La Gran Bretagna nella Prima Guerra Mondiale, Appunti di Inglese

Scarica La Gran Bretagna nella Prima Guerra Mondiale e più Appunti in PDF di Inglese solo su Docsity! BRITAIN AND THE FIRST WORLD WAR Britain joined the Great War on the side of France and Russia against the Central powers. Its main objective was to counter Germany’s excessive powers and the German attack on neutral Belgium was the moral justification for intervention. A mass war was about to begin. Most of the productions was converted to war purposes. All strikes were suspended and a strict censorship was instituted. All parties including the Labour party backed the country military commitment and there was no political opposition untile after the Bolshevik revolution. BRITAIN AT WAR By September 1914 the German army had reached the River Marne in France, where a great battle stopped the German advance at the cost of many lives. When the British Secretary of State for War, Lord Kitchener, realised that the war was going to last a long time and that Britain would have to send a large army overseas, he appealed for volunteers, but it would take time to turn them into soldiers. Britain relied on these volunteers until 1916. T he Empire made its contribution sending troops from the dominions as well as volunteers from Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Conscription was introduced in Britain in 1916. Women replaced men in their civilian jobs with reliability and competence, which contributed to bringing about women's suffrage. Lord Kitchener appeared on posters all around the country. These posters portrayed austere-looking general pointing his finger at all the British. It was an invitation to partecipate in the war effort and British people responded to this invitation with enthusiasm. THE EASTER RISING IN IRELAND A major issue of British politics in the first two decades of the 20th century was the Irish Question. The term refers to the tragic events regarding the fight for Irish independence. In April 1916 there was a rebellion in Dublin, the so-called Easter Rising, due to the fact that Home Rule, voted by the Commons in 1914, had been suspended until the end of the war. The leaders of the insurrection received support from Germany and seized the General Post Office and other buildings in the centre of the city. The rebellion was repressed and 15 of the leaders executed. The Irish Republican party Sinn Féin (an Irish name meaning ourselves alone'), which was fighting for the reunification of Ireland began to grow in popularity exploiting the fear the Irish had that military conscription might extend to Ireland.