Random Britain Knowledge 5

Question 1

When was the General Strike?

Answer 1

1926

Question 2

What happened to the economy in Britain between 1918-1920?

Answer 2

There was short-lived economic boom.

a key part of this was a speculative boom

Question 3

How many Ministers did MacMillan sack from his cabinet in the ‘Night of the Long Knives’ in 1962?

Answer 3

7

Question 4

What were the different Labour Parties Nationalisation Acts?

name 6

Answer 4

• The Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946
• The Bank of England Act 1946
• The Transport Act 1947
• The Electricity Act 1947
• The Gas Act 1948
• The Iron and Steel Act 1949

Question 5

What did Clement Attlee’s Labour Party do to many of Britain’s key industries after WWII?

Answer 5

They nationalised them

Question 6

In 1918, Britain saw the extension of the franchise (Representation of the People Act). The main beneficiary of the change was the Liberal Party.
T/F?

Answer 6

False

Question 7

What were the Scandals that the MacMillan Government faced towards the end of his time as PM in the early 1960s?

Answer 7

• The Vassal Scandal
• The Profumo Scandal
• The Harold ‘Kil’ Philiby Scandal

Question 8

What did Ted Heath want to do to Britain when he became PM in 1970?

Answer 8

He wanted to bring about radical political change from 1970 onwards. He sought to break with the post-war consensus on the size of the state and the commitment to full employment.

Question 9

The Labour governments led by Ramsey MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931 are both examples of…

Answer 9

Minority Governments

Question 10

What were the challenges that the National Government had to deal with in the 1930s?

Answer 10

• The rise of extremism in the UK (the BUF also the
  Communist of GB)
• The Rise of Adolf Hitler and the looming possibility of War
• An economic depression

Question 11

What is the best way to describe the Gold Standard?

Answer 11

It is a monetary system where a country’s currency or paper money has a value directly linked to gold.

With it, countries agreed to convert paper money into it’s worth in gold as gold has stable value and means your currency is less likely to flucuate massively.

Question 12

What was the scandel where the governments secretary for war was having an affair with working class model Christine Keeler who was also sleeping with a Russian spy.

Answer 12

The Profumo Scandal

Question 13

When did the Labour Party lose an election and therefore their time in power ended?

Answer 13

1951

Question 14

Why did Labour Party lose the 1951 election?

Answer 14

• Prominent Labour politicians (Ernest Bevin & Sir Stafford Cripps) left the Party
• Britain was involved in the Korean War and it increased military spending
• The 1949 House of Commons (redistribution of seats) Act
• Rationing of Food / Austerity
• High Taxation
• Perscription charges for glasses and dentistry in 1951. This split many as they thought the NHS shouldn’t be charging for this

Question 15

Lloyd George advocated a policy of government spending cuts to appease his middle-class voters. This policy was known as…

Answer 15

Retrenchment

Question 16

The Representation of the People Act (1918), led to the size of the British electorate going from…

Answer 16

7.7 million to 21.4 million

Question 17

What happened to Union membership between 1929-1939?

Answer 17

It decreased significantly because of the Great Depression

Question 18

Who was the Conservative chancellor that made the decision to put Britain back on the Gold Standard in 1925?

Answer 18

Winston Churchill

Question 19

What Act was passed in 1911 that helped the development of the Labour Party?

Answer 19

The Wages for MPs Act

Question 20

How much did its workforce did the older centres of heavy industry lose across the interwar period?

Answer 20

one-third