A-Level History: Wars and Welfare

• There were concerns over national efficiency as Germany, Japan and USA were catching up to Britian's Industrial output
• Green, Hobbs, and Hobhouse were influential modern liberals
• Classical Liberalism stressed the individual too much
• New Liberalism provided safety nets to prevent people falling into destitution
• Tariff Reforms, under Joe Chamberlain, created a wave of disaffection as people feared higher prices from abroard
• Churchill joined the Liberals in 1904, after Tariff Reform split the Conservatives
• Tariff reform campaign was in 1903
• Taff-Vale Case was in 1902
• Lib-Lab pact was 1903
• Chinese Labour issue was prominent in from 1902-04
• Boer War, 1902 Education Act, 1904 Licensing Act, Chinese Labour issue, Taff-Vale Case and Neglect of social reform were all reasons for the Conservative Loss in 1906
• Social Reform was seen as the key way to solve the concerns over national efficiency
• Lib-Lab Pact was where Liberals agreed not to contest labour in areas of Labour strength to bring down the Conservatives
• Lib-Lab pact reduced election costs
• Labour had a substantial election fund of £150,000 after not having to fight the Liberals
• The Boer War was costly in lives, showed the growing awareness of poverty and the horrors of the concentration camps
• The Boer War created a wave of discontent towards the Conservative Government
• Chinese Labour issue made British workers fear that they would be replaced and made redundant for cheaper chinese workers
• Non-Conformists were angered by the government paying reparations to landlords and brewers
• The 1904 Licensing Act became known as the "Brewers Bill"
• Balfour didn't understand the social issues of the time, and was a poor replacement for Salisbury in 1902 as he lacked political skill
• Lib-Lab pact benefitted Labour more than the Liberals, providing them with increased power and representation
• Non-Conformists were angered by the 1902 Education Act as their taxes were paying for religious schools
• Non-conformists pledged support for the Liberals following the 1902 Education Act
• The Taff Vale case showed the government as being opposed to the interests of striking workers as they refused to overrule the Lords' decision
• The Boer War highlighted Military and Administrative innefficencies
• Liberals used the growing awareness of poverty, after the Boer War, to champion the idea of minimum living standards for all
• New Liberalism championed collectivist solutions to social problems
• New Liberalism stressed freedom from evils
• Balfour decided the government should step down in 1906, calling the election of 1906
• Liberals won 401 seats, Conservatives won 157, and Labour won 29 seats in the 1906 Election
• The Boer War was from 1899-1902
• In 1913, 60% of imports came from staple industries
• Britain's economic dominance was being challenged by Germany and the USA
• New industries were expanding at a rate of 3.8% compared to 2% manufacturing growth
• By 1901, 1,400,000 people were working in agriculture due to mechanisation and foreign imports
• Farming accounted for 10% of employment, investment, and national income in 1906-14
• There was a period of agricultural depression in the late 19th century due to competition from abroad with cheap grain
• Famers changed their focus of production by 1914 to cattle and dairy farming
• Britain was the world's leading trading nation at the start of the 20th century