKenna Duties- tariffs of 1/3 more on certain goods e.g cars
- 1921 Safeguarding of Industries act- tariffs on e.g chemical goods coming into the country
- good because it made sure the car and chemical industry grew, people had jobs and it stopped cheap imports
negative impact:
- staple industries had no tariffs to protect them (one reason why they declined)- people bought cheaper German steel and coal
- Britain believed in free trade with the rest of the world, to have tariffs on staple industries would stop other countries trading with Britain
How did Britain’s world trade decrease and what was the impact?
- in WW1 Britain’s industries were dedicated to making weapons rather than goods to sell overseas- so USA stepped in and took most of Britain’s global customers
- the British Empire made their own goods so lost customers (no customers in the empire)
- Gold Standard- money was linked to gold in the 1920s, meant that the pound was very valuable, in 1920s £1 = $4
- Briatin was not able to sell goods abroad because they were too expensive
What was the impact of the Wall Street Crash?
- 1920s and 30s number 1 customer for UK goods was the USA
- after the Wall St Crash, Americans put tariffs on UK goods so people would by American goods
- caused businesses to close down and unemployment
- Britain has debts to America- no trade with USA meant there was danger of UK going bankrupt because we couldn’t pay for debts
- UK leant money to other countries in WW1 e.g from France and Russia- UK lost money
What happened in the Jarrow March and why did it take place?
what happened:
- from 5th October - 1st November 1936 200 men marched 300 miles from Jarrow to London
- carried a petition of 11,000 signatures which they intended to present to Parliament to request Palmer’s shipyard to re-open
why did it happen?
- march started because Palmer’s shipyard in Jarrow closed down
- partly because they had no orders and were going bankrupt
- also closed because the National Shipbuilder’s Security (NSS) wanted to buy up failing yards and dismantle to focus on smaller, profitable yards
- tried to set up steelworks in Jarrow- ideal because of its existing docks and labour force
- British Iron and Steel Federation disagreed and argued steel production could be increased elsewhere
What were attitudes to the Jarrow March and how effective was it?
attitudes:
- it was backed by the Jarrow Borough Council, the local mayor and the Labour MP Ellen Wilkinson- was an official march that had approval from official figures
- the march was well-organised- medical students volunteered to accompany in case of emergency, 200 medically fit men were selected from 1200 volunteers, a second-hand bus was purchased to carry cooking equipment, food, water and blankets- would’ve made it seem more valid
- at some places marchers were greeted warmly and given food, accommodation and spare clothes, at others the only place to sleep was the local workhouse- showed differing attitudes to the poor by region and how some resented the poor
- Labour Conference in Edinburgh was not supportive- Ellen Wilkinson was criticised for sending hungry and poorly clothed men on a march with no real outcome
- Trade Union Congress advised Labour party branches not to give any support to the march
- Bishop of Durham, Hensley Henson, criticised the Bishop of Jarrow for supporting the march
effectiveness:
(negative)- gained nothing in the short term- the petition was thrown away
(positive)- in the long term, it helped form perceptions of poverty in the 1930s, showed how bad it was in some areas- paved the way for post-1945 social reforms because people did not want to go back to how it was it in the depression
What happened in the Hunger Marches?
- a series of hunger marches in industrial towns 1922-23, 1929, 1930, 1932, 1934 and 1936
- Walter Hannington set up the National Unemployed Workers Movement (NUWM) in 1921 to organise marches
examples:
1. Welsh miners from Rhondda district of South Wales were going to march to London in 1927, there was a meeting on Penrhys Mountain to decide it- executive of the Miner’s Federation changed their minds but the NUWM carried it out
- 1932 NUWM organised a march to Hyde Park from 18 starting points, mainly from depressed areas of Scotland, South Wales and England- wanted to stop govt implementing means tests, had a petition of 1 million signatures and rallied- was violent and 2000 extra police were sent to deal with it
How effective were Hunger Marches?
- divisions within the movement- leadership was divided, leader of NUWM was a Communist which people didn’t like- govt and public saw it as radical, govt opposed them
- popular opinion- most people, including the press, were against the movement- saw it as violent, riots got press coverage, TU Congress opposed the marches
- violence- violent riots and rallies gave the movement a bad image
What was the role of Ellen Wilkinson?
- nicknamed ‘Red Ellen’ because she had red hair, was Labour and was a Communist
- she was a left wing Labour MP, selected as Labour candidate for Jarrow in 1934 and became MP for Jarrow in 1935
- met with PM Ramsay MacDonald and President for Board of Trade Walter Rusciman- wasn’t promised any help or revival of industry in Jarrow, she was not impressed with the Special Areas Act that was intended to help Jarrow
- was instrumental in trying to get steelworks in Jarrow after the shipyard closed down
- failed because Rusciman thought that it would take away from other steelworks in other areas
- Jarrow March started after this, Ellen Wilkinson organised it
- she handed over the petition with 11,000 signatures to Parliament BUT it was ignored
- was the Minister of Education in 1945 govt, helped set up UNESCO for education around the world
What was the problem in the 1930s (1931 crisis) and what were solutions to the crisis?
problem: depression and unemployment caused by the 1929 Wall Street Crash
reaction of 1929-31 Labour govt:
(before depression)- falling unemployment, liberal reforms e.g on pensions and unemployment, Margaret Bondfield Minister for Labour- first female for it
(after depression)- October 1929 Wall St Crash caused global depression
1931 Crisis:
crisis 1- unemployment rose to 3 million which meant less taxation because there was no income tax due to unemployment
- more govt money needed for rising unemployment benefits
- no balanced budget- govt spending was more than they receive which created fear of bankruptcy
crisis 2- investors in Britain withdrew money- more fear of bankruptcy, between July and August 1931, 1/4 of all gold was withdrawn- equivalent to £33 million, banks went bankrupt
solutions: either increase taxation to cover costs or cut unemployment benefit
- created a committee headed by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Snowden- decided that they had to cut expenditure by £120 million, £23 million would come from increasing taxes and the remaining £97 million would come from govt cuts
- had a cabinet meeting in 1931 to discuss the committee’s findings, Snowden wanted a 10% cut in unemployment benefit while Henderson (Foreign Secretary) didn’t want cuts, TUs supported him
- overall govt couldn’t decide what to do
- 1931 MacDonald went to Buckingham Palace to resign, joined with the Conservatives to lead a national govt
How was the National Govt formed, what did they do and what was the effectiveness?
- consisted of Ramsay MacDonald as PM, Philip Snowden as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Stanley Baldwin as deputy PM and Neville Chamberlain as Minister for Health
- 4 Labour, 4 Conservative and 2 Liberal in the Cabinet (Liberal Herbert Samuel was Home Secretary)
1931 actions:
- reduced teacher’s pay by 15%
- pay of armed forces, judges and MPs reduced to 10%
- police pay reduced to 5%
- reduction in unemployment benefit by 10% and a reduction in time these benefits would be paid
- reduction in the dole y 10%
- tax increases which would bring ~£51.5 million
effectiveness:
(positive)- initially worked- gold standard seemed secure and Bank of England negotiated a loan of £80 million from New York and Paris Bankers
(negative) - Invergordon mutiny- sailors of Atlantic fleet had their pay cut 10% while Admirals were only cut by 7%, they refused to go to sea
- caused value of the pound to plummet and govt was unable to negotiate any more loans, Britain was forced out of gold standard and value of the pound fell further, British goods could be sold more cheaply
What was the National Govt’s impact of recovery after the depression?
1934 Unemployment Act- set up a national Unemployment Assistance Board which standardised dole payments and paid people using a means test enforced by district officers- rates were set nationally and could not be varied
- led to protests from unemployed workers who didn’t want to be tested
1934 Special Areas Act- applies to regions of high unemployment e.g South Wales, Tyneside, West Cumberland and Southern Scotland
- govt financed projects which created new jobs- in May 1939 only 263 factories had been established, by July there were 226,193 people employed by it
Iron and Steel Federation- National Govt backed the federation, was formed in 1932
- it supervised the demolition of old, unprofitable works and built new ones which created more jobs
1935 Shipbuilding Scheme- govt developed a scheme whereby shipowners could apply for govt loans that would enable them to scrap old ships and buy new ones
- enables the Cunard White Star Line to order two new liners, the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth
What were other factors towards recovery after the depression? (not National Govt)
- general recovery in world trade- this, along with a weak pound, made British goods cheap to buy abroad
- this made exports rise and created more jobs
- more jobs created towards the end of the 1930s- Europe concentrated on more jobs in armaments due to threat of Nazis
- govt was helped by lack of opposition to this
- import duties- Neville Chamberlain introduced them when he became Chancellor of the Exchequer
- it was a general tariff of 10% to protect British industry- farmers who produced wheat, milk, bacon, oats etc were all protected
- between 1931 and 1937, agricultural industry increased productivity by 15%
- low interest rates led to a housing boom- creates jobs and gave a ‘feel good factor’ to people who could buy a home for the first time
- 1935- Chamberlain restored public salaries to their pre-1931 levels
