英语国家概况结课考试论文

the influence of WWII on Britain Introduction

World War II exacerbated the decline of the British Empire

Britain used to be the largest country in the world in terms of territory, vast overseas colonies and the most powerful navy. These are the capital that Britain can compete with others overseas, and it is also an important reason for Britain to win the two world wars. But different from the first World War, although Britain experienced the pain of war, it still maintained the first strength of Navy and had a huge overseas colony.

After World War II, Britain not only lost its proud naval status, but also a large number of colonies became independent. Britain's territory began to shrink dramatically. Its strength has declined, and its position in the world has changed from a leader in the past to an equal position with the United States, and finally to a follower of the United States. So why did Britain, which won the position of the victor in World War II, decline after World War II? This paper will take this as the starting point. Analyze the influence of World War II on Britain.

I. Before World War II

1.1The emergence of the British Empire and its development

Britain, located in the west of Europe, is a developed capitalist power. In modern times, Britain had been a world hegemony for more than 200 years. In its heyday, British colonies spread all over the world, known as the "empire of the sun never setting", and the area of colonies accounted for a quarter of the total area of the world. At that time, the British people simply walked in the world, and no one looked down on their arrogance.

1.2 the influence of World War I on Britain

But at the end of the 19th century, with the rise of Germany, the British hegemony was challenged by the German. In order to challenge the British supremacy, Germany launched two world wars, which forced the British out of the hegemony[1]. In particular, the second world war almost wiped out the British family, which made the British owe a lot of debt, and their power plummeted, so that the dominant position had to be ceded to the United States.

II. The status quo of the Sino British Empire in World War II 2.1 The contribution of the colonies to the victory of the war

World War II was a test of loyalty to the British colonies. It is clear that the status of each country in the war is determined by the actual status of the country. The British Empire was not disappointed. In World War II, the British colonies declared war on Germany except Ireland.

And a large number of resources were transported to Britain to serve the British war. In the process, it was not the same goal or the same need that made the colonies so loyal to Britain, but the same fear.[2]

Once Britain was defeated, its colonies would also have corresponding threats. Therefore, in this war, the British colonies paid more attention to Washington instead of Paris or London.

2.2 The colonies tended to separate

The first World War made the British Empire's hegemony waver, and the Second World War led to the end of the British Empire[3]. After the victory of the Second World War, it accelerated the centrifugal tendency of the British colonies, which led to the gradual decline of the British Empire. There are five factors to promote the independence of British colonies in the Second World War: first, the Atlantic Charter affected the independence of the colonies. The charter is a tool and means for Britain and the United States to mobilize and encourage the people of the world to participate in the war in order to win the war. The Charter states that Britain and the United States do not pursue territorial and other expansion, and respect the right of each nation to choose the form of government. This foreshadowed the rapid independence of the following British colonies.

Second, in the Second World War, a large number of colonial people went abroad to fight. At the same time, it also improves the self-esteem and self-confidence of the thought and nation. The improvement of their cultural quality and military skills provides the basis for the independence of the following ethnic groups.

Third, the British Army's retreat in Asia affected the cohesion of the British Empire. The defeat and retreat of British troops on the Asian battlefield not only made them lose their colonies in Southeast Asia, but also broke the myth of British invincible empire. The colonial people no longer believed in and relied on the reliability and strength of the British Empire, thus accelerating the centrifugal speed of the British Empire.

Fourth, during the Second World War, Britain weakened its control over the colonies. As for the demands of the colonies or the disturbances, they only adopted simple concessions or repression, which accelerated the centrifugal speed of the colonies. Fifthly, during the war, the political propaganda of Germany and Italy in disguise of sympathy and support for independence weakened the determination of the colonies to defend the British Empire.

2.3 British attitude towards colonies in wartime

In order to encourage the colonial people to take part in the war, Britain mainly used three means in the colonial rule. First of all, Britain adopted a repressive, divisive and compromising attitude towards the colonies in order to maintain the continuity of the British Empire for a longer time.

In addition, when repression and division could not solve the resistance of the colonial people, the British government made concessions in the form of constitutional reform.