A History of the Modern British Isles, 1914-1999 Circumstances, Events and Outcomes

by Marwick, Arthur

• ISBN13: 9780631195214
• ISBN10: 0631195211
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-06-08
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

This book presents a "total history" of the British Isles from the outbreak of the First World War through to the late 1990s. Written by one of the pioneers of twentieth-century history, the volume offers readers a multi-layered narrative combining social, economic, cultural and political perspectives on this era of significant and rapid change. The author describes the "big events" that dominated British politics through the twentieth-century. He gives due weight to developments outside England in Scotland and Wales, and provides substantial coverage of the Irish question, highlighting the extent to which Ireland has been a preoccupation throughout the period. Alongside this narrative, Professor Marwick explains the underlying forces operating at each stage, linking these long-term "circumstances" to the political decisions of the time. This dual approach allows for penetrating analysis and reflection, helping to create for the reader a full picture of British life in the period. For instance, the book offers not only a discussion of the politics of the First and Second World Wars, but also an analysis of the economic and ideological repercussions of the wars and their consequences for British society at large. The volume also covers themes such as the cultural revolution, women's and gay liberation, economic recession and recovery, and social change in the 1990s. Professor Marwick writes in an engaging way, suitable for general readers and students. Throughout he emphasizes the "reflexive quality" of the book, inviting readers to reflect on the nature of historical study and to participate actively in the historical enquiry.

Author Biography

Professor Arthur Marwick is Hed of the History Department and was founding Professor of History at the Open University. He has held visiting professorships at The State University of New York at Buffalo, Stanford University, L’Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris, Rhodes College, Memphis and the University of Perugia. His many books include The Sixties (1998), The Penguin Social History of Britain: British Society since 1945 (1996), The Deluge: British Society and the First World War (1991) and The Nature of History (1989) for which he is currently preparing a fourth edition.

Table of Contents

List of Plates	ix
List of Maps	xi
List of Tables	xii
Preface	xvi
War, 1914--1918	1	(59)
Irish Nationalists, Ulstermen and the War Against the German Empire	1	(16)
Ireland and Germany	1	(5)
War	6	(8)
Ireland	14	(3)
The Limits on, and the Possibilities of, Change	17	(16)
Fundamental Circumstances Governing Change	17	(6)
Ideologies	23	(5)
Institutions	28	(5)
The Politics of Total War	33	(27)
The Liberal Government, 1914--1915	33	(3)
The Asquith Coalition Government, May 1915--December 1916	36	(5)
The Lloyd George Coalition	41	(2)
Votes for Women (and Men)	43	(7)
Conscientious Objectors	50	(1)
What About the Workers?	51	(2)
Reconstruction and General Election	53	(7)
Between Two Wars, 1919--1939	60	(70)
The Structural, Ideological and Instutional Context	60	(13)
Hard Facts	60	(9)
A Divided Country	69	(3)
Political Faiths	72	(1)
The Pendulum that Wouldn't Swing: High Politics, 1919--1939	73	(43)
Ireland	74	(8)
The Government and Labour	82	(5)
Social Reform and Expenditure Cuts	87	(1)
Revolt, and Return, of the Conservatives	88	(4)
The First Labour Government	92	(2)
A Second Baldwin Government	94	(2)
The General Strike	96	(3)
Conservative Social Reform	99	(2)
The Liberal Yellow Book and the 1929 General Election	101	(2)
The Second Labour Government	103	(4)
The National Government	107	(2)
`Secular Anglicanism' and the `Social Service State'	109	(5)
Jarrow, Abdication, and Appeasement	114	(2)
Modernism and Mass Society	116	(14)
Modernism in the Arts	117	(4)
Aspects of Mass Society	121	(2)
National Identities	123	(7)
War and Aftermath, 1939--1955	130	(72)
World War	130	(30)
The Phoney War	130	(4)
The Churchill Coalition	134	(3)
Dunkirk and the Fall of France	137	(8)
The Battle of Britain, the Blitz and the Battle of the Atlantic	145	(3)
North Africa, the Far East, Italy	148	(5)
The Bombing of Germany	153	(1)
Domestic Policies	154	(3)
The Invasion of France and the end of the War	157	(3)
The Context of Change	160	(8)
Demographics of War	160	(2)
Economic Costs of War	162	(2)
Ideological and Institutional Repercussions of War	164	(4)
Labour Takes Power and Hands it Back to the Conservatives	168	(20)
General Elections, 1945--55	168	(2)
Policies of the Labour Government	170	(3)
The Economy Under Labour	173	(5)
The Welfare State	178	(4)
Ageing Labour and the Korean War	182	(2)
The Second Churchill Government	184	(4)
Society in the Aftermath of War	188	(14)
Science and Technology	188	(1)
Ireland, Scotland and Wales	189	(1)
The Regions of England	190	(2)
Transport and Ordinary Life	192	(2)
Media and the Arts	194	(3)
Architecture and the Festival of Britain	197	(5)
Affluent Britain, 1955--1974	202	(62)
Structural, Ideological and Institutional Imperatives	202	(6)
The Politics of Consensus	208	(30)
Suez	208	(3)
Macmillan as Prime Minister	211	(3)
The Labour Opposition	214	(2)
Wilson in Office	216	(4)
From Wilson to Heath	220	(3)
Northern Ireland, c.1963--75	223	(5)
Enter the Provisional IRA	228	(6)
Economic and Industrial Policies of the Heath Government	234	(4)
The Cultural Revolution	238	(26)
The Basics of Cultural Transformation	238	(2)
Consumerism and Youth	240	(3)
International Success of British Popular Culture	243	(3)
Family, Permissiveness, Frankness	246	(2)
Protest	248	(4)
Women's Liberation and Gay Liberation	252	(2)
Innovation in the Arts	254	(5)
Multiculturalism	259	(5)
The Ending of Consensus and the Thatcherite Revolution, 1975--1990	264	(68)
Ideology, Economy and the Advent of Thatcherism	264	(15)
Key Circumstances	264	(3)
Early Thatcherism	267	(5)
Nationalism	272	(1)
Key Statistics	272	(7)
The Collapse of Labour and the Triumph of Thatcher	279	(33)
The Third Wilson Government	279	(4)
The Callaghan Government	283	(2)
Northern Ireland	285	(2)
The End of the Callaghan Government	287	(3)
Thatcher in Power	290	(8)
The Miners' Strike and Rising Levels of Violence	298	(6)
Prosperity, Privatization and a Third Election Victory	304	(4)
Thatcher and Ireland	308	(2)
The Fall of Thatcher	310	(2)
The People Versus Their Rulers	312	(20)
A Fractured Society	312	(1)
Economy and Geography	313	(4)
Service, Security and Safety	317	(1)
Welfare `Reform'	318	(4)
Class, Race, Gender, Religion	322	(2)
Drugs and Crime	324	(2)
Life and Leisure	326	(2)
The Persistence of Permissiveness	328	(4)
The Nineties: Nasty, Then Nice?	332	(56)
Recession, Recovery -- and Continuing Crisis in Manufacture?	332	(3)
John Major and a Society at Odds with Itself	335	(26)
The Rise of John Major	335	(4)
End of the Poll Tax: to `the Heart of Europe'	339	(3)
Election Victory and the Emergence of Tony Blair	342	(4)
Trials and Tribulations of the Major Government	346	(3)
Social Policy (Stingy) and Public Service (Lousy)	349	(5)
A Sea of Troubles	354	(4)
Ireland	358	(3)
Consensus Regained?	361	(27)
Ten Contentious Issues	362	(1)
The Economy	362	(3)
Education	365	(2)
`Sleaze' and Contempt for Authority	367	(1)
Service, Safety and Quality of Life	368	(1)
Social Policy, the Poor	369	(1)
Class, Race, Gender	370	(3)
Crime	373	(1)
Constitutional Reforms	374	(2)
Values: Permissiveness, Piety, Selfishness, Consensus	376	(2)
The Arts and Media	378	(2)
Identities: Ireland, America, Europe	380	(4)
Labour's Mid-Term: General Conclusions	384	(4)
Further Reading (including a note on history, cultural studies, gender and postmodernism)	388	(9)
Index	397