Section 3 (1914-1967)

Question 1

Why was the empire so heavily involved in the First World War?

Answer 1

• Many across the Empire felt British, most notably in Canada where many had British parents or Grandparents
• For other nations it was a sense of loyalty to the ‘Mother Country’, such as in Australia and New Zealand

Question 2

How involved were the colonies in the First World War?

Answer 2

• Overall, 2 million commonwealth soldiers served, of whom 500,000 were killed
• Many commonwealth soldiers took part in major battles such as the Somme, Vimy Ridge and Gallipoli
• Many of the dominions took major economic hits as a result of the war, not just physical tolls

Question 3

What was the involvement and impact of ww1 on Australia and New Zealand?

Answer 3

• Both were keen to join up and were involved in notable battles, in particular Gallipoli
• Both introduced conscription in 1916
• Both had boosted self worth after the war
• They felt as though they were owed something by Britain due to their efforts in the war

Question 4

What was the involvement and impact of ww1 on Canada?

Answer 4

• They supplied Britain with munitions and wheat
• They were notable for their bravery at Vimy Ridge in 1917
• They introduced conscription in 1917

-French Canadians were not happy with the war and protested in 1918; anti-British sentiment increased in French Canada

Question 5

What was the involvement of and impact of ww1 on India?

Answer 5

• 1/3 of all troops in France in 1914 were Indian
• In 1917 the Indian government contributed £100million to the war effort

-After the war they were promised responsible self-government

Question 6

What was the involvement of and impact of ww1 on other colonies?

Answer 6

• In South Africa, general Smuls set up the South African defence force which fought the Germans in its colonies
• 1.3m Egyptians were recruited to defend Egypt
• In South Africa a republican movement grew, led by J.B.M Herby which opposed imperialism
• Across Africa, the war was a formative part of the pan-Africanism movement

Question 7

What were the financial impacts of the First World War?

Answer 7

• Commercial rivals seized British markets (e.g Japan)
• Staple industries were damaged
• US took over Britain in shipping
• Huge debt to the US
• The gold standard decision in 1925 backfired
• The balance of economic power shifted to the US
• WW1 accelerated economic decline, but it was no the sole reason

Question 8

What were the strategic impacts of the First World War?

Answer 8

• Rapid de-escalation of the armed forces
• Little military expansion
• European rivals were weakened by the war
• Japan’s ambition posed a threat in the east
• The US’s economic might meant its global influence was expanding

Question 9

What were the territorial impacts of the First World War?

Answer 9

• The empire reached its greatest extent in the immediate post-war years
• Britain gained more territorial claims from League of Nations mandates
• Some new territory had problems, e.g. Palestine
• The loss of Ireland was a significant blow to the Empire’s prestige
• The loss of Egypt and Iraq came soon after the war

Question 10

What happened during the Amritsar massacre in 1919?

Answer 10

-In the Punjab, rioting had brought British deaths and the near breakdown of civil order in the region
-British troops, commanded by Brigadier General Reginald Dyer, fired upon a crowd containing a mixture of:
Indians who had gathered to protest against the arrest of two nationalist leaders
Sikh pilgrims who had gathered in the public gardens of Jallianwallah Bagh

Question 11

What was the reaction to the Amritsar Massacre?

Answer 11

• Indian Congress politicians claimed that the way the British had dealt with the protest showed they possessed no moral authority to rule
• The action also galvanised Gandhi’s Non-cooperation movement of 1920-22
• The discontent continued for the next 25 years with other bloody incidents; however the campaigning as a whole was non violent

Question 12

Where did Gandhi begin his career in 1893?

Answer 12

• He began in South Africa as a lawyer, campaigning against racism and segregation and championing civil rights for the Indians who had settled in the area
• He challenged the British and later the Afrikaners

Question 13

What did Gandhi do in 1915?

Answer 13

• He returned to India where he became president of the Indian National congress and immersed himself in political affairs
• In 1917 to 1918 he championed the downtrodden indigo workers in the state of Bihar, establishing himself as a national figure

Question 14

When did Gandhi’s national campaigns for Indian independence begin?

Answer 14

-They began in 1919 after the Amritsar massacre

Question 15

What movements did Gandhi help to organise?

Answer 15

• The non-co-operation movement of 1920
• The civil disobedience movement of 1930-31 and 1932-34
• The quit India movement of 1942

Question 16

What were Gandhi’s key beliefs?

Answer 16

• He expressed his key beliefs in ‘Hind Swaraj’ (Home rule for India) in 1909. These were:
  
  • He favoured peaceful resistance to the British in accordance with satyagraha ‘insistence of the truth’
  • He preached harmonious relations between Hindus and Muslims and pushed for equal rights for both communities after independence.
  • He also rejected divisions based on the caste system, in particular arguing fiercely against discrimination towards the ‘untouchables’
  • Gandhi wanted an independent India built on spiritual and social traditions and wanted it to remain rural, not industrialised and urbanised

Question 17

What was Gandhi’s importance?

Answer 17

• He was both a moral and political leader
• He reconciled western ideas with about democracy with the notion of a distinctive Indian culture
• The methods he used made it difficult for the British to respond as they could not use violence against peaceful protestors

Question 18

What was the colonial office split into in 1925?

Answer 18

• The dominions office

- The Colonial office

Question 19

When was the statute of Westminster and what did it do?

Answer 19

-It was in 1931, and it made the dominions autonomous

Question 20

What was the idea of trusteeship?

Answer 20

-The belief that administrators were there to protect native interest, as well as the white settlers, and to foster the country’s economic growth whilst nurturing it towards greater self-rule

Question 21

What was Edwin Montague notable for?

Answer 21

• Secretary of State for India from 1917 to 1922

- Introduced reforms to India that led to the government of India act 1919, along with Lord Chelmsford

Question 22

What was Sir Harry Haig responsible for?

Answer 22

• Lifelong colonial administration for India, after being appointed as a member of Vice Raj’s executive council in 1932
• Opposed Gandhi’s campaign for Indian independence describing him as a ‘menace’

Question 23

What was Lord Linlithgow responsible for?

Answer 23

• Served as Viceroy of India from 1935 to 1943, and was the longest serving Viceroy
• Actively promoted the further enfranchisement of Indians in the 1935 Government of India act
• Opposed Gandhi and suppressed the civil disobedience campaign

Question 24

What was Sir Donald Cameron notable for?

Answer 24

• Sought to advance the colonies economically, and supported the entry of indigenous peoples into the civil service
• Served as governor of Tanganyika and Nigeria

Question 25

What was William Hailey (Baron Hailey) responsible for?

Answer 25

• Governor of Punjab and the united provinces
• Key participant in the conferences leading to the government of India Act 1935
• Helped to produce an African survey in 1938 for the royal institute of International Affairs

Question 26

What was Sir Phillip Mitchell notable for?

Answer 26

-Became Chief Secretary of Tanganyika In 1934 and went to Uganda in 1935 where he extended Makerere college

Question 27

What was Sir Charles Arden-Clarke notable for?

Answer 27

-Oversaw the first British African colony to gain independence (the Gold Coast) in 1957

Question 28

What was Sir Andrew Cohen notable for?

Answer 28

• Sympathetic to the plight of the native African people and understood the need for decolonisation relatively early
• Appointed as Assistant under Secretary of State for the colonies in 1947, finding himself in a position where he could influence steps towards greater independence

Question 29

What was Sir Ralph Furse notable for?

Answer 29

-Responsible for improving recruitment and training of administrators and reformed the recruitment and training process

Question 30

What was Makerere College?

Answer 30

• Established In 1922 as a technical college
• Became the prime centre for education in East Africa (Uganda) in 1935
• From 1949 onwards it became affiliated to UCL

Question 31

What role did Jawaharlal Nehru play in securing Indian independence?

Answer 31

• He was an ardent nationalist from his youth, and his feelings were intensified by the Boer War
• He joined the Indian National Congress in 1919 and became the president in 1928
• Was imprisoned during the anti-salt tax campaign
• Reluctantly Supported Gandhi’s 1942 quit India campaign
• Became India’s first Prime Minister In 1947

Question 32

What role did Subhas Chandra Bose play in securing Indian independence?

Answer 32

• Advocated for full unconditional independence for India
• Elected President of the All Indian Youth council and became president of the Indian National Congress in 1938-39
• Conspired with the Nazis and Japanese during WW2 to try and force the British out of India
• Established the Indian National Army with help from the Japanese

Question 33

What role did Muhammad Ali Jinnah play in securing Indian independence?

Answer 33

• He advocated for separate Hindu and Muslim states
• He led the all India Muslim League from 1913
• Became the leader of Pakistan in 1947

Question 34

What did the Government of India Act 1919 do?

Answer 34

• Created a dyarchy: Viceroy maintained control of main areas such as foreign policy. The legislative council was split into two houses with some elected members
• Provincial councils were run by elected Indian ministers

Question 35

What did the Simon Commission of 1929-30 do?

Answer 35

• Led by Sir John Simon
• Reviewed the Government of India Act and recommended that:
  
  • A federal system of government be created across India, incorporating the Princely states and provinces under direct British rule
  • The provinces be given more power
  • Defence, internal security and foreign affairs should remain in the hands of a British Viceroy, ensuring overall British Control

Question 36

What were the round table conferences of 1930-31?

Answer 36

• They were call after considerable rises in the Indian independence movement and were talks between the British and Indian independence leaders
• However, the talks failed
• Britain rejected the calls of self governance from Indian Independence leaders as they doubted the competence of non-white leaders as well as concerns over India’s strategic and economic importance to Britain

Question 37

What did the government of India act 1935 do?

Answer 37

• Created a federation of India by:
  
  • Making the provinces completely self-governing (governors were still appointed by the British However)
  • Expanding the franchise from 7 to 35 million people
• The Act was rejected by the Indian Congress party for not giving India dominion status
• The Act was rejected by the princely states as they wanted to maintain their independence from the rest of India

Question 38

Why was the impact of WW2 a reason for British withdrawal from India in 1947?

Answer 38

• During the war, the Indian National Army emerged which was vehemently opposed to the British
• After the War the British feared that they did not have the money nor manpower to put down a potential INA uprising

Question 39

How were actions by the British ruling authority a reason for their withdrawal from India in 1947?

Answer 39

• The Labour Government of 1945 concluded that it was no longer financially viable to keep India
• They believed that India was no longer an economic necessity as it was no longer a market for British cotton
• They feared that there would be widespread violence if they stayed
• The round table conferences and government of India Act did not satisfy Indian nationalists

Question 40

How did the role of Individuals help lead to the British withdrawal of India in 1947?

Answer 40

• Gandhi helped to spearhead the Indian Nationalist movement such as the quit India campaign and non-cooperation movements
• Lord Linlithgow Supported the Idea to give Indians more self governance to help quell radical Indian nationalism

Question 41

How did the change in Indian public attitudes help lead to the British withdrawal of India in 1947?

Answer 41

• More and more Indians were becoming educated and aware of the atrocities committed by the British and so became more and more anti-British
• Gandhi and the Congress party helped to educate the masses

Question 42

What role did Alfred Milner play in imperialism?

Answer 42

• Became the high commissioner for South Africa in 1897
• Payed important roles in the Bloemfontein conference and the Boer War
• Was convinced of British superiority over the Boers and Africans
• Was very significant before, during and after the Boer War

Question 43

What was decided at the Ottawa conference?

Answer 43

• It saw a compromise between the British who wanted imperial preference and the dominions who wanted to protect their own growing industries
• The British introduced a general 10% tax on all imports but crown colonies were exempt
• Britain and the dominions would give each other’s exports preferential treatment in their own markets
• The concessions at the conference reinforced the importance that the Empire played in supplying food and raw materials to Britain
• Free trade was abandoned with imperial preference being introduced instead
• It helped the dominions more than Britain
• Australia and New Zealand were suffering economic problems during this period and so were more reliant on imperial preference than others