Kennedy
Bring it
m9
McDonough
U wot m8
Economy - Kennedy
• “[The Liberal’s free trade doctrines] saw protectionism as more harmful
than helpful to those sectors of the economy that bolstered the country’s
international position, particularly finance, shipping, and other ‘invisibles’”
• “[For the Liberal’s and Conservatives] the common goal was the
development of the areas untapped…resources. Chamberlain set matters
in motion by encouraging economic investment
In summary, Kennedy says that both the
Liberals and Conservatives wanted to invest in
international colonies with the main goal of
obtaining the nation’s natural resources for
economic development. He goes on to say
that the Liberals saw protectionism as a
hindrance to Britain’s economic sectors that
were vital for the nation’s international
position.
Economy - McDonough
• “The British Empire not only survived all the traumas produced by the Boer
War but expanded as a result of its victory… The economic statistics seem to
support this interpretation”
• “Between 1903 and 1914 British exports to the Empire increased by 32%,
imports from the Empire increased by 31%, British trade with Africa
doubled and 42% of all British overseas investment went to the Empire.”
McDonough tells us that the Boer War
resulted in significant developments to
the British Empire. In fact, in the
aftermath of the Boer War, the British
economy greatly improved. McDonough’s
statistics support this. McDonough’s
article expands on Kennedy’s conclusion
that the Liberals and the Conservatives
wanted to invest economically in Africa.
McDonough develops this by saying that
this resulted in “British trade with Africa
[doubling].”
Military - Kennedy
• The Boer War set to realign British politics
• Liberal Imperialists/Conservative Unionists both advocated
aggressive international pursuit
Kennedy is seen to believe the
Boer War had the potential to
change the ways in which the
British political and military
systems worked with each other
to create a strong and more able
force.
Military - McDonough
• Pax Britannica disrupted – Britain no longer the world’s policemen
• Colonial war would no longer interest the public until the Falklands
• ‘Splendid isolation’ – no military alliances entered into with other
major powers
McDonough also gives the
impression that the Boer War had
the potential to alter the face of
British politics and military,
however he believes that the
society lost interest in defending
the Empire after the War.
International Standing - Kennedy
• “Disturbed by what he saw as signs that Britain’s standing on the
world stage was slipping”
• “…troubling shifts that had occurred on the world scene”
Kennedy’s viewpoint is that the
movements of Britain’s world standing
as a result of the Boer War are not in
its favour and that it is no longer
viewed as having an indestructible
Empire to overpower the globe with.
International Standing - McDonough
• “The idea that Britain was the ‘world’s policeman’ who could be called upon in
an emergency to defend the weak nations against the ambitions of the strong
was deeply discredited”
• “The war also brought about a ‘a revolution in British foreign relations’”
• “No longer was Britain in a position to give moral lectures to anybody”
As a result of the Boer war, he believes
Britain had not only been discredited or
undermined as a powerful international
force (in terms of strength), but
furthermore recognises that its role as an
“international policeman”, i.e. a nation
which holds both significant power and
responsibility for the upkeep international
peace, had been seen to act brutally,
destroyed its image.
Political Support - Kennedy
•
•
•
•
“[Liberal Imperialists and Conservative Unions] advocated the aggressive pursuit of
British imperial interests abroad”
“The Liberals reassured the electorate that the free trade doctrines that had
brought Britain its global dominance would not be abandoned.”
“Conciliation marked the Liberal approach to India as well.”
“When colonial nationalism posed no challenge, Liberal policies were scarcely
indistinguishable from Conservative Unionist. In tropical Africa…the common goal
was the development of the area’s untapped agricultural and mineral resources.”
Kennedy believes that both the Liberals and
the Conservatives supported the idea of
imperialism. However the method in which
imperialism was achieved differed between
the two parties. The Conservatives had no
concern over satisfying any British colonies and
only cared for any potential gains for Britain.
On the contrary, the Liberals were desperate to
be pragmatic.
Political Support - McDonough
•
•
“The Liberal Colonial Secretary expressed his belief that that ‘the Empire is held
together by a silk cord: twist the cord intro a whiplash and a crack of the lash
would be the death knell of the Empire’”
“[Imperialism] became seen as a right-wing policy associated with ‘die hard’
Conservatives”
McDonough believes that the Liberals and
Conservatives have contrasting opinions.
He states that the Liberals wanted to
minimise Britain’s aggression in an effort
to keep good relations with other powers.
The Conservatives were seen as hardcore
imperialists who had the primary goal of
expanding the empire. They didn’t care
much for keeping good relations
internationally. This agrees with Kennedy to an
extent. However McDonough goes further to
say that the lack of aggression from the
Liberals was due to their acknowledgement
of the instability of the Empire.
Popular Support - Kennedy
•
•
“Some historians have seen the 1906 election as a repudiation of imperialism”
“The Liberals reassured the electorate that the free trade doctrines that had
brought Britain its global dominance would not be abandoned”
Kennedy believes that imperialism was slowly
starting to become rejected. He also mentions
that the British citizens were warming towards
the Liberal idea of free trade. He continues to
say how this could in fact be a key contributor
to the Liberal landslide victory of 1906. This
provides further evidence that popular support
was distancing itself from imperialism.
Popular Support - McDonough
• “Imperialism became synonymous with ‘maverick politicians’ “
• “[Imperialism] became seen as a right-wing policy associated with ‘die-hard’
Conservatives”
• “[The Boer War] really marks the dividing line between the passionate
imperialism of late-Victorian England and the loss of self-confidence in Britain
about its future”
• “After the Boer War the British never believed as strongly as they had before”
McDonough says that preceding the Boer
War, Britons had a strong support for the
empire and saw it as a source of pride. He
goes on to say that the Boer War marked a
turning point in this public opinion. The
war decreased the self confidence of the
British population and as a result there
was a decline in imperialist support. In fact
after the war, imperialism was an idea with
negative connotations.
Turning Point - Kennedy
• “For a time it appeared the South African War would clear the way for
a major realignment of British politics”
• “Disturbed by what he saw as signs that Britain’s standing on the
world stage was slipping”
He not only acknowledges that the Boer
war was, from many people’s perspectives,
a turning point, but he actually links these
beliefs to later happenings / developments,
ie, Chamberlain was ‘disturbed’ as stated in
the quote above, which lead to him
introducing tariff reform, this being an aftereffect of the Boer War. However there are
few examples which he gives of ways in
which he marks the Boer War as a turning
point in society.
Turning Point - McDonough
• “Boer War was clearly one of those rare turning points in the history of Empire
between 1815 and 1914”
• “Many contemporaries viewed it as ‘the first nail in the coffin of the British
Empire’”
• “British Empire not only survived all the traumas…but expanded as a result of its
victory and became even more important for British trade and investment”
• “The Boer War really marks the dividing line between the passionate imperialism
of late-Victorian England and the loss of self-confidence in Britain”
• “After the Boer War the British never believed as strongly as they had before that
the British Empire was one on which the sun would never set
McDonough acknowledges that the Boer
War was, in the eyes of many, a turning
point, and to an extent agrees, however
he does not regard it as the beginning of
the end of the Empire. Whilst confidence
in the Empire fell, he persists that the
Empire’s trade and international relations
were able to flourish after the War and it
marked more of a change in public and
political opinion rather than simply
damaging it beyond repair.
Thanks for
watching.