politics 1939-1964 Flashcards
arguments that churchill was a great military leader
defiant and stubborn in standing up to Hitler
gained respect for not doing appeasement
Dunkirk
used speeches to encourage patriotism and unification with Britain and morale, enhanced by the growth of radio
withstood pressures from Halifax
“dunkirk spirit”
emergency powers
D-Day
El Alemein - secured Egypt and suez canal
convoy system
arguments that Churchill wasn’t a great wartime leader
lost at Norway
Churchill got lucky with military strategy at Dunkirk
‘Drunken defiance’
Left weapons at Dunkirk
only won Battle of Britain die to Hitler’s mistakes
idea to intervene in Greece led to the death of 36,000 British troops
carpet bombing of German cities seen as immoral
Churchill’s success in domestic leadership
Emergency Powers Act
war cabinet, managed to delegate between all 3 parties
Churchill failures in domestic leadership
wasn’t first choice- Halifax refused to be PM
interfered
unpopular with out of touch Shakesperian language in speeches
1945, Labour won the election
likened Labour party to Gestapo after he had just been working with Atlee
unpopular with Ulster, offered to trade them off for Irish support in the war
some speeches were only said to House of Commons but later published to the public
John Charmly’s opinion on Churchill
“great men can committ great mistakes and Churchill’s are on the same gargantuan scale as his achievements”
what new post was created by churchill to deal with the problems created in the battle of britain?
Ministry of Aircraft Production
production rose by 50%
was Churchill popular among other politicians?
many didn’t trust him after his support for Edward VIII and his attack on Chamberlain’s appeasement policy
gained a reputation as a serial floor crosser
Lord Woolton wanted him to be replaced in 1942
what was the labour slogan in the 1945 election?
lets build the houses quick
what was the conservative slogan in the 1945 election?
confirm your confidence in Churchill
what was the support for Chruchill in opinion polls like?
never below 78%
which system did Labour benefit from in the 1945 election?
first past the post
how did policy development contribute to the labour win in the 1945 election?
Cons policy development declined through the war and they failed to develop welfare policies which responded to the public mood
split between anti and pro welfare reformers
manifesto - 220,000 homes in 2 years
Labour party adopted the welfare reforms outlined in the Beveridge report - 86% of the population were in favour of the report
produced ‘Labour’s Immediate Programme’ in 1937 and many points reinforced in manifesto
home for every family promised in manifesto
how did the war contribute to the labour win in the 1945 election?
Con party organisation had declined during the war - area officers and constituency Associations were closed down as staff enlisted or were drafted in the forces
Macmillan’s appeasement policies criticised
electorally damaged by wartime electoral truce - Guilty men pamphlet
associated with failure to rearm
Labour’s Bevin Minister of Labour responsible for domestic matters
how did the election campaign to the labour win in the 1945 election?
Cons only spent £3000 on campaign, compared to £30,000 in 1935
local conservative party activism was non-existent until a few months before the election - performative
Labour manifesto looked toward future “Lets face the future”
how did the different leaders contribute to the labour win in the 1945 election?
Churchill remembered for his role in the general strike - shouted down by workers at Walthamstow
didn’t think that working class deserved demands of their own
seemed outdated enemy of working class
Atlee seemed calm and statesmenlike
drove around in car with wife
proof than Churchill was unpopular with electorate
in his own consituency , Alexander Hancock, independent, eccentric candidate received 10,000 votes and Churchill
what did the labour government of 1945 think that the benefits of nationalisation were?
restore trade that had been disrupted during WW2
revive declining industries
improve exports
restore prosperity
fairer treatment of workers
improvements in working conditions
full employment
profits used to fund the growth of the welfare state
what was clause IV for the Labour party?
committment to state control of the means of production, distribution and exchange 2.3 million workers moving from privately to publicly owned industries
which areas of the economy were nationalised?
Bank of England
Air transport - 3 companies
mining brought under national coal board
public transport - British transport commission
electricity
gas
iron and steel
Representation of People Acts 1948 and 1949
abolished plural voting
abolished separate university seats
redrew constituency boundaries to take account of changing populations
abolished two member constituencies
introduced postal voting
how did the representation of the people act 1948 and 1949 benefit the conservatives?
postal votes 10:1 in favour of conservatives
1950 general election statistics
CONS
increased by 40%
gained 85 seats
LAB
declined by 1.7%
how were conservative policies more attractive than labour in 1951?
promised to build 300,000
accepted labour reforms - welfare state and mixed economy in manifesto
adopted industrial charter claiming not to be a capitalist party
promised more red meat
how well organised were the conservatives by 1951?
Lord Woolton revitalised conservative grassroots
1950, membership was nearly 3 million
Woolton said that no candidate should contribute more than £25/year to constituency party - wouldn’t just choose wealthy candidates
young conservative movement grew from 1946
attracted large donations from wealthy business men, especially those who feared nationalism
