Domination of Politics by Conservatives - Coursework Example

DOMINATION OF POLITICS BY CONSERVATIVES Name: Course: Instructor: Date: This essay looks at the period between 1918 to 1939 in regards to Britain’s societal changes, political changes and reasons why the Conservative party is considered to have dominated British politics. The period under study was proximately after the First World War and before the Second World War. It is, therefore, important to get a clear political, social and economic picture of the period. According to Rebecca, (2011), after World War One Britain’s global prestige dropped. However, they still had large territories than before. For instance, in the Middle East, British and the French shared a majority of the territory left by the Ottoman Empire, however, they could not build army bases and majestic ships to shield territories like before 19141. Previous invested sources of money such as cotton and coal external markets had also collapsed. Generally, this was an era marred by retraction abroad and social reforms at home. For instance, by 1918 few women were allowed to vote. However by 1927, women above the age of 21 were allowed to vote. According to United Kingdom National Archives (n.d)2, Britain’s debts during the war was nearly 136% of its gross national product. More British workers than German workers had participated in strikes in 1919 with the highest unemployment levels reaching 11.3%. Katie : (n.d), during this time, Wall Street crashed causing a reduction in international trade thus proving detrimental to British exports in industries such as shipbuilding, coal and textiles. As a result, unemployment levels in West Cumbria transpired in excess of 50%. According to About Britain, (2014), England has the oldest parliament in the world having met for the first time at the Palace of Westminster in the year 1265, however, political parties cropped in after four centuries. Between 1649 to 1681, most members of parliament represented either Whigs or Tories3. At inception, Whigs was a party for liberal-minded aristocrats, therefore, attracting more pro-reformists advocating for modernization of the British Parliament. In the1850s, the union of Whigs and Radicals rebranded to Liberal party and used the name until 1988 when it combined with Social Democratic Party to form the now modern Liberal Democrats. On the other hand, Tory was initially for supporters of resilient royal powers and consisted of traditionalists who wanted status quo especially in 1660 during restoration of the monarchy. This can be attributed to the rise in reforms and radicalism in Europe. It later re-emerged in 1770 as a modern party proposing the need for maintenance of the best British traditions before transforming to Conservative party in 1834. According to Kenneth: (n.d.) there was political change experienced by Liberals from 1918 to 1924. The party divided itself into two with coalition Liberals aligning themselves to Conservatives to back the government, while Independent Liberals such as Lloyd George and Asquith pitting against each other. Large divisions within the party attributed more to the private finances acquired by Lloyd George by selling rights to sit in the House of Lords4. Therefore Liberals lost most seats because they became targets of the Labour party. According to Stuart, (2013), the inter-war era saw rise in ideologies even though the Conservative party managed to get majority of votes at all seven general elections held between1918 and 1935 despite failing once in 1929 to the largest party5. The author suggests that most of the ideologies proposed by Conservative party had similarities resulting to a united party having different elements between numerous Conservatives. The party fundamentally emphasized on not being ideological in practice but recognizing common ground and empathy6. Generally, Great Britain shared such views, (n.d), according to the author, in 1928, women received full equality than men hence attributing to the roles they played during the war. The working class became unionized resulting in deterioration of labour relations for instance, the General Strike that occurred in 1926 due to proposals of reduced wages and extended working time. According to Katie (n.d), the General Strike failed due to government readiness to counteract. Baldwin’s tactics present strike as conflict between trade unions and an elected government7. The strike’s failure enlightened unionists that they could not lead British workers to a classwar but rather win by voting for change. By 1930, Britain still focused on the constantly high domestic unemployment rates but failed to notice Hitler’s rise to power. According to the United Kingdom’s National Archives (n.d) on November 11th 1918, a big crowd gathered at Trafalgar Square in celebration of a triumphant end to the first World War. However, the war left a myriad of political, economic and social problems. Generally, Britain experienced hardship in balancing with politics8. The post war social scene in Britain was very different before the first war, for instance, the society became more inclined to democracy with previous undermined groups such as women. The war had a disappropriate casualty with a higher percentage being class owning lands and those strict with Edwardian Britain that completely disappeared. This incidentally led to working middle class as a strong political movement with a surge in white collar jobs. The post- world war development is further explained by Spartacus Education (2016); Lloyd George’s reform in 1911 to the National Insurance Act resulted in the working class having a system of insurance against illness and unemployment. The conservatives dominated politics because of six major reasons. According to Katie: (n.d), firstly, a long success streak left by Conservatives when they held office between 1922 to 1929 in the Loyd George coalition between 1918 to 1922 and the National government of 1931 to 1945 hence a vivid reason why Conservatives dominated politics 9. The other reason why Conservatives held domination Katie: (n.d)7 was due to weak opposition; the Liberal party had few supporters from 1918. Nevertheless, after splitting into three groups in 1931, it rose to popularity between 1918 and 1929. On the other hand, the progress was divided between Labour and Liberal parties; Labour party with a minority representation formed two government till a national government formed by MacDonald in 1931 separated the party. The Conservative party dominated Britain’s politics because of the electoral system in place after 1918, Katie: (n.d). After 1918 boundary limits of constituencies were redrawn with suburbs getting more seats which was highly beneficial to Conservative party. Further creation of the Irish-Free State in 1922, led to numerous strong MPs against Conservative party getting removed thereby reducing competition10. The other reason provided by Katie: (n.d), was that policies proclaimed by Conservatives were pleasant to the public; for example, fear among Britons concerning socialism and communism. Baldwin, a Conservative leader believed and advocated for respect of any private property and careful financial management. Conservatives, as proven by Chamberlain’s National Health reforms, moderately supported social reforms. In foreign affairs the public perceived them to be serious in their aims of protecting the British Empire by spending on strong defensive mechanisms. These are the same points argued by Paul: (2015), Conservative party in the United Kingdom, a political party whose guiding principles include promoting private property and enterprise, maintaining a strong army and preserving culture and existing institutions11. According to Stuart p 30: (2013), conservatives believed in the rights to own property, importance of authority, moderate cross-class integration reflected by willingness to pass such measures of social reforms. Lastly according to Katie: (n.d), party organization played a big factor in its dominance; they were present even at the grassroots with a web of men’s clubs which ensured support all over the country12. The party used mass media such as radio and newspapers for publicity. During elections in 1930’s they could rely on favorable coverage and after their loss in 1929 they set up a Conservative Research Department aimed at getting data and writing speeches. According to Paul: (2015), the party is adaptive to change making it politically resilient. In conclusion, Britain initially suffered confusion for the first time between the war times as she was previously successful economically and politically. War levelled the playing field unevenly casting Britain into debts and turmoil both socially and politically13. As a result, the public divided into three groups with two extremes and moderates; both extremes gaining momentum while centrist Liberal party lost momentum and publicity. Hence, the policies and leadership traits made the Conservative party preferential when compared to the Labor party. After the first war, Britons wanted a fairly closed, powerful central government that would pass crucial legislature and allow for the maintenance of laissez-faire economics permitting economic revival14. REFFERENCES About Britain, A Short History of Political Parties in Britain, (2014), http://about-britain.com/institutions/political-parties.htm Great Britain, UK – Britain Between the Wara 1918 to 1945, (n.d), http://www.great-britain.co.uk/history/1918.39.htm Katie B, Essay Plans flashshare, BRITISH HISTORY 1918 – 51, (N.D), Spartacus Education, British History, The Liberal Party, (2016), http://spartacus-educational.com/Pliberal.htm Keneth Morgan, The New Liberal Party from dawn to downfall 1906-1924, (n.d), Paul Webb, Conservative Party, (2015), http://global.britannica.com/topic/Conservative-Party-political-party-United-Kingdom Rebecca Fraser, BBC, Overview:Britain, 1918 – 1945,(2011), http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/britain_wwtwo/overview_britain_1918_1945_01.shtml Stuart Ball, Portrait of a Part: The Conservative Party in Britain 1918 – 1945, (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2013). United Kingdom’s National Archives, Aftermath, (n.d), http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pathways/firstworldwar/aftermath/brit_after_war.htm Read More