Churchill vs. Attlee
- Winston Churchill was adamant that India and other colonies would not be free.
- He did not take Britain's internal needs and the changed world into account.
- Clement Attlee was aware that Britain needed to change and started to free more colonies.
- The empire was no longer practical.
Britain and World War II
- Financially drained
- Broken infrastructure
- Britain embraced democracy to separate itself from Axis forces.
America's role in British decolonization
- The USA was the new dominant force, and they strongly supported democracy.
- President Franklin D. Roosevelt was a strong supporter of decolonization.
- The Atlantic Charter, which he issued with Churchill in 1941, guaranteed the "right for all people to choose the government under which they will live."
Independent India and Pakistan
- The Indian National Congress vs. All-India Muslim League
- India and East/West Pakistan
- The release of this large colony was important for changing Britain's image.
- Both countries became part of the Commonwealth of Nations.
The Commonwealth of Nations
- Former colonies agreed to "remain united as free and equal members...co-operating in pursuit of peace, liberty, and progress."
- People saw this as preserving the empire in a new form.
India in World War II and the Indian resistance
- India was a huge and important colony.
- British-educated Indian leaders initially supported Indian participation.
- People started to get dissatisfied with England.
"The condition for India's usefulness in the war is India's freedom." -Annie Besant
Ceylonese Independence
- The Sinhala Buddhist nationalist movement pushed for rights.
- Soulbury Commission (1946)
- As time passed, the Sinhalese leaders, Solomon Bandaranaike and D.S. Senanayake, proved to British government that they were ready.
- This was a very smooth process.
Ceylonese Independence
- Ceylon contributed greatly in World War II, especially against Japan.
- The British-educated leaders realized that they were not getting enough rights.
- A strong nationalist movement emerged from this sentiment.
Kenyan Decolonization
- Kenya contributed the most to WWII out of the British African colonies.
- Initially, it seemed that Kenya was going to get independence easily.
- This changed with the emergence of the Kenya African Union and the Mau Mau Rebellion.
Kenyan Independence
- A violent group known as the Mau Mau attacked many Europeans living in Kenya, pushing back the decolonization movement.
- This rebellion was ended with difficulty.
- Meanwhile, Jomo Kenyatta and his party, the Kenya African National Union, began to gain support.
- They showed Britain that they could effectively govern Kenya
The spread of democracy after World War II changed the geopolitical climate to such an extent that Britain was no longer able to keep her colonies.
Kushal Modi