12.

XX-XXI century Britain

https://britroyals.com/hanovertree.asp
https://britroyals.com/windsortree.asp
George V
• When Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, George's first cousin, was
overthrown in the Russian Revolution of 1917, the British
government offered political asylum to the Tsar and his
family, but worsening conditions for the British people, and
fears that revolution might come to the British Isles, led
George to think that the presence of the Romanovs would
be seen as inappropriate. The Tsar and his immediate
family remained in Russia, where they were killed by the
Bolsheviks in 1918. George wrote in his diary: "It was a foul
murder. I was devoted to Nicky, who was the kindest of
men and thorough gentleman: loved his country and
people.“
George V (right) and his
• The following year, Nicholas's mother, Marie Feodorovna, cousin Nicholas II of Russia
and other members of the extended Russian imperial in German uniforms before
family were rescued from Crimea by a British warship. the war
House of Windsor
• On 17 July 1917, George appeased
British nationalist feelings by
issuing a royal proclamation that
changed the name of the British
royal house from the German-
sounding House of Saxe-Coburg
and Gotha to the House of
Windsor.
"A Good Riddance"; cartoon from Punch, Vol. 152, 27 June
1917, commenting on the King's order to relinquish all German
titles held by members of his family
Edward VIII (David)
• was King of the United Kingdom and the
Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of
India from 20 January 1936 until his abdication in
December of the same year.
• was popular with people:
• Good looking
• Communicative
• Celebrity type
• showed impatience with court protocol
Abdication
• Only months into his reign, a constitutional crisis was caused by his
proposal to marry Wallis Simpson, an American who had divorced her first
husband and was seeking a divorce from her second:
• A divorced woman with two living ex-husbands was politically and socially
unacceptable as a prospective queen consort.
• Such a marriage would have conflicted with Edward's status as titular head of the
Church of England, which, at the time, disapproved of remarriage after divorce if a
former spouse was still alive.
• When it became apparent he could not marry Wallis and remain on the
throne, he abdicated.
• He was succeeded by his younger brother, George VI. With a reign of 326
days, Edward is the shortest-reigning monarch of the United Kingdom.
• He married Wallis in France on 3 June 1937, after her second divorce
became final.
• After the war, Edward spent the rest of his life in France. He and Wallis
remained married until his death in 1972.
Relationship with Nazi
• In October 1937, the Duke and Duchess visited Nazi Germany, against
the advice of the British government, and met Adolf Hitler at his
Berghof retreat in Bavaria. The visit was much publicised by the
German media. During the visit the Duke gave full Nazi salutes. In
Germany, "they were treated like royalty ... members of the
aristocracy would bow and curtsy towards her, and she was treated Duke and Duchess of Windsor
with all the dignity and status that the duke always wanted", in Germany, October 1937
according to royal biographer Andrew Morton in a 2016 BBC
interview.
• Many historians have suggested that Adolf Hitler was prepared to
reinstate Edward as king in the hope of establishing a fascist puppet
government in Britain.
• After the war, the Duke admitted in his memoirs that he admired the
Germans, but he denied being pro-Nazi. Of Hitler he wrote: "[the]
Führer struck me as a somewhat ridiculous figure, with his theatrical
posturings and his bombastic pretensions."
The Duke and Duchess meeting
Adolf Hitler at Berchtesgaden
George VI
• Real name was Albert Frederick Arthur George; known as
"Bertie" among his family and close friends.
• Albert assumed the regnal name "George VI" to emphasise
continuity with his father and restore confidence in the
monarchy.
• Had a speech impediment, i.e. stammer
• Film King‘s Speech
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPLIw64rLJc
• The stress of the war had taken its toll on the King's health,
made worse by his heavy smoking and subsequent
development of lung cancer, George VI died on 6 February
1952.
The Region of Europe, 1937
The Region of Europe, 1938
The Region of Europe, 1939
The Region of Europe, 1939
The Region of Europe, 1939

?
The Start of World War 2, 1939
Allies or Axis?, 1940

Allies

Axis

Neutral
German Invasions, 1940

Allies

Axis

Neutral
German Invasions, 1940

Allies

Axis

Neutral
As Germany continued to get closer
to Britain, Neville Chamberlain
resigned as British Prime Minister
Winston Churchill
was appointed Prime
Minister on 10th May 1940
German Invasions, 1940

Allies

Axis

Neutral
German Invasions, 1940

Allies

Axis

Neutral
 German Invasions, 1940

Dunkirk
Allies

Axis

Neutral
• Germans knew Britain had a powerful army and so offered the peace.
• They wouldn’t attack Britain, or the remaining troops in Dunkirk, if
British allowed them to attack everyone else.

1) Accept Peace Agreement

Or
2) Withdraw all the troops and hope they get back safely
– continue the War

What would you do?

 Churchill and World War II
• Churchill knew that if he accepted this offer, the Nazis would
surely take over in the future, in other ways, because they would
become so powerful.
• So, even though many people thought he was wrong, he
convinced the cabinet to continue the war and brought British
troops back from France to fight for Britain on their own soil.

•350,000 needed to be evacuated

from Dunkirk. The admiral in
charge recommended to only get
40,000 home.
338, 226 British troops got home, joined by thousands
of French soldiers (The French Republic).
• As Hitler ordered his army to attack by using aircraft, Winston
Churchill ensured the army, particularly the air force, was ready, by
making himself Defence Secretary as well as the Prime Minister.

• In July 1940, just before the invasion, Churchill gave a speech to

the nation, over the radio.

‘We Shall Fight Them on the Beaches’ Speech

The Battle of Britain

Allies

Axis

Neutral
 The Battle of Britain

• By September, half of
• Began in July 1940 British pilots had been
• In most battles, far more
• British army was German planes were shot shot down
outnumbered, down than British. • The German planes were
sometimes 20 to 1 losing, so they decided to
bomb instead
 The Blitz

• By then, 1000 British

• In October, the Germans • The Royal Air Forces aircraft were shot down,
focused on bombing Britain’s continued to defend the but 1800 German aircraft
towns and Cities skies were shot down

• Many children had to be • On 16th May 1941, the • Soon after, British decide
evacuated and people built Germans gave up and to attack back
bomb shelters in their gardens started to attack Russia
instead.
Winston Churcill
• Widely considered one of the 20th century's most
significant figures, Churchill remains popular in the UK and
Western world, where he is seen as a victorious wartime
leader who played an important role in defending
Europe's liberal democracy against the spread of fascism.
He is also praised as a social reformer.
• However, he has been criticised for some wartime events
– notably the area bombing of German cities and his
government's response to the Bengal famine – and also
for his imperialist views, including comments on race.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIZiSYx1pKE
The Queen’s Early
Life
The Queen was born at
2.40am on 21 April 1926 at 17
Bruton Street in Mayfair,
London.

She was the first child of The

Duke and Duchess of York.

Queen has a sister Margaret.

Wedding Day
In November 1947, she
married Prince Philip of
Greece and Denmark,
who was created duke
of Edinburgh.
 The Queen’s Family
The Queen has four children

Prince Princess Prince Princess

Charles Anne Andrew Edward

Born in Born in Born in Born in

1948 1950 1960 1964
Becoming Queen
On Wednesday, 6 February 1952, Princess
Elizabeth received the news of her father's death
while staying in Kenya with Prince Philip
Coronation Day
The Coronation took place in Westminster Abbey
on 2 June 1953
Margaret Thacher
• Prime Minister in 1979.

• Mini Bio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLIk2ZEHA7M

• Admired and hated:
• Falklands War
• IRA assassination attempt at a Brighton hotel early in the morning on 12 October 1984
• Privatisation
• The Iron Lady. In 1976, Thatcher gave her "Britain Awake" foreign policy speech which
lambasted the Soviet Union, saying it was "bent on world dominance". The Soviet Army
journal Red Star reported her stance in a piece headlined "Iron Lady Raises Fears", alluding
to her remarks on the Iron Curtain. The Sunday Times covered the Red Star article the next
day, and Thatcher embraced the epithet a week later. The "Iron" metaphor followed her
throughout ever since.
Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon
• Romance with Group Captain Peter Townsend. Townsend divorced his wife,
Rosemary, proposed to Margaret early the following year. Many in the
government believed that he would be an unsuitable husband for the Queen's
22-year-old sister and the Church of England refused to countenance marriage to
a divorced man.
• Margaret eventually abandoned her plans with Townsend and married
photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1960; the Queen made him Earl of
Snowdon. The couple had a son, David, and a daughter, Sarah, before divorcing in
1978.
• Her divorce received much negative publicity and her private life was for many
years the subject of intense speculation by media and royal-watchers.
• Her health gradually deteriorated in the final two decades of her life. She was a
heavy smoker for most of her adult life and had a lung operation in 1985, a bout
of pneumonia in 1993 and at least three strokes between 1998 and 2001. She
died in London on 9 February 2002 after suffering a fourth and final stroke at the
age of 71.
Charles, the Prince of Wales
• Difficult relationship with his father Philip II
• Bullied at school (Gordonstoun)
• Relationship to his grandmother
• Relationship to his uncle David
• Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester on 26 July
1958
• Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles
Diana, Princess of Wales
• born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997
• They had two sons, William and Harry
• Diana's marriage to Charles suffered due to their
incompatibility and extramarital affairs. They separated in
1992, soon after the breakdown of their relationship
became public knowledge. Their marital difficulties
became increasingly publicised, and they divorced in
1996.
• The People‘s princess:
• Charitable activities
• Beauty and communicative skills
"London Bridge is down“
Elizabeth is the longest-lived and longest-reigning British monarch, the
longest-serving female head of state in history, the oldest living and
longest-reigning current monarch.
The Crown (series)