Independence Factors

Question 1

What effected independence?

Answer 1

Legacy of war
Economic and social discontent
Ethnic and religious rivalries
Western educated leaders
British policies

Question 2

Legacy of war?

Answer 2

Black soldiers had fought alongside the white and colonies expected reward
Financial strain on britain

Question 3

Economic and social discontent?

Answer 3

Locals not always sufficiently skilled to benefit from job opportunities and some development came at the expense of traditional methods
British projects failed, eg Tanganyika
In Nairobi, Br projects failed as the surplus of educated youth didn’t want to do manual labour

Question 4

Ethnic and religious rivalries?

Answer 4

The political mobilisation of Ashanti, and of the Yoruba and Northern Muslims in Nigeria

Question 5

Western-educated leaders?

Answer 5

Key figures able to unite different factions- Nkrumah, Azikiwe, Yew, Aung San, Kaunda
A pattern created- nationalist leaders had to be imprisoned and vilified before negotiations; then Br found them manageable

Question 6

British policy?

Answer 6

Macmillan didn’t focus on the emotional value of empire- was a realist
Was focused on Europe, not Empire
‘Winds of change’ speech (Feb 1960 in Cape Town) demonstrates his acceptance of what has happened and respect to nationalism- he claimed Britain must ‘accept [nationalism] as a fact’

Question 7

Cold War influence on decolonization?

Answer 7

Geopolitical context of Cold War massively informed process of decolonization
Aim of Commonwealth was to keep colonies from the clutches of communism
USA appreciated British role in Malaya communist war
soviets made primary threat in Macmillan’s winds of change speech
Anglo-US coup overthrew the radical nationalist Musaqqiq in Iran 1953
America=anti-colonial= Suez Crisis
Under Macmillan, Britain and US worked together to manage decolonization- America believed controlled decolonization was an essential element of Cold War
Britain removed Br Guinea’s first elected government in 1953 due to Marxist interpretation

Question 8

Arguments against the Cold War’s influence on decolonization?

Answer 8

Soviet Union had little opportunity to directly exert influence
Stalin believed Nehru and Nkrumah were neo-colonial agents of capitalist imperialism- believed a colony could only become properly independent under Communist rule
US SoS, Hull, claimed ‘at no time did we press Br’
As late as 1963, blanket independence in the Br Pacific Islands was rejected by Pentagon as they were scared of revolution
US unable to halt Britain’s exit from Aeden in 1967- angered by the withdrawal of Br forces ‘east. of Suez’
Case by case basis- where it benefited Britain to hold onto colonies they encouraged their control

Question 9

What was the Commonwealth?

Answer 9

Arose from statue of westminister; almost all Br’s former colonies joined it, which was originally founded for self-governing Dominions
Initially, implicit in Commonwealth status was acceptance of Br sovereignty
Burma refused to join in 1948
Ireland excluded in 1949
Changed rules so that Republics could join so that India could join
British monarch= a symbol
Established trade links, alliances and a newly defined role for britian in the world
Friendly nations could lend support- eg AU and NZ helped Br during Suez Crisis