The Empire at Sunset: Production, Finance, and British Grand Strategy 1941-42

Roof, Abraham

The Empire at Sunset: Production, Finance, and British Grand Strategy 1941-42

atmire.migration.oldid	2320
dc.contributor.advisor	Ferris, John
dc.contributor.author	Roof, Abraham
dc.date.accessioned	2014-08-21T15:13:59Z
dc.date.available	2014-11-17T08:00:41Z
dc.date.issued	2014-08-21
dc.date.submitted	2014	en
dc.description.abstract	The year following the collapse of France was a dark one for Britain. It had become the sole great power resisting the Axis. Whilst lucky to have escaped from Dunkirk with its army, Britain had to leave most of its land-based military equipment behind on the beaches. It found itself fighting not only alone, but starting almost from scratch. The nature of this period of the war, and Britain’s leading role in it, is overshadowed by subsequent British decline and the debate over it. The traditional narrative of the Second World War holds that during 1940-41 Britain was out-produced by Germany and by superior American industrial capacity, allowing America to save the day by supplying its allies and its own forces, with Britain playing an important, secondary role. In fact, Britain’s 1941-42 is a success story—though one with high costs. It was the last time Britain harnessed its strength as the world’s greatest power. Britain knew well that to defeat Nazism, its place in the world must decline, the only question being, how far? To finance the war, Britain liquidated its own assets before Lend-Lease. It passively acquiesced when Canada moved away from the Imperial system. Production from the U.S. was not forthcoming and, even so, Britain sent aid to Russia, which it correctly calculated was the critical theatre of the war. This decision, in turn, damaged the strength of Britain’s own forces in North Africa, and indirectly in Singapore, and sullied its relationship with Australia. Britain’s 1941-42 is, then, a key moment when Britain made bold, costly and ultimately effective sacrifices for the greater good.	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Roof, A. (2014). The Empire at Sunset: Production, Finance, and British Grand Strategy 1941-42 (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/28125	en_US
dc.identifier.doi	http://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/28125
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/11023/1689
dc.language.iso	eng
dc.publisher.faculty	Graduate Studies
dc.publisher.institution	University of Calgary	en
dc.publisher.place	Calgary	en
dc.rights	University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.
dc.subject	History--Canadian
dc.subject	History--European
dc.subject	History--Military
dc.subject.classification	Lend-Lease	en_US
dc.subject.classification	British Empire	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Second World War	en_US
dc.title	The Empire at Sunset: Production, Finance, and British Grand Strategy 1941-42
dc.type	doctoral thesis
thesis.degree.discipline	History
thesis.degree.grantor	University of Calgary
thesis.degree.name	Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
ucalgary.item.requestcopy	true