101 201 PDF

ar-ee.
The Czechs reluctantly accepted occupy the Baltic states and Finland, and Stalin
:*amberlains plan. But, when Chamberlain agreed to let Hitler have a free hand in Western
-e:jrned to Germany, Hitler had changed his Europe. The Pact made war inevitable.
remands; he now wanted the Sudetenland
On 1 September 1939, the German Army invaded
-aided over to Germany. Chamberlain returned
Poland. After a days delay, Chamberlain sent an
: Britain in despair. He believed that war was
ultimatum to Berlin, threatening war if Hitler did
hevitable.
not withdraw by 11 a.m. on 3 September. Hitler
- the next few days, preparations for war began took no notice, so Britain declared war on
* Britain. Children were evacuated from cities, Germany.
a - raid shelters were built and 1 million
In September 1938, Neville Chamberlain had
iolunteers were called up for civil defence. In
signed the Munich Agreement, which handed the
e end, however, the threat of war passed. At
Sudetenland to Hitler. One view of Chamberlains
n e last moment, Benito Mussolini, the Italian
actions towards Hitler was that he was fooled
zictator, suggested a four-power conference to
by him: he believed that Hitler would keep the
a-ettle the matter. The four powers met at
promise that he made at Munich. Another view
Munich, and France, Britain, Germany and Italy
is that Chamberlain was buying time: he
agreed to hand over the Sudetenland to Hitler.
believed that the British armed forces were not
Ihamberlain and Hitler signed an agreement the
strong enough to stand up to Hitler and so put
following day stating that their countries would
off the risk of war until Britain had rearmed.
ever go to war again. When Chamberlain
-^turned from Munich, he was given a heros
Reasons for early German success
elcome. He appeared on the balcony of
Buckingham Palace between the King and
The German invasion of Poland in September
^.-een, and it appeared that he had brought
1939 was a complete success, and within three
about peace. But there was a substantial, and
weeks the Polish Army had been destroyed. In
growing, body of opinion that criticised his
April and May 1940, the invasions of Denmark,
actions.
Norway, Belgium, Holland and France went just
- March 1939, Hitler occupied all of Western as smoothly.
Izechoslovakia and Chamberlain realised that
Hitler at first appeared to be following the
appeasement had failed. In April, he guaranteed
Schlieffen Plan as in 1914, but, after driving
: d defend Poland and Romania if they were
through the Allied forces, the German Armies
backed, and in June conscription began. These
turned North and South, separating the French
/ere intended as warnings to Germany, but they
and the British. The British Expeditionary Force
/ere ignored. Negotiations began with Stalin,
(BEF), which had taken up position in Belgium
:ie leader of the Soviet Union, about a possible
in 1939, was forced back to Calais and Dunkirk,
a.liance against Hitler, but these came to
and had to be evacuated in the first two weeks
'othing. Stalin became convinced that Britain
of June 1940. Almost all of its equipment was
and France wanted Hitler to destroy the Soviet
lost, but 310,000 men were rescued. This was a
Union.
crushing defeat for Britain, but in the
n August, Stalin signed the Nazi-Soviet Pact newspapers it was described as the miracle of
with Hitler. This came as a major shock because Dunkirk. The Daily M irror had the headline
:ne two leaders had appeared to be bitter BLOODY MARVELLOUS. In fact, the BEF only
enemies. On the face of it this was a non escaped because Hitler ordered his forces to
aggression pact, in which the two agreed not to hold back on the outskirts of Dunkirk. He was
attack each other. But secretly the two leaders apparently hoping that this would encourage the
agreed to invade Poland and divide it between British government to make peace. British forces
:nem. Hitler also agreed to allow Stalin to were also sent to Norway in April.
Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 101

This was completely ineffective and they had to A second reason was the new tactics develope:
be rescued after six weeks. By mid-June, Hitler by the Germans. Blitzkrieg (lightning war)
appeared to have won the war. involved sudden attacks using massed tank
formations, dive-bombers and paratroops. The
One reason for Hitlers success was the scale of
Germans had also developed new weapons.
rearmament. Germany had started rearming first,
Their tanks were more mobile and the Stuka
even though this broke the Treaty of Versailles.
dive-bomber was very effective in Poland. The
The German Army, with 4 million men who had
Allied Armies were taken by surprise at the
undergone military training, was much larger
mobility and speed of the German Army.
than any other European army, except for the
French, who had 6 million trained men. Blitzkrieg had already been tried out during the
Denmark, Holland and Belgium were all neutral Spanish Civil War (1936-39). Hitler had sent
countries and only had small armed forces. They about 10,000 men to support General Franco of
could put up very little resistance. Spain, and their experience proved invaluable.
A A formation of Stuka dive-bombers.
102 Modern World History

tany people throughout Europe had seen especially Communist influence, and many
-ewsreel film of the bombing of the Spanish Frenchmen collaborated (work together) with the
town of Guernica; there seemed to be no way of Nazis during the four years of occupation.
rapping the German armed forces.
One view of the early German successes in 1940
~~e French government had pinned its hopes on was that the German forces were better
e -passive line of fortifications along the organised and more highly trained than their
Franco-German border. It was called the Maginot enemy. This was true, but, on the other hand,
. le, after the general who designed it. It was a Britain and France contributed to their own
H'ies of underground forts linked by railway defeat by not preparing very effectively. Both
I 'd it was designed to prevent an invasion of armies expected the war to be like the First
^ n c e . The French believed that it would be World War and dug in to defensive positions.
-possible to break through the Line, and it The French constructed the Maginot Line, which
r-obably was, but it ended at the Belgian did not prevent German invasion. The French
::rder, because Belgium was a neutral country. also believed that the Germans would not be
able to get through the wooded area of the
though the French tried to extend the Line
Ardennes. Better preparation would probably
~jm 1936 onwards, they failed and, in 1940, the
have made early defeats less likely.
Germans simply went round it, sending their
snks through the Ardennes, a wooded hilly area
Falls and survivals
- Belgium. The French commanders had
be eved that it would be impossible for the
The French government surrendered to Germany
1-ermans to get through the Ardennes, which
on 22 June 1940. Hitler accepted the surrender
as full of dense forest and deep valleys, and
at exactly the same spot near Compiegne where
ezross the River Meuse, so no French forces
the Germans had signed the Armistice in
ere stationed there. The French Army was
November 1918. All of Northern and Western
-3<en completely by surprise and found itself
France was occupied by Germany; the remainder
:_t flanked.
was governed from Vichy by a new French
th o u g h the French Army outnumbered the government headed by Marshal Petain. He was
I-erman Army and much of its equipment was given almost dictatorial powers by the deputies
; _perior, the French appeared to lack the to the assembly and appointed Pierre Laval as
zetermination to fight. There was a strong his Prime Minister. The Vichy government
refeatist attitude in both the French government collaborated with the German occupying forces
I 'd its Army. Once the German Army had got in many ways during the rest of the war. The
;jnd the Maginot Line and reached the English Germans occupied all of France in 1942.
I'annel, there were few attempts to carry on
Now that France was under German control, the
tre fight. Some people seem to have believed
German armed forces began to attack Britain
:-at Hitler would cure some of the problems
from July 1940. It is unlikely that Hitler ever
r a t France had suffered from during the 1930s,
planned an invasion of Britain but, at the time,
one was expected almost daily. The first attacks
were on shipping in the English Channel and the
ports on the South coast, such as Dover. These
Why did Chamberlain sign the Munich were followed by bombing raids on radar
Agreement? stations and then airfields. Finally, from mid-
August came attacks on Fighter Command. This
Why did war break out in September 1939? was the Battle of Britain. At first, the Royal Air
Why were the Germans able to overrun Force (RAF) was able to defeat the Luftwaffe
Western Europe so easily in 1940? (the German Air Force), but by the first week of
September the tide was beginning to turn.

Fortunately, Hitler lost patience and ordered
night attacks on London instead because night Operation Barbarossa
would offer protection to the German aircraft. A Russian proverb states, When all our
When daylight attacks were renewed on 15 other generals have been defeated, we still
September, the RAF regained the initiative and have Generals January and February. In the
the Luftwaffe turned again to night bombing sub-zero temperatures of December and
London and other British cities in what became January - down to minus 40C - the fuel and
known as the Blitz. oil in German tanks and lorries froze and
guns became unusable. In addition, the
In London, 13,000 people were killed in 1940. In German troops had little winter clothing. At
the rest of Britain about 10,000 people were this time, Red Army units from Siberia
killed. Coventry was hit by a very heavy raid in counterattacked. They were used to such
November 1940, which destroyed the centre of temperatures and were fully equipped for
the city and killed about 500 people. Belfast the cold weather.
was not bombed until April 1941, when the
Belfast Blitz killed nearly 1000 people.
The bombing took several forms. The most 7-14 September and this was vital in getting
common bombs were incendiaries. These were more pilots trained and planes delivered.
small bombs which burst into flames when they
hit the ground. The Germans also used high Invasion of the Soviet Union
explosive bombs, weighing about 225 or 450kg,
but the most dangerous were land mines, which Hitlers invasion of the Soviet Union was the
drifted down on parachutes and exploded later. turning point of the war. At first, however, the
On average the Germans dropped 200 tonnes of German Army was very successful. The Red Army
bombs every 24 hours, but, on 15 October, 538 was caught unaware because Stalin had not
tonnes of bombs were dropped, the largest believed reports, sent to him by his spies in
amount at any time during the war. Berlin, that the Germans were about to attack.
The Red Army had also lost most of its senior
The attacks on British cities were intended to
officers in the purges of 1937-38 (see pages
break the morale of the British people by
245-7). Within months, the Germans had swept
destroying their homes and possessions.
East in a massive three-pronged attack. But the
Although the official government line was that
Germans failed to capture Moscow, falling just
Britain can take it, there is plenty of evidence
32 kilometres short in December 1941.
from local government reports, letters and
diaries that the bombing had very serious Hitler had made two fateful mistakes. First, the
effects. The worst of the attacks came to an end invasion had been delayed for two months from
when the bombers of the Luftwaffe were sent April to June because German troops had been
East to begin the attack on the Soviet Union in sent to the Balkans to support Hitlers ally,
June 1941; this was known as Operation Mussolini. This delay meant that the invasion
Barbarossa. was not completed before the onset of winter.
Instead of reaching Moscow in September, the
One reason given for the survival of Britain in
German Army arrived on the outskirts of the
1940 is that the RAF was able to defeat the
Soviet capital just as the temperatures dropped
Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain. The courage
way below zero, and Hitler had not supplied
and bravery of the pilots of Fighter Command
winter clothing. Second, the three-pronged
have become a legend. Another view is that
attack weakened the German advance; a single
Fighter Command won because Hitler ordered
thrust might well have succeeded.
the Luftwaffe to begin night attacks on London
and other British cities. It is true that there was The Eastern Front proved a nightmare for the
a break in daylight attacks by the Luftwaffe from German Army. The vastness of the country, the

Japan wanted to create an empire in the
Far East. The main obstacle to Japanese
German advances
expansion was the USA. The attack on
Furthest extent of German Pearl Harbor was an attempt to knock
advances, December 1942 the USA out of the war before it had
even started. The military government
Leningrad believed that Japan would have to fight
the USA sooner or later and so decided
to strike while the USA was unprepared.
The Japanese already occupied targe
areas of Asia by 1941. In 1931, the
Smolensk
Japanese Army had invaded Manchuria,
which was part of China, and set up a
puppet (pro-Japanese) government. In
POLAND
July 1937, the Japanese Army invaded
Stalingrad northern China. Shanghai and other
Chinese cities were bombed into
submission. Within a year Nanking, the
capital, Tsingtao, Canton and Hankow
had all been taken. Britain and the USA
gave large loans to the Guomindang
government of China, but the Japanese
government began to demand that
Britain and other Western countries stop
supporting China and co-operate with
BULGARIA
Japan in establishing a new order in the
400 km
Advances by japan
250 miles Territory held by
Japan in December 1941
Territory captured by Japan
from December 1941 to
July 1942
miles
jJokyo 2100 mites
north east
of Wake
extremes of temperature and the reserves Peart

available to the Red Army slowly turned the tide Harbor
.Okinawa
in Stalins favour. In February 1943, the German
Sixth Army was surrounded at Stalingrad and Wake j
ivas forced to surrender. It was the first major >Guam

defeat of the German armed forces.
IL1PPIN ES
- mM
The causes of war in the Pacific
NEW GUINEA
On 7 December 1941, the Japanese armed forces H 4+ ORNEO
launched a surprise attack on the main US base
in the Pacific Ocean, Pearl Harbor in Hawaii.
Eight battleships were destroyed and 2400
Americans were killed. The following day,
^resident Roosevelt declared war on Japan. A Map of Asia showing Japanese advances.

Far East. The new order was called the Greater messages had been sent to US bases in the
East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere. In fact, this was Philippines and the Panama Canal. This supports
to be nothing more than a Japanese Empire, the view that Roosevelt was looking for an
intended to provide living space for Japans excuse to declare war on Japan and Germany.
growing population. Japan also needed raw
materials - especially oil. The main supplier of
oil to Japan was the USA, but, in July 1941, the What effects did the Blitz have on Britain?
USA cut off all supplies of oil to Japan in protest
against Japans actions in China. Why did Operation Barbarossa fail?
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a daring raid Why did the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor?
because it involved the Japanese force sailing
more than 4800 kilometres before launching its
attack. US intelligence discovered the forces
movements and decoded its messages, but
Reasons for German defeat
failed to warn Pearl Harbor in time. So, when
the Japanese planes attacked at 8 a.m., they
In 1940 and 1941, the German armed forces
achieved total surprise. There is some
appeared to be invincible. Yet, by this time,
suggestion that President Roosevelt deliberately
Hitler had laid the seeds of his own destruction.
withheld information of the attack so that he
On too many occasions he interfered in military
would have an excuse to declare war. Telegrams
matters - unlike Stalin, who left everything to
were sent to US bases early on 7 December to
his commanders. Hitler had ordered the German
warn of a possible attack by Japan. But all the
tanks to stop on the outskirts of Dunkirk in May
telegrams were delayed for several hours and
and June 1940. Hitler also stopped attacks on
the telegram to Pearl Harbor was left until last.
Fighter Command on 7 September 1940, just
This meant that it was impossible to make any
when the Luftwaffe was on the verge of winning
preparations to defend the attack.
the Battle of Britain. Hitler held back production
In fact, the effects of Pearl Harbor were not as of U-boats in 1939 and 1940, so that when the
disastrous as they seemed at first. The main aim Battle of the Atlantic began in 1941 the German
of the Japanese had been to destroy the three Navy only had 37 submarines. Nevertheless,
US aircraft carriers, but these were at sea on 1941 was a very bad year for Britain in the
manoeuvres at the time and all escaped Atlantic. Hundreds of merchant ships were sunk
unharmed. Even so, Japanese forces were able despite an agreement that US warships would
to follow up their success by overrunning much escort convoys part of the way from the USA.
of South East Asia and the South West Pacific. Only in 1943 was the Battle of the Atlantic won.
All of Indo-China, Malaya and Indonesia were By then, long-range flying boats could escort
occupied, as well as the Philippines and parts of convoys all the way across the Atlantic and U-
Borneo and New Guinea. To the West, Burma boats had little answer. By the end of the war,
was overrun and India was invaded. By June more than 90 per cent of U-boats had been
1942' the Japanese appeared to be unstoppable. sunk.
On 7 December 1941, Japanese forces attacked The determination of the British people in
Pearl Harbor. One view of the success of the holding on alone from June 1940 until June 1941.
attack is that the US forces at Pearl Harbor were when Germany invaded the Soviet Union, set an
taken completely by surprise and suffered heavy example to the rest of the world and showed
losses. Another view is that the attack was used that the British people were not prepared to
as a means of getting the USA involved in the give in. Prime Minister Churchill again played a
war. The US General George Marshall delayed key role in maintaining morale by his speeches
warning the US commander at Pearl Harbor until and visits to bombed areas.

A A large convoy of ships seen from a US Navy flying boat patrolling the Atlantic.
Britain also received invaluable aid from the organised, which saturated German cities with
USA. In 1940, President Roosevelt signed the incendiaries and heavy explosives. The bombing
Destroyers for Bases Agreement in which Britain raids on Germany were much heavier than those
.vas given 50 old US destroyers in exchange for carried out by the Germans on Britain, but often
US use of bases in the Caribbean. And, in March the results were no more successful. At the end
1941, the Lend Lease Act allowed the US of the war, it was estimated that 90 per cent of
government to supply war materials to Britain on German industry was still working at full
the understanding that they would be returned capacity. The damage caused to German cities
or paid for after the war. But Roosevelt was not was, however, colossal. On 13 and 14 February
able to declare war until after the Japanese 1945, when Germany was virtually defeated,
attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. 2600 tonnes of bombs were dropped on
Dresden in Eastern Germany. 70 per cent of the
Hitler declared war on the USA on 11 December
buildings in the city were destroyed. As many as
1941 and US aid to Britain was immediately
150,000 people may have been killed.
stepped up. By 1943, US war production was in
full swing, producing four times as much each Hitler also made the mistake of believing that
month as Germany. In the end, the military and Germany was invincible and allowed his armed
economic might of the USA was to be a key forces to take on too much. In 1941, German
3ctor in victory. From 1942, the RAF began to forces were sent to North Africa to support
oomb Germany every night. When the US Air Italy in its attack on Egypt. The German Afrika
Force arrived in the UK, it began to bomb during Korps was very successful at first and forced
the day. By 1943, 1000 bomber raids were the British back to the borders of Egypt.
Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 10 7

But it was eventually overwhelmed by the land behind the German defences. The Germans
British Eighth Army and the US forces that had expected the invasion to take place at
landed in Morocco in December 1942. When Calais on the French coast, and, even after the
Mussolinis control of Italy crumbled in 1943, Allied troops landed, went on believing that this
German troops occupied Italy to halt the Allied was not the real attack. Hitler also refused to
invasion. allow Field Marshal Rommel to take control of
the Panzer (tank) divisions in Normandy. This
But the real body blows to Germany were struck
weakened the German Army when it tried to
on the Eastern Front, where the German armed
counterattack the Allies after they had landed.
forces suffered 90 per cent of their total war
casualties. The surrender of the Sixth Army at The German forces were able to pin down the
Stalingrad in February 1943 was followed by the Allied forces in Normandy for almost a month,
Battle of Kursk in July 1943 when the Soviet but, once the Allies broke out, they were able to
Army destroyed 1500 German tanks. This reach Paris within six weeks. An attempt to
effectively marked the end of German attempts cross the Rhine at Arnhem failed in September
to conquer the Soviet Union. 1944, and so the invasion of Germany did not
take place until the following year.
As we have seen, Stalin did not interfere in the
running of the war as Hitler did. He left military Although the war lasted eleven months after the
matters to his commanders. This gave the Red Allied landings in Normandy, the superiority of
Army an immediate advantage over the the Allies, in men and supplies, was
Germans. The Soviet forces also adopted a overwhelming. By 1945, Germany was on its
policy of scorched earth, destroying everything knees, having been bombed around the clock
as they retreated. This left the German invaders and starved by the Allied blockade. The
isolated without adequate supplies of food. By surrender was signed in northern Germany on 8
1943, there were severe shortages of almost May 1945.
everything in Germany and the Army suffered as
Looking back, it is easy to come to the
well. Hitler also made serious errors in his
conclusion that the defeat of Germany was
treatment of the Ukrainians and Tartars. These
inevitable. By 1944, the Allies had overwhelming
people hated Soviet control and greeted the
strength and resources and, once the D-Day
Germans as liberators. They would have
landings had succeeded, the end was never
supported the Germans against Stalin, but Hitler
really in doubt. This is the view that is given in
treated them as sub-humans and had them sent
many books written in Britain. In fact, the real
to labour camps or simply murdered. The war in
defeat of Germany took place not in Normandy,
the East dragged on until 1945, but in the end
but on the Eastern Front. It was in the Soviet
the enormous manpower advantage of the Red
Union that the German Army had 90 per cent of
Army was simply too much.
its casualties. It was Hitlers invasion of the
In the West, British, US and Canadian forces Soviet Union that was the most important
landed in Normandy on 6 June 1944. The British reason for the final defeat of Nazi Germany.
and Canadians landed on Sword, Juno and Gold
Beaches, the US forces landed at Omaha and
Utah. This D-Day landing was the result of
Germany in 1945
meticulous planning by the Allies. The biggest
Although most factories were working, the
naval fleet ever assembled escorted the invasion
effects of the Allied blockade were
force and bombarded the German defences;
everywhere. Fuel, food and most raw
10,000 aircraft provided air cover. Paratroopers
materials were in very short supply. When
were landed the night before the invasion to
Hitler committed suicide on 30 April, there
knock out enemy positions. Gliders carrying 40
was little will to continue the fight.
soldiers each were towed across to France to

A The D-Day landings in Normandy.
1942. US intelligence was able to break the

Reasons for the defeat of Japan
Japanese military code and intercept its fleet on
the way to Midway. Four Japanese aircraft
Same Japanese commanders believed that the
carriers were sunk. This convinced the Japanese
war was lost when the attack on Pearl Harbor
High Command that the war would be lost.
:ed to destroy the three US aircraft carriers,
News of the losses was never published during
recause air power was to be the key to the
the war.
_3val war in the Pacific. They may well have
:een right and the significance of the failure The war in the Pacific lasted for another three
.as revealed six months later when the years; in the end, US manpower, oil and war
apanese tried to occupy Midway Island in June production made all the difference.

Island-hopping
The US Army developed
the strategy of island-
hopping as it tried to
reoccupy the chain of
islands captured by the
Japanese. Instead of
attempting to invade
every island, they left
some alone, leaving the
Japanese garrison
isolated. Even so, the US
forces suffered appalling
losses.
A A painting of a Japanese aircraft carrier under fire at Midway Island.
However, Japanese forces often refused to However, when the first two Japanese islands -
surrender and fought to the finish on almost Okinawa and Iwo Jima - were attacked, the
every island. On Leyte, in the Philippines, the Japanese defenders cemented themselves into
Japanese garrison of 80,000 fought to the last bunkers in the hillsides and refused to come
soldier. US forces adopted the policy of island- out. Some 28,000 US marines were killed
hopping, leaving Japanese units isolated on capturing the islands.
islands without supplies and selecting targets
carefully.

n South East Asia, the British held up the actions was that the use of atomic bombs
apanese advance in the jungles of Burma. Raids brought the war to an end very quickly. Another
vere sent behind enemy lines to cut the view is that the bombs were not needed
apanese supply routes, but the first real success because the Japanese were about to surrender
:id not come until June 1944, when Allied forces in any case. There is evidence to support both
:egan to recapture the areas occupied by the views. The Japanese government had issued
apanese. In August 1944, Japanese forces were orders that an Allied invasion was to be resisted
:'iven out of India and began to retreat. to the last. But some Allied leaders appeared to
believe that the use of the bomb could have
3y summer 1945, almost all Japanese conquests
been avoided.
n the Pacific had been recaptured and Japanese
ôrces were retreating in South East Asia, but
"iere still remained the prospect of an invasion
of Japan itself. The losses suffered in the
andings on Iwo Jima and Okinawa convinced
the new US President, Harry S. Truman, that an
-.asion of Japan would result in massive Allied
casualties. His chiefs of staff estimated them to
:e as high as 500,000, with the possibility of
~ e war lasting another two years. Truman
redded to use the atomic bomb as a means of The effects of the atomic bomb
ranging the war to an end as soon as possible. When the Americans dropped the atomic
_'_man considered a number of alternative ways bomb on Hiroshima on 6 August 1945, at the
:* using the atomic bomb. One was to drop it very centre of the explosion the heat was so
n an uninhabited island and another was to great that anything caught in it turned from
am the Japanese of its effects and arrange a a solid to a gas. Further out, people were
ramonstration. Both ideas were turned down, burnt alive. The explosion created a wind of
ike first because the Japanese might simply 800 kilometres an hour which crushed many
~ore the bomb and the second because they people. But in many ways the worst damage
~ight have moved Allied prisoners of war into was caused by radiation. It caused flesh to
~ e area. dissolve and hang down in strips. Soldiers in
an anti-aircraft battery were found with their
on 6 and 9 August 1945, atomic bombs
eyes melted.
are dropped on the Japanese cities of
- -Dshima and Nagasaki. Within a week, the
aianese government had surrendered. It is still
ot clear whether the dropping of the bombs
~-:ed the Japanese government to surrender, or
['ether it was about to surrender anyway. What
s certain is that it began a new period in world
How did the Allies prepare for the invasion
Tistory.
of Normandy?
r the summer of 1945, US estimates were that
Why did the US forces adopt the strategy of
ir invasion of Japan would lead to massive island-hopping?
ed casualties and extend the war for perhaps
to o years. In August 1945, the Americans Why did Truman decide to use the atomic
rapped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of bomb in August 1945?
-'D shim a and Nagasaki. One view of these

Ex a m Q u e s t i o n s
Appeasement, Chamberlain and the outbreak of war
| Source A | Source B
We are in no position to enter into a war You only have to look at the map to see that
with such a formidable power as Germany, nothing that France or we could do could
much less if Germany were aided by Italian possibly save Czechoslovakia from being
attacks on our Mediterranean bases. overrun by the Germans if they wanted to do
Therefore, until we have rearmed we must it. The Austrian frontier is practically open;
adjust our foreign policy to our the great Skoda munition works are within
circumstances. I do not myself take too easy bombing distance of the German
pessimistic a view of the situation. The aerodromes, the railways all pass through
dictators (Hitler and Mussolini) are too often German territory. Therefore we could not help
regarded as though they were inhuman. Czechoslovakia, it would simply be an excuse
for going to war with Germany. I have
A From a letter written by Neville Chamberlain to a therefore abandoned any idea of giving
friend in the USA on 16 January 1938. guarantees to Czechoslovakia.
A From Neville Chamberlains diary, 20 March 1938,
Source C Source D
I had established a certain
confidence, which was my
aim. In spite of the
hardness and ruthlessness I
thought I saw in his face, I
got the impression that
here was a man who could
be relied upon when he had
given his word.
A From a letter written by Neville

Chamberlain to his sister after
meeting Hitler at Berchtesgaden
in September 1938.
v;o
A Photograph of Neville Chamberlain who was greeted by cheering

crowds after he had returned from Munich on 30 September 1938.
1 12 Modern World History

Source E
Be Glad in your hearts. Give thanks to your If we must have a victor, let us choose
God. Chamberlain. For the Prime Ministers
conquests are mighty and enduring - miltions
The wings of peace settle about us and the
of happy homes and hearts relieved of their
peoples of Europe. People of Britain your
burden. To him the laurels.
children are safe. Your husbands and your
sons will not march to battle.
A From the Daily Express, 30 September 1938.
Source F
In 1938 Czechoslovakia was the one country ways, notably artillery. In military terms,
ready for war. The Czechoslovak Army of 35 Hitlers aggression was lunacy, as his generals
divisions faced a German Army which was knew. The avoidance of war in 1938 was not
slightly larger, but the Czechs were better only a shameful act, but a foolish one.
equipped than the Germans in a number of
A A comment on Chamberlains policy of appeasement from a modern history book.
Study Source A Study Sources D and E

a What can you learn from Source A about c How useful are these sources in helping
Neville Chamberlains policy towards you to understand the reaction to the
Hitler in early 1938? (4) Munich Agreement in Britain? (8)
Study Sources A, B and C Study all of the sources
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence d The writer of Source F described
of Source A about Chamberlains policy? Chamberlains actions in September 1938
Explain your answer by referring to as shameful and foolish. Use the
both sources. (6) sources and your own knowledge to
explain whether you agree with this
view. (12)

Reasons for early German success
Source A Source B
Our strength lies in our In 1940 the Germans devised a plan to cut off British and
quickness and brutality. I French Armies in northern France. First they invaded Belgium
have given the command and Holland, intending to draw British and French Armies to
and I will shoot everyone help those countries. Then from 12 May, they struck in the
who utters one word of area of Sedan, at the top of the Maginot Line. Fierce strokes
criticism. The aim in war is launched by tanks and Stuka dive-bombers soon cracked a
not to reach a certain point, way through the defences. By using fast-moving Panzer
but of completely destroying divisions the Germans advanced swiftly.
the enemy. I met those poor
worms Daladier and A From a modern history textbook.
Chamberlain in Munich.
They will be too cowardly to
attack. I shall attack France
and England at the most
favourable and earliest
Amsterdam
moment. Breaking the
neutrality of Belgium and
Holland is of no importance.
No one will question what Dover
we have done. Dunkirk
Calais
A From speeches made by Hitler I Antwerp
to his generals in late 1939.
1 4 Bruss
| Source C
Three months before the
collapse, I made a tour of
the French front. When we
reached the ill-fated section
of Sedan, the French
commander had taken us to
the River Meuse and shown
us the wooded banks and
rushing waters. Look at the
German Attack
terrain, he had said to us.
/
French Attack
No German Army can get 0 mites
< British Evacuation - 4 June
through here.
...
Allied position before attack IJ
sd positions - 14 May j
A From the memoirs of a British
politician, written after the
Second World War. A German attacks in 1940.
Modern World History

| Source E
On we went at a steady speed. Every so often a quick glance at the map by a shaded light and
a short wireless message to Divisional Headquarters to report the position and this was the
success of the 25th Panzer division. We were through the Maginot Line! It was hardly believable.
Twenty-two years before we had stood for four and a half years before this self-same enemy.
From a description of the German advance in 1940 written by General Rommel.
A Germans troops advancing in the Ardennes in May 1940.
Study Source A Study all of the sources

a What can you learn from Source A about d The main reason for the defeat of the
Hitlers plans for war? (4) Allies in 1940 was the French belief that
the Maginot Line would stop the German
Study Sources A, B and C
advance. Use the sources and your own
b Does Source C support the evidence of knowledge to explain whether you agree
Sources A and B about Hitlers military with this view. (12)
strategy? Explain your answer referring to
all three of the sources. (6)
Study Sources D and E
c How useful are these sources in helping
you to understand the successes of the
German army in May 1940? (8)

Falls and survivals / Invasion of the Soviet Union
Source A Source B
Conflicting orders started coming in to erect barriers or lay The Germans were vastly
mines or so on. Then another order would cancel this and outnumbered by Soviet
then another order would arrive saying that it had to be done forces. But they had the
at once: I personally received an order from the Chief of Staff priceless advantage of
on the evening of 22 June telling me to withdraw my troops excellent organisation and
from the border. I could sense the nervousness and lack of of surprise. The Soviet
agreement. The troops and the staff were below strength, and master spy Richard Sorge,
they had inadequate communications and transport. They a German newspaper
were not ready for battle. correspondent working in
Tokyo, had warned Stalin
A From the memoirs of the Commander of the Soviet Eighth Army, in April of the German
describing the events of 22 June 1941. plan. But Stalin simply
did not expect the Fhrer
to turn East when he had
| Source C not yet defeated Britain.
The enemy is cruel and implacable. He is out to seize our A From a modem history textbook.
lands, which have been watered by the sweat of our brows,
to seize our grain and oil, which have been obtained by the
labour of our hands. He is out to restore the rule of landlords,
to restore Tsarism, to destroy the national culture and
national existence as states of the Russians, Ukrainians,
Belorussians, Lithuanians, Latvians, Estonians, Uzbeks,
Tartars, Moldavians, Georgians, Armenians, Azerbaijanians and
the other free peoples of the Soviet Union. The enemy wants
to Germanise them and convert them into slaves.
A From the first speech made by Stalin after the German invasion,
made on 3 July 1941.
I Source D
Those Arctic blasts that had taken us by each company to be issued with four heavy
surprise in our protected positions cut fur-lined greatcoats and four pairs of felt-
through our attacking troops. In a couple of lined boots. Four sets of winter clothing for
days there were 100,000 casualties from each company. Sixteen greatcoats and
frostbite alone. A few days later our winter sixteen pairs of winter boots to be shared
clothing arrived. There was just enough for among a battalion of 800 men.
A From the diary of a German soldier in the USSR written in late 1941.

Study Source A
a What can you learn from
Source A about the
reasons for the successes
of the German Army at
the beginning of
Operation Barbarossa? (4)
Study Sources A and B
b Does Source B support
the evidence of Source A
about the reasons for
German successes in
1941? Explain your
answer by referring to
both sources. (6)
A A photograph of Soviet troops in December 1941. Study Sources D and E
c How useful are these
sources in helping you
to understand German
German Advance
successes in 1940? (8)
Countries occupied or
allied with Germany Study all of the sources
Area of Soviet Union
Leningrad taken by Germany d The weather was the
Neutral
countries main reason for the
Furthest extent of
German advances
failure of Operation
Barbarossa in 1941. Use
Moscow the sources and your
own knowledge to
explain whether you
agree with this view. (12)
Smolensk
Stalingrad
POLAND
UKRAINE
CAUCASUS
YUGOSLAVIA
BULGARIA
mmt
A German attacks on the Soviet Union in 1941,

The causes of war in the Pacific
Source A | Source B
If the Japanese government takes any further In the first few months of war it is very likely
steps in pursuance of its policy of military that we would achieve total victory. I am
domination by force or threat of force of convinced that we should take advantage of
neighbouring countries, the government of the this opportunity. We should use the high
United States will be compelled to take morale of the Japanese people and their
immediately any steps which it may consider determination to overcome the crisis facing
necessary to safeguard the security of the our country, even at the risk of losing their
United States. lives. It would be better to attack now than
to sit and wait while the enemy puts more
A From a note sent by the US government to the and more pressure upon us.
Japanese government on 17 August 1941.
A From a speech made at a meeting of the
Japanese government and the Japanese military
commanders on 5 November 1941.
I Source C
I lunched with the President today at his desk in the Oval
Office. We were talking about things far removed from war
when at about 1.40 the Secretary of the Navy Knox called and
said that they had picked up a radio call from Honolulu
advising that an air raid attack was on and that it was no drill.
I said that there must be some mistake. The President thought
the report was probably true and thought it was just the kind
of unexpected thing the Japanese would do.
A From the diary of Harry Hopkins, one of Roosevelts advisers,

7 December 1941.
I Source D
Destroyed or damaged
Battleships 8
Cruisers and other warships 11
Aircraft 188
Casualties dead or missing 3219
wounded 1272
A The damage inflicted by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

W
A A photograph of US warships being attacked at Pearl Harbor.
I Source F
Yesterday, December 7 1941 - a date which peace with that nation and was still in
will live in infamy - the United States of conversation with its government and its
America was suddenly and deliberately Emperor, looking forward to the maintenance
attacked by naval and air forces of the of peace in the Pacific.
Empire of Japan. The United States was at
A From a speech made by President Roosevelt on 8 December 1941.

a What can you learn from Source A about c How useful are Sources D and E as
relations between the USA and Japan in evidence about the effects of the attack
1941? (4) on Pearl Harbor? (8)
b Does the evidence of Source C support d The attack on Pearl Harbor was a failure.
the evidence of Sources A and B? Explain Use the sources and your own knowledge
your answer. (6) to explain whether you agree with
this view. (12)

Reasons for German defeat

Source B
If I know the British, theyll
go to church next Sunday
| Source A one last time and then sail
on Monday. Army group B
says they are not going to
On 24 May the German Air Force reported no sudden
come yet and when they do
concentration of shipping in the ports of Dover, Folkestone
and along the Thames. On 2 June it became obvious that the itll be at Calais. So I think
weather along the Channel was going to worsen. Rommel, that well be welcoming
who had expected an attack in early June, if the reports that them on Tuesday, right here.
Allied training had been taking place during low tide were
true, chose now to go and see Hitler. His wifes birthday was A From a reported conversation
on 6 June, so he could combine business with pleasure. between General Erich Marcks
and another German officer
on 1 June 1944.
A From a modern history textbook referring to events in 1944.
[ Source C
For various reasons, almost all of the senior commanders of the German forces were absent from
their stations during the early morning of 6 June. General Friedrich Dollman,commanding the
German Seventh Army, was on his way to Rennes in Brittany, with mostofthe divisional
commanders. The German High Command had studied earlier Alliedlandings in the
Mediterranean, all of which had taken place in fine, calm weather. TheGermans therefore saw
this period as a respite, during which they could stage exercises.
A From a modern history textbook referring to events in 1944.
I Source D
US Army
Landings
\
British and
Canadian landings
/UTAH
/ I OMAHA
I
'
L60tD L Ju
\
li0/ sw o r d
Carentan
2
Isigny
Arromanches B e rn i re s st Aubin
I
Lion
Bayeux *
^ German 7th Army
Periers General Dollmann Caen
St Ld
A The D-Day landings, 6 June 1944.

Source E
A A photograph of the D-Day landings at Omaha beach in June 1944.
Source F
There was often disagreement between Hitler generals themselves and Hitler preferred to
and his generals, as he was always suspicious keep it that way. Despite Rommels pleas, Hitler
of them. He refused to delegate authority to refused to hand over control of the crack
them and preferred to play off one against the Panzer divisions in Normandy.
other. There was little agreement between the
A From a modern history textbook.

a What can you learn from Source A about c How useful are Sources D and E in
German preparations for D-Day? (4) helping you to understand why the
D-Day landings succeeded? (8)
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence Study all of the sources
of Source A about German preparations d The main reason for the success of the
for D-Day? Explain your answer by D-Day landings was the careful planning
referring to all three sources. (6) of the Allies. Use the sources and your
own knowledge to explain whether you
agree with this view. (12)

Reasons for the defeat of Japan
Source A Source B
The total strength of the Japanese Army was I was a 21-year-old lieutenant leading a rifle
estimated at about 5 million men. The Air platoon. When the bombs dropped and
Force Kamikaze attacks had already inflicted news began to circulate that the invasion of
serious damage on our seagoing forces. Japan would not take place, after all, that we
There was a very strong possibility that the would not be obliged to run up the beaches
Japanese government might decide upon near Tokyo assault-firing while we were
resistance to the end. We estimated that the shelled and mortared, we cried with relief
major fighting would not end until the latter and joy. We were going to live. We were
part of 1946 at the earliest. going to grow up to manhood after all.
A From an article written by Henry Stimson, the US A From an interview with a US Army officer.
Secretary for War in 1945.
I Source C
It was my reaction that the scientists and The use of this barbarous weapon at
others wanted to make this test because of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was of no material
the vast sums that had been spent on the assistance in our war against Japan. The
project. My own feeling was that in being the Japanese were already defeated and were
first to use it we had adopted the ethical ready to surrender because of the effective
standards common to barbarians in the Dark sea blockade and the successful bombing
Ages. I was not taught to make war in that with conventional weapons.
fashion.
A From the memoirs of Admiral William Leahy, the US Chief of Staff in 1945.
Source D
The war situation has developed not to Japans advantage.
Moreover the enemy has begun to employ a new and most
cruel bomb, the power of which to do damage is incalculable,
taking the toll of many innocent lives. We have resolved to
pave the way for a grand peace for all generations.
A From the radio broadcast made by the Emperor of japan

announcing the surrender.

Source E
The Americans dropped atom bombs on the Japanese cities of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki killing hundreds of thousands of
civilians. Officially Washington claimed that the bombings
were aimed at bringing the end of the war nearer and
avoiding unnecessary casualties. But they had entirely
different objectives. Neither strategy nor tactics required the
use of the atom bomb. The purpose of the bombings was to
intimidate other countries, above all the Soviet Union.
A From a history book published in the

Soviet Union in 1984.
Source F
We feared that, if the Japanese were told that the bomb
would be used on a given locality, they might bring our boys
who were prisoners of war to that area. Also if we were to
warn the Japanese and if the bomb then failed to explode, we
would have given aid and comfort to the Japanese military.
A From evidence given to a committee by the US

Secretary of State; the committee was discussing
the possibility of warning the Japanese about the
use of the bomb.

a What can you learn from Source A about the d The writer of Source F believed that there
use of the atom bomb in August 1945? (4) was no alternative to dropping the atom
bomb on a Japanese city. Use the sources
and your own knowledge to explain
b Does the evidence of Source C support whether you agree with this view. (12)
the evidence of Sources A and B? Explain
your answer. (6)
c How useful are Sources D and E as
evidence about the effects of the atomic
bomb? (8)
Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45

CHAPTER 6
Conflict in Vietnam:
0 9 6 3 - 7 5
Essential Information prevent Ho Chi Minh from bringing communist

rule to Vietnam. Despite the US aid, the French
suffered a major defeat at Dien Bien Phu in May
The Vietnam conflict was a humiliating
1954. This persuaded them that the time had
experience for the USA. In the space of twelve
come to withdraw from Vietnam. A peace
years a superpower lost a war against a
conference was held at Geneva to discuss the
developing nation.
future of Vietnam.
Reasons for US involvement in

Vietnam
US involvement in Vietnam goes back to the
end of the Second World War. The Japanese had
occupied Vietnam during the war and when
Japan surrendered to the USA in 1945, it was
decided that the territories of Indo-China (Laos,
Cambodia and Vietnam) would be returned to
the French Empire - which they had been a part
of before the war.
However, many Vietnamese people had no wish
to remain a part of the French Empire and
formed the league for Vietnamese Independence
(Vietminh). The communist leader of the
Vietminh, Ho Chi Minh, declared Vietnams
independence on 2 September 1945. Since the
French wished to keep Vietnam - it was rich in
minerals - fighting broke out. Soon, the French
had about 500,000 soldiers (this number was
made up of French and Vietnamese troops)
involved in the fight against the Vietminh.
However, by 1952, 90,000 soldiers had been
killed, wounded or captured and several
hundred million francs had been spent on the
war.
The French asked the USA for financial help and
President Truman gave almost US$3 billion. This
was the USAs first intervention in Vietnam -
initially the USA had been against the recreation
of the French Empire. However, the USA became
involved because it feared the spread of
communism in the world and, so, was keen to
A Ho Chi Minh in 1950.

So it was in support of the domino theory that,
during the 1950s, US involvement in Vietnam
began to grow. From 1954 to 1961 the USA gave
more than US$i billion to South Vietnam - most
of which went on military spending.
A small team of US military advisers was sent
out in 1954 to help prepare for the 1956
elections in Vietnam, as set out in the Geneva
peace conference. However, in South Vietnam,
the leadership of President Diem became more
and more dictatorial, and increasingly corrupt.
The 1956 election was not held and Diems
corrupt rule meant that socialists, communists,
journalists, trade unionists and religious leaders
were thrown into jail.
Diems actions caused some of the opposition
groups to fight against him and they formed the
National Liberation Front (NLF). Before long, the
A The division of Vietnam. NLF controlled parts of the countryside and, in
some places, the people were happy to support
I At the Geneva peace conference, the following
them because of President Diems corrupt rule.
I >vas decided:
Ho Chi Minh agreed to send military supplies to
Vietnam would be divided in two along the NLF, which promised to:
the 17th parallel. The North would be
re-unite Vietnam;
controlled by the communist regime of Ho
Chi Minh, and the South would be promote economic and land reform;
controlled by Ngo Dinh Diem, an anti represent all classes and religions.
communist Catholic politician.
There would be a General Election in 1956 The Kennedy years
for the whole of Vietnam. (These elections In i960, John F. Kennedy was elected President
never took place.) of the USA. He wanted to be tough on
communism but, at the same time, he did not
I -towever, the USA ignored the Geneva agreement
like to be linked with the corruption of the Diem
I Decause President Eisenhower did not want
regime. Kennedy was a firm believer in the
1 ejections to take place as he was afraid that the
domino theory and convinced many in the USA
I :ommunists would win. He was concerned that
of the need to oppose communism.
' zommunist aggression in Asia must be stopped.
Tne Korean War had just ended and the Kennedy felt he could increase US involvement
:ommunist takeover in China was still fresh in in Vietnam and at the same time put pressure
he minds of many US citizens. on Diem to introduce domestic reforms. By the
time of Kennedys death, there were more than
"he domino theory 16,000 US advisers training the South
"he USA feared that, one by one, each country Vietnamese Army (ARVN). At the same time, the
n Asia would fall to communism, like a row of number of NLF forces (now called Vietcong or VC
dominoes - and that South Vietnam would be by the USA) fighting against South Vietnam had
:he next domino to fall. grown to approximately 16,000.
Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: 0 .1963-75 125

Kennedy introduced strategic hamlets to try to However, the overthrow of Diem did not bring
prevent the Vietcongs influence spreading. The stability to South Vietnam, nor did it bring a
purpose of these hamlets was to move villages defeat of the communists. Johnsons military
away from the VC, then defend the new ones advisers in the USA suggested he ought to send
with barbed wire and ARVN guards. In this way, in combat troops to defeat the Vietcong. It was
US soldiers could control who entered or left suggested that the USA should bomb North
these villages. The strategic hamlets policy was Vietnam, to prevent the VC being supplied, but
a failure. Many South Vietnamese could not Johnson was unsure that he could count on the
understand what was happening and did not support of Congress and the general public if he
like being forced to leave their villages and the took this action. However, the situation changed
land they had farmed for centuries, so they in August 1964 with the Gulf of Tonkin incident.
became resentful in their dealings with the USA.
North Vietnamese gunboats attacked USS
In fact, many of these ordinary people became
Maddox, a surveillance ship, in the Gulf of
members of the Vietcong.
Tonkin. Two days later the Maddox was
At the same time, the position of Diem as leader allegedly attacked again. President Johnson said
of South Vietnam became less secure in 1963. the two attacks were unprovoked. He asked
Diems regime campaigned against the Buddhist Congress to give him authority to take all
religion, so Buddhist monks protested against necessary measures to repel any armed attack
the lack of religious tolerance in the country. against the forces of the US and to prevent
Although South Vietnam was predominantly further aggression.
Buddhist (approximately 70 per cent of the
But Johnson maintained that he did not intend
population), President Diem and his colleagues
to commit US troops to war in Asia. He said:
were Roman Catholic. There followed a series of
Buddhist demonstrations, and, to draw attention We are not about to send Am erican boys
to their campaign, some Buddhists (such as the nine o r ten thousand m iles away from home
monk Quang Due) publicised their discontent by to do what Asian boys ought to be doing for
burning themselves to death. As a result, them selves.
opposition to the corrupt Diem regime
Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution,
intensified across the world. At the height of the
which gave Johnson a blank cheque to increase
Buddhist crisis, President Kennedy imposed a
US involvement in Vietnam.
freeze on loans to South Vietnam and
threatened to withdraw military aid. The standard view of US involvement in Vietnam
is that Presidents Truman, Eisenhower and
President Diems corrupt regime became so
Kennedy saw the role of the USA as part of the
unpopular that he was overthrown by a military
global struggle against communism. The Soviet
coup at the beginning of November 1963. This
Union had secured control of much of Eastern
coup was supported by President Kennedy who
Europe by 1949 and that same year saw the
took no action to protect Diem.
victory of the Communist Party led by Mao
Zedong in China. The Korean War (1950-3)
Lyndon Johnson
seemed to show the western world that
Kennedy was assassinated on 22 November
communism was intent on spreading its
1963. His successor, Lyndon Johnson, also
tentacles ever further. At the same time it also
believed in the domino theory, but he was
indicated that the USA and its allies would
reluctant to pour money into South Vietnam. He
stand firm against the communist threat. After
wanted to create a Great Society in the USA
the Domino Theory was put forward it was plain
(see page 224) but instead found himself facing
to see that the USA feared the spread of
a war on the other side of the world.
communism.

Events within the USA such as the Hiss trial, the The nature of the conflict
::nviction of the Rosenbergs and then
'IcCarthyism were evidence of the feelings that
United States and South Vietnam
ijTtmunism stirred (see Chapter 9). Thus when
On 8 March 1965, 3500 US marines arrived in
t .vas thought that South Vietnam was being
South Vietnam. They were the first combat
eatened by communism, the US felt justified
troops to arrive. Three weeks before their arrival,
- interfering. Hence, there was a gradual build
Operation Rolling Thunder had begun - this
-P of US advisers in South Vietnam through the
was the code name used for the US bombing of
1950s and early 1960s. President Johnson
North Vietnam. The bombing lasted three and a
::mmitted combat troops because US ships
half years, and, by 1967, the US Air Force had
attacked by North Vietnamese patrol boats
dropped more bombs on North Vietnam than
n the Gulf of Tonkin.
the Allies did on Germany in the whole of the
-nother view of US involvement is that the USA Second World War.
.ished to spread their own values and beliefs
The aims of Operation Rolling Thunder were to
across the world - what the Soviet Union called
bomb railways, roads and bases in North
'dollar and cultural imperialism. (In the post-war
Vietnam and also to destroy the Ho Chi Minh
.ears the Soviet Union and China had accused
Trail.
:ie USA of having used the Marshall Plan (see
:age 272) to create its own areas of influence in
The Ho Chi Minh Trail
:ie world.)
The Ho Chi Minh Trail was the supply route from
North Vietnam to the Vietcong in the South (see
map on page 124 for location of the Ho Chi
Minh Trail). By bombing this supply route,
President Johnson hoped to starve the Vietcong
of weapons and equipment and he was
confident that, because the USA had access to
the latest military technology, victory would be
assured. However, victory did not come as
President Johnson hoped. By the end of 1965,
there were about 180,000 US troops in Vietnam
and the Vietcong were still fighting strongly. The
USA therefore needed to adopt new strategies
to defeat the VC.
US tactics
The first change in the US strategy was the
introduction of search and destroy operations.
US troops went deep into the countryside to
flush out the Vietcong. The USA used helicopters
which could land close to Vietcong-controlled
villages. The helicopters were so quick that the
Why did the Americans become involved in USA hoped to give the troops the chance to get
Vietnam? to the villages before the VC had a chance to
arm themselves. But trying to capture the VC
What were the aims of the NLF?
was not easy. The US soldiers found it difficult
Why was President Diem so unpopular in to cope with the climate and conditions - heat,
South Vietnam? mosquitoes, leeches, razor-sharp jungle grasses.
Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: 0.1963-75 12 7

Moreover, it was difficult to know which of the not ensure a clear victory in what was mostly a
Vietnamese people belonged to the Vietcong guerrilla war. The Vietcong and the North
and which were innocent villagers. Vietnamese Army followed the methods of
guerrilla warfare (see box on page 129) that had
The Americans tried to win the hearts and
been so successful for the Chinese communists
minds of the South Vietnamese peasants, who
in their struggle against the Guomindang.
they hoped would help them in their fight
Indeed, the Vietcong developed their own
against the VC. There were special development
methods which the US forces, who were used to
projects whereby medical care was brought to
much more conventional warfare, were not
villages and assistance with farming was also
equipped to deal with.
offered, but these attempts failed to guarantee
the support of the peasants, who resented the
North Vietnam and the war
Americans coming to their country to tell them
The North Vietnamese had no hesitation in
how it should be run.
deciding to support the VC. The USA could not
US military tactics were also unlikely to win the be tackled head on, so guerrilla tactics were
support of the local population. The US adopted. The aim of the VC was not only to
government felt that the way to win the conflict wear down the US forces, but also to win over
was to increase the number of combat soldiers the peasants in South Vietnam. Sometimes the
and to use all available conventional technology. VC terrorised villagers into supporting them.
The Vietcong hid in the jungle and, in order to
Vietcong tactics
destroy the jungle hideouts of the Vietcong, the
The VC was supplied by the North Vietnamese,
US Air Force dropped chemicals to defoliate
via the Ho Chi Minh Trail from North Vietnam,
trees. The most infamous of these chemicals
but also used weapons captured from ARVN and
was Agent Orange (42 million litres were
US troops. Other communist countries, like the
dropped on Vietnam), which destroyed hundreds
USSR and China, gave at least 6000 tonnes of
of thousands of hectares of land. Agent Blue
supplies per day to North Vietnam to fight the
was sprayed on crops to prevent the VC from
USA. Much of this material was passed down
growing food. Neither of these agents deterred
the Ho Chi Minh Trail to the VC. The VC forces
the VC. As well as saturation bombing, the USA
became experts at making booby traps - using
used incendiary weapons - especially napalm.
mines, mantraps, trip wires with punji sticks,
Napalm contained petrol, chemicals and
and pits with sharpened bamboo canes. These
phosphorous, and when it came into contact
created constant fear in the US soldiers minds,
with human skin it could burn straight through
which meant that the soldiers could never relax.
to the bone. Again, the use of napalm made
The VC built thousands of kilometres of tunnels
little difference to the way the war was being
to avoid capture - often US soldiers were killed
fought.
by booby traps when they pursued the VC
In 1966 Robert Macnamara, US Secretary of underground. Some of the tunnels even passed
Defence, said that people could see one of the beneath US military bases. This shows how
worlds superpowers fighting a backward nation skilled the Vietcong were at guerrilla warfare.
on television. The USA thought that its wealth
The North Vietnamese also built elaborate
and power would be enough to bring immediate
underground shelters to avoid the US air raids
victory. In fact US tactics and strategy seemed to
and to minimise casualties. However, the
lack coherence and clear planning, and the war
bombing campaigns resulted in the deaths of
was fought to some degree in conventional
approximately 100,000 North Vietnamese
ways. Saturation bombing did not achieve the
civilians. But the deaths seem to have made the
results the USA had hoped, neither did the
North more determined to resist the USA.
chemical assault on the Vietnamese jungle. Most
importantly the huge number of US soldiers did

Dong Hoi
NORTH VIETNAM
Khe Sanh
0 Quang Tri
Lang Vei o Hu
Savannakhet
Kham Due
Ho Chi Minh Trail
q Locations of major
Tet Offensives Dak To
Kontum
Pleiku
CAMBODIA
SOUTH
VIETNAM
Ban Me
Thout
Phnom Penh
A The map shows what happened during the Tet Offensive.
In addition to guerrilla tactics, the Vietcong

Guerrilla warfare made conventional attacks on the US forces. In
The VC fought using guerrilla tactics and the Tet Offensive at the beginning of January
used the jungle to their advantage. They 1968, almost 60,000 Vietcong troops drove deep
made booby traps, carried out ambushes into South Vietnam. More than 100 cities and US
and sabotaged US property. Following military sites were attacked. They even reached
attacks, the VC would simply disappear the US Embassy in Saigon and blew a hole in
back into the jungle. As most of the local its wall. The VC occupied it for six hours and US
population supported the VC, they were troops had to recapture it room by room. The
easily absorbed back into village life. This VC attack was eventually repulsed with heavy
made it almost impossible for soldiers to losses, so the US military saw it as a victory for
find the culprits. them, but it had a major impact on feelings in
the USA to see their embassy under attack.
Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: 0.1963-75 129

A A Vietcong poster showing how the communist forces used guerrilla tactics to fight the US forces.
After the Tet Offensive, President Johnson The USA would equip and train the South
realised how little headway had been made Vietnamese army and then US troops could
against Vietnam. The war of attrition had failed gradually withdraw.
to stop guerrilla activities. US casualties had
Nixon also started peace talks to discuss ways
risen from 1130 in 1965 to 12,588 in 1968. When
of ending the conflict in Vietnam. During the
General Westmoreland requested another
peace talks, US bombing of Vietcong bases in
200,000 troops, Johnson sent only 30,000. He
North Vietnam increased.
began to seek an end to the war: talks about
peace talks were started. In May 1968,
preliminary peace talks began in Paris.
Vietnamisation
In 1968, Republican Richard Nixon was elected US popular opinion had turned against the
President. The USA now had more than half a war so Nixon needed to end US involvement
million troops in Vietnam. The war was costing in Vietnam. But, for many years, US
US$500 million and 300 US casualties every governments had told its people that the
week. But victory seemed no nearer. Nixon war was in its interests. In order to withdraw
promised to reduce the number of US troops in without admitting defeat, Nixon introduced a
Vietnam and Vietnamise the war. This policy of policy called Vietnamisation. This meant
Vietnamisation aimed to ensure the South that the Americans would let the South
Vietnamese Army could fight the war on its own. Vietnamese be responsible for their own war.

-_e new President, Nixon, began his policy of The impact of the war on the peoples
ietnamisation, encouraging the South of Vietnam and the USA during the
nietnamese to defend themselves. Nixon also
p v e orders for the neighbouring countries of
1960s and 1970s
-33S and Cambodia to be bombed. He wanted The Vietnam War became the most important
:: destroy the VC bases there. US troops were issue in US life in the late 1960s and early
sent into those countries the following year. The 1970s. It was the main focus of the 1968 and
::eration failed. 1972 elections, and even seemed to dominate
over the civil rights movement and the space
_S students were against this widening of the
programme in the public consciousness.
a r but polls showed that just over 50 per cent
:* the US people supported Nixon. Nixon had
The US soldiers
:een true to his election promise - he had
US soldiers were drafted (conscripted) into the
rverseen the withdrawal of US troops. In the
army and their average tour of duty was one
tre e years after 1969, about 400,000 soldiers
year. The average age of a US Army Private
rtjrned home. By the end of 1971 there were
(commonly called a Gl) was 19 and he was
irDut 140,000 US troops left in Vietnam.
most likely to be working class. There was a
pxon was keen to achieve a settlement before disproportionate number of African-American
~e 1972 Presidential Election and his National soldiers - they made up one-fifth of the
Security Adviser, Henry Kissinger, announced that soldiers yet they were only one-tenth of the
tteace is at hand in October. Though at first it population. By 1968, 535,000 US troops were in
was rejected by President Thieu of South South Vietnam. In May 1968, 562 US soldiers
.ietnam, who felt he was being betrayed by the died in just one week of the war. About 15,000
_SA, the Paris Peace Agreement ending the war soldiers in total were killed in 1968. These
was eventually signed on 27 January 1973. deaths caused more and more people in the
South Vietnam finally signed because the USA USA to protest against the war.
:romised it US$i billion of military equipment,
As the war progressed, enthusiasm for it
urnich would enable the South to defend itself
waned. Many young men became draft
against the North. In addition, it was agreed
dodgers, refusing to join when called up to
:ia t the USA would withdraw and elections
fight. They often fled to Canada or were
would be held in the South to choose a new
imprisoned. At the same time, many soldiers in
government.
Vietnam could not understand what they were
fighting for and, when victory did not come
quickly, frustration set in. Many also turned to
drugs. In 1970, it was estimated that 58 per
cent of US soldiers smoked marijuana and 22
per cent used heroin. In 1971, 5000 soldiers
needed treatment for wounds sustained in
combat, yet more than 20,000 were treated for
serious drug abuse.
Some officers were killed by their own soldiers
because the soldiers felt their lives had been
Which tactics did the US military use to try risked on pointless missions. These officers
to combat the Vietcong? were shot in the back or were fragged (had a
fragmentation grenade thrown in their tent).
Which tactics did the Vietcong use?
Between 1969 and 1971, 83 officers were killed
What was Vietnamisation? by fraggings and 730 fragging incidents were
reported. More than 500,000 US soldiers

deserted in the period 1960-73 at a time when
about 10 million men were drafted. My Lai
My Lai was a South Vietnamese village
The US public suspected of housing Vietcong troops. US
Protests against the war began in 1964 but the forces led by Lieutenant William Calley
vast majority of the population in the USA, and entered the village on 16 March 1968. They
importantly Congress, was still in favour of the found no suspects. On Calleys orders, the
war. However, opposition to the war grew. There US soldiers killed 347 unarmed civilians. Old
were those critics who were opposed to men, children and babies were shot and the
spending US$25 billion a year on the war, when women were raped and shot.
the money could be used to finance Johnsons
Great Society policy. Those who opposed the
war were called doves and those who favoured
continuing the war were called hawks.
Student protest
When newspaper and television reporters went Students continued to be at the forefront of
to cover the war in 1965, the US public was protest, with widespread trouble and
able to watch the action from their living rooms. demonstrations at universities across the USA
Seeing the pictures of the war on television throughout the war. Protests intensified as
shocked many Americans and, by 1967, there changes in the draft system made students who
were protests against the war across the USA. In had previously been exempt subject to military
April 1967, massive anti-war parades were held service. Many burnt their draft cards or fled
in major cities and, in October of that year, abroad to avoid the draft. When student
200,000 people marched on the Pentagon. demonstrations seemed to be growing out of
control, the police were called - in 1968-9 aboL:
Martin Luther King opposed the war, raising the
4000 students were arrested. The public were
issue of the disproportionate number of African-
horrified when four students were shot dead by
American casualties. Many civil rights leaders felt
the National Guard on 5 May 1970 at Kent State
that money being used to fight the war could
University in Ohio - some of the dead were
have been better employed improving the
demonstrators, but some were merely moving
welfare system in the USA. When US taxes went
between classes. So, the war continued to
up in 1967, so did US taxpayers hostility to the
create division within the country.
war. Public opinion had begun to change.
Many historians now consider that the Tet
Offensive was the turning point in changing US
public opinion against involvement in Vietnam.
Within weeks, President Johnsons approval
rating fell from 48 per cent to 36 per cent. The
Tet Offensive was shown on television and
scenes of the US Embassy being attacked led
many Americans to think the war was being lost.
When news of the My Lai Massacre emerged in
1969, public opinion hardened against the war
even further.
Why did the Americans lose the war in

Vietnam?

A A civilian in Hanoi in an air-raid shelter.
The peoples of Vietnam

bombs were dropped, and millions of litres of
The peoples of North Vietnam were bombed,
defoliants and other chemicals were sprayed on
shelled and attacked with chemicals. Places
the jungle and farming land. Today, large
such as Hanoi and Haiphong endured some of
numbers of children have birth defects as a
the heaviest air raids in history. Conscription
result of the chemicals from these raids entering
was introduced here also and soldiers were sent
the water supply and the food chain. Land
to South Vietnam to assist the Vietcong.
mines planted in the war continue to kill and
In the South, the people were faced with the maim.
arrival of several hundred thousand US soldiers,
About 5.4 million acres of Vietnams forests were
the ARVN, and the rival Vietcong and North
destroyed during the war. Because so much
Vietnamese forces. Often the people were
farmland was damaged by chemicals, rice crops
terrorised by both sides. Villages were destroyed
were badly affected. As a result Vietnam, which
by both US and Vietcong forces - but frequently
had once been a major producer of rice, had to
US soldiers destroyed villages because they
import food to prevent its people from starving.
were unsure of the loyalty of the peasants. US
troops could not tell who was VC and who was
The reunification of Vietnam
not, and they took no chances.
After the Paris Peace Agreement in 1973, it
It is difficult to estimate the impact of the war seemed as if South Vietnam would be able to
on Vietnam. More than 8 million tonnes of resist the Vietcong and the forces of the North.
Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: c. 1963 -7 5 133

There were more than 1 million men in the There is no doubt that the war had a profound
South Vietnamese Army and it controlled the impact on the peoples of Vietnam - the
bulk of the people and territory. statistics indicate this (see below). The final
bombing raids on Hanoi and Haiphong over
However, corruption in the South and rapidly
Christmas 1972 had been the heaviest ever
dwindling morale enabled the Vietcong and
unleashed in a war. The New York Times said
North Vietnamese to defeat the forces of the
Nixon had reverted to Stone Age barbarism.
South. In 1976, Vietnam was reunited.
Recent figures now seem to show that there
One view of the impact of the war on civilians were not as many North Vietnamese civilians
in the USA is that the majority of people soon killed in the raids as first thought. Most fled the
opposed US involvement in the war. However, it two cities or used the extensive underground
was not until 1969 that more than 50 per cent network of tunnels to avoid the air raids.
of US civilians declared their opposition to US
involvement. Within the US there were those -
especially students - who opposed the war and
demonstrations were held on university The consequences of the war
campuses all over the country. President Nixon
tried to mobilise sections of the population Vietnam
against the demonstrators - he used the phrase Altogether about 2.5 million Vietnamese soldiers
silent majority to describe these people. For and civilians were killed and approximately 1.5
President Nixon, this group comprised the million wounded, out of a population of 32
middle classes, those who believed in hard million. The USA lost 58,000 soldiers and, in
work, law and order, love of ones country and addition, 75,000 men were left severely
material progress. After the shootings at Kent disabled. Many veterans also found it hard to
State University in 1970, President Nixon called get jobs and some suffered recurring nightmares
the demonstrators bums. about their time in Vietnam.
There is no doubt that the war did divide
society in the USA and eventually, in 1968,
Congress voted against spending huge sums of
money on the war effort. President Johnson was Numbers of soldiers killed during
unable to continue his construction of his Great the Vietnam War
Society and the mid 1960s saw race riots in
58.000 US soldiers
many US cities. The war had come at an
awkward time in US history. US public opinion 137.000 South Vietnamese sotdiers
was so against the Vietnam War that it had
approx. 700,000 North Vietnamese soldiers
seriously damaged Johnsons reputation. He did
not stand for re-election in the 1968 approx. 1 million Vietcong
Presedential Election.

Refugees One view historians have of the consequences
After reunification, Vietnam followed communist of the Vietnam War is that the USA did not wish
economic policies but they were unable to feed to become involved in international disputes in
a growing population. Many people of the South the future. President Nixon followed a policy of
-vere unwilling to stay in the newly reunited dtente with the Soviet Union and China. Nixon
country and the phenomenon of the boat visited both countries and his visit to China
people occurred. People simply fled in any kind ended 25 years of hostility. His visit to the
of vessel possible - more than 1 million did so Soviet Union in 1972 was the first made by a US
in the years between 1975 and 1990. It has President since Roosevelt in 1945. The visit to
been estimated that well over 2 million people the Soviet Union saw agreements on trade and
'led South Vietnam after the communist technological exchange. The improved relations
takeover. These refugees fled to countries such hastened the signing of the Strategic Arms
as Hong Kong, Malaysia and Thailand. Some Limitations Treaty in 1972, which aimed to limit
countries, such as Malaysia, were not able to the number of missiles each side had.
accommodate these people and forced the
The conflict in the Gulf in 1991 saw President
boats to turn back. Many of the boats were
Bush speak of ending the Vietnam syndrome
attacked by pirates and some just sank. It is
once and for all. After the end of the war and
estimated that about 50,000 boat people
when Vietnam was re-united, the idea of the
drowned trying to escape Vietnam. However,
Domino Theory was put to the test. Unlike the
some people did make it. Some refugees settled
USA had feared, there was no complete collapse
in Britain and many made it to the USA.
of South-East Asia to communism, and Vietnam
About 50,000 American-Asian children were born even found itself at war with China. Vietnam had
to Vietnamese women. These were the children no wish to be a satellite state of China and
of GIs who served in Vietnam, and most were fought once again to expel outside interference.
treated as outcasts by the Vietnamese people.
Many have now gone to live in the USA.
The USA
The USA was certainly weakened by the Vietnam
War. At home, it prevented President Johnson
building his Great Society. This was his
programme of domestic policies for improving
education, healthcare, and air and water quality;
for promoting voting rights and preventing crime
and delinquency. Abroad, the world saw a
superpower humbled by a developing nation. As
a result of the defeat suffered by the USA, it
became unwilling to involve itself in any
international conflict.
Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: 0.1963-75

135
I
Reasons for US involvement in Vietnam
Source A | Source B
President Kennedy saw Vietnam as President Eisenhower had - If we quit Vietnam, tomorrow
part of the fight against communism. Kennedy wanted to help well be fighting in Hawaii
the South Vietnamese army with US technology. He also and next week well have to
wanted to give economic aid to South Vietnam. fight in San Francisco.
A From an American textbook A From a speech made by

published in 1991. President Johnson in 1964.
A A photograph of a Buddhist monk who had set fire to himself.

The photograph was taken in 1963.

Source D | Source E
We seek an independent, non-communist I have dedicated my life to serving the
South Vietnam. We do not require South revolution and I am proud to see the growth
Vietnam to serve as a western base or of international communism. My ultimate
become a member of the western alliance. wish is that the Communist Party and my
South Vietnam must be free to accept outside people will stay together for the building of a
assistance in order to maintain its security. peaceful, united and independent Vietnam.
A From a report written in 1964, by Robert A An excerpt from Ho Chi Minhs will,
McNamara, the US Secretary of Defence. read in May 1969.
Source F
Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we
shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship,
support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and
success of liberty.
A From President Kennedys inaugural speech in 1961.

a What can you learn from Source A about d The USA sent combat troops to Vietnam
why the USA became involved in solely to protect its advisers and the
Vietnam? (4) South Vietnamese government from
attacks by Vietcong and North Vietnam
forces. Use the sources and your own
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence knowledge to explain whether you agree
of Source A about US involvement in with this view. (12)
Vietnam? Explain your answer. (6)
you to understand the reasons for US
involvement in Vietnam? (8)
Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: 0 .19 63-75

The nature of the conflict
| Source A
It was explained to us that anything alive in turkey shoot - men, women and children, no
that area was supposed to be dead. We were matter what their ages, all went into the
told that if we saw a gook (slang for body count. This was a regular search and
Vietnamese person) or thought we saw one, destroy mission in which we destroyed
no matter how big or small, shoot first. No everything we found.
need for permission to fire. It was just a
A Sergeant James Weeks, a US soldier fighting in Vietnam, describes the orders he was given in 1967.
Source B
A A photograph of dead civilians, massacred at My Lai by US soldiers in 1968.
Source C
We didnt look at the Vietnamese as human species. We used terms like gooks and
beings. They were sub-human. To kill them zipperheads and we had to kill different
would be easy for you. If you continued this insects every day and they would say,
process you didnt have any bad feelings Theres a gook, step on it and squash it.
about it because they were a sub-human
A A US marine speaking about his training in the 1960s.

Source D Source E
A question posed to the Americans
surveyed was:
In view of the developments since we
entered the fighting in Vietnam, do you
think the United States made a mistake
sending troops to fight in Vietnam?
The results were:
Yes 52%
No 39%
No opinion 9%
A An opinion poll conducted by

Gallup in January 1969.
| Source F
WE W ILL FIG H T AND FIGH T FROM
The Vietcong adopted the military tactics of THIS G E N E R A T IO N TO THE N E X T
Mao Zedong, the Chinese Communist leader.
Mao said, The enemy advances, we retreat,
the enemy camps, we harass, the enemy tires, A A North Vietnamese woodcut from the 1960s.
we attack, the enemy retreats, we pursue.
A A description of Vietcong military tactics, from a

British school textbook published in 1996.

a What can you learn from Source A about d The USA lost the war because American
US methods of warfare in Vietnam? (4) public opinion forced the politicians to
withdraw from South Vietnam. Use the
sources and your own knowledge to explain
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence whether you agree with this view. (12)
of Source A? Explain your answer. (6)
c How useful are these sources as evidence
of American and Vietcong attitudes to the
war? (8)

t
The impact of the war on the peoples of

Vietnam and the USA during the 1960s and 1970s
I Source A
1965
First US troops
in Vietnam
1973
Ceasefire
signed
1969
First withdrawal
of US troops
1968
Tet Offensive
10 -
1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973
A A graph showing the US publics opposition to the Vietnam War,

1965-73. It is taken from a high school textbook published in the USA.
Source B
In 1967, tens of thousands
of Americans protested
across America.
Congressmen put more
pressure on President
Johnson. The churches and
black civil rights leader
Martin Luther King led the
opposition. Black Americans
resented the high number of
in Vie t n am
black casualties in the war.
A From a study of the Vietnam

conflict by a British historian,
written in 1998. *
A Pro-war demonstrators in Florida in 1967.

Source D
We huddled the villagers up. We made them squat down. I
fired about four clips-worth of bullets into the group ... The
mothers were hugging their children. Well, we kept on firing.
Paul Meadlo, a soldier at My Lai in 1968, giving evidence at the

trial of Lieutenant William Calley.
Source E Source F
Officer: When you go into My Lai you assume the worst ... By 1971, the morale of the
you assume theyre all VC. American army had
plummeted. In that year,
Soldier: But sir, the law says killing civilians is wrong. Were
President Nixon warned the
taught that, even by the army.
new graduates of the West
Officer: Of course killing civilians is wrong. But these so-called Point Military Academy that
civilians are killers. Female warriors out in the rice they would be leading
fields spying. troops guilty of drug abuse
Soldier: But how do you know that this peasant or that and insubordination.
peasant is VC? They look alike ...
War written in 1998 by a
A From If I Die in a Combat Zone, by Tim OBrien. OBrien was British historian.
an American soldier who served two years in Vietnam and
won seven medals.

a What can you learn from Source A d The US government withdrew from the
about opposition to the Vietnam War in war because it could not rely on its
America? (4) soldiers. Use the sources and your own
knowledge to explain whether you agree
with this view. (12)
b Do Sources B and C support the
evidence of Source A? Explain your
answer. (6)
you to understand why some Americans
opposed involvement in the war? (8)
Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: 0 .19 6 3-/5

Reasons for the US defeat
| Source B
On the evening of 31
January 1968, about 70,000
Vietcong troops launched
surprise attacks on more
than 100 cities and towns in
Vietnam. The boldest stroke
was an attack on the US
embassy in Saigon.

War written in 1992 by a
British historian.
| Source C
If we spread out too thin
and our soldiers moved out
of the village we pacified,
the Vietcong came right
back in again. The guy who
might have been your cook
during the day, that night
he put on his black pyjamas
and took out his AK47 from
under his mattress and
went out to your camp to
shoot at you.
A From an interview in 1980

with Dan Pitzer, an American
soldier who was a prisoner of
A A Vietcong patrol in South Vietnam in 1966. the Vietcong for four years.
I Source D
The US can go on increasing aid to South to struggle. It is impossible for westerners to
Vietnam. It can increase its own army. But it understand the force of the peoples will to
will do no good. I hate to see the war go on resist and to continue.
and intensify. Yet our people are determined
A Pham Van Dong, a leading North Vietnamese politician, speaking in 1964.

| Source E
In sending US troops to South Vietnam, the US invaders and
land grabbers have met a peoples war. The peoples war has
succeeded in gathering all the people to fight their attackers
in all ways and with all kinds of weapons.
A Vo Nguyen Giap, a North Vietnamese Army general speaking in 1967.
I Source F
A South Vietnams police chief executing a member of

the Vietcong in the Tet Offensive in 1968.

a What can you learn from Source A about c How useful are Sources D and E as
Vietcong methods of warfare in South evidence of growing support for the
Vietnam? (4) Vietcong and North Vietnam in the late
1960s? (8)
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence Study all of the sources
of Source A about Vietcong methods of d The Vietcong and North Vietnamese
warfare? Explain your answer. (6) forces were successful because they used
guerrilla tactics. Use the sources and
your own knowledge to explain whether
you agree with this view. (12)

The reunification of Vietnam
Source A
In October 1972, peace talks re-opened in Paris. For the first
time in nearly ten years of war, peace seemed within reach.
The US offered concessions - the Vietcong would play a part
in the final negotiations. With the 1972 presidential election
approaching, the White House was eager to reach a firm
agreement of peace.
A From an American history textbook written in 1990.
Source B
When we read the drafts of the agreement - what we were
prepared to give as concessions to the North Vietnamese - it
was clear that there was no way the government of South
Vietnam was going to be able to withstand Vietcong
infiltration and propaganda before the election. Once I saw
the concessions, I knew that we were prepared to sell South
Vietnam down the river.
A Edward Brady, a US intelligence adviser, who was present at the

Paris Peace talks, speaking in 1978.
Source C
Rather than explore the differences that existed between the
US and North Vietnam, President Nixon gave the signal for a
new operation - Linebacker Two. Starting on 18 December
1972, B-52 bombers and other aircraft flew nearly 3000
missions over Hanoi and Haiphong. They dropped 40,000
tons of bombs in eleven days.
A From a book about the Vietnam conflict written in 1983 by an

American journalist.

I Source D
In 1973, President Nixon secretly promised to intervene, if
need be, to protect South Vietnam. Is an Americans word
reliable these days?
A President Thieu of South Vietnam, in his resignation

speech of April 1975.
Source E
It was clear that the South Vietnamese forces company of troops had been hit hard by a
were spread pretty thin in the Central North Vietnamese regiment. The South
Highlands. The South Vietnamese complained Vietnamese forces had not been properly
of a lack of hand grenades and ammunition. equipped to defend the camp.
They were not operating aggressively ... One
A From an interview in 1980 with K. Moorefield, special adviser to the US Ambassador

to South Vietnam in 1975.
Source F
The army of South Vietnam was beginning to fall apart and
morale was very poor. An American investigation in the summer
of 1974 reported that 90 per cent of the South Vietnamese
troops were not being paid enough to support their families.
Corrupt government officials were stealing the soldiers pay.
A From a British history textbook about Vietnam written in 1997.

a What can you learn from Source A about d Vietnam was reunited because the USA
the Paris Peace talks? (4) had given too many concessions to the
North Vietnamese at Paris. Use the sources
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence whether you agree with this view. (12)
of Source A? (6)
c How useful are these sources for
understanding the military problems
faced by South Vietnam after 1973? (8)

Consequences for the USA of its failure in Vietnam
Source A
On returning home, American soldiers did not expect to be
treated as crim inals or child murderers as they som etim es
were. Many veterans found it difficult to get jobs or get their
own jobs back. More American veterans have committed
suicide since the war than were killed in the war itself. They
felt betrayed by a country which was embarrassed by them.
A From a British history textbook about Vietnam written in 1995.
| Source C
How do you feel about
killing all of those innocent
people? The woman asked
me. I didnt know what to
say. The bartender got a
little uptight.
Excuse me, I called the
bartender over. Could I bu\
these people a drink? I felt
guilty. I did kill. I tried to
make up for it somehow. A
We dont accept any
drinks from killers, the girl
said to me.
A A former soldier describing his

return to the USA. He was in
an airport bar, speaking to
people of his own age (19).
A Photograph of the Vietnam War Memorial Wall in Washington DC.

The wall was paid for by subscriptions from Vietnam veterans.

Source D
He called it the madman theory. He said: I want the North
Vietnamese to believe Ive reached the point where I might do
anything to stop the war. Well just slip them the word that
Im obsessed about communism. Tell them that I cant be
restrained and that Ive got my hand on the nuclear button. If
we do that Ho Chi Minh himself will be in Paris in two days
begging for peace.
A From The Ends of Power by H. R. (Bob) Haldeman, 1978, one of

President Nixons closest advisers during the Vietnam War. Haldeman
is explaining Nixons decision to extend the bombing campaign.
Source F
The USA was certainly
weakened by the Vietnam
War. At home, it prevented
President Johnson building
his Great Society. But more
Source E importantly, the USA
became unwilling to involve
However we got into Vietnam, whatever the judgement of our itself in any international
actions, ending the war honourably was essential for the conflict until the Gulf War in
peace of the world. We could not simply walk away from an 1991. When the Gulf War
enterprise as if we were switching a TV channel. As the leader was over, Bush said: By
of democratic alliances we had to remember that scores of God, weve kicked the
countries and millions of people relied for their security on Vietnam syndrome once
the US willingness to stand by allies. and for all.
A Henry Kissinger, National Security Adviser, speaking after A From a British history
the end of the Vietnam War. textbook written in 1998.

a What can you learn from Source A about d Source F suggests that the most
the impact of the war on US soldiers? (4) important effect of the war on the USA
was its unwillingness to become involved
in world conflicts. Use the sources and
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence your own knowledge to say whether you
of Source A? Explain your answer. (6) agree that this was the most important
Study Sources D and E effect of the war on the USA. (12)
c How useful are these sources in helping us
to understand US policies in Vietnam? (8)
Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: 0.1963-75 14 7

CHAPTER 7
The end of apartheid in

South Africa: 1982-94
Essential Information
The National Party and the nature of The National Party governed South Africa for
more than 40 years from 1948. During those
its rule
years, white South Africans were always
The National Party was set up in South Africa in outnumbered at least four times by black South
1914 to protect the rights and interests of the Africans. One view of this situation is that the
Afrikaners. When Afrikaner Jan Hertzog became South African government used force to maintain
Prime Minister in 1924, he made Afrikaans - the its grip on power. Another view is that many
language spoken by Afrikaners - an official members of the South African armed forces and
language. Hertzog also prevented non-whites police were black South Africans who were used
from doing skilled jobs in mines. by the white people to maintain their position
of power.
In 1918, a secret society called the Broederbond
(brotherhood) was set up to protect Afrikaners.
By 1930, the Broederbond, which was totally The system of apartheid, and its
committed to maintaining white supremacy in economic and social consequences
South Africa, became the most powerful
Apartheid means apartness - the belief of the
organisation in the country.
National Party that the different ethnic groups in
In 1948, the National Party, led by Daniel Malan, South Africa should be kept apart. The system
won the General Election. The National Party was already partly in existence when the
won by using the slogan Swart Gewaar (which National Party took power in 1948. But, in the
means Black Peril) to play on white peoples years after 1948, apartheid was extended,
fears of domination by black Africans. Malan meaning that some aspects also applied to
became Prime Minister and appointed a cabinet Asians and coloured (mixed race) people. Malan
that was made up entirely of Afrikaners. All and his successors, Hendrik Verwoerd in 1958,
cabinet meetings were now conducted in and John Vorster in 1966, ruthlessly enforced the
Afrikaans. The new government immediately new system.
began to develop the system of apartheid.
The National Party argued that apartheid meant
separate development - the idea that black
Who are the Afrikaners? people, white people and coloureds should live
Descendants of Dutch, German and their lives apart, and that each group should
Huguenot seventeenth-century settlers. develop in its own way. But apart came to
Previously known as Boers from the mean control by the white people.
Dutch for farmer.
Acts relating to apartheid
Moved north on the Great Trek (1836-7) The central feature of apartheid was the
to form Transvaal and Orange Free State. Population Registration Act of 1950. All people
Fought the Boer War against the British had to be classified into one of three categories:
from 1899 to 1902. white, native or coloured. Natives were Africans
and coloured people were of mixed race.

"ne next major change was the Group Areas Act, also instructed that white people were superior
which divided South Africa into areas for white in every way. This was designed to prevent
z 'd non-white people. Those who lived in the black children acquiring skilled jobs or
Wrong area were forced to move, even if they developing careers. It was intended to keep
*ad been living there for many years. This Act black people in their place.
.as extended by the Promotion of Bantu Self-
In 1952, the Pass Laws were extended. These
government Act in 1959. This set up Bantustans,
had originally been set up in 1910 to stop the
w self-governing homelands for black people.
free movement of black Africans. All black men
-:wever, the white South African government
aged 16 or over (and later, women) now had to
:: uld overrule any decision taken by a
carry a pass book. The pass book had 96 pages
isntustan government. The South African
and contained the owners photograph, address,
government tried to maintain that the
job, fingerprint impressions and other details.
-omelands were independent countries for black
Black people needed permission to be out after
oeople within South Africa. They were not
9 p.m. and to be in white areas. Permission
-ecognised by any foreign governments.
would be shown by stamps in the pass book.
1953 the Bantu Education Act stated that The police continually stopped black people and
oiack children were to be educated differently demanded to see their pass books.
70m those of white parents. They received only
From 1956, only white people were allowed to
a minimal level of education and were not
vote in elections. Asians had lost the vote in
taught either English or Afrikaans. They were
1948, but 48,000 coloured people retained it
until this time. Before 1956, they could vote for
four MPs, who were always white. After 1956,
South Africa was completely controlled by white
people.
Further measures extended the reaches of
apartheid. Mixed marriages were banned, as was
sexual intercourse between white and non-white
people. Previously, sex had only been banned
between white people and black people. Now
the ban was extended to include coloured South
Africans as well.
The Motor Transport Act ruled that apartheid
should be applied on public transport, on
beaches and in restaurants. Shops and all
public places were segregated. Increasingly,
black Africans were forced to live in townships
on the edge of South African cities. The most
famous was the South West Township of
Johannesburg, known as Soweto. Here a million
black people were crammed together, travelling
to work in Johannesburg every day.
Concentrating such large numbers of black
people into such small areas made the
townships difficult to control. They also became
rich recruiting grounds for anti-apartheid groups
like the African National Congress (ANC) and the
A All black people had to carry a pass book. Pan African Congress (PAC).
Chapter 7 The end o f apartheid in South Africa: 1982- 94 149

The power of the police remarkable achievement for a party that
It was one thing to pass apartheid laws, but represented only 12 per cent of the population.
quite another to enforce them, so the National The National Partys hold on power increasingly
Party increased police powers. came to rely on two factors. One was the
limitations on the right to vote, which was
From 1965, the police could detain for up to 180
restricted to white South Africans. The other was
days without charge anyone suspected of
the National Partys increasing use of violence,
breaking the apartheid laws. So, opponents of
which led to the declaration of states of
apartheid could be imprisoned without trial.
emergency.
Rumours of the use of torture during
imprisonment became widespread. By the late 1970s, the economic consequences
of apartheid were becoming increasingly
There were some other changes, too.
obvious. The cost of maintaining a police state
To back up the uniformed police, a secret was rising out of control. This, combined with
police force, called the Bureau of State the effects of trade boycotts (see page 153) and
Security (BOSS), was set up. world isolation, was hitting the South African
economy very hard.
In 1972, the State Security Council was set
up, which led to much greater influence The education policy followed by the National
for the military forces and the secret Party was producing large numbers of poorly
police. educated workers, who spoke little or no
In the 1980s, the Civil Co-operation Bureau English or Afrikaans. This was based on the
(CCB) was set up. This carried out acts of traditional work pattern - that black people
sabotage and murder, including the were agricultural labourers and miners. An
assassination oftheANCs Paris represen education was not required to be able to do
tative, Dulcie September, in 1988. these jobs.
Black people were not allowed to stay in a Increasingly, however, South African businesses
white area for more than three days. All needed well-educated workers who could cope
black people were stopped regularly by with the changing demands of modern industry.
the police to check their passes and they Between 1951 and 1976, the number of jobs in
were then moved away. industry almost doubled, while the number of
jobs in farming and agriculture fell. As a result,
Banning orders could be used to stop a in the 1980s, politicians found themselves facing
person writing, broadcasting, attending a more and more demands for change from both
meeting or just leaving home. Journalists black and white South Africans.
were harassed constantly, as were ANC
and PAC members, and the Publications One view of apartheid was that it maintained
Board enforced rigid censorship. the economic prosperity of white South Africans.
There is plenty of evidence for this. White South
The number of civil servants, police officers and Africans enjoyed a lifestyle that was far better
soldiers needed to enforce apartheid grew than that of many people in Europe and
rapidly. In the late 1970s, the numbers of the certainly better than the lifestyle held by most
police and South African Defence Force rose black South Africans. Another view is that the
from 328,000 to 592,000. At the same time, policy of apartheid prevented the development
military expenditure rose by 400 per cent. To of the South African economy: black South
back up the police, white citizens were asked to Africans were poorly educated and so lacked
volunteer for the Active Citizen Force. the education necessary to carry out skilled
work in industry. In the end, therefore, apartheid
The National Party held power in South Africa
had the opposite effect that many white South
from 1948 to 1994. In many ways, this was a
Africans expected.

0 UrCLt2
l^tSA^CuA^ x. '
A f W W E i)
k ^ ^ s 7 -
16 ^ '
1T D n K K t L C T ^ A ' ' ! >. ' ! ! - B j C l i a i T I , I S' A A A D A /-
.
A Anti-apartheid demonstrators picketing Barclays Bank in London 1978. They wanted to encourage
account holders to withdraw their accounts as Barclays were involved in raising huge loans for
South Africa.
Support for, and opposition to,

themselves in and refused to have anything to
apartheid in South Africa do with anybody else.
Support for apartheid came almost exclusively Some white English-speakers accepted
from white Afrikaners. Apartheid was not just a apartheid, or at least went along with it. But the
way of preventing the danger, as they saw it, of Liberal Party opposed apartheid in Parliament;
Afrikaners being swamped by black people; it one of the most outspoken opponents was the
was also a way of asserting their independence MP Helen Suzman. However, as the National
and rejecting British influence. Party won every election from 1948 to 1994, the
opposition within Parliament could do very little.
Originally, the Afrikaners were farmers, who had
used native Africans as labourers. This explained The most important opposition to apartheid
their contemptuous attitude to black Africans, came from Africans themselves. The African
who they often referred to, insultingly, as National Congress (ANC) was set up in 1912 to
Kaffirs. In the 1980s, many people still referred campaign for the rights of black South Africans.
to the laager mentality of some Afrikaners. This It was intended to be peaceful and included
is because, during the Great Trek, the Afrikaners people from different native tribes. Separate
had protected themselves by drawing their organisations were set up to represent Asians
wagons into a circle, or laager. When they were and coloured people of mixed race.
attacked or criticised, they barricaded
Chapter 7 The end o f apartheid in South Africa: 198 2-9 4 151

government. His aim was to gain independence
for the Zulu nation. This brought Inkatha into
conflict with the ANC, which wanted a united
South Africa. In the last years of apartheid, the
South African secret services tried to exploit this
difference by inciting, and probably carrying out,
massacres of ANC and Inkatha supporters. The
government hoped that this would lead to
conflict between the two organisations.
In the 1980s, the ANC attempted to force the
South African government to give way by
stepping up its violent protest. It began a
programme of attacks in South Africa. In 1980, it
carried out a rocket attack on an oil refinery; in
1982, it blew up a nuclear reactor. The ANC was
supported by the newly independent countries
of Angola, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. The
South African government struck back by
invading Angola and forcing Mozambique to sign
a non-aggression pact. This convinced the ANC
that it could not win by force alone, so, in 1985,
the ANC decided to make the townships
ungovernable.
In 1985, protests began in many townships in
A Helen Suzman, South African opposition MP and South Africa. This started in February at
anti-apartheid campaigner, pictured in 1999. Crossroads, an illegal squatter camp near Cape
Town. The inhabitants had already been forced
to move several times by the police and they
were now afraid that they were going to be
Organisations opposing apartheid
made to move yet again. They built barricades
In 1949, Walter Sisulu became the ANC
to stop the police and then began to throw
Secretary-General and it adopted a new more
stones and petrol bombs. When the fighting
strident Programme of Action including strikes,
eventually came to an end late in the year, more
demonstrations and other forms of civil
than 1000 people were dead.
disobedience.
Violence spread to many other townships across
A second, and more violent, organisation was
South Africa. Inhabitants organised strikes and
the Pan-African Congress (PAC), which was set
boycotts. Many black students did not attend
up in 1959. When President F. W. de Klerk
school. For two years, there were continuing
announced the scrapping of all apartheid laws in
disturbances, which resulted in more than 2000
1991, the PAC refused to attend the convention
deaths. By 1987, the country was in chaos.
to deliver a new constitution for South Africa.
About half the deaths were caused by the South
Instead, it campaigned using the slogan One
African police as they tried to keep the situation
settler, one bullet.
under control, but there was also increasing
A third organisation was Inkatha ya KwaZulu, set violence between the ANC and Inkatha. The
up by Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi in 1975. Chief ANC leaders were angry that Chief Buthelezi,
Buthelezi was Prime Minister of KwaZulu, one of the ieader of Inkatha, had accepted a
the homelands set up by the South African separate homeland for Zulus called KwaZulu.

He appeared to be trying to achieve his aims by Apartheid is usually linked with the policies of
co-operating with the National Party. white South Africans. It was an attempt to
maintain the dominance of the white minority
From 1985, the ANC began to attack Inkatha and
over the majority of black South Africans. But in
in the next two years more than 3000 black
addition to the opposition to apartheid from the
South Africans were killed in the fighting. In
ANC, PAC and Inkatha, there were many white
1986 and again in 1987, P. W. Botha, the
people who opposed apartheid. Most of these
President of South Africa, was forced to declare
people were English-speaking and were
states of emergency covering all of South Africa.
members of the Liberal Party, which opposed
This was exactly what the ANC had been trying
apartheid, in the South African parliament. The
to achieve. South Africa was slipping out of the
white people who supported apartheid were
control of the government. Finally, in 1988,
usually Afrikaners.
Botha tried to arrange talks with the ANC. He
asked the ANC to stop the violence first. The
ANC refused. One meeting did take place
between Botha and Nelson Mandela, the vice-
president of the ANC, but, before any more
progress could be made, Botha had a stroke.
Power soon passed to F. W. de Klerk (see
page 156).
A Civil unrest in many townships often led to violence between inhabitants and the police.
Chapter 7 The end o f apartheid in South Africa: 1982-94 153

Why action wasnt taken
South Africa against apartheid
Persuading foreign governments
to take positive action proved
very difficult. One reason for
this was the reluctance of
African governments to make
sacrifices. For example, Kenya
broke off all trade with South
Africa, only to see other black
African countries take its place
as a trading partner. Zambia
and Zimbabwe, both landlocked
developing countries, sent most
of their exports and imports
through South Africa. Two
INDIAN
million migrant workers in
OCEAN
Malawi and Mozambique
depended on jobs in South
Africa.
800 km
Other leaders, including
400 miles Margaret Thatcher of Britain,
saw South Africa as an ally
against the spread of
A Map of southern and central Africa.
communism. Thatcher also claimed that
sanctions would hurt black Africans more than
Commonwealth and world reactions to they would hurt the government. In this she
apartheid was probably right - unemployment among
black workers rose after sanctions were
There had been worldwide opposition to
imposed - but ANC leaders urged Britain and
apartheid for many years. It was condemned by
the Commonwealth to act nevertheless.
the United Nations in 1952, which then
recommended economic sanctions (restrictions on One form of sanctions that was applied was an
trade with South Africa with the aim of damaging arms embargo (ban on weapons trade).
the economy) in 1962. By that time, South Africa However, the South African government was
had resigned from the Commonwealth to avoid able to get round it by developing its own
being expelled for its practice of apartheid. arms industry with the support of the Israeli
government. It was also able to buy arms from
South Africa was expelled from the Olympic
the Soviet Union. By the late 1970s, the Soviet
Games in 1964. The Organisation of Petroleum
Union was desperate for foreign currency so it
Exporting Countries (OPEC) banned oil sales to
agreed to sell arms.
South Africa in 1973 and, in 1974, the country
was expelled from the UN. By 1980, all South The most powerful bargaining counter in the
Africas neighbours had black governments. The South African governments possession was the
USA and the European Community began to countrys vast mineral resources. It produced,
impose economic sanctions in 1985, but these for example, half of the worlds gold and
appeared to have little effect. On the surface, the diamonds. With riches such as these, few
South African economy showed little sign of countries could afford to ignore South Africa
strain. completely.

Sanctions clear that the South African economy could not
There were significant changes in the 1980s. survive without black South Africans being
Some 277 companies withdrew their educated properly and being trained to carry out
investments in South Africa and a number of skilled work.
famous names closed all of their plants. These
included Peugeot, IBM and Pepsi Cola. Perhaps
the most significant form of sanction was the What does apartheid mean?
boycott imposed by foreign sporting
Which organisations opposed apartheid?
associations. This began in 1969 when the
South African government opposed the inclusion What action was taken against apartheid
of Basil DOliviera, a coloured player from the in the 1980s?
Cape, in the English cricket touring team.
The Afrikaners were devoted to rugby and
cricket, and were desperate for foreign
competition. In an effort to persuade the world
that South African sport was multi-racial, rugby
teams included some coloured players, like Errol Changes to apartheid in the 1980s
Tobias, but at home all clubs were segregated
By the late 1970s, there were clear signs that
and rugby has remained almost exclusively a
apartheid was not working. The central problem
white sport. In the townships, black South
was that apartheid was based on the idea that
Africans preferred to play soccer.
a large majority of the population could be
To break the boycott, rebel tours of Australian, educated only to a minimal level and would do
English and even West Indian cricketers were menial, unskilled jobs. This just did not work in
organised, often at enormous expense. But the a modern economy. The South African economy
situation did not really improve until apartheid needed a better educated work force, which
came to an end and sporting links were re could meet the demands of modern industry.
established.
Solutions for integration
Since the end of apartheid, cricket has been
It was the Prime Minister, John Vorster, a
much more successful in attracting black players
determined supporter of apartheid, who first
and the South African squad is now multi-racial.
realised the extent of the problem; he set up
However, two white members of the squad were
two commissions to consider possible solutions.
accused of making racial remarks in 1998 and
They recommended that jobs should no longer
one announced his retirement from international
be reserved for white workers and that black
cricket soon afterwards. Both men were
trades unions should be allowed.
Afrikaners.
In 1979, John Vorster was replaced as leader of
Some historians think that the reactions of the
the National Party by P. W. Botha. He was also a
Commonwealth and other countries to apartheid
determined supporter of apartheid, but realised
had little effect upon the supporters of
that it was impossible to keep 20 million black
apartheid. Margaret Thatcher believed that
Africans in complete subservience forever. He
sanctions would have no effect on South Africa.
explained to the National Party: We have to be
There is evidence that the South African
prepared to adapt our policy to those things
government ignored foreign pressures and tried
that make adjustment necessary, otherwise we
to maintain power by force. Another view is
die.
that, by the late 1980s, sanctions and other
pressures had forced the government to Botha put forward what he called his Total
dismantle many of the harsher aspects of Strategy. This was intended to save apartheid,
apartheid, such as the pass laws, and it was by making some concessions.

A P. W. Botha, with other South African parliamentarians, after becoming Prime Minister in 1979.
There were three main aims to Bothas Total - what people often referred to as Petty
strategy : Apartheid, meaning the use of separate public
buildings, seats and beaches, or the reservation
1 To deal with some of the criticisms that
of certain jobs for white people. Employers were
businesses were making of apartheid, for
allowed to employ black workers in skilled jobs,
example it was becoming very difficult to
black trades unions were legalised, and
find skilled workers.
desegregation of hotels, restaurants and
2 To get rid of many of the restrictions on theatres was permitted, although not made
black South Africans, for example compulsory.
abolishing many laws which forced black
There were also two more far-reaching measures.
people and white people to use separate
In 1984, a new constitution came into force,
buildings.
which created a parliament with three chambers.
3 To involve black South Africans in politics, White citizens, Asians and coloured South
for example Botha allowed black Africans all elected MPs who sat in separate
townships to elect their own local houses. However, since laws passed by the
community councils, raise taxes and Asian and coloured houses had to be approved
decide how to spend the money. by the white peoples MPs, this made little
difference. The new constitution also created the
Botha began by introducing a series of
post of State President, a position that Botha
measures that ended many forms of segregation
himself filled. Then, in 1986, the Pass Laws were

A Black and white South Africans dining in the same room in a restaurant after the end of Petty Apartheid.
abolished. These had been unpopular not only anti-apartheid organisations and attempted to
with black people, but also with employers unite the ANC with the community groups that
because they prevented the creation of a were developing in the townships. This was a
permanent workforce. In the townships, sign that the opposition to apartheid was
community councils were set up, with councillors beginning to develop a truly national
elected by the inhabitants. organisation. However, Inkatha remained outside
the UDF and violence between its members and
P. W. Botha hoped that his concessions would
the ANC continued.
save apartheid. His hopes were not realised,
because they made the situation worse. Non Elections were held in 1983 and 1984. The UDF
white South Africans who co-operated under the tried to persuade black voters not to take part
new constitution were attacked and some white and their campaign was very successful. In 1983,
extremists, who were appalled by Bothas only about 21 per cent of black people voted in
concessions, left the National Party to join the the town council elections and less than 20 per
Conservative Party. This was an extreme right- cent voted in the parliamentary elections the
wing racist party that adopted many of the following year. This was a clear sign that Bothas
slogans and emblems of the Nazi Party. reforms were not going to work. But soon,
opposition became much more serious and
Opposition to Bothas reforms led to the setting
much more dangerous.
up of the United Democratic Front (UDF). This
brought together more than 500 different
Chapter 7 The end o f apartheid in Sovth Africa: 1982-94 157

Botha found himself being attacked by both All political prisoners were freed and the death
black and white South Africans. From 1985, there sentence was abolished. Nine days later, Nelsor
was increasing opposition in the townships and Mandela, the vice-president of the ANC, was
he had to make use of the new powers of the released from prison. He had been in prison
State President to order a State of Emergency since the 1960s and, to many people,
across the whole country. From 1984 to 1988, represented the struggle against apartheid in
more than 3350 people died in disturbances South Africa. By January 1993, all apartheid
across South Africa. legislation had been repealed.
In January 1989, P. W. Botha suffered a stroke
and resigned as leader of the National Party. He
remained in office as State President for another Nelson Mandela
seven months and, in August 1989, arranged a Nelson Mandela became involved in politics
meeting with Nelson Mandela, then the vice- in 1947. As organiser of the ANC, he was
president of the ANC, who had been in prison acquitted of treason in 1961. He then led the
since 1964. Umkhonto we Sizwu (Spear of the Nation),
which organised attacks on power stations
One view of the changes that were made to and public buildings. He was arrested again
apartheid in the 1980s is that they were an in 1962 on charges of sabotage and
attempt to reform apartheid and give black violence. He was sentenced to life
South Africans greater equality. Black South imprisonment in solitary confinement on
Africans were allowed to share many facilities Robben Island. Mandela was released from
with white people. On the other hand, some prison in 1990.
people think that the South African government
was simply trying to hold on to power by
making limited concessions to black South
Africans by abolishing what was called petty
Apartheid. There is plenty of evidence for this A change of course
view. For example, although black South Africans De Klerks actions took almost everyone by
were allowed to vote for the first time, surprise, not least his own Party. Many people
parliament remained completely under white left the National Party in protest. The
control. Conservative Party grew in strength but, when
de Klerk held a referendum in February 1992,
The end of apartheid: the roles of 68.6 per cent of voters, all white, backed
reform. More dangerous was the increased
Nelson Mandela, the ANC and
support for the Afrikaner Weerstands Beweging
de Klerk (AWB), which translates as the Afrikaner
The meeting between Nelson Mandela and P. W. Resistance Movement. The AWB was led by
Botha in August 1989 produced no immediate Eugene Terre Blanche, whose name means white
results. When Mandela asked Botha to release land; by 1993, it had 20,000 members.
all political prisoners, he was told that it was
In fact, de Klerk had no intention of allowing
impossible and the meeting came to an end.
black majority rule; he was simply facing the
Botha resigned as President immediately after fact that apartheid could not survive and hoped
this meeting and was replaced by F. W. de Klerk. that he could save the Afrikaners by making
De Klerk realised that changes to the apartheid concessions. He had come to this conclusion
system were essential, but nobody expected the after the worst General Election result in the
changes to be so sudden and so significant. In history of the National Party in 1989, and after
February 1990, de Klerk legalised the ANC, the suffering political and economic chaos
PAC and the South African Communist Party. throughout the country.

A new constitution
Negotiations to draw up a new
constitution began in 1991, but
collapsed the following year when
the government refused to accept
majority rule. The ANC responded
with strikes, boycotts and mass
protests. The government gave way
when the ANC suggested a five-year
period of power-sharing. De Klerk
still hoped that Inkatha might refuse
to take part in the General Election
that was planned for April 1994, but
at the last moment Chief Buthelezi
agreed to participate.
A month before the election, the
members of the white AWB invaded
Bophuthatswana, one of the tribal
homelands. The black ruler of the
homeland had worked with the
National Party and was refusing to
take part in the election. The AWB
hoped to take advantage of the
situation and sabotage the whole
process. It was a disaster. Soldiers
and the police cornered the terrorists
and shot them. Many South Africans
watched the events on television,
horrified at the attempts of the AWB
to ruin the election.
A Nelson Mandela.
The election gave a massive majority to the ANC
and Nelson Mandela took office as President of
De Klerk, therefore, gambled that he would be
South Africa on 10 May 1994. In a spirit of
able to play off the ANC and Inkatha, and that
forgiveness and reconciliation, he appointed F.
Nelson Mandela would lose his hero status
W. de Klerk as one of the two vice-presidents
when he had to take real political decisions.
and Chief Buthelezi as a cabinet minister.
This would enable de Klerk to create a new
South Africa in which power was shared by As we have seen on page 158, in 1990 F. W. de
black people and white people. But he Klerk began the process that led to the end of
underestimated Nelson Mandela. Once free, apartheid in South Africa. One view of de Klerks
Mandela proved to be a very skilful negotiator. actions was that he genuinely believed that
His behaviour and moderation impressed many apartheid had to come to an end. Another view
South Africans, who had previously regarded is that he was still trying to maintain white
him as a communist and a terrorist. De Klerk control by making concessions to the ANC and
also found that it was impossible to halt the the other anti-apartheid organisations. De Klerk
process of freedom half way. Once black Africans seems to have believed that he could take
tasted equality, they were not to be put off with advantage of the decision to release Nelson
anything less than the real thing. Mandela to gain popular support.

-
The National Party and the nature of its rule
I Source A
In 1976, all outdoor meetings were banned In effect the Minister of justice now decided
except for sports events and funerals. The what was a crime and what was not. Suspects
Internal Security Act allowed the government to were held without trial. But South Africa was
ban any organisation, individual or newspaper. a police state long before this happened.
A From an American textbook published in 1991.
Source B
The revolutionaries and radicals in our country Africans and the South African government is
never abolished their aim for South Africa to equally not prepared to accept that at any
become a communist state. This is, of course, stage. Therefore it was necessary to curb the
totally unacceptable to the majority of South actions of certain persons and organisations.
A From the announcement of the State of Emergency in 1988 by the Minister for Law and Order.
| Source C
Before the morning I was taken from the cell tell the truth. They put a rubber tube on my
to the place where I was tortured the day face and I was left bleeding from the nose.
before. I was handcuffed below the knees Somebody was stabbing me with a sharp
and my arms, and an iron bar was forced instrument in my private parts. This went on
between my arms and my legs. I was left for about four to five hours.
hanging between two tables. I was told to
A From a description of the treatment received in prison by a detainee.
I Source D
Botha needed the support of those Blacks Blacks who had previously been allowed into
who had achieved a degree of success under those areas to work. The government also
apartheid by acquiring skilled jobs and relaxed restrictions on trade unions, so that
obtaining a higher standard of living. He many black Africans were now able to join
therefore decided to water down apartheid. unions and improve their wages and working
As he said, White South Africa had to adapt conditions. There was a massive increase in
or die. spending on education for black Africans, so
that they would be better able to provide a
Bothas reforms allowed some Blacks to buy
skilled workforce suited to modern industry.
property in white areas. These were the
A A comment on the South African governments policies in the 1980s, from a modern school textbook.

| Source F
On Tuesday 6 September
1977, a friend of mine
named Stephen Biko was
taken by South African
political police to Room 619
of the Sanlam Building in
Strand Street, Port
Elizabeth, Cape Province.
He was handcuffed, put
into leg irons, chained to a
grille and subjected to 22
hours of interrogation, in
the course of which he was
tortured and beaten. He
sustained several blows to
the head that damaged his
brain causing him to fall
into a coma and die six
days later.
A From the book Biko, by

A Armoured personnel carriers moving into Soweto in the 1980s. Donald Woods.

a What can you learn from Source A about d During the 1980s, the South African
the methods used by the government in government relied more and more on
South Africa? (4) force to keep black people under control.
Use the sources and your own knowledge
to explain whether you agree with
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence this view. (12)
of Source A about the methods used by
the government of South Africa? Explain
your answer. (6)
about the policies of the South African
government? (8)
Chapter 7 The end o f apartheid in South Africa: 1982-94 l6l

The system of apartheid, and its economic and social consequences
Source A Source B
Between 1951 and 1986 at
The homelands system of South Africa
least 4,000,000 people
Independent states (and date of independence):
were forced to move from
Transkei (1976) Bophuthatswana (1977)
white areas to Bantustans
Self-governing territories (and date of granting status): and black townships on the
lebowa (1972) Gazankulu (1973) QwaQwa (1974) edge of white towns. Black
KwaZulu (1977) KaNgwane (1977) KwaNdebele (1981) people who had lived in
mm Kenton-on-Sea for 25 years
Tropic of Capricorn were given just 11 days
notice of their removal to
the Ciskei Bantustan.
In these Bantustans black
people would have their
own government, but they
would not be completely
independent. The white
South African government
would still control defence
Transkei and foreign policy.
It followed from this policy
Ciskei
miles that blacks in white areas
were now just visitors with
no rights.
A From a modern school

A A map showing the Bantustans, or tribal homelands, set up textbook.
by the South African government.
| Source C
It came so suddenly. They came with guns and police and all Source D
sorts of things. We had no choice. The guns were behind us.
They did not say anything, they just threw our belongings in White 68
and off they went. There is nothing you can say or they will Indian 61
shoot you in the head. Soldiers and everything were there. We
did not know, we still do not know, this place. When we came Black 55
here they just dumped our things. What can we do now? We Coloured 51
can do nothing.
A The life expectancy of people
A A description of a forced removal to a Bantustan. in South Africa in the 1980s.

| Source F
We should get away from
the idea that these
homelands could be
regarded as dumping
grounds for people whom
we do not want in white
South Africa. However, at
the same time, it must be
realised that the white
areas should not be
regarded as the dumping
grounds for the surplus
labour, which comes from
the Bantu homelands.
A From a statement by a
representative of the
National Party.
A A policeman checking the pass books of black South Africans,

a What can you learn from Source A about d The writer of Source F suggested that the
the treatment of black people in South black and white areas of South Africa
Africa? (4) received similar treatment. Use the
sources and your own knowledge to
explain whether you agree with this view
b Do Sources B and C support the evidence of apartheid. (12)
of Source A about the treatment of black
South Africans? Explain your answer. (6)
about the effects of apartheid on black
South Africans? (8)
Chapter 7 The end o f apartheid in South Africa: 19 8 2 -9 4

Support for, and opposition to, apartheid in South Africa
Source A
I dont know any blacks of my age and have never spoken to
any. I dont think it is a good idea that black and white should
know each other. I would just hate to live with them. I dont
like anything about them. I dont know if our black maid has
any children. I never speak to her. I have never been into a
Bantu location and dont want to.
A From a statement by a 17 year-old Afrikaner.
Source B Source C
White South Africans had It was never intended that if you give something to one group
one of the highest standards that equal provision should be made in every respect for
of living in the world. Many other groups. In our country we have civilised people, we
white homes were huge by have semi-civilised people and we have uncivilised people.
British standards, with big The government of the country gives each section facilities
gardens and a swimming according to the needs of each.
pool. There would often be
living quarters for a maid or A From a statement by the South African Minister for Justice in the
a nanny. Well-off white early 1970s.
families employed between
one and four black servants.
White areas had properly
made roads, not dust tracks; Source D
there was good street
lighting, too. White areas Let me remind you of three little words. The first is all. We want
had libraries, museums, all our rights. The second word is here. We want our rights here
public gardens and so on. in a united, undivided South Africa. We do not want them in
The whites who ran them impoverished homelands. The third word is the word now. We
could decide when, and if, want all our rights, we want them here and we want them now.
other races could use them. We have been jailed, exiled, killed for too long. Now is the time.
A From a modern A From a speech by the Reverend Allan Boesak in 1983.

school textbook.
Modern World History

Source E I Source F
We want a country that is
united, democratic and
non-racial. It must belong
to all who live in it, in
which all enjoy equal rights
and in which the right to
rule wilt rest with the
people as a whole. Power
must not rest with a
collection of Bantustans
and tribal groups, which are
organised to maintain
power for the minority.
A From a speech made by

Oliver Tambo, the
president of the ANC.
A Members of the Black Sash, an anti-apartheid movement, protesting

in Johannesburg.

a What can you learn from Source A about c How useful are these sources as evidence
relations between white people and black about the aims of black South Africans? (8)
people in South Africa? (4)
Study all of the sources
Study Sources A, B and C d Apartheid was so deep-rooted that it
b Does the evidence of Source C support would be almost impossible to overturn it
the evidence of Sources A and B? Explain by peaceful means. Use the sources and
your answer. (6) your own knowledge to explain whether
you agree with this view. (12)
Chapter 7 The end o f apartheid in South Africa: 1982-94

Commonwealth and world reactions to apartheid
Source A
There is no case in history that I know where punitive general
economic sanctions have been effective in bringing about
internal changes.
A From a speech by Margaret Thatcher in 1986.
Source B
Sanctions will help to convince white South Africans that it is in their own interests to dismantle
apartheid and enter negotiations to establish a non-racial and representative government. The white
minority must see that apartheid is no longer a real option because the economic and political cost is
too high. Sanctions will undermine the power of the apartheid regime and weaken its determination
to resist change.
A From a study on sanctions by the Commonwealth, published in 1989.
Source C
Sustained international pressure and economic sanctions played
a very important role in ensuring that it became impossible to
continue with apartheid.
A From a speech by Nelson Mandela in 1994.
Source D
South Africa The rest of Africa
Industrial production 38% 62%
Minerals 45% 55%
Motor vehicles 49% 51%
Railways 50% 50%
A Percentage figures showing the production of goods

and raw materials in the South African economy and
for the rest of Africa combined in the late 1970s.

| Source E
The foreign action that did South Africa the most damage
occurred in 1985 when western banks refused to make any new
loans and called in existing ones. South Africa was forced to
repay US$13,000,000,000 by December 1985. As a result, the
rand, the South African currency, lost 35 per cent of its value in
thirteen days.
From 1989 to 1992 South Africa went through a serious recession,
which saw its national income fall by 3 per cent every year.
A From a modern school textbook.
Source F
Breaking the Afrikaners will by rising economic pressure abroad
will not work. The government sees black rule as a mortal threat
to language, to property, to identity and to physical security. It is
pointless to think that fears such as these can be overcome by
threats to the economy.
A From an article in the newspaper Johannesburg

Business Day in 1986.

a What can you learn from Source A c How useful are these sources as evidence
about the impact of sanctions upon about the impact of sanctions on the
South Africa? (4) South African economy? (8)
b Does Source C support the view of d The writer of Source F believed that
sanctions given in Source A or Source B? sanctions would have no effect on the
Explain your answer. (6) South African government. Use the sources
whether you agree with this view. (12)
Chapter 7 The end o f apartheid in South Africa: 198 2-94 167

Changes to apartheid in the 1980s
Source A
The world does not remain the same, and if we as a
government want to act in the best interest of the country in a
changing world, then we have to be prepared to adapt our
policy to those things that make adjustment necessary,
otherwise we die.
A From a speech made by P. W. Botha to a conference

of the National Party in 1979.
Source B
While the National Party respects the multicultural nature of
South Africas population, it rejects any system that amounts to
one nation or group in our country dominating the others. If
Mr Mandela gives a commitment that he will not instigate or
commit acts of violence, I will, in principle, be prepared to
consider his release. My government and I are determined to
press ahead with our reform programme. I believe that from
today there can be no turning back.
A From a speech made by President Botha to a conference of the

National Party in August 1985.
| Source C I Source D
One of Bothas first moves was to recognise blacks as Whites Blacks
permanent residents of white cities, and grant them the right to
1970 33-3 15.9
own houses and property in the townships. He got rid of some
of the more unpleasant apartheid laws and offered a vote of 1985 40.0 32.1
sorts to the coloureds and Indians. He started pouring money 2000 44-2 53-6
into black education and easing restrictions on black enterprise,
hoping to create a black middle class as protection against A Population statistics shown in
revolution. To pay for this he taxed white South Africans. To an advertisement published
whites who complained, P. W. had this to say: Adapt or die. by the South African
government in the 1980s.
A From a book written by an Afrikaner.

Source E
A Protas and Susan Madlala, who were married in 1985.
urce F
I have no hope of real change from this government unless they are forced. We face a
catastrophe in this land and only the action of the international community by applying pressure
can|ave us. I call upon the international community to apply punitive sanctions against this
government to help us establish a new South Africa - non-racial, democratic and just.
A From a news conference given by Archbishop Desmond Tutu in 1986.
S tud y Source A Study all of the sources

a What can you learn from Source A about d P. W. Botha tried to change South Africa
the policies of P. W. Botha? (4) because he believed that black people
should be treated as the equals of white
S tud y Sources A, B and C
people. Use the sources and your own
b Does the evidence of Source C support knowledge to explain whether you agree
the evidence of Sources A and B about with this view of Bothas policies. (12)
Bothas policies? Explain your answer. (6)
S tud y Sources D and E

o f the relationships between black and
white South Africans in the 1980s? (8)
Chapter 7 The end of apartheid in South Africa: 1982-94

The end of apartheid: the roles of Nelson Mandela, the ANC and de Klerk
I Source A Source B
It is time for us to break out of the cycle of violence and break We reject black majority rule.
through to peace and reconciliation. We will offer a new We stand for power-sharing
democratic constitution, universal franchise, equality before and group rights. We are not
the law, better education, health services, housing and social selling out to anyone. We
conditions for all. The time for talking has arrived. are going to make it safer
for our descendants to live
A From a speech made by President de Klerk in the in South Africa.
South African parliament on 2 February 1990.
A From a speech made by
President de Klerk in the
Transvaal on 18 October 1990.
Source C
A A photograph of de Klerk, Mandela and Buthelezi in April 1994.
| Source D
I told de Klerk that the ANC had not struggled I saw my mission as one of preaching
against apartheid for 75 years only to yield to reconciliation, of binding the wounds of the
a disguised form of it. If it was his intention country. I knew that many people, particularly
to preserve apartheid through group rights, the minorities, whites, coloureds and Indians,
then he did not truly believe in ending would be feeling anxious about the future,
apartheid. and I wanted them to feel secure.
A From Nelson Mandelas book Long Walk to Freedom, published in 1994.

Source E
Overseas investment is growing all the time. and building societies. An important factor in
Tourism has more than trebled. The the whole process is lack of bitterness and
government has three priorities right now, desire for revenge. Mandela provides an
Health, Education and Housing. Starter homes excellent role model of forgiveness in his
are being provided, funded by the government efforts to nation-build.
A From comments by a South African businessman in January 1996.
A A cartoon published in a British daily newspaper in 1993.

The figures are de Klerk and Mandela.

a What can you learn from Source A about c How useful are these sources as evidence
the aims of President de Klerk? (4) about the role of Nelson Mandela in
bringing about a peaceful solution to the
problems facing South Africa? (8)
b Does the evidence of Source C support
the evidence of Sources A and B about Study all of the sources
the aims of de Klerk? Explain your answer. d The cartoonist in Source F suggested that
(6) de Klerk and Mandela played equal parts in
ending apartheid in South Africa. Use the
sources and your own knowledge to explain
whether you agree with this view. (12)

Nationalism and
independence in India:
c.i900~49
Introduction
In the nineteenth century, India was a place of mystery and

wonder to people in Britain. When the Great Exhibition was held
in Hyde Park in 1851, the Indian stands were among the most
popular. They included silks, jewels, silver and gold work,
marble statues and even a stuffed elephant. It was not
surprising that later the British Prime Minister, Benjamin
Disraeli, described India as *the brightest jewel in the British
crown. When, in 1876, Disraeli passed the Royal Titles Bill,
which made Queen Victoria the Empress of India, this only
appeared to make India even more important in British eyes.

British rule in India in the early twentieth century
The Viceroys of India
The East India Company 1898-1905 Lord Curzon

The East India Company was a trading company set up to
1905-10 Lord Minto
develop commerce, which governed India from the second half of
the eighteenth century up until 1858. It had its own civil service 1910-16 Lord Hardinge
and army. Many Britons were drawn to India to work for the East
1916-21 Lord Chelmsford
India Company. From 1858, the British government took over
responsibility for India after a mutiny by soldiers in the East India 1921-26 Lord Reading
Companys army, but the number of British people going out to
1926-31 Lord Irwin
India did not stop. They went out to work as civil servants,
policemen and soldiers, or to take advantage of the many 1931-36 Lord Willingdon
opportunities that India offered for adventure and wealth.
1936-43 Lord Linlithgow
1943-47 Lord Wavell
1947 Lord Mountbatten
Kabul
AFGHANISTAN
Pesha\
CHINESE EMPIRE
Lhasa
8rahmaputra
BHUTAN
ASSAM
Karachi Attahabai
tenares V
BENA), BURMA
Calcutta
KATHLAWAR Mandalay
PENINSULA
ORISSA
Hyderabad
ARASBEIAAN
MYSORE 6^
Bangalore Madras BBEANYGOAFL
British India 1900
Railway
400 miles INDIAN OCEAN
A Map of India in 1900.
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c.1900-49

Governing India British control was only possible because, for
After 1858, British India was governed by the most of the time, India was peaceful and the
Viceroy, who was appointed by the British great majority of Indians consistently supported
government at Westminster. The Viceroy was the the British. When the Indian National Congress
representative of the Monarch, who after 1876 (one of the movements that tried to end British
was known as the Emperor or Empress of India. rule in India) was set up in 1885, there were
The Viceroy had 700 personal servants and was many who emphasised their loyalty to Britain.
paid a salary double that of the British Prime
Minister. In the government at Westminster there How much of India did the British govern?
was a Secretary of State for India. No other part In fact, only about 60 per cent of India was
of the Empire had its own minister. The salary actually governed by the British. The rest of
of the Viceroy and the post of Secretary of State India was governed by Indian princes, who
showed the importance that the British placed could often behave just as they liked inside
upon India. their states. There were 562 princely states
altogether. The largest state was Hyderabad,
The Viceroy governed with the aid of the
which measured about 77,000 square kilometres
Imperial Legislative Council, which was also
and had some 14 million inhabitants; the
appointed by the British government. The
smallest state was in Kathiawar, and was only a
Council passed laws for India. To support him,
few square kilometres and had fewer than 200
the Viceroy had an administration numbering
inhabitants. The Indian princes usually retained
about 70,000 civil servants and soldiers. It was
their power by signing treaties with the British.
these positions that many young men from
This made the Indian princes loyal supporters of
Britain went out to India to fill.
the British Raj, as imperial power was known.
Many of the British in India worked hard and
took their responsibilities very seriously. The Indian economy
Throughout the nineteenth century, there were But India was more than a place for excitement
many attempts to improve agriculture, education and adventure. It was a vital part of the British
and transport in India. By 1900, the British had economy. India was a vast supplier of raw
built 40,000 kilometres of railways, 110,000 materials to Britain and it bought British
kilometres of canals, and 6 million hectares of manufactured goods in return. In the late
land had been irrigated. 23,000 Indians were nineteenth century, Britains trade surplus with
attending university. India was enough to make up more than one-
third of Britains deficit with the rest of the
Altogether, there were never very many British
world.
people in India. For a large country with such a
large population, 70,000 aliens was a India was also a major source of manpower for
remarkably small number. By 1900, India had a the British Army. In both the First and Second
population of about 300 million people, of World Wars, India provided more than 1 million
many different religions. There were, and still soldiers for Britain. In October 1914, some of the
are, at least fifteen major languages in India. first reinforcements to arrive in Belgium to
support the British Expeditionary Force came
from an Indian Division which landed at Ostend.
The religions of India in 1900
British attitudes to Indians
Hindus 210 million
The British in India kept themselves separate
Muslims 75 million from Indians.
Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists There was almost no mixing of British and
Jains and others about 15 million Indians, except for official purposes.
Photographs show British and Indians in

separate stands at racecourses and kept violence as a result, as well as a massive
apart at other events. petition and boycotts of British goods. The
protests led to the decision being reversed in
The rude term going native was used to
1911, but the damage had been done.
describe a Briton who had begun to behave
like an Indian.
All India Muslim League
Some British people objected to being sent At almost the same time, the All India Muslim
to a court where there was an Indian judge. League, usually known simply as the Muslim
League, was set up in 1906. At first, it was a
Anglo-Indians, people of mixed parentage,
weak organisation, with only a few hundred
were regarded as second class citizens.
members, and it did not campaign for an
The Boy Scout Movement, which was set up independent Muslim state. The leaders advised
by Robert Baden Powell in 1908, refused to Muslims to co-operate with the British, rather
accept Indian boys until after the First World than oppose them. One of the main aims of the
War. League was to protect Muslim minorities in
areas of India where they were outnumbered by
Relations between the British and India began
Hindus. But, in fact, there were many more
to change at the beginning of the twentieth
Muslims in Congress than there were in the
century.
League, including M. A. Jinnah, who later
became the founder of Pakistan.
The Congress Movement
The Indian National Congress had been set up
Tata Iron and Steel Works
in 1885 and was a largely moderate
Another significant change in India was the
organisation. The leaders did not support
setting up in 1907 of the Tata Iron and Steel
violence and only used peaceful tactics. They
made no demands for Home Rule, meaning
that Indians should be allowed to govern I Source A
themselves. But, in the first years of the
twentieth century, the situation began to
change. For the first time, extremists became
leaders of the Congress and, in 1906, they W tru m i P f P M iT
demanded Home Rule for the first time.

In 1907, the annual meeting of Congress became
a struggle between Moderates, who wanted to
continue the old ways of working (including
working with the British), and the Extremists,
who wanted to adopt a more aggressive
approach. Bal Gandadhar Tilak, an Extremist,
became one of the most influential figures in
Congress until his death in 1920.
The situation was made even worse by the
decision to divide the province of Bengal into
two parts. This was taken by the Viceroy, Lord
Curzon, in 1905. The idea was to separate the
Hindu and Muslim areas of Bengal. It was
extremely unpopular with Hindus because it
created an area that was dominated by Muslims.
There were serious outbreaks of rioting and
A Tata is a familiar name in India today.
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c.1900-49 175

Works (now a major Indian company), which
was named after its founder. Nowadays, Tata is | Questions
a name that can be seen on every Indian road.
The company builds most of Indias lorries and 1 How was India governed by the British at
many of its cars. The setting up of the company the beginning of the twentieth century?
was a sign that the Indian economy was 2 Why did relations between Britain and
changing and that the changes would be to India begin to change from 1905?
Indias benefit. By the 1930s, India no longer
3 Why was the Indian Councils Act
took large amounts of British goods and the
balance of trade had swung in Indias favour. (Morley-Minto reforms) passed in 1909?
4 In what ways did the Indian Councils Act
The Morley-Minto Reforms 1909 change the government of India?
The unrest in India after the division of Bengal
and the growing demands of Congress helped to
persuade the British to introduce reforms to the
Indian government. The men behind the reforms
were the Secretary of State for India, John
Morley, and the Viceroy, Lord Minto. The main
aim of the reforms was to give greater that had broken out after the division of Bengal.
representation to Indians. But Lord Minto also He, himself, had been the subject of an
wanted to stamp out the violence and unrest assassination attempt in early 1909.
Despite the changes, the Morley-Minto Reforms
were criticised by many Indians because they
The Morley-Minto Reforms did not give Indians real influence in the running
These reforms led to the Indian Councils of their country. Very few Indians could actually
Act of 1909, which increased the number of vote, less than 2 per cent of the population
members of the Imperial Legislative Council overall. The Reforms also tended to divide
to 60. This was the body that advised the Hindus and Muslims by treating them as
Viceroy. Of the 60 members, 27 were to be separate communities. This established the
elected. Indians were able to sit on the principle of communalism (or communal
Imperial Legislative Council for the first representation) in Indian politics. This was the
time. idea that different religious groups should be
treated as different political groups. Once this
Direct elections for seats on provincial
was introduced, it became very difficult to
(local) legislative councils were introduced
change.
and, for the first time, some now had a
majority of elected members. This gave However, on the surface there appeared to be
Indians a much greater voice in provincial very little for the British to worry about in India.
governments. When George V, the King-Emperor, held the great
Delhi Durbar in 1911, after his coronation, India
Muslim organisations campaigned for
seemed peaceful and loyal to the British crown.
special representation of Muslim interests
The Durbar was an enormous pageant, during
and other minority groups. There were six
which all of the Indian princes expressed their
Muslim representatives on the Imperial
loyalty to the King. King George V took the
Legislative Council, as well as others on
opportunity to announce that the two parts of
some provincial councils. This was the first
Bengal would be reunited. At the same time, the
time that specific representation was given
capital of India was moved from Calcutta to
to communal or religious groups.
Delhi, which was much nearer the historic centre
of India.

| Source B
A King George V and Queen Mary attended by young Indian princes at the Delhi Durbar.
The impact of the First World War in the British Army, both in the Middle East and
upon relations between Britain on the Western Front.
and India
India during the First World War
In August 1914, at the outbreak of the First The war appeared to offer Indians and the
World War, the Indian government declared war Indian economy opportunities that had not
on Germany and sent Indian troops to support existed before. The Indian economy benefited in
the British Expeditionary Force in Belgium. The 1914 and 1915 when demands for Indian cotton
Indian Division arrived in time to take part in and other raw materials rose rapidly. This
the First Battle of Ypres at the end of October brought increased employment and prosperity.
1914. The decision of the government was The war also encouraged Indians to believe that
supported by the great majority of Indians and they might win changes from the British
there was widespread support for Britain during government. In 1915, Mohandas Gandhi (see
the war. 1.25 million Indians volunteered to fight page 180) arrived back in India from South
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c.1900-49 \~ J~J

I
SourceTA
A Indian troops in France during the First

World War.
Africa. He urged Indians to support the British

government. He believed that supporting the
war against Germany would lead to Home Rule.
Many Indians shared this belief and, in 1915,
Congress called for progress to self-government.
Bal Tilak, the leader of the Extremists in
Congress, set up the Home Rule League to head
the campaign.
Indians were encouraged by the fact that during
the First World War Indian troops fought as the
equals of British troops. The British government
also claimed to be defending the rights of
nations, which to Indians suggested that they
might be granted some form of Home Rule. To
try to increase the chances of Home Rule,
Congress and the Muslim League signed the
Lucknow Pact in 1916. This was an agreement
between the two groups to give Muslims a fixed
proportion of seats in an Indian parliament and
extra seats in areas where they were in a
minority. A Gandhi spinning cotton in 1919.

The Montagu Declaration Chelmsford, produced a report suggesting reform
Indian hopes were raised even more on 20 of the Indian government. The Montagu-
August 1917. Sir Edwin Montagu, the Secretary Chelmsford Reforms were announced in August
of State for India, made the Montagu 1918 but were onty put into practice by the
Declaration (see Source A). Government of India Act in December 1919. The
reforms were welcomed by many Indians, even
To Indians this appeared to suggest that major
though they did not offer Home Rule. But this
changes were about to take place and that the
meant that the reforms were unacceptable to
British government accepted Home Rule was not
many other Indians who had expected some
far off. Indians were further encouraged when
reward for supporting Britain during the First
Montagu and the Viceroy, Lord Chelmsford,
World War.
toured India in 1917-18 listening to local
opinion. As details of the reforms became known,
violence and unrest increased, particularly in the
Punjab. This was made worse by a recession
I Source C that set in when the war came to an end.
Contracts for textiles dried up as soldiers were
demobilised and no more uniforms were
Increasing association of Indians in every needed. India was also badly hit by the Spanish
branch of the administration, and the influenza epidemic of 1919-20 and more than 13
gradual development of self-governing million people died.
institutions, with a view to the progressive
realisation of responsible government in The Rowlatt Acts
India as an integral part of the British The Indian government was frightened that
Empire. Britain would lose control of the situation,
especially when the Defence of India Act tapsed
A The Montagu Declaration. at the end of the war. In 1918, it set up the
Rowlatt Commission to investigate and report on
the situation. This led to the Indian government
Unrest in India
passing the Rowlatt Acts in March 1919. The Acts
But there was another side to events in India
extended the Defence of India Act into
during the war. In 1915, the Defence of India Act
peacetime. They enabled the government of
had suspended civil liberties for the duration of
India to arrest and imprison troublemakers
the war. This allowed Indians to be arrested
without trial, and allowed judges to try
without charge. In 1916 and 1917, the strain on
offenders without a jury.
the Indian economy and increased government
spending led to rising prices and shortages.
The effects of the Rowlatt Acts
These in turn led to outbreaks of violence,
The Acts were a serious mistake and a major
which were most serious in the Punjab. In this
turning point in the movement for Home Rule.
area of north-west India there were Hindus,
They were opposed by all the Indian members
Muslims and Sikhs, all of whom distrusted the
of the Imperial Legislative Council. They also
other. The Indian government now depended
created the impression that the promises made
almost entirely upon Indian troops to maintain
by the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms meant
control because most of the British had been
nothing. It appeared that the British were all too
withdrawn to fight elsewhere. This increased
ready to use force to crush Indian opposition.
British fears about their ability to control India.
In fact, the Rowlatt Acts were never put into
The Montagu-Chelmsford report effect and were soon repealed, but the damage
In April 1918, the Secretary of State for India, had been done. They came at a time, just after
Edwin Montagu, and the Viceroy, Lord the end of the First World War, when many
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence iff'India: c.1900-49 179

Indians were expecting some form of self- Until the First World War, Congress was
government. Hopes had been raised and then dominated by well-educated, middle-class
dashed. Now the Acts suggested that the British Indians. Gandhi wanted to open the Party to all
government had no intention of relaxing its grip Indians, including Untouchables - the members
on India. of the lowest group in the caste system.
The Rowlatt Acts did not just
stir up Indian opinion against
The Hindu caste system
the British. They also led to
major changes in the way that In modern India, the caste system has been abolished, but it
the campaigns for Home Rule still has great influence on peoples lives.
were carried out. When the Brahmans: the highest caste, its members were priests and
Acts were passed, Bal Tilak, highly educated people.
the most important leader of
the Indian National Congress Kshatryas: members of this caste were rulers, nobles and
was in London. This allowed warriors.
Mohandas Gandhi to emerge Vaisias: members of this caste were landlords and
as the real leader of Congress. businessmen.
When Tilak died in 1920, there
was no one to challenge Sudras: the biggest caste as far as numbers are
Gandhi. concerned. Its members were peasants and
workers.
Mohandas K. Gandhi had been
Below the castes were the Untouchables. These performed
born in Kathiawar in 1869. He
unclean tasks such as sewage disposal.
studied law in London and
then set up a successful legal Each caste was sub-divided into communities and people
practice in Mumbai (Bombay). from one community did not marry those from another.
He developed a belief in the
use of peaceful protest and
became a pacifist. He acquired his beliefs from Normally, other Indians would have nothing to
his mother, who was a devout Hindu. In 1893, do with them. Gandhi also put forward the idea
he gave up his legal practice and travelled to of Satyagraha, or non-violent civil
South Africa, where he spent more than 20 years disobedience. He asked his supporters to refuse
fighting legal cases on behalf of Indians who to co-operate with the British administration.
were suffering persecution under the law there.
Gandhis opportunity came after the Rowlatt Acts
In South Africa, Gandhi had developed the idea were passed on 18 March 1919. With Bal Tilak
Satyagraha, his belief in non-violent civil away in London, Gandhi was the most importar:
disobedience. He had also gained great figure in Congress. He announced a hartal, a
experience in representing the interests of day of fasting and no work. This should have
Indians and of standing up to the British been a peaceful protest but, unfortunately, sorre
authorities. of Gandhis supporters misunderstood his ideas
and others simply ignored them. Once again
Gandhis return to India there were widespread protests and rioting, the
In 1915, Gandhi returned to India and went on a worst incidents were again in the Punjab.
years travel to reacquaint himself with the
country. He soon became involved in the The Amritsar Massacre
movement for Home Rule and joined Congress. In early April 1919, five Britons were killed in a
However, some of his beliefs were at first riot in Amritsar, the holy city of the Sikhs.
unpopular with Congress leaders. Brigadier-General Dyer, the British officer in
180 Modem World History

command of the Punjab, banned all
public meetings. Dyer had been Source D
born in the Punjab in 1864 and had
served in the Middle East during the
First World War, before returning to
India in 1917. He took command of
a training camp at Jullundur near
Amritsar. Dyer was an old-fashioned
soldier and had the reputation of
being very strict. He seems to have
believed that a show of force was
needed to stop the unrest in the
area. So, when a protest meeting
was called for 13 April, Dyer made
no attempt to cancel it. He had
apparently decided that the Indians
needed to be taught a lesson.
On 13 April 1919, a crowd of more
than 5000 people gathered for the
meeting in the park of Jallianwala
Bagh. They were unarmed, and
there were many women and
children. The Bagh was an enclosed
space near the Golden Temple, the
most sacred place for Sikhs. It was
surrounded by buildings with high A The Golden Temple, scene of the Amritsar massacre.
walls and had only narrow
entrances. Dyer marched a
detachment of Gurkha (Nepalese)
troops into the Bagh using the main
entrance from the street that led to
the Golden Temple. He ordered
them to open fire on the unarmed
crowd. The firing lasted for about
six minutes. The troops fired until
their ammunition was exhausted,
killing 379 people and wounding
more than 1200, according to the
British authorities. Indian figures
now put the figures much higher:
the notices in the Jallianwala Bagh
put the death toll at more than
2000.
The massacre had a dramatic
impact. It seemed that the British
were prepared to use any tactics to
retain control and suppress A The entrance to the Jallianwala Bagh at Amritsar where bullet
opposition. marks can still be seen.
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in'lndia: c.1900-49 l8l

Dyer made the situation even worse by arresting governed, but by now many Indians had been
more than 500 students and teachers in the turned against the reforms. Such changes would
following days and imprisoning some of them in have been almost unthinkable 20 years before.
a cage in the market place. When a British But, in 1919, after the Rowlatt Acts and Amritsar
woman, Marcia Sherwood, was assaulted by Massacre, it was too little too late.
youths and knocked off her bicycle, Dyer
ordered all Indians who wanted to pass down
The Government of India Act, 1919 - the
the street where she had been attacked to crawl
Dyarchy
on all fours.
The first Government of India Act set up the
What effects did the Amritsar Massacre have? system that became known as the Dyarchy.
The main result of the massacre was that many This meant that power was divided between
Indians who had previously been loyal to the British and Indian representatives.
British lost faith in British justice and joined the An Executive Council was set up to advise
campaigns for Independence. The actions of the Viceroy. It included the Viceroy
Dyer were bad enough, but the failure of the himself, the Commander-in-Chief of the
British authorities to act quickly and punish him Army and six other members, including
convinced many Indians that he represented the three Indians.
truth about British policy.
The Imperial Legislative Council was
The impact of the massacre could have been renamed the Imperial Legislative Assembly
limited if the British government had acted more and was enlarged to 146, with 106 elected
quickly to dismiss Dyer, but instead he was members. This was to be the lower House
summoned to Britain and his actions were of Parliament.
investigated by the Hunter Committee. In his
evidence, Dyer admitted that he would have A Council of State was set up, with 61
driven armoured cars into the Jallianwala Bagh members. This was to review laws passed
and used them to fire on the crowd if the by the Assembly.
entrance had been bigger. The Committee did The British members of the Council dealt
not accept Dyers excuse (he believed that he with areas such as defence, foreign
had stopped a rebellion); his behaviour was relations and taxation. These were called
condemned and he was asked to resign. the reserved ministries. The Indian
But elsewhere in Britain there were different members dealt with education, sanitation
reactions. When his actions were debated in the and agriculture, which were called the
House of Lords, there was a majority of 121-86 transferred ministries.
in his favour and the Morning Post raised In the Indian provinces an Executive
23,000 for him, describing him as The man Council appointed by the Governor woulc
who saved India. Dyer was rewarded for his be responsible to a Legislative Council
actions with the presentation of a jewelled elected by popular vote.
sword engraved with the words Saviour of the
Provincial governments would now have
Punjab.
both Indian and British ministers.
The events in Amritsar overshadowed the details
of the Government of India Act, which was
passed in December 1919. The Act put into
practice the reforms originally recommended by
the Montagu-Chelmsford report (see page 178).
The Government of India Act represented an
enormous change in the way that India was

Weaknesses of the Government of India Act Gandhi began to involve lower caste and poorly
There were important weaknesses in the Act. educated Indians in the Congress Movement for
Only 2.8 per cent of Indians could vote. The the first time; this increased his support
Provincial Assemblies soon found that they did dramatically and made Congress into a national
not have enough money and could not perform movement.
their duties. But by far the most important
To emphasise the changes in the movement,
weakness of the Act was that Congress did not
Gandhi began to wear Indian clothes and
accept it. Before the First World War this would
encouraged other Congress leaders to do the
not have been a major problem because
same. Until then, educated Indians had usually
Congress had little influence, but, in 1919 and
worn Western clothes. He began to wear a cap
1920, Congress had become a national
that was common in his home state of Gujerat,
movement for the first time. In future, the British
but which gave no clue to the wearers caste.
would have to get the support of Congress for
any changes to the way that India was
Civil disobedience
governed.
In August 1920, Gandhi organised a massive
disobedience campaign. Congress members
began to boycott British goods and withdraw
from courts and schools. Many also adopted a
Questions policy of swadeshi, buying Indian goods
instead of British. Gandhi then persuaded
1 In what ways did India help Britain during
Congress to take no part in the elections held
the First World War?
after the Government of India Act. A national
2 Why were the Rowlatt Acts passed in hartal (see page 180) was called for November
1919? 1921, and only one-third of the electorate voted
in the elections. This led to Congress being
3 Why did relations between Britain and
declared illegal. The British arrested many
India change after the First World War?
Congress supporters and, by 1922, more than
4 In what ways did the Government of India 30,000 Congress members were in prison.
Act of 1919 (Montagu-Chelmsford
Not for the last time, Gandhis methods were not
Reforms) change the way that India was
understood - or followed - by all of his
governed?
supporters. In February 1922, 21 Indian
policemen were attacked and then burnt to
death by rioters at Chauri Chaura. Gandhi
The Congress Movement and the immediately suspended his campaign. But he
Muslim League: Gandhis and jinnahs was arrested by the British and imprisoned from
1922 to 1924.
campaigns for independence
When Gandhi was released from prison he set
Why did Gandhi emerge as the leader of up an ashram or settlement in Gujerat and
Congress after the First World War? began to revive traditional Indian crafts,
Gandhis real chance to lead the campaign for especially the spinning of cotton. This was
Independence came in 1919. He led peaceful illegal because British laws said that raw cotton
protests throughout India and, in 1920, had to be sent to Britain to be spun. This was
persuaded Congress to demand swaraj (Home another aspect of Gandhis campaign of
Rule). Swaraj meant two things to Gandhi: self- non-co-operation.
rule and also self-control. He believed that the
Gandhis efforts to attract support from as many
former would be achieved through the latter,
sections of Indian society as possible,
and so he opposed the use of force.
particularly the Untouchables, lost him support
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c. 1900-49

A Gandhis ashram in Gujerat.
ashram left Congress without a leader. The
movement split into two sections: the Swaraj
amongst wealthier and better educated Indians. Party, which supported co-operation with the
Gandhis ashram almost failed for lack of funds. British; and the Non-co-operation Movement,
which wanted to reject all forms of co-operation.
The overall impact of the non-co-operation
Other Indians emerged as leaders of Congress.
campaign of 1920-22 was limited and it
The most important were Motilal and Jawaharlal
collapsed after the Chauri Chaura incident, but it
Nehru, who were father and son.
was the first national political campaign
organised by Indians and it showed that Indians
The Nehrus
no longer accepted British decisions without
The Nehrus came from Kashmir and were
question. Even more important was the fact
Brahmans, members of the highest Hindu caste.
that, from 1922, the end of Gandhis first non-
Motilal was a successful and wealthy lawyer. His
co-operation campaign, the British government
son, Jawaharlal, also trained as a lawyer. He
could no longer rely on support from India in
returned to India in 1912, after seven years in
terms of imports, taxes and manpower. In future,
England, to join his fathers law firm.
reactions to British policy would have to be
considered very carefully. In 1913, Jawaharlal Nehru joined the Indian
Congress and heard about the campaigns of M.
Congress in the 1920s K. Gandhi in South Africa. When Gandhi returned
Gandhis imprisonment and his retirement to the to India in 1915, Nehru became a follower; he

cause of Home Rule, Motilal
Source B sold his legal practice and used
the money to finance his
campaigns. His house became a
centre for the Swaraj Party. His
health was undermined by
imprisonment and he died in
1930.
Britain and India in the 1920s

The Government of India Act in
1919 (see page 182) had been
intended to keep the important
areas of policy in British hands.
Indians were, however, given
control of the transferred
ministries. Despite the fact that
Congress took no part in the
elections for the government of
India in 1921, relations between
the two countries began to
change in the 1920s. The new
A Motilal and Jawaharlal Nehru. government of India imposed tariff duties on
imports of Lancashire cotton, making it more
convinced his father to join the movement in expensive to buy. The Indian State Bank in
1919 after the Amritsar Massacre. In the 1920s, Delhi, and not the Bank of England, set the
the Nehrus were arrested and imprisoned exchange rate between the rupee and the
several times. pound. India was becoming less important as a
market for British exports; British investment in
In the 1920s, jawaharlal Nehru again visited
India fell after the First World War. The numbers
Europe and met Madame Sun Yatsen, the wife of
of British people going to work in India also fell
the leader of the Chinese Revolution, and Ho
very rapidly. In fact, by 1945 there were fewer
Chi Minh, the future leader of opposition to
than 500 senior British civil servants and 200
French rule in Vietnam. He returned to India in
policemen in India, and many of those were
December 1927 a convinced socialist and
either past, or close to, retirement age.
republican, and became the leader of the Non-
co-operation Movement in Congress. He also
The Simon Commission
formed the Independence League with Subhas
In 1927, the British government set up a
Chandra Bose. In 1929, Nehru was elected
commission to review the workings of the
President of Congress. While Nehru still
Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms (see page 179).
supported Gandhi, his experiences in Europe
The review was part of the terms of the
made him ready to use more extreme measures.
Government of India Act. The commission was
Motilal Nehru became one of the leaders of the headed by Sir John Simon and became known
Swaraj Party and co-operated with the British as the Simon Commission. Its report
under the Government of India Act. He was able recommended a federal India with each province
to get the Rowlatt Acts repealed (they had never having its own government, but no changes in
actually been enforced) and was then able to the central government. In other words, it
pass laws imposing protective duties against proposed no real changes to the way that India
imported goods. To show his commitment to the had been governed since 1919.
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c. 1900-49 \ I8 5

There were no Indian members of the Source C
Commission. This led to mass protests
throughout India and Congress members
boycotted all of its meetings. This enabled
Jawahartal Nehru (who had just returned from
Europe) to persuade Congress to vote for total
independence for the first time in 1928. A new
Indian constitution was drawn up and Dominion
status was demanded by December 1929. This
would have made India a self-governing territory
inside the British Empire and Commonwealth. In
addition, 21 January 1930 was proclaimed as
Independence Day and a Declaration of
Independence was drawn up.
While many Indians protested against the Simon
Commission, one large group in India that did
co-operate was the Untouchables, the people
who were outside the Hindu caste system. They
hoped that the Commission would give them a
better place in Indian society in the future.
The Muslim League

While the importance of Congress grew in the
1920s, the Muslim League, under the leadership
of Muhammed Ali jinnah, also emerged as a
serious force for the first time. Until 1927, A M. A. Jinnah.
Jinnah, who was also a member of Congress,
governments and a weak central government.
had supported Jawaharlal Nehrus policy of non-
This would allow Muslims to control the areas
co-operation with the British, but in 1927 he
where they were in the majority, such as
decided on a change of plan.
Hyderabad, Bengal and the Punjab.
Policies of the Muslim League Jinnah did not agree with Gandhis policy of non-
The official policy of the Muslim League was to co-operation with the British. He believed that
boycott the Simon Commission, but Jinnah the best way to persuade the British to leave
wanted to co-operate with it. He saw it as an India was to work with them, rather than
opportunity to push forward the interests of against them. Jinnahs differences led him to
Muslims in India. Jinnah even went so far as to resign from Congress in 1930. Although the
move a meeting of the Muslim League from Muslim League was still a much smaller and less
Lahore to Calcutta to gain a majority for his powerful organisation than Congress, in the long
changes. This divided the League, but created run these were important changes of policy. For
support for Jinnah. the next seventeen years Jinnah attempted to
achieve his aims by co-operation with the
Jinnahs role and beliefs British, while Congress refused, more and more,
In 1929, Jinnah published his Fourteen Points. to work with the British.
These did not demand a separate Muslim state,
but did call for greater representation of Gandhis second Satyagraha Campaign
Muslims. They also put forward Jinnahs idea of The unrest created by Nehru and Congress (see
a federal India. He wanted strong provincial page 184) encouraged Gandhi to begin a secor:

Source D
A Gandhi and Sarojini Naidu (politician, feminist and poet) leading the March to the Sea.
Satyagraha campaign. In March and April 1930, In fact, to many Indians Gandhis actions were
he organised and led a March to the Sea, to puzzling, but he was trying to force the
make salt. The journey took place in Gujerat, government into a position that would become
from Ahmedabad to Dandi, and lasted 24 days. more and more difficult to defend.
When he reached the coast, Gandhi took a few
grains of salt from the sea. In doing so, he was
breaking the law of British India because only
the government was allowed to produce salt.
The march was part of Gandhis non-violent
campaign against British rule in India, which was Questions
intended to make India ungovernable.
1 What tactics did Gandhi use in his
The Viceroy, Lord Irwin, and the government had campaigns against the British?
been notified in advance of Gandhis intentions,
and so he was arrested and imprisoned from 2 Why was the Simon Commission a
1930 to 1931. But soon, 5 million Indians all failure?
over the country began making sea salt, and it 3 In what ways did the Indian National
was sold in towns and cities everywhere. It Congress differ from the Muslim League?
became a symbol of defiance against British
rule. Boycotts of British cloth and alcohol 4 What was the significance of the March
followed. Within months, 60,000 Congress to the Sea?
members had been arrested and imprisoned.
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c.1900-49 IS/

British policies and attitudes to India The Round Table Conferences were an important
before the Second World War sign that the situation in India was becoming
more complex and more serious. It was clear
that the Dyarchy (see page 182), which had
The Round Table Conferences
been set up by the Government of India Act in
The British response to the renewed activity in
1919, was not working. The relationship between
India was to call the Round Table Conferences.
the government of India and the provinces was
These were held in London from 1930 to 1933.
unsatisfactory because the provincial
They included representatives of all the British
governments were always short of money. The
political parties and of all political opinion in
position of the Indian princes had also not been
India. They were attempts to reach an
tackled and they ruled about 40 per cent of
agreement on the government of India that was
India. The Simon Commission (see page 185)
acceptable to all.
had been set up to look at these difficulties but
had proved a complete failure.
Communal differences (differences between
religious groups) were becoming more serious in
India. From 1922 onwards, there was increasing
violence between Hindu and Muslim
communities. By 1927, the number of deaths
was about 200 each year. To reduce tension, the
government of India tried to change the law and
make it an offence to insult the religion of
minority groups. However, while Muslim
members of the Legislative Assembly supported
the move, the Hindu members voted against it.
Another reason for the setting up of the Round
Table Conferences was the election of a British
Labour government in 1929. The Labour Party
took a different view from the Conservative
Party, which had been in power up to 1929, of
Britains position in India. The Labour Party was
less concerned with the maintenance of the
Empire, although it did not think in terms of
Home Rule in 1930. The Labour cabinet was also
more interested in India as a possible political
victory at a time when it was under pressure at
home due to rising unemployment after the Wall
Street Crash.
First Round Table Conference

The First Round Table Conference met in London
in November 1930. Only Congress refused to
attend. The conference agreed to set up an all-
India federation in which the Indian states
would take responsibility for most matters
except defence, foreign affairs and finance.
A. Gandhi in London, after attending a Round Table Congress did not attend the Conference because
Conference. many of its leaders, including Gandhi, were in

prison. The absence of Congress meant that the For the first time, it allowed Indians to play a
decisions of the Conference were of little value. significant part in the government of their
country, but the British retained real control.
Second Round Table Conference
The Second Round Table Conference began with
much greater possibility of success. Lord Irwin,
the Viceroy of India from 1926 to 1931, was The Government of India Act, 1935
deeply religious and had formed a close The Act created a central parliament in Delhi,
relationship with Gandhi. In January 1931, he with two chambers. In both chambers there
ordered Gandhis release from prison and were elected and appointed members. The
persuaded him to enter into talks with the Indian elected members were all Indian. Of the
government, to settle the problems that had seats, 250 were reserved for Indian
developed since the Salt March the previous constituencies and 125 for the Indian
year. Gandhi then attended the Second Round princes.
Table Conference as the sole representative of
Congress. India was divided into eleven provinces,
each of which had a Legislative Assembly
The Second Conference, however, proved no and a provincial government. The provinces
more successful. Gandhi recommended the would control almost all policies, with the
creation of a constitution without the agreement exception of defence and foreign affairs. The
of the minorities (Muslims, Hindu Depressed Legislative Assemblies would be mostly
Classes, Christians etc.). His ideas were rejected Indian.
and the Conference collapsed.
Each province would have an appointed
Third Round Table Conference governor, who retained the power to act in
The Third Round Table Conference was held in an emergency, for example to protect the
1932 without any representatives of the British interests of minorities, or maintain law and
Labour Party and Congress. It discussed the order.
franchise (the right to vote), finance and the role The Viceroy would still be appointed by the
of the Indian states, but could reach no decisions. British government at Westminster and
It broke up in 1933. By then, a National would be responsible for defence and
Government had been set up in Britain after the foreign affairs. But the Viceroy would have
collapse of the Labour government in August to follow the advice of an Executive
1931. The National Government was less ready to Committee (a committee of advisers), the
make any real changes in India and so decided to members of which were mostly Indian.
pass a second Government of India Act.
The Act kept the idea of communal represen
In India, the collapse and failure of the Round tations and so some seats were reserved for
Table Conferences led to increased non-co- Muslims and other groups. Altogether, 938
operation. Many Congress members were seats out 1525 were reserved for minorities.
arrested, including Jawaharlal Nehru. In fact,
between 1931 and 1935, Nehru spent most of his
time in prison, for refusing to obey orders
preventing him from attending Congress The second Government of India Act went about
conferences. He then left India for Europe with as far it was possible to go without granting
his wife, who was seriously ill. India complete Home Rule. The constitution
meant that almost all power in India now rested
The Government of India Act, 1935 in Indian hands and the Viceroy was forced to
The Government of India Act, 1935 was the result follow Indian advice in the few areas over which
of the failure of the Round Table Conferences. he retained control.
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c.1900-49 I8 9

Congress in the late 1930s However, Jinnah was prepared to use the Act,
Congress, however, rejected the Government of which he believed could work in the favour of
India Act because it wanted a complete break Muslims. Muhammad Ali Jinnah expected that
from Britain, not what it saw as a half way Congress would co-operate with the Muslim
house. It took the Act as evidence that the League and allow it a share in the government
British did not intend to give India complete posts in some provinces, where there was a
independence. Congress also objected to the Act Hindu majority. But Congress refused to give any
because it reserved seats for minority groups, posts to the League, and Nehru, on behalf of
like Muslims and the Indian princes. Congress Congress, rejected any offers from Jinnah.
wanted a strong central government of a united
India and it did not want the power of a future Congress and the Muslim League
government limited in any way. There were two main reasons for the actions of
Congress. The first was the poor showing of the
Jawaharlal Nehru returned to India in 1937 in
Muslim League in the 1937 elections. It won
time for the campaign for the first elections to
only 5 per cent of the total Muslim vote and
the new parliament after the Government of
only 22 per cent of the seats reserved for
India Act. He wanted Congress to take part in
Muslims. This encouraged many Congress
the elections, but then to boycott the
leaders to believe that the League was not a
assemblies. However, the majority of Congress
serious opponent.
leaders wanted to take the opportunity that the
Act offered. The second reason was much more significant.
Congress wanted to create a strong united India
In the 1937 elections, the first under the
and not a weak federal state. It did not want
Government of India Act, Congress won 715
minorities, like Muslims and Sikhs, to have
seats, out of a total of 1585. Congress took
provinces that they already controlled. Congress
power in eight states, but only after a statement
also claimed to represent all Indians, so
that there would be no interference from
accepting an alliance with the Muslim League
governors. Nehru opposed the decision to take
would seem like a step in the wrong direction.
office, but later accepted it. When the first
parliament met in 1937, Gandhi was replaced as The result of this disagreement was the first real
leader of Congress by Jawaharlal Nehru. split between Congress and the Muslim League.
Jinnah was furious at the treatment that he
The Muslim League in the late 1930s received from Congress and became determined
The Government of India Act was an important to build up the Muslim League. In the next two
turning point in relations between Congress and years, support for the League grew rapidly. In
the Muslim League. Until 1927, the two the late 1930s, the League began to campaign
organisations had often worked together, but for a separate Muslim state.
since then they had begun to drift apart. In the
Until the late 1930s there were many Muslims in
1930s, Jinnah (see page 186) had become
Congress. An important affect of the attitude of
increasingly annoyed because he believed that
Congress leaders was to persuade many Muslim
Congress was refusing to work with him for
members of Congress to resign and join the
Independence.
Muslim League. This increased Jinnahs support
and made him a much more important figure in
The Muslim League and the Government of
India.
India Act
In 1935, the Muslim League also rejected the
Government of India Act because it did not offer
enough power to Muslims. Most of the provinces
would be controlled by Congress and there
would be no protection for Muslim minorities.

Questions | Source A
1 Why were the Round Table Conferences
The Hindus and Muslims belong to two
held?
different religious philosophies, social
2 Why did the Round table Conferences fail customs and literature. They neither
to reach agreement? intermarry, nor dine together and indeed
they belong to two different civilisations,
3 Why was the Government of India Act
which are based on conflicting ideas. To join
passed in 1935?
together two such nations under a single
4 In what ways did the Government of India state, one as a minority and one as a
Act change the ways that India was majority, must lead to growing discontent
governed? and the final destruction of such a state.
5 Why did Congress and the Muslim League
both reject the Government of India Act? A Part of the Lahore declaration made by
Mohammed Ali jinnah in March 1940 at a
conference held by the Muslim League.
The impact of war on India and

Britain
In September 1939, Lord Linlithgow, the Viceroy,
without consulting the Indian Assembly,
announced that India had declared war on
Germany. This was an unwise move because,
according to the Government of India Act, the
Viceroy was supposed to consult the Executive
Committee before making important decisions
on foreign affairs and defence. Linlithgows
decision brought the disagreements between
Congress and the Muslim League to a head.
The Muslim League backed the declaration of
war on Germany and supported the British
government throughout. This gave Jinnah the
opportunity to make further claims for a
separate Muslim state. In March 1940, Jinnah
spoke of a Muslim state for the first time. This
became know as the Lahore Declaration. He
adopted the name Pakistan, which means Land
of the Pure, and which is also an acronym of
the names of the provinces of North-West India:
Punjab, Afghan Frontier, Kashmir, Sind and
Baluchistan. During the war, the League became
a much more powerful force and increased its A Jinnah addressing the world press at a
membership to more than 2 million people. conference in London, December 1946.
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c.1900-49 191

The reaction of Congress to the outbreak of war
I
The reaction of Congress was quite different. In
September 1939, Gandhi urged the British
government to negotiate with Hitler and to use
peaceful methods. To most Congress members,
especially those with knowledge of events in
Europe, this was not a practicable course to
take. Jawaharlal Nehru, who had just returned
from Europe, believed that India should support
Britain against fascism, but should do so of its
own free choice. He did not object to India
being involved in the war against Germany. But
he believed that Indians should have had the
right to decide for themselves.
Congress supported Nehru and refused to accept
the Viceroys announcement that India was at
war without the Indian Assembly being
consulted. All the Congress state governments
resigned in protest at the Viceroys actions. The
following year, in July 1940, Congress asked that
a National Government should be set up as a
reward for Indian support during the war. The
Viceroy was unable to make any such promise,
so Congress decided to restart civil
disobedience. Nehru and nearly 1700 leading
members of Congress were arrested in 1940.
This was the beginning of a very important
period in Indian history. Just at a time when
Britain desperately needed Indian support,
Congress set itself on a path that reduced its A Jawaharlal Nehru and Sir Stafford Cripps in India.
influence on Indian affairs. For much of the next
five years, Congress leaders were either in jail or
refusing to co-operate with the British. At exactly
the same time, the Muslim League steadily want to join the new India should be allowed to
increased its influence by supporting the war become an independent country.
effort.
Nehru and Congress rejected the offer of full
Dominion status at the end of the war. Instead,
The Cripps Mission
they demanded immediate cabinet government
The situation in India did not go unnoticed in
with full power and decisions taken by Indians
Britain. It became even more significant after the
in India. Congress also did not want provinces
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December
to be allowed to become independent because
1941. By early 1942, it was obvious that
it wanted a united India with a strong central
Japanese forces might well invade India and so,
government. The British government refused
in April 1942, Sir Stafford Cripps was sent to
Congresss demands.
India with an offer of full Dominion status, and
the right to leave the Empire and Congress decided instead to support the non
Commonwealth as soon as the war was over. He violent Quit India campaign, which Gandhi
also suggested that any province which did not announced in August 1942.

Subhas Chandra Bose and the Indian National
| Source D Army
The most extreme opposition to British rule
I want freedom immediately, this very night, during the Second World War came from Subhas
before dawn, if it can be had. Congress must Chandra Bose. He was a former friend and
win freedom or be wiped out in the effort. colleague of Jawaharlal Nehru in Congress. In
We shall either free India or die in the 1939, he resigned from Congress because he
attempt. opposed Gandhis non-violent methods. He
formed the Forward Bloc, which used militant
methods to gain independence.
A Gandhi announcing the Quit India campaign
in 1942. When the Second World War broke out, Bose
declared his support for the Axis powers
(Germany, Italy and Japan). He was arrested by
The Quit India campaign the British, but then escaped and fled to Nazi
Gandhis demand was for immediate Germany. After the outbreak of war in the
independence. He threatened mass non-violent Pacific, he was sent by the Germans to
action if his demands were not met. He Singapore. There the Japanese allowed him to
demanded that the British leave India recruit Indian prisoners of war to form the
immediately, although the armed forces fighting Indian National Army. He was able to persuade
the Japanese could stay. This was an impossible about 20,000 Indian volunteers to join him, and
demand to make in the middle of a world war.
There would have been almost no way that
Britain could have carried out a withdrawal and
continued to fight the Japanese.
Almost immediately, demonstrations began in
many Indian cities. At first, these were peaceful
as Gandhi had demanded,- but later they often
turned violent. Gandhis policy of Satyagraha
was rarely understood properly by his followers.
Police stations, government offices, railways and
telephone lines were all attacked. Supplies for
the Army fighting against the Japanese were
held up.
The effects of the Quit India campaign

The disturbances had very serious effects. About
30,000 troops had to be sent to restore order
and there were more than 1000 deaths. The
British retaliated, as they had done in the past,
by arresting many leading members of Congress
including Gandhi. Most remained in prison until
1944. Nehru was re-arrested after his release
and imprisoned until 1945.
Even more serious for Congress was the fact
that it was actually declared illegal and its funds
were seized. From 1942 to 1944, Congress
virtually ceased to exist.
A Subhas Chandra Bose.
Chapter 8 Nationalism and independence in India: c. 1900-49 193

I
fought in the Japanese attempts to invade India members and in the provincial elections in 1945
from Burma. In 1943, Bose formed the it won 90 per cent of the Muslim seats. This
Provisional Government of Free India, but was meant that Congress could not afford to
killed in a plane crash in Taiwan in 1945. disregard the League as it had attempted to do
in the late 1930s. It also meant that the British
There was little real support for the Indian
now regarded the League as the equal of
National Army in India. After the war, its leaders
Congress when it came to negotiations about
were arrested, put on trial for treason and then
the future of India.
sentenced to transportation for life (removal to
a penal colony). Congress was outraged and But even within the Muslim League it was
protested strongly. The sentences were hurriedly expected that, once the war was over, Britain
changed to dismissal from the army. would withdraw from India. The views of the
League were shared by many other Indians. The
Despite the failure of the Indian National Army,
Indian Army had remained loyal to the British
many Indian soldiers who had fought against
throughout the war, as had many middle-class
the Japanese returned home with new ideas of
Indians. But, once the war ended, support for
independence. Under Japanese rule, nationalist
Britain began to disappear.
movements had begun in many areas of South
East Asia; troops returning to India brought
these ideas back with them.
How did the Second World War change the

Questions
political situation in India? 1 Why were many Indians angry at the
Until 1939, Congress was the dominant force in declaration of war by the Viceroy in 1939?
Indian politics. In 1937, it had won a clear
victory in the elections after the Government of 2 How did Congress and the Muslim League
India Act of 1935 and had formed the react to the declaration of war?
government in eight of the eleven provinces. 3 Why did Gandhi begin the Quit India
During the war, Congress almost ceased to exist campaign?
as a political force. This did not mean that
Indians stopped supporting Congress and its 4 Why did the Muslim League become more
aims, but, with most Congress leaders in jail influential during the Second World War?
and its funds in British hands, there was little
that Congress could do from 1942 onwards.
On the other hand, the Muslim League
expanded rapidly during the Second World War. Independence and partition: the role
Even in the late 1930s it had still been a of Mountbatten
relatively minor organisation. In the 1937
elections, it had performed very badly, winning Britain in 1945
only 5 per cent of the Muslim vote. By In 1945, Britain was triumphant - it had won the
supporting the British throughout the war and war (but at a tremendous cost). Financially,
by refusing to back the protests of Congress, Britain was exhausted. Since 1939, Britain had
the League became much more influential and spent more than 1000 million on India. There
won many more members. During the war, the was no way that Britain could afford to go on
League had its first opportunity to win the spending like that. Something had to be done
backing of the British for a separate Muslim to cut expenditure and an obvious way to do
state, Pakistan. this was to grant independence to India.
By 1945, the Muslim League was a force to be A second reason for independence was the
reckoned with. It had grown to 2 million election of a Labour government in July 1945.

A Clement Attlee, on the other hand, did not
believe in Britains right to an Empire.
A Winston Churchill did not believe in granting
India independence.
Winston Churchill, the previous Prime Minister, independent was one thing, deciding what form
had been strongly opposed to allowing India to independence would take was quite another.
become independent. The members of the Congress, as always, wanted a united India with
Labour cabinet, led by Clement Attlee, did not a strong central government, but, since 1940,
believe that Britain had a right to govern the the Muslim League appeared to want an
Empire. They wanted to give India independence independent Pakistan. The British government
as quickly as possible. sent the Cabinet Mission to try to solve the
problem.
India in 1945
It soon became clear that the situation in India The Cabinet Mission
was getting out of control. Throughout the war The Cabinet Mission was sent to India to report
the Indian armed forces and police had on the situation and recommend a structure for
remained loyal to Britain. If they had not, Britain an independent India. It discovered that the two
could not have retained control of India. But, in sides - Congress and the League - were at
February 1946, there was a mutiny in the Indian loggerheads and that it was absolutely
Navy in Mumbai (Bombay). The mutiny spread to impossible to reach a compromise.
the Indian Army. The mutinies made the
The Cabinet Mission rejected Jinnahs demands
situation even clearer; they meant that Britain
for a Muslim state and instead recommended a
could no longer govern India.
united India with protection for Muslims. It
However, deciding to allow India to become suggested that the provinces should be grouped

together, some with a Hindu
majority and some with a Muslim
majority. These would run the day-
to-day affairs of the provinces and
would control all areas of policy
except for foreign affairs, defence Bengal Governor Promises All Necessary Military Aid HIS BRIDE
and communications. These would

be controlled by the central
CALCUTTA LITTERED
government, which would be WITH DEAD IINCUTTOTAL
LIKELY
OF
formed from representatives of the Rioters Ignore Four-party B.A.O.R. WIVES
rr m Hrltlib look
provincial groups. A new Assembly * r -
Appeal to Ine nf Annum home*.
With flcrmsns showing cos
would be elected in Delhi. Stop Fratricidal Struggle
eers at feeing ordered to lur
Isnneuncement said
The Cabinet Missions proposals BRITISH troops carrying machine-guns or in armoured cars last t e g '
night patrolled the streets of Calcuttastill littered with bodies W -t*!
after three days of rioting, arson and looting, consequent on the
Moslem League's Direct Action call. Squatters F
also went against the aims of No official statem ent hs* yet been issued 011 n A f ,, , , Central
total casualties. but the last unofficial estimate
put the death roll a t 1.000 and more than 4.000
H i I f .I I I I . I .
,U |,U &&rs
' a*egt
Committee
Nehru and Congress, who still tc rin s ly injured, wire* a 8.U.P. correspondent
. The situation last night 1 1 still serious in many
QDI IT*
( ' jj r - t rp rin
1
m,r *"10
part* of the rily. particularly,in the S.W, *jca and idlsnd* mi
wanted a united India - but they atjH ow iah across the R. Hoogli, but veteran police
officials consider it possible that the extreme of the I ndian cb n * lew
rioting has passed its peak.
V /U L .1 I I j U
| J who yesterday put (mu
Midland
A new flare-up of violence with ulahhln; nil rlnliiie;''.u,h'* lhf ** proTialoiwI!
appeared to be ready to accept RAILW.4YMEN wa<, hoiverer. reported from COMlpore industrial re*l(jwor*rajBM for Isdln
m *t Calcutta airport. taler laal lahl.
A Bciii.n
'!?*" !* ,* 2
w renorted to be .landini bv *wee
'
S i
iM .ntank PMdron l,m1 ,,k t tt*ckrt
*<* rl* ,M -r
the plan. Gandhi stated that it was STRIKE TODAY ? { r*tT
liu T ii,
UwSrtssSSm * Mr J h
veaier
-R.*t
the loeomotire. esrrlage aw) wages wfk re.W M
Mrsilerd, l.onden. will mwl this crowds in 8.
1.09 sum and women surround by houtftiaiiSKS
Calcutta.
_**?_ f t! a former t &
the best the British government Mil

whether to to to work ar In trike
he company yesterday: " About 4.00
Bath police and troop an* report to haw a pcned Arc to rale Slaslams wti IrttH i
T""" H0*V.If0 :" 5
'Vr,rti2
- 1'iftner pmtdeni pleteSy - -
- "-*'i hit*y, oi 1.0W H:l>. Wolver-
could have produced. Keep Off the Streets
Mi>?e police awl military picket* war* demanded by .......... *>
...............- ..I Con- ................rh was met bv '
New Delhi ys(er<i.v hiishand, Sergt. H, Blsbay.
n the pet*snet ot
ôngre* leaden In Calcutta and hy a conference of Oovimmenf. jald Montgomery Sails for home of Karl nte<aM
V i BEAUTY-SPOT prominent citizen calVd by the Bengal Premier, Mr. H. S. Congre
8uhrawrdy. )*t night Sir Frederick B a n .. Govern-w form
** prepare^ to
a Government of 14-
Even though the Cabinet Missions K S
S jh,
MURDER
S ,1.1p.
W I*P M nth . :
ilx representaUvM of Con
of Bengal. promised that al! military Id neeary will be tre. five nt Ibe Moslem C.I/i.S .^'ilrd frowlêrpooi
ailed out 11 warned Indians to Keep ail the street and Uagne. *tul three from othr
minoriti*. yesterday for Canada Ir
ary ramp loixw-
t
proposals did not meet the IS bark sn|yeterda, *-,

morning' I**?
;hesutlful f.
f,1* rnMii Bengal
Appeals to top Oil fratricidal war," mac
political leader*-Sara! Chandra Base.
leader in the Lett Saliva Ateemblv. Kiran Shankar Bey.
pmident of the Bengal Congress Party. Hussein Shahe*
Congress nrADUKK ABSOLUTE
the
ccipted from Britain, Attem pt to Scuttle
BVl'll i*1"1W inn.,h!l* ftuhrawardy. Premier of Bengal. ond Khwaja Magimuridtn. woufi? be formel' i ky Congre
demands of the Muslim League for BNKM B.
former Premircwere Ignored, The leader issued a
prorlamatkm trllinc the people ftai If flghtiftg contlnttr* VI the Leaeiie.
...... . . . .. ^ by tha military. Mr. Jionah yastarday t
Refugee Ship
mp <ir* : -. *
an independent Pakistan, the

_________ ____ I Lcag "peace volunteer" were
ihcered hy B rltl* troopt on picket duly. j s - i n * ; BEVIN AGAIN SE
Sit Nehru spent n twtur lst night with the
t.orfi Wnvrti, who li i rcpartad. *-III Dot herniate to
League also accepted the plan. ttlsmiaaai nt M/nlcm Leamt- la*rrs if Uioy siei
or Indirectly behind tht Ciktitta riot.*. LEADERS IN
I with the Help
VX/HILE Mr. Ernest Bevin and the Colont*J
Elections for the new Assembly VULTURES FOLLOW '

, ha . f #s*hi m eellse Ibe three JhWteh Ageae? r
'c. Stephen WfM anil Mr. Her) tocher, I r* r*
CIVIL WAR ; I attem pt to scuttle a refugee ship a t Haifa.
took place, in which Congress won Tra* B.V-P. Special C m np n4em .

CAIXIOTTA. Sunday. *nc* lor he rebel ms the -CW..!
an Zvai iumi. H
nr, >: organisatie
h froii.t (.rsafMM-.in,-,
last atttht threstend reprisai
'PHK vulture ar over Calcutta, At daybreak the erond *l'on f X d "-M a r.h a l irder? if the death sentonoe
1 city si (be Empire prenaaled *n incredible sltht. i.-r*d out on 16 eORvletad
205 seats and the Muslim League The tench of death roj TWe i a remxlrx-i
favell.- Mr. Jinnah sdded,
India Office Stops
member o! the Rlern Osng.
era! hundred Jtwlsh
r t ^ t . is thl M ânnatlv* ln. Cafcutta. Reeniltins
euhed the p^tfom of
"ssm.:
won 73. tj Dwd\
d|p*vmenu
mw Native*
nt.
., , a a r ,
with -tjib j., Moalen,.
The India Office announced
M> prot! meeting ta
Aviv yesterday, when
CZECH-POLISH
But, after the results were PACT SIG NED
!a
PVe imm Civil orviee.
PsSltles! Servi __
li omelal ked II
Ian Police unde? the
announced, Congress went back airly haen done.
recrjiltment srhei A ftm p of youths wuildi
iiibs then twinned to t
r hathing a s
and WINS MINGLED Fre Ports Urgedj;

, jhnlve*. nafl-studded cii irx 'stform, .eid te micro- /tu-ir let...
hone, and irii to hsrsngue Immigrant woi
on its decision and rejected the ed* WITH BLOOD for Canada
ieevd A half-hour m go anywhere i
osd iih Jew Sghtlng
lio n s
No Speed Record ;
THE T H IS RED
i *atcb*d on moh raid if
srtiie hop. They e
*lsn to estsblbh free ports , onv*tiv sgains.
Canads'f otesn hsf*ur; |
plan. Nehru may have been Attempt Yet LIN E unload goods ii
mingled with red IunafTei'iee
surprised by the success of the

Muslim League in the elections. He stated that A Violence in Calcutta was headline news in
Congress was not bound by a single thing. Britain.
When Congress refused to accept the Cabinet
plan, the Muslim League also withdrew support.
Direct Action was intended as a series of
So the situation was now back to square one.
nationwide peaceful demonstrations by Muslims.
In most of India that was what it turned out to
Direct Action
be. Muslims marched to protest at the tactics of
Jinnah was angry that Congress had turned
Congress and the British. But, in some areas,
down the Cabinet Missions proposals. He
Calcutta in particular, local leaders interpreted
believed that Congress had broken their
Jinnahs appeals as calls for violence.
agreement to accept it and decided to try to put
pressure on Congress and the British. He called In Calcutta, Muslims attacked Hindu shopkeepers
for Direct Action on 16 August 1946. and Hindu mobs retaliated. There were about

A Jinnah called for peaceful protests, but violence erupted in some areas,
including Calcutta. Here, a Hindu lies dead in the street.
5000 deaths. The British were unable to stop In late 1946, the Viceroy, Lord Wavell, told the
the violence. Similar scenes occurred in other government in Britain that the situation in India
parts of India. Jinnah was horrified by the results was getting out of control. He informed the
of his actions, but the damage had already been Prime Minister, Clement Attlee, that the British
done. Direct Action showed just how far apart might have to get out of India and leave the
the two communities really were. Indians to sort everything out. Attlee refused to
accept that solution and decided to try to force
Gandhi tried to stop the violence by visiting the
the two sides in India to reach a compromise.
areas and meeting Muslim leaders. He fasted to
He fixed a date for British withdrawal from India:
force Hindus to stop attacking Muslims.
they would leave no later than June 1948.
What were the effects of Direct Action?
The appointment of Mountbatten
Both Congress and the Muslim League were
To speed up British withdrawal, a new Viceroy,
appalled by the violence and agreed to join the
Lord Mountbatten, was appointed in February
Viceroys interim government. This was a
1947. He was the last Viceroy of India.
temporary government that had been set up
Mountbatten was chosen because he had served
when the two sides refused to accept the
in India and South-East Asia during the Second
Cabinet Missions proposals. But Congress and
World War and it was felt that he understood
the Muslim League were unable to work
the situation in India. He took office in February
together. In the meantime, violence spread
1947 and advised the Prime Minister, Clement
across Northern India.

A Nehru, Ismay, Mountbatten and jinnah.
two religions) to Nehru and Jinnah on 3 June
Attlee, that a date should be fixed for 1947. He announced that two countries would
Independence. Attlee decided that the British be created, India and Pakistan.
would leave at midnight on 28 August 1947,
The plan did not meet the aims of either
nearly a year earlier than first planned.
Congress or the Muslim League. Partition had
Mountbatten also insisted that he should have
always been opposed by Congress and the
complete power to take whatever decisions he
League had claimed the provinces of Bengal and
felt were necessary in order to achieve
the Punjab. However, Congress accepted
Independence. There was to be no interference
Mountbattens plan because it simply could not
from the British cabinet or anyone else.
see any alternative. If the British were
determined to leave on 28 August, partition
The partition of India
seemed to be the only option. At the same time,
The consequences of Direct Action were a major
Jinnah agreed to the division of Bengal and the
factor in the decision of the British government
Punjab, which he had wanted to be entirely
and Lord Mountbatten to insist on bringing
within Pakistan.
about partition and Independence as soon as
possible. When Mountbatten had arrived in To reduce the communal violence and other
India, he found that communal violence between border squabbles, Mountbatten brought forward
Muslims and Hindus was growing and, because the date of Independence by 14 days to
of this, he became convinced that a united India midnight on 14 August 1947. This meant that
was impossible. He presented a plan for Independence would take place in less than two
partition (to divide the county into areas for the and a half months. British India and all of its

=8Sifgg||f|^
possessions had to be separated into two in in less than three months. Much of this work
that space of time. Officials began to divide the had to be done with out-of-date maps and legal
finances, the resources of the Army, the civil documents.
service and all other government agencies and
Radcliffe completed his work on time and
departments.
Pakistan became independent on 14 August
1947. India became independent the following
Setting the border
day. But the decisions of the Radcliffe
The most difficult task was to divide India itself:
Commission left 5 million Muslims in India and
deciding where the border between India and
5 million Hindus in Pakistan. Sikhs, who had
Pakistan would lie. Mountbatten set up the
argued for special treatment and an independent
Radcliffe Commission, headed by Sir Cyril
country of their own, were ignored altogether.
Radcliffe, a British judge, to fix the border
For many people, memories of the events of
between the two countries. The Commission
1946 to 1947 remained strong, and so they tried
drew a dividing line between India and Pakistan
AFGHANISTAN
Amritsar
BHUTAN
WEST
PAKISTAN
Lucknow
Allahabad Benares
Karachi
Ahmadabad
BURMA
PAKISTAN
Bombay
Hyderabad
BBEANYGOALF
ARASBEAIAN
Muslims as % of total population
Over 60% 20% - 40%

Madras
langalore*
40% - 60% 0% - 20%
Boundary between India and
\ Pakistan, 14 August 1947
600 km Muslim refugees to Pakistan
I CEYLON
1 Hindu refugees to India
400 miles
INDIAN OCEAN
A Map showing the partition of India and Pakistan.

A Muslim women boarding a train in New Delhi, en route to Pakistan.
to cross the border in the months after was what was going to happen to the Indian
Independence. princes, who ruled 40 per cent of India. He
announced that they could decide whether they
The movement of refugees from India to
wanted to join India or Pakistan. By 15 August
Pakistan and from Pakistan to India led to
1947, all but three states had chosen.
widespread violence. At least 600,000 people
Hyderabad and Junagadh were forcibly occupied
were killed in the Punjab alone. Trains carrying
by the Indian Army, but in Kashmir there was a
refugees were stopped and thousands were
Hindu ruler of a mainly Muslim state. After a
slaughtered. There was almost nothing that the
Muslim revolt, the ruler appealed to India for
authorities of the two new countries could do
help and Kashmir was occupied by both Indian
about it.
and Pakistani forces. Since 1947, India and
Pakistan have argued, and from time to time
The princely states
fought over, this area.
One issue that Mountbatten did not deal with

A Independence Day celebrations in India, 15 August 1947-
Questions
1 Why did the British government decide to
make India independent after the Second
World War?
2 Why was the Cabinet Mission sent to
India in 1946?
3 Why did Jinnah call for Direct Action?
4 Why did Attlee decide to send
Mountbatten to India?
5 Why was India partitioned in 1947?
6 Why did Partition lead to widespread

violence in parts of India?

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Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 101

A A formation of Stuka dive-bombers.

102 Modern World History

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 103

104 Modern World History

extremes of temperature and the reserves Peart

ivas forced to surrender. It was the first major >Guam

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 105

106 Modern World History

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 10 7

108 Modern World History

1942. US intelligence was able to break the

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 109

A A painting of a Japanese aircraft carrier under fire at Midway Island.

110 Modern World History

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 111

Appeasement, Chamberlain and the outbreak of war

A From Neville Chamberlains diary, 20 March 1938,

A From a letter written by Neville

A Photograph of Neville Chamberlain who was greeted by cheering

1 12 Modern World History

A From the Daily Express, 30 September 1938.

A A comment on Chamberlains policy of appeasement from a modern history book.

Study Source A Study Sources D and E

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 113

Reasons for early German success

Modern World History

From a description of the German advance in 1940 written by General Rommel.

A Germans troops advancing in the Ardennes in May 1940.

Study Source A Study all of the sources

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 115

Falls and survivals / Invasion of the Soviet Union

116 Modern World History

A German attacks on the Soviet Union in 1941,

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 117

The causes of war in the Pacific

A From the diary of Harry Hopkins, one of Roosevelts advisers,

A The damage inflicted by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

118 Modern World History

A From a speech made by President Roosevelt on 8 December 1941.

Study Source A Study Sources D and E

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 119

Reasons for German defeat

A From a modern history textbook referring to events in 1944.

A The D-Day landings, 6 June 1944.

120 Modern World History

A A photograph of the D-Day landings at Omaha beach in June 1944.

A From a modern history textbook.

Study Source A Study Sources D and E

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45 121

Reasons for the defeat of Japan

A From the radio broadcast made by the Emperor of japan

122 Modern World History

A From a history book published in the

A From evidence given to a committee by the US

Study Source A Study all of the sources

Chapter 5 The world at war: 1938-45

Essential Information prevent Ho Chi Minh from bringing communist

Reasons for US involvement in

124 Modern World History

Chapter 6 Conflict in Vietnam: 0 .1963-75 125

126 Modern World History