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UK TOPIC #5: 20th CENTURY HISTORY
1) The social reforms that began in the 19th century continued to develop in the 20th
century. Secondary schools started to be set up where pupils did not have to pay, and
in 1908 the first old-age pensions were introduced. We will go back to social welfare
reforms, but first we have to mention something that the 20th century is best known for –
the two World Wars.
2) World War I began in the summer of 1914 and ended in late 1918. This conflict involved
most of the world’s great powers, and consisted of two main alliances: the Allies (Britain,
France and the Russian Empire to begin with), and the Central Powers (the German
Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of
Bulgaria).
3) More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in
one of the largest wars in history. More than 15 million people were killed, making it also
one of the deadliest conflicts in history. The war is also known as the Great War and the
War to End All Wars, and was truly a war between empires.
4) The conflict opened with the German invasion of Belgium, Luxembourg and France; the
Austro-Hungarian invasion of Serbia, and a Russian attack against Germany. By the
war’s end, four major imperial powers – the German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian and
Ottoman Empires – had been militarily and politically defeated. The last two no longer
existed. The communist Soviet Union emerged from the Russian Empire, while the map
of central Europe was completely redrawn into many smaller states. At the end of the
War, on the other hand, the British Empire was at its largest.
The British Empire at its peak (1919)
5) The First World War turned out not to be the War to End All Wars after all. The break-up
of empires and the Treaty of Versailles created a feeling of extreme nationalism on the
continent of Europe, and this helped to lead to the outbreak of World War II in 1939.
One part of the Treaty after the First World War stated that Germany was forbidden to
use planes for military purposes. However, they went on using them, building up their
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already huge air force – and Britain didn’t really bother about this. The fact is that many
Britons did not realize the danger of Nazism until late in the day; Winston Churchill was
one of the few who did see the danger, and “the rest is history”.
6) The Second World War was the most widespread war in history, with more than 100
million military personnel mobilised. It is generally accepted to have begun on 1
September 1939, with the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany. Then followed
declarations of war on Germany by France and many countries of the British Empire.
Without the support of many Africans and Asians, and later Americans, the Allies would
have been in serious trouble against the Axis powers (mainly Germany, Italy and
Japan). The war ended with the total victory of the Allies over Germany and Japan in
1945.
7) Some people seem to think that nothing much happens in British history after the
Second World War. Well, this is not really fair. The UK has not really experienced any true
revolutions in its history (apart from the Industrial one...), but the post-war period
represented a kind of “quiet revolution” or “British revolution”. Like in many other
countries, attitudes changed. People had grown tired of dying for their country; they
wanted instead to live, and to live as good a life as possible.
8) After so much war and expensive colonization, the UK was almost bankrupt. More and
more people saw that fighting wars to preserve empires was perhaps not the best way
of life. Despite being such a popular and great war leader, British Prime Minister Winston
Churchill lost the 1945 general election, which shocked many Conservatives. How could
the British people be so ungrateful for what he did for his country? Even the king at the
time expressed his surprise (and disapproval) at the election result…
9) The answer to the above question is that Churchill was too determined to keep his
Empire and not interested enough in conditions for ordinary people in the UK. His love of
the saying “the sun will never set on the British Empire” showed that he was not
completely in touch with the kind of world that was developing. More and more
countries which used to belong to the Empire were becoming independent – and
usually without bloodshed. During the same post-war period it was clear that the UK
was no longer the superpower that it once was. Empires rise and fall, and that’s that!
10) And so it happened that the Labour Party won the 1945 election, and many important
reforms were made in order to improve conditions for the average UK citizen. Free
schooling and a modern pension system were introduced. In 1948, the National Health
Service (NHS) was started. Suddenly, health care was not just for the rich – it was
available to anyone without cost. Poorer people could now go to proper hospitals,
instead of being treated on their kitchen table with their family members playing the
role of nurses… Even medical prescriptions and dental treatment became totally free
for a 3-year period – very generous!
11) It was during the twentieth century that the urban working class (the majority of the
population) finally began to make its voice heard, as the socialist party, Labour,
represented these voters in Parliament and the trade unions became stronger and
stronger. Since 1980, though, the working class has lost its importance as a political
force.
12) They say history moves in cycles. At the start of the 21st century, one historian pointed
out that the UK in some ways had more in common with the start of the 20th century
than its middle. In 1900, Britain was a rich country, but there was high unemployment
and a social “underclass”. This is rather like the UK today – very different to the 1950s,
when there was very little unemployment but not much money around at all. In 1900,
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an amazing 10% of workers were domestic servants. In 1950 this figure was down to 3%
and still falling. But today, with so many professional women having no time to look after
the house or the children, it was almost up to the level of a hundred years ago. Even
the average speed of traffic through London was the same in 1900 and 2000, while in
1950 it was much faster!
13) SOME IMPORTANT POST-WAR DATES
1949 Ireland becomes a republic
1958 The Clean Air Act is a breakthrough in trying to control pollution
1959 The first motorway is opened
1960 Military service is stopped
1963 The minimum school leaving age is raised to 16
1968 The “age of majority” (becoming an adult) is reduced from 21 to 18
1969 Capital punishment is abolished
1973 The UK joins the European Economic Community
1982 The Falklands War
1994 The Channel Tunnel opens
1997 The UK hands back Hong Kong to China, thus losing the last major piece of its Empire
QUESTIONS ON UK TOPIC #5
B. TRUE (T) OR FALSE (F)? Correct the false ones!
1. Britain, France and Russia were on the same side in both World Wars.
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2. The Soviet Union was born as a result of the Second World War.
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3. The First World War saw the end of at least two empires.
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4. Most South American countries helped the British fight in the Second World War.
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5. Britain had become an extremely rich nation after winning two world wars.
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6. After so much war, the British were generally determined to keep their
Empire.__________________________________________________________________________________
7. Winston Churchill lost the British election just after the Second World War.
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8. The UK moved towards being a more socialist society after 1945.
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9. Free medical treatment was introduced in Britain in 1948.
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Adapted from O’Driscoll, Britain, by Julian Goddard
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