Churchill

Question 1

What was Churchill’s stance on the government of India Act 1935?

Answer 1

voted against it; opposed giving Indian provinces autonomy

Question 2

What did Churchill say about Gandhi?

Answer 2

1931 - “I am against this surrender to Ghandi”

Question 3

When did Germany remilitarise the Rhineland?

Answer 3

March 1936

Question 4

What % of Britons supported appeasement in 1938?

Answer 4

55% (Gallup poll)

Question 5

When did Edward VIII officially abdicate?

Answer 5

11 December 1936

Question 6

How did Harold Nicolson describe Churchill during abdication?

Answer 6

“Churchill behaved like a romantic Tory rebel” - Diary 1936

Question 7

What did Churchill call the Munich Agreement?

Answer 7

“A total and unmitigated defeat” - HoC 1938

Question 8

When did Britain declare war on Germany?

Answer 8

3 September 1939

Question 9

When did Churchill become PM?

Answer 9

10 May 1940

Question 10

What was his first speech’s key phrase as MP?

Answer 10

“Blood, toil, tears and sweat” 1940

Question 11

When was the Atlantic Charter signed?

Answer 11

August 1941

Question 12

How many German civilians died from Allied bombing?

Answer 12

300,000 (including Dresden 1945)

Question 13

What was the 1945 election result?

Answer 13

Labour 393 seats, Conservatives 213

Question 14

When did Churchill deliver the Iron curtain speech?

Answer 14

5 March 1946 (Fulton, Missouri)

Question 15

What did Stalin say about Churchill’s Balkans plans?

Answer 15

called them “chessboard fantasies” - Tehran 1943

Question 16

How did Attlee summarise Churchill’s wartime role?

Answer 16

“He won the war - let us win the peace” - 1945

Question 17

How much did UK defence spending rise (1935-39)?

Answer 17

£126m - £258m

Question 18

How many Indians served Britain in WWII?

Answer 18

1.5 million volunteers

Question 19

How did Leo Amery describe Churchill

Answer 19

“Brilliant to the point of being unbalanced” - Dairy 1934

Question 20

What was Churchill”s view on India (1931)?

Answer 20

“India is not a nation. It is a geographical term’

Question 20

What did Stafford Cripps call Churchill? (1942)

Answer 20

“The last victorian imperialist” - Labour meeting 1942

Question 21

When did the Amritsar massacre occur?

Answer 21

April 1919

Question 22

What did Attlee say about Churchill’s Hitler warnings?

Answer 22

“He was right when everyone else was wrong” - 1945

Question 23

What was Churchill’s Mediterranean strategy called?

Answer 23

“Soft underbelly of the Axis” - 1942

Question 24

When was Dresden bombed

Answer 24

Feb 1945

Question 25

When did Churchill step down after 1945 loss?

Answer 25

July 1945

Question 26

When did Hitler take power?

Answer 26

1933

Question 27

When was Yalta conference?

Answer 27

February 1945

Question 28

When did Britain declare war on Germany

Answer 28

3rd September 1939

Question 29

When did Churchill re-enter government as First Lord of Admiralty?

Answer 29

1939

Question 30

When was the Potsdam conference?

Answer 30

July- August 1945

Question 31

What did Roosevelt reportedly say about Churchill in private?

Answer 31

"He has 100 ideas a day - 4 brilliant, 96 dangerous"

Question 32

what was the Rowlatt act

Answer 32

1919 - increased police powers by allowing imprisonment without trial

Question 33

10 year rule

Answer 33

1919 - reduce military spending in the wake of ww1 - proposed by CH + adopted by govt, w assumption that Br Empire would not be engaged in a major conflict for the next decade

Question 34

when did Hitler reintroduce conscription

Answer 34

1935

Question 35

when did Hitler remilitarise the Rhineland

Answer 35

March 1935

Question 36

When did Germany leave LoN

Answer 36

1933

Question 37

when was the Norway campaign

Answer 37

1940

Question 38

How did CH become PM

Answer 38

- chamberlain = couldn't stay (labour wouldn't serve under him after Norway campaign) - halifax = not stepping up - CH =only other alternative w confidence

Question 39

What was the military situation by 13th May 1940

Answer 39

Br army intact, Fr had large forces, Italy hadn't joined Gr, Br fighting on 1 front

Question 40

Why was CH's past record discouraging in 1940

Answer 40

Norway campaign failure, poor WW1 record, little US support

Question 41

What event worsened Br position on 14th May 1940

Answer 41

Gr broke Fr defences, allowing Hitler to direct all forced against Br

Question 42

What was the situation at Dunkirk by 28th May 1940

Answer 42

Br army cut off, 300,000 troops at risk due to Gr air superiority

Question 43

Why was Italian entry into the war a concern

Answer 43

Threatened Egypt/ Suez Canal, endangered sea routes to India and Far East

Question 44

What peace proposal did Halifax support

Answer 44

Approaching Mussolini to find out Hitler's peace terms (rejected by cabinet)

Question 45

What was the outcome of Dunkirk by 4th June 1940

Answer 45

224,318 British troops evacuated

Question 46

Why did Hitler's bombing strategy fail in 1940

Answer 46

Shift from RAF airfields to cities allowed RAF to recover

Question 47

What were key element of CH's leadership

Answer 47

Person diplomacy, mastery of speech, daring/ ruthlessness

Question 48

How did Churchill interact with his generals

Answer 48

Often interfered but respected those who stood up to him

Question 49

Why was CH frustrated with generals

Answer 49

saw WWI generals as too cautious, his own military record was mixed (ie. Gallipoli)

Question 50

What was Brooke's view of CH

Answer 50

criticised interference but agreed on major decisions (ie. North Africa deployment)

Question 51

Why was General Wavell removed

Answer 51

CH took forces for Greece campaign, leading to failure, Wavell got little credit

Question 52

Why did Montgomery win CH's favour

Answer 52

confidence and victory at El Alamein 1942, though slow to pursue Rommel

Question 53

Why was North Africa important

Answer 53

Suez Canal vital for oil/trade; defending Egypt prevented Gr- Middle East linkup

Question 54

why did CH favour the mediterranean over Fr invasion

Answer 54

wanted to preserve the Empire, weaken Gr via Balkans, avoid heavy casualties

Question 55

what was the flaw in the Greek campaign 1940

Answer 55

poorly prepares, troops diverted form North Africa, leading to defeat/ evacuation

Question 56

what were arguments FOR bombing Germany

Answer 56

alternative to invasion, retaliation for Blitz, aimed to destroy industry/ morale

Question 57

what were arguments AGAINST bombing Gr

Answer 57

ineffective per 1942 report, didn't break Gr morale, ethical concerns

Question 58

what was controversial about Dresden Feb 1945

Answer 58

40,000 civilians killed, not a major military target, seen as excessive

Question 59

Why was Churchill sidelined in 1944-5

Answer 59

Br became junior partner to US/USSE

Question 60

what post- war reforms began during the war

Answer 60

Beveridge repost 1942, NHS, planning for welfare state

Question 61

Why did CH lose in 1945

Answer 61

Labour seen as more reformist; Tories associated with 1930s unemployment/ appeasement

Question 62

How did Roosevelt view CH initially

Answer 62

Distrusted him (since 1918), saw him as imperialist, relations improved after Pearl Harbour

Question 63

what was the Atlantic charter

Answer 63

1941- UK-US declaration of post war aims (free trade, self determination) tho vague on empires

Question 64

why did Stalin respect CH

Answer 64

CH realpolitik (spheres of influence pact)

Question 65

What was agreed at Yalta

Answer 65

1945- divided Gr, USSR got Poland, USSR joined war vs Japan

Question 66

What was CH's iron curtain speech

Answer 66

1946 - warned of soviet domination in Eastern Europe, hardening Cold War divisions

Question 67

What were CH's three pose war global roles for Britain

Answer 67

Anglo- American alliance, commonwealth, Western Europe (but opposed full EU integration