Just Finished Reading: Britain in the Nineteen Thirties by Noreen Branson and Margot Heinemann (FP: 1971)

It was called the ‘Hungry Thirties’ for a good reason. After the effects of the Crash of ’29 reverberating around the world governments, including in Britain, cut back on essential services and all aspects of government spending. Building projects were cancelled or postponed, pensions curtailed, civil service pay cut, teachers pay cut, unemployment pay cut. As the ripples spread and unemployment bloomed the primitive social security system strained, buckled and cracked. As working class destitution spread so did strikes, protest marches and civil disobedience. The police responded with a heavy hand and tensions grew. More and more people moved to political extremes, not just in the working class but throughout the whole structure of society. What was happening in Europe was clear to anyone who read the newspapers. With Communists and Fascists fighting on the streets throughout the Continent it was only a matter of time before it happened here – in England. So it did, with the rise of Moseley’s Blackshirt’s and widespread talk of the failure of democracy to solve the economic problems evident throughout the western world.

A good chunk, at least half if not more, of this detailed and often fascinating book covers the plight of the working class and the growing army of unemployed in this period of economic stagnation and political upheaval. Complete with charts, graphs and statistics is shows just how badly those on the lower end of the social scale suffered disproportionally to pay for the government’s clear inability to cope with the Great Depression (despite admittedly radical advice from JM Keynes). Although definitely dry in places and very clearly coming from a Left wing perspective (not at all subtle and hard to miss) this section laid the foundations for the rest of the book dealing with Unionisation, the spread of left wing and often Communist ideas amongst the working class, the structural changes in the class system during the period with a growing technological able middle class gaining strength year on year, the growth of education and educationally opportunity, the change in house ownership, the rise of mass media and much else besides.

Several things really jumped out at me in the second half of the book. One of which was the beginnings of public opinion survey’s which, for the first time actually gauged the thoughts of all classes of people to events of the day. One of the most important of the time were questions around the government’s policy of Appeasement. It actually really surprised me that most of the public were against appeasing Germany and Italy despite wanting peace – just not at any price. I had always thought that the government was essentially doing what the people wanted – avoiding war. But apparently a large percentage of people thought that the government’s behaviour was deeply troubling and that our throwing the Czechs to the wolves was particularly bad. The final thing that jumped out was the fact that a significant number of the establishment either actively or passively supported, or at worst turned a blind eye to, the rise of Fascism in England until the ‘bully tactics’ became so blatant that they could no longer be ignored. Oddly (or maybe not) the Labour Party didn’t want to seem to aggravate those on the far-right and left it to local trade unionists and other activists to show that such forces can be overturned by violent street protests. Because of this Fascism never rose to prominence here.

Despite being a rather old volume, which I’ve had on my shelves for many years, this was an excellent foundation and introduction to my delving into the early years of the war (1939-41) and the rise of Churchill. I now have a pretty good handle on the situation which placed us in the position to oppose Germany so effectively in 1940. Much more to come on this theme. Recommended if you can get a copy.