Britain and Ww Factors Which

Britain and WW

Factors which caused Britain to Lose WWII

Factors which Caused Britain to Lose WW11

The Great Britain lost the World War 11 though it had enjoyed the portion of eminence in the period after the World War 1. The reasons are classified under two main heads; lack of foresightedness and inability to face the opponent. The other countries had made strong technological development which paved the way for their success.

Factors which Caused Britain to Lose WW11

The history has been witnessing the rise and downfall of many countries since long. The superpowers of one era have been crushed in some other period, while the deprived nations have succeeded in changing the face of the world. It is no exaggeration to mention that every country has passed through all the stage of development and the present state of a country is the outcome of a long journey which might have started centuries ago.

Besides national affairs, there have been many events at international platform which forcefully changed the state of affairs in a country and determined its fate in a manner which was quite unpredictable before occurrence of these events. The two World Wars are examples of these events which have printed lasting impact over the fortune of the countries.

This paper casts light upon the history of the Great Britain in a particular perspective of its boom after the World War 1 (WW1) and then failure in the World War 11 (WW11). The paper explains the factors which did not go in the favour of the Great Britain when it participated in WW11 and eventually it lost its power over many countries.

The World War 1 lasted from 1914-1918[footnoteRef:2]. It was the period of political disturbance in the world and major reforms in the field of science and technology were carried out. The Great Britain, being a developed country enjoyed the wave of scientific development and invested many things which surprised the whole world[footnoteRef:3]. In addition to technological advancements, it rightly identified the need to have close connections with other parts of the world, hence trade activities were started. In its quest to boom its economy even further, the Gear Britain conquered many areas by force and some others by economy. The consequence was increased rule of Britain over major part of the world. [2: David Stevenson, 1914-1918: the history of the First World War (USA: Penguin, 2004).] [3: John Turner, Britain and the First World War (Australia, Unwim Human Ltd., 1988), 70-85.]

The situation continued to prevail for few decades. It was the time when next generation of deprived nations was born and the young individuals did not like the inherited bondage of the Great Britain. The riots and protests started massively in many countries. As the Great Britain was emerging economically, it was paving way for many foes which united themselves in the form of alliance and another war broke out. It took the form of World War 11, and despite its proper planning and vision, the Great Britain could not achieve victory.

The reasons for failure are described below.

As mentioned earlier, the Great Britain was enjoying the portion of eminence in technological development. After WW1, it succeeded in winning the competitive edge among other nations. After enjoying the distinguished position for a decade or so, the focus was shifted from technological development to political issues. The diversion caused the Great Britain to lack behind in the race of technological development. On the other hand, countries like Germany and other ones were seriously involved in research related activities. They developed new weapons and warfare technology which was unbeatable by the Great Britain. It lost the war because of its classical technology which could not help it face the state of the art attacks made by the opponents.

An important reason, for low priority on research and design related activities, was the intention to avoid the war if there is any in the future. After the World War 1, the Great Britain was not in the favour of another great war. In other words, the anticipation of next world war was not in the plans of the Great Britain. Furthermore, if it came across the probability of war, it was not its plan to participate. Hence, focus on technological development with respect to warfare was ignored. It is ironic to state that a country which was leading the world in particular period of time ignored the possibility of having war. It is surprising to quote that the Great Britain could not comprehend the changed direction of winds which was starting to blow against it. Yet, in another words, it can be said that the Great Britain ignored the concept of self defence which forced it to deviate from developing defence related machinery and equipment.

When the War started and the Great Britain realised that it too was the part in it, it started its planning but it was too late to react in the right manner. The reactive approach forced the Great Britain to address the preset issues only and no long-term plan could be devised which could save it from ultimate failure in the war.

An important reason behind failure in the World War 11 was role played by the United States[footnoteRef:4]. The United States emerges as the super power and it led the war in its desirable manner. Furthermore, it was leading in the technological developments including warfare and state of the art arms, the initiatives made by the Great Britain were readily collapsed. [4: Mark Henry, the U.S. Navy in World War II (UK: Osprey Publishing Limited, 2012), 4-12]

There were few other countries along with USA which had conducted deep research in war related equipment particularly the aircraft and related technologies[footnoteRef:5]. These countries gave hard time to the Great Britain and it could no long confront with them during the war. [5: Mark Barber, the British Fleet Air Arm in World War II (UK: Osprey Publishing Limited, 2012), 3 -- 10. ]

In addition to sir routes, an important role was played by sea routes which were connecting the countries. The Great Britain tried its best to maintain its supremacy in managing sea routes, but Germany was more qualified in this battlefield as well. Germany took over the command of sea routes[footnoteRef:6] and the Great Britain was left with no option to protect itself or face the opponent from any front or angle. [6: Samuel Eliot Morison, History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. (Illinois: University of Illinois, 2002), 56.]