british history chapter 22

• Society in Britain after 1939 was one of unrest, in which the people became tired of the period of austerity which was inevitable due to the immense war effort
• Austerity ended


  Replaced by an economic boom
• British society transformed economically and socially for the majority of people, including women, but this is excluding the millions who remained living in poverty and in many cases, immigrants
• Austerity


  The period in Britain after the war in which society was forced to sacrifice luxuries with the aim of getting Britain back on its feet
• Labour government of 1945, led by Attlee


  • Had the task of rebuilding the nation
  • Britain was in a balance of payments, meaning the government needed to cut imports and continue the rationing and restrictions on the reconstruction programme
• Strikes and revolts against the government during austerity

  • Dockers strike in October 1945
  • 'Housewives revolt' in February 1946 when bacon, poultry, and egg rations were cut further
• Rationing was criticised by the British Medical Association for the type of food not being sufficiently appetising and leaving the people feeling hungry
• Austerity brought in the era of the 'spiv' and the black market, amongst the instances of vandalism and reports of burglaries
• Extension of rationing after the war

  Contributed to Britain being a more egalitarian society, where everyone was subject to the same rations
• Evacuation of children from the cities to the countryside


  Blurred the boundaries of class distinctions where many accepted the need for public policy
• There was a strong feeling that the hardships and poverty suffered by many during the war should never return
• Austerity ended


  With the election of a Conservative government in 1955
• Rationing ended in 1954 and the post-war restrictions of the Attlee government were withdrawn
• Society was transformed from one of austerity to one of affluence
• Symbols of affluence


  • Motor car industry - over 5m car owners in Britain by 1960, each costing around £550
  • Building of over a quarter of a million homes a year in the 1950s
  • Modest three-bedroomed semi-detached house sold for £1655 in Oxfordshire in 1953
  • Surge in ownership of consumer goods such as televisions, washing machines, refrigerators and new furniture
  • Most newly bought houses were wired for electricity
  • Advent of advertising on television in 1955 with the launch of ITV
• Local councils built housing estates and high rise flats, which had fewer amenities and were built without garages, based on the assumption that cars were still a luxury
• There were still 1.8 million people living in inner city slums
• The war had involved women on almost every level, and the effects of this varied. For some, it was liberating and gave them an opportunity to be more independent and earn money, whilst for others it brought hardship and misery
• Women were still rarely paid more than 60-70% of men's wages for the same job. Many employers discriminated against married women working
• After the war, when women were no longer necessary to the workforce, the number of married women fell rapidly. Instead, women were expected to retreat into domesticity and look after their men and children
• The BBC, in 1951, put out a statement that radio news bulletins were only to be read by men
• The marriage bar was gradually being lifted with women who worked in the civil service being allowed to keep their jobs if they married, but the range of jobs available for women generally carried lower status and pay
• The war


  Brought a 'sexual revolution' where marriages broke under the strain of husbands being away, the number of divorces increasing from 12,240 in 1944 to 60,190 in 1947 and methods of birth control allowing women to plan smaller families
• By the mid 1950s, there were signs of a more positive and modern attitude towards women where advancements in appliances revolutionised women's lives
• More married women were going out to work and in 1957 it reached one in three
• The 1960s also saw a new generation of young women who were more educated and able to challenge outdated assumptions
• In 1948, about 250k immigrants arrived in Britain from the West Indies and other parts of the New Commonwealth
• The new immigrants who arrived on the Empire Windrush in 1948 were both a cause of social change and tensions
• Immigrants were regarded as valuable for the economy

  Filling many unpopular, low-wage jobs, such as hospital cleaning and street sweeping
• By 1958, about 20k Commonwealth immigrants had settled in Britain
• There were instances of friction and resentment against immigrants especially in West London's Notting Hill where it was mainly white youths attacking West Indians
• The rate of New Commonwealth immigration sped up and by 1961, the inward flow was over 100k a year and as a result, the government passed the Commonwealth Immigrants Act of 1962 which limited immigration
• In October 1945, the dockers went on strike, threatening the already limited supply of food, and caused a furore among the public. Additionally, in February 1946, there was a ‘housewives revolt’ when bacon, poultry, and egg rations were cut further. The rationing was criticised by the British Medical Association for the type of food not being sufficiently appetising and leaving the people feeling hungry
•  for those with a wage of around £1000 a year, building societies were willing to provide mortgages
• Local councils built housing estates and high rise flats, which had fewer amenities and were built without garages, based on the assumption that cars were still a luxury.
• These immigrants were also guaranteed British citizenship by the Nationality Act of 1948.
• By 1958, about 20k Commonwealth immigrants had settled in Britain. However, this brought instances of friction and resentment against immigrants especially in West London’s Notting Hill where it was mainly white youths attacking West Indians.
• New Commonwealth immigration sped up and by 1961, the inward flow was over 100k a year and as a result, the government passed the Commonwealth Immigrants Act of 1962 which limited immigration