B.A. ENGLISH - SEMESTER - I, ALLIED - SOCIAL HISTORY OF ENGLAND (26BENA1) - UNIT IV

 

 

B.A.  ENGLISH

SEMESTER  I

 

Allied Course – Social History of England (26BENA1)

CORE COURSE

  UNIT IV — HUMANITARIAN & EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS 

Detailed Notes • MCQs • Short & Long Answers • Essays

◆   ◆   ◆

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

About This Unit.......................................................................................................................................... 3

1.  Humanitarian Movements in England................................................................................................ 4

2.  The Reform Bills and the Spread of Education................................................................................. 10

3.  Social Impact of the Two World Wars.............................................................................................. 16

 

  About This Unit  @@K0@@ 

Unit IV of the Allied Course "Social History of England" deals with the great work of humanitarian and educational reform in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and with the deep social effects of the two World Wars. For each topic you will find detailed notes, multiple-choice questions with an answer key, ten two-mark questions, three paragraph questions and one essay question with a full model answer. Together the three topics show how England became a more humane, more democratic and more educated society, and how the two great wars transformed its social life.

 

  Humanitarian Movements in England  @@K1@@ 

 18th–19th century | The growth of a humane conscience and the great reforms against slavery, cruelty and suffering.

Detailed Notes

■  Meaning and Sources

The humanitarian movement was the great growth of compassion and social conscience in England, chiefly in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, which sought to relieve suffering and to abolish cruelty and injustice. It sprang from several sources: the Evangelical religious revival led by John Wesley and the Methodists, which stirred the Christian conscience; the humane and reforming spirit of the Quakers; the ideas of reason, liberty and human rights spread by the Enlightenment; and the tender sympathy for the poor and the oppressed that marked the age. Out of these came a series of noble movements to improve the lot of the suffering.

■  The Abolition of Slavery

The greatest of the humanitarian causes was the campaign against the slave trade and slavery. Led in Parliament by William Wilberforce and supported by Thomas Clarkson, Granville Sharp and the Quakers, the movement fought for many years against powerful interests. Its labours were crowned with success when the slave trade was abolished throughout the British Empire in 1807, and slavery itself was finally abolished in 1833. This was one of the noblest achievements of the English humane conscience.

■  Prison and Legal Reform

Another great cause was the reform of prisons and of the harsh criminal law. John Howard travelled the country exposing the filth, cruelty and disease of the prisons in his book The State of the Prisons, and the Quaker Elizabeth Fry devoted herself to improving the dreadful condition of women prisoners in Newgate. Meanwhile Samuel Romilly and others worked to soften the savage criminal code, under which even small thefts could be punished by death, and the number of crimes carrying the death penalty was greatly reduced.

■  Factory and Social Reform

The humanitarian spirit also attacked the evils of the new industrial age. Reformers such as Lord Shaftesbury, Robert Owen and Michael Sadler laboured to protect factory workers, especially the women and little children who toiled long hours in mills and mines. Their efforts brought a series of Factory Acts and a Mines Act, which limited hours and forbade the employment of young children in the worst conditions. Others worked for the reform of the Poor Law, for better treatment of the insane, and for public health and sanitation in the crowded towns.

■  Other Humane Causes

The movement extended its compassion in many directions. Sunday schools, begun by Robert Raikes, and later ragged schools brought some education to poor children. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (later the R.S.P.C.A.) was founded to protect animals from ill-treatment, and the temperance movement fought the evils of drink. In all these ways the humanitarian spirit sought to lessen suffering and to spread kindness through every part of national life.

■  Significance

The humanitarian movements mark one of the finest chapters in the social history of England. Inspired by religion, reason and human sympathy, and led by devoted reformers such as Wilberforce, Howard, Fry and Shaftesbury, they abolished the slave trade, softened the criminal law, reformed the prisons, protected factory children and cared for the poor and the helpless. They reveal the awakening of a new and tender conscience in the nation, and they did much to make nineteenth-century England a more humane and civilised society.

■  Multiple Choice Questions

1. The humanitarian movement sought above all to:

(a) increase trade

(b) relieve suffering and abolish cruelty

(c) expand the empire

(d) reform the theatre

2. The religious revival that stirred the humanitarian conscience was led by:

(a) John Wesley and the Methodists

(b) the Puritans

(c) the Catholics

(d) the Levellers

3. The campaign to abolish the slave trade was led in Parliament by:

(a) John Howard

(b) William Wilberforce

(c) Lord Shaftesbury

(d) Samuel Romilly

4. The slave trade was abolished throughout the British Empire in:

(a) 1807

(b) 1833

(c) 1870

(d) 1918

5. Slavery itself was finally abolished in the British Empire in:

(a) 1807

(b) 1833

(c) 1848

(d) 1867

6. Who exposed the terrible state of the prisons in his famous book?

(a) Elizabeth Fry

(b) John Howard

(c) Thomas Clarkson

(d) Robert Owen

7. The Quaker reformer who improved the condition of women prisoners was:

(a) Hannah More

(b) Elizabeth Fry

(c) Florence Nightingale

(d) Mary Wollstonecraft

8. Who worked to soften the savage criminal code and reduce the death penalty?

(a) Samuel Romilly

(b) William Pitt

(c) Edmund Burke

(d) Robert Raikes

9. The great reformer of factory conditions, especially for children, was:

(a) Lord Shaftesbury

(b) John Wesley

(c) Granville Sharp

(d) Jethro Tull

10. Laws that limited hours and protected factory workers were the:

(a) Corn Laws

(b) Factory Acts

(c) Combination Acts

(d) Navigation Acts

11. Sunday schools for poor children were begun by:

(a) Robert Raikes

(b) John Howard

(c) Robert Owen

(d) Elizabeth Fry

12. The society founded to protect animals from cruelty was the:

(a) R.S.P.C.A.

(b) Royal Society

(c) National Trust

(d) Salvation Army

13. The temperance movement fought against the evils of:

(a) gambling

(b) drink

(c) idleness

(d) slavery

14. Which of these was a source of the humanitarian movement?

(a) feudalism

(b) the Evangelical revival and Enlightenment ideas

(c) the Restoration court

(d) the guild system

15. The humanitarian movements helped to make nineteenth-century England more:

(a) warlike

(b) humane and civilised

(c) feudal

(d) isolated

 Answer Key:  1-b   2-a   3-b   4-a   5-b   6-b   7-b   8-a   9-a   10-b   11-a   12-a   13-b   14-b   15-b

■  Two-Mark Questions (One-sentence answers)

Q1. What was the humanitarian movement?

Ans.  It was the growth of compassion and social conscience that sought to relieve suffering and abolish cruelty and injustice.

Q2. Name two sources of the humanitarian movement.

Ans.  The Evangelical (Methodist) revival and the Enlightenment ideas of reason and human rights (also the Quakers).

Q3. Who led the campaign against the slave trade?

Ans.  William Wilberforce led the campaign in Parliament, aided by Clarkson, Sharp and the Quakers.

Q4. When was the slave trade abolished, and when was slavery itself abolished?

Ans.  The slave trade was abolished in 1807 and slavery itself in 1833.

Q5. Who exposed the terrible condition of the prisons?

Ans.  John Howard exposed it in his book The State of the Prisons.

Q6. What did Elizabeth Fry do?

Ans.  She was a Quaker who reformed the dreadful condition of women prisoners in Newgate.

Q7. Who worked to reform the harsh criminal law?

Ans.  Samuel Romilly worked to soften the criminal code and reduce the many crimes punishable by death.

Q8. Name the great reformer of factory conditions for children.

Ans.  Lord Shaftesbury was the great reformer of factory and mine conditions, especially for children.

Q9. Who began the Sunday schools for poor children?

Ans.  Robert Raikes began the Sunday-school movement.

Q10. Name one other humane cause of the movement.

Ans.  The founding of the R.S.P.C.A. to protect animals (or the temperance movement against drink).

■  Paragraph Questions

Q1. What were the sources of the humanitarian movement in England?

The humanitarian movement sprang from several sources that together awakened a new social conscience. The most important was the Evangelical religious revival led by John Wesley and the Methodists, which stirred the Christian conscience and taught the duty of compassion; the humane and reforming spirit of the Quakers worked in the same direction. Alongside religion, the Enlightenment spread ideas of reason, liberty and the rights of man, which condemned cruelty and injustice, while the age itself was marked by a new tenderness and sympathy for the poor and the oppressed. Out of the union of religion, reason and human feeling came the great humanitarian reforms of the age.

Q2. Describe the movement for the abolition of slavery.

The abolition of slavery was the greatest of the humanitarian causes. For many years William Wilberforce led the campaign in Parliament, supported outside it by Thomas Clarkson, Granville Sharp and the Quakers, who gathered evidence of the horrors of the slave trade and roused the public conscience against it. Despite the opposition of powerful commercial interests, their long labours at last succeeded: the slave trade was abolished throughout the British Empire in 1807, and slavery itself was finally abolished in 1833. This great victory of conscience over greed is remembered as one of the noblest achievements of the English humanitarian spirit.

Q3. What reforms did the humanitarian movement bring to prisons, the law and the factories?

The humanitarian movement brought reform to many dark corners of national life. In the prisons, John Howard exposed the filth, cruelty and disease he found there, and the Quaker Elizabeth Fry devoted herself to improving the wretched condition of women prisoners in Newgate. In the law, Samuel Romilly and others worked to soften the savage criminal code, so that far fewer crimes were punished by death. In the factories and mines, reformers such as Lord Shaftesbury, Robert Owen and Michael Sadler laboured to protect the women and little children who toiled there, and won a series of Factory Acts and a Mines Act that limited hours and forbade the worst forms of child labour. In these ways the movement lessened cruelty and suffering throughout society.

■  Essay Question

Q. Discuss the humanitarian movements in England and their contribution to social reform.

 Introduction

One of the finest features of the social history of England in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries was the rise of the humanitarian movements—the great awakening of compassion and conscience that sought to relieve suffering and abolish cruelty. Inspired by religion, reason and human sympathy, and led by a band of devoted reformers, these movements transformed the treatment of slaves, prisoners, workers and the poor, and helped to make England a more humane society.

▸ 1. Meaning and Sources

The humanitarian movement was the growth of a humane conscience that aimed to relieve suffering and end cruelty and injustice. It sprang from the Evangelical revival of Wesley and the Methodists, the reforming spirit of the Quakers, the Enlightenment ideas of reason and human rights, and a new tenderness towards the poor and oppressed.

▸ 2. The Abolition of Slavery

Its greatest triumph was the abolition of slavery. Led by Wilberforce in Parliament and supported by Clarkson, Sharp and the Quakers, the long campaign at last secured the abolition of the slave trade in 1807 and of slavery itself in 1833—one of the noblest victories of conscience over greed.

▸ 3. Prison and Legal Reform

The movement also reformed the prisons and the law. John Howard exposed the horrors of the prisons, Elizabeth Fry improved the lot of women prisoners, and Samuel Romilly worked to soften the savage criminal code, so that far fewer offences were punished by death.

▸ 4. Factory and Social Reform

It attacked, too, the evils of the industrial age. Reformers such as Lord Shaftesbury, Robert Owen and Michael Sadler laboured to protect factory and mine workers, especially women and children, and won a series of Factory Acts. Others reformed the Poor Law and worked for public health and the care of the insane.

▸ 5. Other Humane Causes and Significance

The movement spread its compassion further still, through Sunday and ragged schools, the founding of the R.S.P.C.A. to protect animals, and the temperance cause. Inspired by conscience and led by devoted men and women, the humanitarian movements did much to make nineteenth-century England a kinder and more civilised nation.

 Conclusion

The humanitarian movements, then, form one of the noblest chapters in English social history. Awakened by religion, reason and human sympathy, and carried forward by reformers such as Wilberforce, Howard, Fry and Shaftesbury, they abolished slavery, reformed the prisons and the law, protected the factory child, and cared for the poor and helpless. In doing so they revealed a new and tender national conscience and left England a far more humane and civilised society than they had found it.

 

  The Reform Bills and the Spread of Education  @@K2@@ 

 1832 onwards | The widening of the vote and the growth of national education in the nineteenth century.

Detailed Notes

■  The Need for Reform

At the beginning of the nineteenth century the English Parliament was very unrepresentative. The right to vote was confined to a small propertied minority, many great new industrial towns such as Manchester and Birmingham had no members at all, while decayed villages known as "rotten boroughs" still returned members to Parliament. The growth of the middle and working classes during the Industrial Revolution, and the spread of democratic ideas after the French Revolution, created a strong demand for a fairer system, and this demand was met by the great Reform Bills of the century.

■  The Reform Act of 1832

The first and greatest step was the Reform Act of 1832, often called the Great Reform Act. It swept away many of the "rotten boroughs," gave members to the new industrial towns, and extended the vote to a large part of the middle class. Though it still left most working men without the vote, it broke the monopoly of the old landed aristocracy and marked the beginning of the peaceful growth of democracy in England.

■  The Later Reform Acts

Further Reform Acts carried the process forward. The Second Reform Act of 1867, passed under Disraeli, gave the vote to a great number of working men in the towns. The Third Reform Act of 1884, under Gladstone, extended the same right to the agricultural labourers in the counties, so that the majority of adult men could now vote. The Ballot Act of 1872 introduced the secret ballot, freeing voters from bribery and intimidation. In the twentieth century the vote was extended to women and finally to all adults, completing the march towards full democracy.

■  The Chartist Movement

The working classes, disappointed that the Reform Act of 1832 had done little for them, launched the Chartist movement between 1838 and 1848. Their People’s Charter demanded such things as votes for all men, the secret ballot and payment of members of Parliament. Chartism failed in its own day, but almost all of its demands were granted in later years, and it stands as an important stage in the growth of English democracy.

■  The Spread of Education

The widening of the vote made the education of the people more necessary than ever, for it was felt that the new voters must be taught to use their power wisely. In earlier times education had been left largely to the Church and to charity—to Sunday schools, ragged schools and the schools of the National and the British and Foreign School Societies—and vast numbers of poor children received no schooling at all. The state now began to take a hand in providing a system of education for the whole nation.

■  The Education Acts

The great landmark was Forster’s Elementary Education Act of 1870, which set up a national system of elementary schools, filling the gaps left by the Church schools with new board schools. Later measures made elementary education compulsory in 1880 and free in 1891, so that at last every child could and must go to school. The Education Act of 1902 organised secondary education under local authorities, and in the following century schooling was extended and improved still further. Thus, step by step, England moved from a country of widespread ignorance to one of universal education.

■  Multiple Choice Questions

1. At the start of the nineteenth century, the right to vote belonged to:

(a) all adults

(b) a small propertied minority

(c) women only

(d) the clergy

2. Decayed villages that still returned members to Parliament were called:

(a) boroughs of honour

(b) rotten boroughs

(c) free towns

(d) shires

3. The first great Reform Act was passed in the year:

(a) 1807

(b) 1832

(c) 1867

(d) 1884

4. The Reform Act of 1832 is often called the:

(a) Great Reform Act

(b) Ballot Act

(c) Poor Law

(d) Factory Act

5. The 1832 Act mainly extended the vote to the:

(a) working class

(b) middle class

(c) aristocracy

(d) women

6. The Second Reform Act of 1867 was passed under:

(a) Gladstone

(b) Disraeli

(c) Pitt

(d) Peel

7. The 1867 Act gave the vote to many working men in the:

(a) countryside

(b) towns

(c) colonies

(d) army

8. The Third Reform Act of 1884, under Gladstone, enfranchised the:

(a) townsmen

(b) agricultural labourers

(c) clergy

(d) nobles

9. The secret ballot was introduced by the Ballot Act of:

(a) 1832

(b) 1867

(c) 1872

(d) 1884

10. The working-class movement of 1838–1848 was known as:

(a) Chartism

(b) Methodism

(c) the Reformation

(d) the Restoration

11. The demands of the Chartists were set out in the:

(a) Magna Carta

(b) People’s Charter

(c) Bill of Rights

(d) Domesday Book

12. Before state action, education of the poor was left mainly to:

(a) the army

(b) the Church and charity

(c) Parliament

(d) the factories

13. The great Education Act of 1870 is named after:

(a) Gladstone

(b) Forster

(c) Disraeli

(d) Balfour

14. Elementary education was made compulsory in 1880 and free in:

(a) 1870

(b) 1884

(c) 1891

(d) 1902

15. The Education Act of 1902 organised __ education under local authorities.

(a) elementary

(b) secondary

(c) university

(d) religious

 Answer Key:  1-b   2-b   3-b   4-a   5-b   6-b   7-b   8-b   9-c   10-a   11-b   12-b   13-b   14-c   15-b

■  Two-Mark Questions (One-sentence answers)

Q1. Why was parliamentary reform needed in the early nineteenth century?

Ans.  Because Parliament was unrepresentative: the vote was limited to a few, new towns had no members, and "rotten boroughs" survived.

Q2. What were "rotten boroughs"?

Ans.  They were decayed villages with few voters that still returned members to Parliament.

Q3. What did the Reform Act of 1832 do?

Ans.  It abolished many rotten boroughs, gave seats to new industrial towns, and extended the vote to the middle class.

Q4. What did the Second Reform Act of 1867 achieve?

Ans.  It gave the vote to many working men in the towns.

Q5. What did the Third Reform Act of 1884 do?

Ans.  It extended the vote to the agricultural labourers in the counties.

Q6. What did the Ballot Act of 1872 introduce?

Ans.  It introduced the secret ballot, protecting voters from bribery and intimidation.

Q7. What was the Chartist movement?

Ans.  It was a working-class movement (1838–1848) that demanded further political reform through the People’s Charter.

Q8. Who had provided most education before the state stepped in?

Ans.  Education had been left mainly to the Church and to charity, such as Sunday and ragged schools.

Q9. What was Forster’s Education Act of 1870?

Ans.  It set up a national system of elementary schools, adding board schools where church schools were lacking.

Q10. When was elementary education made compulsory and free?

Ans.  It was made compulsory in 1880 and free in 1891.

■  Paragraph Questions

Q1. Discuss the importance of the Reform Act of 1832.

The Reform Act of 1832, often called the Great Reform Act, was the first and most important step in the reform of Parliament. Before it, the House of Commons was grossly unrepresentative: the vote was confined to a small propertied class, great new towns like Manchester had no members, and decayed "rotten boroughs" still returned members. The Act of 1832 swept away many of these rotten boroughs, gave members to the new industrial towns, and extended the vote to much of the middle class. Although it still left most working men voteless, it broke the political monopoly of the old landed aristocracy and began the peaceful growth of democracy in England, opening the way for the later Reform Acts.

Q2. Trace the later extension of the right to vote.

After 1832 the right to vote was steadily widened. The Second Reform Act of 1867, passed under Disraeli, gave the vote to a great number of working men in the towns, and the Third Reform Act of 1884, under Gladstone, extended it to the agricultural labourers of the counties, so that most adult men could now vote. The Ballot Act of 1872 introduced the secret ballot, protecting voters from bribery and intimidation. In the twentieth century the vote was given to women and at last to all adults. Meanwhile the Chartist movement of 1838–1848, though it failed in its own time, had demanded many of these reforms and helped to prepare the way for them.

Q3. How did education spread in nineteenth-century England?

The spread of education went hand in hand with the widening of the vote, for it was felt that the new voters must be taught to use their power wisely. In earlier times education had been left largely to the Church and to charity—to Sunday schools, ragged schools and the National and British school societies—and many poor children received no schooling at all. The state then began to act. Forster’s Elementary Education Act of 1870 set up a national system of elementary schools, adding board schools where church schools were lacking; education was made compulsory in 1880 and free in 1891; and the Act of 1902 organised secondary education under local authorities. Step by step, England thus moved from widespread ignorance to universal education.

■  Essay Question

Q. Discuss the Reform Bills and the spread of education in nineteenth-century England.

 Introduction

The nineteenth century in England was an age of steady peaceful progress towards democracy and popular education. Through a series of great Reform Bills the right to vote was widened until it reached the mass of the people, and through a series of Education Acts schooling was at last provided for the whole nation. The two movements were closely connected, for a democratic country needed an educated people. Together they transformed the political and social life of England.

▸ 1. The Need for Reform

At the beginning of the century Parliament was very unrepresentative: the vote belonged to a small propertied minority, new industrial towns had no members, and decayed "rotten boroughs" survived. The growth of the middle and working classes and the spread of democratic ideas created a strong demand for reform.

▸ 2. The Reform Act of 1832

The first great step was the Reform Act of 1832, which abolished many rotten boroughs, gave seats to the new towns and extended the vote to the middle class. Though it did little for the working man, it broke the power of the old aristocracy and began the peaceful growth of democracy.

▸ 3. The Later Reform Acts and Chartism

Reform continued with the Act of 1867, which enfranchised the town workers, and the Act of 1884, which enfranchised the country labourers, while the Ballot Act of 1872 gave the secret ballot. The Chartist movement of 1838–1848, though it failed at the time, had demanded many of these reforms and prepared the way for them.

▸ 4. The Spread of Education

The widening of the vote made popular education essential. Formerly left to the Church and to charity through Sunday and ragged schools, education now became a concern of the state, so that the new voters might learn to use their power wisely.

▸ 5. The Education Acts

Forster’s Act of 1870 set up a national system of elementary schools; education was made compulsory in 1880 and free in 1891; and the Act of 1902 organised secondary education under local authorities. Step by step, England moved from widespread ignorance to universal education.

 Conclusion

The Reform Bills and the Education Acts together mark the peaceful triumph of democracy and enlightenment in nineteenth-century England. The one gave the people a growing share in the government of their country, and the other gave them the schooling they needed to use that power wisely. By widening both the vote and the schoolroom, Victorian England laid the foundations of the modern democratic and educated nation.

 

  Social Impact of the Two World Wars  @@K3@@ 

 1914–1918 and 1939–1945 | How the two great wars transformed English society, class, women’s role and the state.

Detailed Notes

■  Introduction

The two World Wars—the First from 1914 to 1918 and the Second from 1939 to 1945—were the greatest events of the twentieth century, and they transformed English society more deeply and more rapidly than any peaceful reform could have done. They brought terrible loss and suffering, but they also broke down old barriers of class, advanced the position of women, enlarged the power of the state, and prepared the way for the welfare society of modern Britain.

■  The First World War: Loss and Disillusionment

The First World War brought slaughter on a scale never known before. Almost a whole generation of young men was killed or maimed in the trenches, leaving grief in countless homes and a deep sense of loss—the so-called "lost generation." The war shattered the confident optimism of the Victorian and Edwardian age and left behind a mood of disillusionment, powerfully expressed by the war poets such as Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon.

■  The First World War: Women and Society

The First World War greatly changed the position of women. As millions of men went to fight, women took their places in the factories, offices, farms and transport of the country, working as munition-makers, land-girls and much else, and proving that they could do work once thought beyond them. Their contribution did much to win them the vote, which was granted to women over thirty in 1918 and to all women on equal terms in 1928. The war also weakened the old class system, hastening the decline of the aristocracy and of domestic service and drawing the classes closer together.

■  The Second World War: Total War at Home

The Second World War was even more completely a "people’s war," fought as much on the home front as on the battlefield. The bombing of British cities in the Blitz brought the war directly to ordinary men, women and children; families were evacuated, food and clothing were rationed, and the whole nation shared in the danger and the sacrifice. This common suffering produced a strong sense of solidarity and equality—the famous "Blitz spirit"—and a feeling that, after such shared hardship, the country must be rebuilt more fairly for all.

■  The Second World War: Social Change and the Welfare State

Out of this spirit came a demand for sweeping social reform. The Beveridge Report of 1942 drew up a plan to attack the great evils of want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness, and after the war the Labour government elected in 1945 carried it into effect, building the Welfare State and founding the National Health Service in 1948. The Education Act of 1944 had already provided free secondary education for all. Women again played a vital part in the war effort, and their place in working life was further advanced.

■  The Decline of Britain as a World Power

The two wars, and especially the Second, also marked the decline of Britain as a great world power. The nation was left exhausted and heavily in debt, and in the years after 1945 it gave up its great empire, beginning with the independence of India in 1947. At home the country faced years of austerity and rebuilding, and the state took a far larger role in the life of the people through nationalised industries and social services. In these ways the two World Wars, for all their horror, accelerated the movement of England towards a more equal, democratic and welfare-minded society.

■  Multiple Choice Questions

1. The First World War was fought in the years:

(a) 1914–1918

(b) 1939–1945

(c) 1900–1910

(d) 1920–1930

2. The Second World War was fought in the years:

(a) 1914–1918

(b) 1939–1945

(c) 1945–1950

(d) 1930–1939

3. The generation of young men killed in the First World War is called the:

(a) golden generation

(b) lost generation

(c) greatest generation

(d) silent generation

4. The First World War shattered the optimism of the __ age.

(a) medieval

(b) Victorian and Edwardian

(c) Restoration

(d) Elizabethan

5. The disillusionment of the war was expressed by war poets such as:

(a) Wordsworth and Keats

(b) Owen and Sassoon

(c) Dryden and Pope

(d) Milton and Bunyan

6. During the First World War women worked mainly as:

(a) soldiers in the trenches

(b) munition-workers, land-girls and factory hands

(c) members of Parliament

(d) ship captains

7. Women over thirty were given the vote in:

(a) 1914

(b) 1918

(c) 1928

(d) 1945

8. Women received the vote on equal terms with men in:

(a) 1918

(b) 1928

(c) 1945

(d) 1948

9. The bombing of British cities in the Second World War was known as the:

(a) Blitz

(b) Terror

(c) Somme

(d) Armada

10. During the Second World War the shared hardship produced the famous:

(a) Blitz spirit

(b) Dunkirk retreat

(c) lost generation

(d) rotten boroughs

11. The 1942 report that planned to attack want, disease and idleness was the:

(a) Forster Report

(b) Beveridge Report

(c) Domesday Book

(d) People’s Charter

12. After 1945 the Labour government built the:

(a) British Empire

(b) Welfare State

(c) rotten boroughs

(d) factory system

13. The National Health Service was founded in:

(a) 1918

(b) 1944

(c) 1948

(d) 1951

14. The Education Act of 1944 provided free __ education for all.

(a) university

(b) secondary

(c) religious

(d) private

15. After the Second World War, Britain began to give up its empire, starting with the independence of:

(a) India (1947)

(b) Canada

(c) Australia

(d) Ireland

 Answer Key:  1-a   2-b   3-b   4-b   5-b   6-b   7-b   8-b   9-a   10-a   11-b   12-b   13-c   14-b   15-a

■  Two-Mark Questions (One-sentence answers)

Q1. When were the two World Wars fought?

Ans.  The First World War was fought in 1914–1918 and the Second in 1939–1945.

Q2. What is meant by the "lost generation"?

Ans.  It refers to the almost whole generation of young men killed or maimed in the First World War.

Q3. How did the First World War affect the national mood?

Ans.  It shattered Victorian and Edwardian optimism and left a deep mood of disillusionment.

Q4. How did the First World War change the position of women?

Ans.  Women took over men’s work in factories, farms and transport, which helped them to win the vote.

Q5. When did women receive the vote?

Ans.  Women over thirty received the vote in 1918, and all women on equal terms in 1928.

Q6. What was the Blitz?

Ans.  The Blitz was the German bombing of British cities during the Second World War.

Q7. What was the "Blitz spirit"?

Ans.  It was the sense of solidarity and shared sacrifice among ordinary people during the bombing.

Q8. What was the Beveridge Report of 1942?

Ans.  It was a plan to attack the evils of want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness, and it laid the basis of the Welfare State.

Q9. What did the Labour government build after 1945?

Ans.  It built the Welfare State and founded the National Health Service in 1948.

Q10. What did the two wars mean for Britain’s position in the world?

Ans.  They left Britain exhausted and in debt and marked its decline as a world power and the loss of its empire.

■  Paragraph Questions

Q1. What was the social impact of the First World War on England?

The First World War had a profound social impact on England. It brought slaughter on an unprecedented scale, killing or maiming almost a whole generation of young men—the "lost generation"—and filling the nation with grief. It shattered the confident optimism of the Victorian and Edwardian age and left a deep mood of disillusionment, expressed by war poets such as Owen and Sassoon. It transformed the position of women, who took over men’s work in factories, farms and transport and thereby helped to win the vote in 1918. And it weakened the old class system, hastening the decline of the aristocracy and of domestic service and drawing the classes closer together.

Q2. How did the Second World War affect English society?

The Second World War was a "people’s war," fought as much on the home front as on the battlefield. The bombing of British cities in the Blitz brought the war directly to ordinary men, women and children; families were evacuated and food was rationed, and the whole nation shared in the danger and sacrifice. This common suffering produced a strong sense of solidarity and equality and a determination to build a fairer society. Out of it came the Beveridge Report and, after the war, the Welfare State and the National Health Service, while women once more played a vital part in the war effort. The war also left Britain exhausted and hastened the loss of its empire and its decline as a world power.

Q3. How did the two World Wars advance the position of women and the role of the state?

Both World Wars greatly advanced the position of women and enlarged the role of the state. In each war, as millions of men went to fight, women took over their work in factories, offices, farms and services, proving their capacity and winning new respect and rights; the vote was granted to women in 1918 and 1928, and their place in working life was steadily strengthened. At the same time the wars forced the state to take control of much of national life—directing industry, rationing food and organising the people—and this larger role continued into peacetime, culminating after 1945 in the Welfare State, the National Health Service and the nationalised industries. Thus the wars pushed England towards greater equality and a more active, caring state.

■  Essay Question

Q. Discuss the social impact of the two World Wars on England.

 Introduction

The two World Wars—the First from 1914 to 1918 and the Second from 1939 to 1945—were the greatest events of the twentieth century and transformed English society more deeply than any peaceful reform could have done. Though they brought terrible loss and suffering, they also broke down old barriers of class, advanced the position of women, enlarged the power of the state and prepared the way for the Welfare State. Their social impact on England was immense.

▸ 1. Loss and Disillusionment

The First World War brought slaughter on an unheard-of scale, destroying almost a whole generation of young men—the "lost generation"—and filling countless homes with grief. It shattered the optimism of the Victorian and Edwardian age and left a mood of disillusionment voiced by war poets such as Owen and Sassoon.

▸ 2. The Advancement of Women

Both wars greatly changed the position of women. As men went to fight, women took over their work in factories, farms, offices and transport, proving their ability and winning new rights. Their wartime service helped to gain them the vote in 1918 and 1928 and strengthened their place in working life.

▸ 3. The Breaking of Class Barriers

The wars weakened the rigid class system of old England. The First World War hastened the decline of the aristocracy and of domestic service, and the shared danger and sacrifice of both wars, especially in the Blitz, drew the classes together and spread a new sense of equality and solidarity.

▸ 4. The Home Front and the Welfare State

The Second World War was a "people’s war," fought on the home front through the Blitz, evacuation and rationing. The spirit of shared sacrifice created a demand for a fairer society, and out of it came the Beveridge Report of 1942, the Education Act of 1944, and, after the war, the Welfare State and the National Health Service of 1948.

▸ 5. The Decline of Britain and the Larger State

The wars, especially the Second, left Britain exhausted and in debt and marked its decline as a world power and the loss of its empire, beginning with India in 1947. At home the state took a far larger role through nationalised industries and social services, moving England towards a more equal and welfare-minded society.

 Conclusion

The two World Wars, then, for all their horror and loss, acted as powerful engines of social change in England. They advanced the position of women, broke down class barriers, spread a spirit of equality and enlarged the caring role of the state, while marking the decline of Britain’s imperial power. Out of the suffering of war came the more democratic, more equal and more welfare-minded society of modern Britain.