Theme 4 1942-1948 Flashcards
What did deal was signed in 1941 that set out that all nations had a right to self determination and who was it signed by?
Atlantic charter signed by both Winston Churchill and Roosevelt.
How did Winston Churchill view the Atlantic charter in regards to the British Empire and how did Labour view it??
Churchill believed that it did not apply to any nations within the British Empire, whilst secretary of state for India Leo Amery and the leader of the Labour party Clement Atlee supported self determination for India.
What was the situation like in India for the duration of the war after the famine?
Gandhi and Nehru were out of the picture and in turn tensions in India were relatively low. It was decided that a conference should be scheduled to decide what would happen to India after the war. India had given millions of resources to Britain during the war and Britain simply couldn’t afford to pay it back.
When was the Simla conference held?
25th June 1945, the plan was to offer the Indians a similar agreement to the one offered to them by the Cripps mission. This meant that power would be shared between the Hindus and Muslims whilst Britain retained the viceroy and control over the military.
What did Churchill’s interim government and Wavell offer at the Simla conference?
Balanced representation for different communities and included equal representation for Hindu’s and Muslim’s. Churchill was unwilling to grant independence but still wanted to reward the Muslims for their contribution to the war effort.
What problem arose between the Muslim League and the INC at the First Simla conference?
The INC leaders had been released from prison in order to attend the meeting. The INC rejected the Muslim stake in India believing that the INC represented all Indians. Jinnah protested this and argued that the ML was the only party suitable for representing Muslims.
On what day did Wavell adjourn the Simla conference and why?
On the 14th July Wavell adjourned the conference as he couldn’t break the deadlock between Jinnah and the INC. Although Jinnah had been willing to discuss a united government his treatment by the INC pushed him further away.
On what date did the Conservative party lose the general election?
26th July 1945
What where the results of the 1945 general election?
It was rumoured that Labour held a meeting with the INC in 1938 offering independence as soon as they achieved power and in turn they started taking steps to achieve this. It was very unlikely that any major progress would be made with Churchill still in power.
Why was a Labour victory extremely beneficial to the INC?
Labour were very much pro Indian independence and Attlee immediately set up an Indian commission. However a number of INC members had close connections with Labour party members e.g. Nehru and Cripps.
Why were the Muslim League suspicious of the Labour victory?
Due to the strong links between Labour and the INC “Labour - Congress Axis” many feared that they would be sidetracked despite their contributions in the war. Some factions in the Muslim League perceived the Labour Party to be anti-Muslim.
Who were the members of the India Commission and what outlook did they have?
The group was made up of Secretary of State Lord Pethwick - Lawrence, Clement Attlee and Stafford Cripps. They all had the same motive to grant independence to India as well as harbouring a pro - INC stance.
What problems did the India Committee have to solve?
They had to ask what format independence would be, who would receive control, how could they solve the internal strife between religions and princes. Although Labour had good intentions they were out of their depth.
What was the first decision that the India commission made?
That elections should be held in India to allow the people to choose their own representatives in an Indian constituent assembly.
What did the Indian commission unannounced fact finding group set out to do?
They wanted to gauge the support for an Independent Pakistan, Wavell also established a small party to make preparations just in case.
How would the INC benefit from the 1946 Indian Elections?
They had been out of government since 1939 and in turn this offered them a way back into power, Labour had seemingly forgot their lack of cooperation during the war.
What was the backdrop of the Constituent Assembly General Election?
Disorder, violence, mayhem - caused by draught and famine, mutiny and demobilisation of soldiers (leading to unemployment), and trials of captured INA soldiers.
What did the pre 1946 election unrest lead to regarding the army?
A mutiny broke out aiming to force the British out of India however, the INC and the Muslim League convinced them to stop believing that cooperation was the best option.
How many seats were contested in the 1946 election?
1585 seats were up for grabs.
How many seats did the INC and Muslim League win and what percentage of the vote did they get?
INC won 923 seats which was 58% of th seats and they held a majority in 8/11 States.
Muslim League won 425 seats in turn winning 90% of the seats guaranteed to them in turn giving them around 26% of seats. They had a majority in two states. Many Muslim voters chose the Muslim League as they wanted Pakistan not a United India.
The only state without a majority was Punjab which led to tensions flaring.
Who was the three man cabinet mission made up of? And when was it.
It was made up of Cripps, Pethick - Lawrence and A.V Alexander who was a key Labour party member and a known socialist. March - May 1946.
What was the 3 man cabinet mission instructed to do?
They wanted to do everything possible to maintain a United India, one that could play role in Britain’s Asian security plan, but did rule out the possibility of separate Muslim dominated states in India.
How did Jinnah deal with the cabinet Mission?
The group talked to Jinnah extensively to try and get him to agree to a united India. Jinnah realised that the only way of achieving Pakistan would be through the British therefore, he agreed to meet the INC at a further Simla Conference.
What major flaws did the Cabinet Mission have?
They were so focused on the INC and the ML that they paid very little attention to the Princely States and the Sihks which left both groups incredibly angered.
When was the second Simla conference held?
It was held in early May 1946.
What was proposed by the cabinet mission at the second Simla conference?
Option 1: An all India Union with control over everything including defence and foreign affairs. The Union would consist of a Hindu Dominated Central province system as well as a Muslim dominated North West. These states would dictate their own affairs in a federal manner. It also provided the Muslims with an option to secede.
Option 2: The immediate creation of two separate states of Hindustan and Pakistan.
What did the British hope the Second Simla Conference would lead to?
The INC would not accept the second one so hopefully they would compromise for the first. Jinnah accepted both proposals but the INC rejected both due to the secession clause.
