Contraction of the Empire

• League of nations mandates:

  • Following the end of WW1 post war treaties were imposed upon Germany and the Ottoman Empire which stripped them of colonies and land.
  • This land was now administered by specified allied powers in the League of Nations.
• How much did the British Empire grow as a result of post-war treaties

  1,800,000 square miles + 13 million new subjects
• Name 3 regions granted to Britain during post-war treaties

  Palestine, Iraq and Tanganyika
• What was the Balfour Declaration

  A British promise to help create a Jewish national homeland in Palestine.
• The Balfour Declaration clashed with Britain's promises to the Arabs to give them their own land in Palestine as a result of their support in WW1.
• Jewish immigration to Palestine in 1918 was at 60,000.

  Jewish immigration to Palestine in 1931 was at 175,000.
• Contraction of the Empire:

  • The Irish Free State achieved formal independence in the 1931 Statute of Westminster.
• Contraction of the Empire:

  • In 1922 Egypt was granted formal independence but still remained a British client state.
  • Anglo-Egyptian Treaty in 1936 meant that Britain could continue to occupy and defend the Suez Canal.
• Contraction of the Empire:

  • Nationalist movements in Iraq vied for independence and in 1932 Iraq gained independence under King Faisal I but still retained airbases in the country.