World War 2 Flashcards
(6 cards)
What was Britain fighting for in the Second World War?
1: A war of ideology,
Germanys nazi leaders were fascists who wanted total obedience and no democracy, they believed in the superiority of German people to others like Jews and Eastern Europeans. Adolf hitler was heavily anti-communist and his long term plan was to build an empire and destroy the ussr and their allies Japan and Italy formed the axis powers were also fascist.
2: A war of defence,
Britain had suffered in World War One but there had never been a serious invasion threat but in the 1930s Germany swept large amounts of Western Europe and sent a huge air assault on Britain which was countered by the RAF and the threat of invasion was huge until Hitler turned his attention on the ussr in 1941.
What type of war was World War Two?
1: A truly global war, the Second World War effected more countries than WW1 spanning multiple continents Europe Africa Asia and the pacific and the navy and air forces were far more important.
2: A truly total war,
Compulsory war service was introduced before the war even started and the government had much more control of economics and people’s daily lives than ever before.
Civilians in the firing line World War Two?
1: Attack’s from the air,
There was much more damage to Britain in the Second World War in the first few months 50,000 people lost their houses every week and thousands died due to the raids. In 1944 a new threat In V-1 missiles emerged which could reach Britain from Europe removing the need for aircraft. 6000 missiles h harmed Britain causing 20,000 casualties and when the even more dangerous V-2 missile was developed there were a further 9,000 casualties.
2: Shortages,
German U boats attacked ships carrying supplies to Britain and in 1940 they sank 25% of all British merchant ships causing major shortages and rationing.
3: Spies,
Spies were very concerning for the government and everyone had to carry identity papers which were regularly checked and there was huge amounts of propaganda supporting snitching on spies.
How did people respond to the Second World War?
There were some protests against the war and the government but the population generally supported the war effort reasons for this were:
A) Patriotism, people loved and remained loyal to their country.
B) Hatred for fascism and Hitler
C) A promise that people’s loyalty would be rewarded by the government after the war.
Government control in the Second World War?
1: Industry,
Technology had massively advanced since World War One and tanks aircraft and advanced weapons were now required. They worked with trade unions for the first time with things like the coal mines. The workplace industry was stretched so women of all ages became involved with the war effort back home.
2: Food supply,
Food supply problems were the same as in World War One however compulsory rationing was introduced from the start of the war on things like fuel aswell so Britain was in a much better situation and experts claimed Britains health overall actually improved because of rationing. By 1943 there were over 80,000 women working in the land army who did the work men would normally do to provide food.
3: Recruitment,
Conscription was introduced in 1938 before the war so the armed forces could grow and large numbers of women joined the forces as-well.
4: Information,
Newspapers books and films were censored and any negative reports were swiftly terminated. The most significant new medium was radio set up in 1925, most people now had a radio in their home and was the key news source but it was self censored and very positive of the war keeping morale up.
5: Evacuation,
After war was declared around 1.5 million people, mostly children were evacuated and moved to the countryside for protection many didn’t like this and moved back but those who did stayed for the whole war and were protected.
How did World War Two effect the relationship between government and people.
Control of everyday life reached new heights as did civilian death and homelessness and this time people really needed the government to make Britain a better country and the evacuations exposed key differences between people of poorer urban and wealthier rural areas.
The Beveridge report,
The government sent beveridge to research problems and find solutions and in 1942 he published he report where he identified the 5 evils affecting society.
Poverty, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness. To counter this he suggested setting up the welfare state which meant government funded health care and benefits to unemployed.
The 1945 general election.
Prime minister Winston Churchill hoped his outstanding record as a wartime leader would help him win the support of the people but despite having the respect of the people most people wanted a change for peacetime and the Labour Party won by a landslide and brought in key ideas of the beveridge report including the NHS and lots of work for the workers.
