Conscription (compulsory military service) was immediately put into operation to men and women. Also, the government called for local volunteers to act as Home Guard in the case of an invasion. This was mainly about morale, it was allowing old men to do something for the war. By mid-1940, over a million men had joined. Their fighting force was very much questioned but they were useful in guarding the British coast.
From September 1940, London was bombed by the Germans for 76 consecutive nights and the attack continued into May 1941. Many other cities suffered. In Britain, about 60 000 people were killed (half of them in London) and 100 000 seriously injured. Hundreds of thousands of people were made homeless and they needed to be housed in emergency centres, in public places. His caused a lot of resentment but generally, morale stayed very high and ordinary people tried to continue business among the damage and disruption of the war.
The war produced full employment for the first time since 1918. The working class benefited from the fact that the Labour Government controlled prices to avoid inflation, and wages doubled by the end of the war. Bevin, a Labour minister, directed workers where they needed and the workers were reasonably happy.
The Second World War had an enormous social impact on Britain and the British people. The British Prime Minister in wartime, Winston Churchill, said to his British civilians that it was a “total war”. During the war, Churchill was constantly trying to create national unity to bring people together to fight against the Nazis. There was desire for greater equality and there was a sense of national unity. Churchill said, “we are all in this together”, “we are all in the same boat”. Especially during the period when Britain fought alone against the Nazis during the Blitz (1940-1941), the British all shared the common experience which brought them together and put aside their differences. Sharing bomb shelters and going through the experience of the evacuation of children cut class barriers. The British all listed to the BBC broadcasts which played an important role in war effort. The war therefore had an important impact on British society.
Propaganda was efficient in Britain to help develop national unity. The was some official and some unofficial propaganda. The radio was used a lot and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was very trusted. The Government broadcasted propaganda, very different to the Hitler's or Stalin's, the British propaganda was quite calm but serious. Famous posters said “Dig For Victory”, “Careless Talk Costs Lives”, “Keep Calm And Carry On”. The BBC also used humour in light entertainment programs, they were very popular and helped to calm the situation down.
The war also had the effect of social mobility. People found themselves doing new things, the war war brought them out of their lives. Especially the work and armed forces found themselves living away from home and meeting and mixing with people for different classes and different regions. Britain was much less regional after the war.
The Americans had a great influence on the British. The British knew about the Americans through light entertainment and Hollywood films. The arrival of American forces in Britain to fight against the Nazis made some British very jealous. The Americans were bigger and better equipped. (“Oversexed, overpaid, over here”). Many British people felt inferior and insecure. The influence of the Americans (Americanization) made a real change in British society. Chewing gum, cigarettes, coca-cola and nylon stockings were all new to the British. The American GIs arriving with great confidence and wealth made the British very jealous, especially for men, because a lot of women married American GIs to get out of the depressed Britain, many British women therefore became “GI brides”.
The role of women changed because of the war. It caused a huge increase in the employment of women. They worked in factories like ammunition factories, they became WAAFs (Women's Auxiliary Air Force), Land Girls, stenographers and even drivers. Because the many men were away, women had greater responsibilities especially concerning finance. It was also in a way the women's chance to show that they were capable. During the war, there was a determination to live the present, women generally took every chance because it might be the last one. This led to greater freedom of sexual relationships. Women were less prepared to marry and there was an important increase in the divorce rate because of the war.
During the war, the State grew in size and gave itself more power for example for conscription, for censorship or for the allocation of labour. The State had important National interest and it intervened more than ever in the economy (there was important rationing). This concept of giving more power to the State during the war was new to the British, it was more or less tolerated and people expected a return to normal after the war. Planning came to be regarded as beneficial and effective.
Politically, there was a “swing to the left” and it continued after the war since in July 1946, the Labour Party won the election with a 146 majority, despite the popular Churchill being a conservative. The war caused many British people to look differently at recent history, especially concerning communism. It seemed different to the British when the Soviet Union was an ally (from 1941). During the Great Depression of the 1930s, the USA, Britain and Western Europe was struggling economically, but the USSR was dealing with the situation very well. (Five year plans, education, …). The whole idea of building a better post-war society was widely accepted. The was a real feeling that the USSR was a success, and socialist ideas of equality and a caring State were worth copying. That in fact is a reason why the USA intervened in the war: the avoid the spread of communism. During the war, Labour gained in experience and respect. Churchill was succeeded as Prime Minister by Clement Attlee, the leader of the Labour Party. Like Ernest Bevin, he gained a lot of experience. This is important because the Labour Government had hardly any experience because they never ruled Britian, it was a political Catch 22 situation, and the British didn't trust the Labour Party to take control of Government, until 1945. Also, the Labour Party during the war had developed a clear practical program which they hadn't had before. Labour was more electable than ever, and they had political changes to offer, the country therefore moved to the left.
The successful ruling of Britain by the Government during the war depended a lot of the willing co-operation of the people, even under-privileges sections of society, workers and women. During the war, the poor had earned concessions by their co-operation, their all-out efforts and their suffering : better education, higher standards of living and better welfare services. It was felt that the workers might be wanting a revolution if they weren't given what they wanted. In was felt that the socialist ideas
As result of this, the Labour Government appointed a committee under Sir William Beveridge to investigate the problems of social insurance. In 1942, in the middle of the war, The Beveridge Report claimed that the great evils to be overcome were want, disease, ignorance, squalor and idleness. Beveridge suggested to fight them with insurance schemes, child allowances, a national health service and a policy of full employment. However, the Conservatives (lead by Churchill) strongly rejected the Report, because the Conservatives don't approve of taxing and state involvement. It was left to the Labour governments of 1945-1951 to introduce the Welfare Sate.
Concerning education, R. A. Butler, the Conservative President of the Broard of Education, worked on The Bulter Education Act (1944). This act made secondary education available to all, free and without restriction, raised the school leaving age to 15 and laid down that secondary schools were to be of three types : grammar, technical and modern.
Economically, the war ruined Britain. In March 1941, the US Congress passed the Lend-Lease Act which gave Britain crucial supplies from America, to be pais for later. The USA kept Britain going during the war and by the end of 1945, Britain's overseas debts stood at £ 3 000 million. Truman then abruptly ended Lend Lease. This crushed the British economy, and Britain wanted another loan from the USA, which was granted on unfavourable terms. Britain was therefore reduced to a close and uncomfortable dependence on the USA.
Britain's world position was changed by the end of the war. British defeats had stirred up nationalistic feelings in her colonies. The country which did the greatest damage to the image of Britain was Japan. In 1941 and 1942, Japan was damaging the British Empire, especially Singapoure. The myth of the Great British Empire was destroyed. This encouraged colonies to take independence (India in 1947, Ceylon in 1948, and Malaisia). Within 20 years most of Britain's empire had become independent. Successful Prime Ministers of the second half of the 20th century agree that Britain no longer an big world power, but they behave as if they believe it, especially concerning military involvement (Iraq and Afghanistan). Britain became a second rate power despite her victory, and the war revealed the USA and the USSR as the two most powerful states in the world. These two major world powers sharing two opposite political opinions marked the start of the Cold War.
