Britain’s withdrawal from Empire
British Decolonisation, 1945-63
Factors sustaining colonial empires before World War Two
a) Britain’s economic relationship with colonies
 Britain provides capital investment and finished industrial goods
 Colonies provide primary products
b) Sea routes controlled: Dover, Gibraltar, Alexandria, Aden, Singapore
c) Disparity in technology
d) No great power disputes over Empire until challenge of Japan
e) culture of imperialism: white supremacy largely unchallenged
f) colonial nationalism weak, except in India
Impact of Second World War
1. Scale of Britain’s debt to USA
2. increased colonial industrialisation
3. Britain no longer able to supply requisite capital and manpower
4. Britain’s role as marketplace and banker undermined
5. Japanese victories undermine imperial prestige
6. creation of bi-polar world: both USA and USSR subscribe to anti-imperial ideology
7. WW2 discredits racism: white supremacy no longer sustainable
Aims of post-war British colonial policy
 the construction of nation-states in its colonies
 development of colonial administrative infrastructure: admin, justice, police
 colonial independence within the Commonwealth
o increase their role as suppliers of food and raw materials to Britain
o modernise agricultural practice
o remain within the Sterling Area
o defence agreements: bases
Britain’s plans for developing nation-states help to foster anti-colonial nationalism
 economic policies disruptive of traditional economic and social structures
 colonial administrative systems increasingly evident and resented
 colonial elite educated in Britain and USA
 Britain unable to remain in control of pace of developments
Britain’s Withdrawal from India
Attlee’s policy in India
 Create a federal India within the Commonwealth
 preserve Britain’s strategic interests
March to June 1946 Cabinet Mission (Pethick-Lawrence, Cripps, AV Alexander)
2 Sept 1946 Interim Government established
Labour Government’s policy blown off course
 Congress hostile to federation
 Jinnah, leader of Muslim League, hostile
20 February 1947 Attlee announces appointment of Mountbatten
 British withdrawal no later than June 1948
Mountbatten adopts partition as least unacceptable solution
British hasty withdrawal
 Extensive communal violence
Britain’s withdrawal from Empire

Kashmir remains a problem
1949 both India and Pakistan join the Commonwealth as republics
 recognise British monarch as head of Commonwealth
Malaya: 1945-57
Value of Malaya and Singapore to Britain
 sterling area earnings: 1947: $170m; 1950: $271m; 1952: $350m
 strategic importance of Singapore
Aims of British policy
 multi-racial federation
 defeat of communism
1948-60: Malayan Emergency
 Malay/Chinese tension: communism versus Islam
 vigorous suppression of insurgency
costs versus benefits
1957: independence within the Sterling Area and Commonwealth
1963: Federation of Malaysia, includes Singapore, Sarawak, Sabah
Gold Coast: Ghana
Britain wants to give power to United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC)
 conservative nationalists
Feb 1951 elections won by Convention People’s Party (CPP) led by Kwame Nkrumah
 much wider base of popular support than UGCC
 Governor Arden-Clarke appoints Nkrumah prime minister
1954 elections won by CPP
Britain wants federal constitution
 central (Ashanti) and northern regions unhappy with domination of southern CPP
March 1957 Ghana independent
 remains in Commonwealth
 remains in Sterling Area
 federal constitution
Macmillan’s decision to withdraw from Africa
 recognition of the strength of colonial nationalism
 need to rationalise costs against benefits
 unwilling to engage in costly counter-insurgency campaigns
 decolonisation an issue in domestic politics
 decolonisation necessary to avoid pushing non-aligned towards Moscow
 reorientation of Britain’s position towards Europe and NATO
 Sandys Defence Review reduces capacity for counter-insurgency campaigns
Nigeria
North: Muslim, traditional, rural; South: Christian, commercial
tribal division in south: Ibo in east, Yoruba in west
Oct 1960 Nigeria independent with a federal constitution
Britain’s withdrawal from Empire
Kenya
a) white settlers farming land which was claimed by Kikuyu
 White Highlands
b) Asian community dominates commercial life
c) blacks divided into three tribes: Kikuyu, Luo, Masai
Britain wants to develop multi-racial institutions: believe that independence is a long way off
1952-56 Mau Mau insurgency
 fed by Kikuyu resentment of white domination of the best land
 most of the violence was directed at fellow Kikuyu who collaborated with whites
Oct 1952 State of Emergency declared: Kenyatta arrested
 Britain labels May Mau terrorists/communists
 Kenyatta given seven year sentence
42,000 troops (inc 13,000 British) needed to deal with Mau Mau
By Dec 1953 160,000 Mau Mau detainees
April 1954 Operation Anvil: 30,000 Kikuyu moved
1954 Swynnerton Plan to develop commercial farming
British propaganda successfully portrays Mau Mau as savage and depraved
 Prevents domestic opposition in Britain (and in USA)
 11,000 Africans killed; 60 Europeans
Reliance of whites on GB forces to suppress Mau Mau destroys notion of white settler state
Macleod (Colonial Secretary Oct 1959-Oct 1961) hastens progress towards independence
 hopes to persuade blacks to join New Kenya Group (NKG)
 NKG multi-racial, set up by white settler, Michael Blundell
May 1963 Kenyatta and KANU (Kenya African Nation Union) win elections
 dominated by Kikuyu and Luo
Dec 1963 Kenya independent
Uganda
four separate kingdoms – largest: Buganda
Britain wants “unitary form of central government”
 opposed by Kabaka of Buganda, Mutesa 11
1953 Kabaka deposed by governor
1954 constitutional conference declares Uganda must be “African”
1955 Kabaka released
1960 Bugandan Parliament votes for secession
 British policy appears to have failed
1962 Kabaka makes an uneasy compromise with Milton Obote
 Leader of Uganda People’s Congress
1962 Uganda granted independence: Britain unwilling to police the different factions
Tanganyika
1919 Britain receives Tanganyika as a League mandate
British policy
a) create East African Federation with Kenya and Uganda
 policy dropped
b) encouragement of economic development
c) creation of multi-national institutions
 small white community
Britain’s withdrawal from Empire
1954 Julius Nyerere creates Tanganyika African National Union (TANU)
 wins 1958 elections
1964 independent as Tanzania (united with Zanzibar, independent since 1963)
Central African Federation
1923 Southern Rhodesia a self-governing colony
 not a Dominion, but treated as such
 articulate, sizable white community
Northern Rhodesia a crown colony
 rich in copper, small white community
Central African Federation created in 1953
 Northern Rhodesia (Zambia)
 Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe)
 Nyasaland (Malawi)
CAF created because Britain
a) fears predatory ambitions of South Africa
b) economies already inter-dependent
c) prosperity will free Britain of burden of sustaining impoverished Nyasaland
d) growing wealth will reconcile black opinion to CAF
e) blacks will act as counterweight to white communities
f) believes CAF can be developed as multi-racial
White communities anxious for merger of Rhodesias, accept CAF as next best thing
 copper wealth attracts Southern Rhodesia
 semi-independent status of South attracts Northern Rhodesia
black opinion opposed to CAF
 fear that it will be first step to British withdrawal
 creation of a new white-dominated state, like South Africa
CAF “an exotic constitutional beast” (John Darwin)
 CAF government responsible to Commonwealth Office
 Southern Rhodesian government responsible to whites-only parliament
 colonies ruled by governors responsible to Colonial Office
black opposition fomented and led by
 Hastings Banda: Nyasaland
 Kenneth Kaunda: Northern Rhodesia
March 1959 rioting leads to the death of 51 Africans, wounding of 79
 coincides with death of 11 Mau Mau detainees in Hola Camp, Kenya
July 1959 Devlin Report into Nyasaland troubles
 no evidence of incitement to riot by Banda
 Nyasaland described as “a police state”
Macmillan’s dilemmas over CAF
a) wants it to survive as genuinely multi-racial
b) need to appease the imperialist Tories
o reluctant to abandon white “kith and kin”
c) fearful that USSR will profit from any descent into chaos
o cf Congo, independent in 1960
Britain’s withdrawal from Empire
factors speeding up the process of disintegration
 March 1959 appointment of Monckton Commission to review future of CAF
 Oct 1959 Macmillan’s appointment of Macleod as Colonial Secretary
 Jan-Feb 1960 Macmillan’s African tour
o becomes aware of strength of black hostility to CAF
o “Wind of Change” speech in Cape Town
Oct 1960 Monckton Commission reports
 recommends that territories be allowed to secede
 wants increased black representation
1961-62 conferences and wrangles over the nature of constitutions
March 1962 Macmillan creates Central African Office
 RA Butler appointed
 aim was to dismember CAF
31 Dec 1963 CAF formally dissolved
1964 Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) and Nyasaland (Malawi) independent
1962 Southern Rhodesian government demands independence under minority white rule
 Nov 1965 UDI declared