Why did the British Government decide to evacuate children from Britain's major cities in the early years of the Second World War?

Why did the British Government decide to evacuate children from Britain's major cities in the early years of the Second World War? Indeed in Britain at the start of the war, the British government expected that here would be heavy raids on the big cities. Between the 1 and 3 September 1939 over 1.5 children, pregnant women and disabled people were evacuated to rural areas in mainland Britain. In Northern Ireland the government had made three attempts to evacuate people from Belfast. Unfortunately such was the complacency and strong belief that Northern Ireland would not be bombed, very few people availed themselves of the opportunities open to them. Three days before the big raid on Easter Tuesday, only 3,000 adults had registered to evacuate. The British Government feared the threat of German bombing in the cities and this made them decided to evacuate all children from the cities to the countryside. The government desired to protect the future generation and with the young safe, then England would always be alive and vibrant and that was a main factor why the government took such action. Evacuation was in the eyes of the government, a military necessity to prevent thousands of people leaving their homes in panic and confusion. The government wanted children out of the way before Germany's attacks on the country started. Evacuation all began on September the 1st 1939, two

  • Word count: 750
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Politics
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Why did the General Strike of 1926 take place?

History Coursework- Sophie Garrod 5MCG Why did the General Strike of 1926 take place? The General Strike took place as a result of short and long-term problems. Long term factors such as the increase in Trade Union members, the change of ownership in the mines, and the threat of Communism were all starting points. The price of coal fluctuating along with economic instability in Britain, the US and Germany and the adherence to the Gold Standard also contributed to the timing of the General Strike. The growth of the Labour Party and the threat of nationalisation made private mine owners feel insecure. The First World War had seen the mines put into government hands. This meant national wage schemes and a seven-hour day guaranteed. However, at the end of the war the Sankey Report failed to report back uncammanly for nationalisation and Lloyd George did not enforce it. This meant workers found themselves back to regional pay scales and longer hours. Firstly, after World War One, the British citizens were expecting a change in lifestyle, and after losing many family members; they were expecting what the Prime Minister had promised them 'a fit country for heroes to live in'. The standard of life during the war was considerably bad, as the government abandoned the need of food and supplies, and concentrated on military and war associated requirements. This meant that many imports

  • Word count: 1185
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Politics
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Why Did the British Government Decide to Evacuate Children From Britain's Major Cities at the Start of The Second World War?

Amy Nickell 28/2/06 The Arts Educational School Why Did the British Government Decide to Evacuate Children From Britain's Major Cities at the Start of The Second World War? When war began in 1939, Britain was not prepared for war. The idea of aerial bombardment terrorized the public and the government soon realised it was time to protect the children. The government soon made plans to evacuate over 3 million infants and youngsters to more rural places of safety. Alas, the government ended up only evacuating around half this number. Children were evacuated from major cities such as London and other important industrial cities such as Liverpool and Birmingham. The government knew large cities were key bombing targets as they contained the centres of communications, docks, ports and railway lines. Anything, which if bombed, would impede the countries ability to continue fighting. But what were the reasons behind the fear of the government and civilians? Why were people making such extreme precautions? Why were people so afraid? For one, the government and public alike has seen the devastation and destruction suffered by innocent civilians during Hitler's bombings of Guernica in September 1937. Hitler needed and opportunity to test out his planes and bombs and The Spanish Civil war was the perfect opportunity. The attack on the town

  • Word count: 1533
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Politics
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Why was Mussolini able to come in to power as early as 1922?

Why was Mussolini able to come in to power as early as 1922? Mussolini took a considerable short amount of time to come to power a substantial three years. Mussolini came to power within a couple of years and the main point to argue this is due to the fact of the weakness of Italy as a whole. Italy was a breading ground for the Fascist regime and Mussolini took full advantage of this and he profited from this a large amount. Italy had a lot of problems before the First World War and they only got worse after the war. Italy fought the war mostly against the Austrians along there northern boarders and was conflicted with severe causalities. The problems that Italy faced after the war included discontent amongst the citizens of Italy, economical problem and also cracks amongst the Italian government. Italy dealt with heavy casualties and their national debt rouse from 16 billion lire in 1914 to an enormous 85 billion lire in 1919. Other areas that hit Italy were their industries; the ammunition industry suffered heavily after the First World War as the demand for weapons dramatically decreased. This was a very good happening for Mussolini because at this time the people needed somebody to look up to, to guide them through this hardship and lead them to good times. Mussolini rose from power at the exact right time and he benefited from this. The government of Italy proved to

  • Word count: 958
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Politics
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