Furthermore from 1939 all workers were entitled to a minimum of 1 weeks annual paid holiday. Before then the only paid holidays many people had were bank holidays.


World War II

When war began on 3 September 1939 it was feared that the Germans would bomb British cities causing great loss of life. So children from the cities were evacuated to the countryside. Altogether 827,000 schoolchildren with 103,000 teachers and helpers left the big cities. Furthermore 524,000 children below school age and their mothers left. However most of the 'evacuees' soon returned home. The bombing raid on British cities failed to materialize - at first. It became severe in 1940-41

Rationing in Britain began in September 1939 when petrol was rationed. As the war continued rationing became stricter and stricter. In January 1940 butter, sugar, bacon and ham were rationed. Tea was rationed from July 1940. Then in May 1941 cheese was rationed and from June 1941 eggs were rationed. From July 1941 clothes were rationed and you had to save up coupons to buy them. From July 1942 sweets were rationed.

From 1942 dried (powdered) egg arrived from the USA. Meanwhile the people were encouraged to 'dig for victory' and the amount of land under cultivation increased from 12 million acres in 1939 to 18 million acres in 1945.

On 7 September 1940 the Germans began bombing London and by 1 January 1941 over 13,000 Londoners were killed. Other cities heavily bombed during the 'blitz' included Birmingham, Coventry, Bristol, Portsmouth and Plymouth.

German bombing lessened after mid-1941 when Hitler invaded Russia. From then on most German armed forces were concentrated in the east. However in June 1944 the Germans unleashed a 'secret weapon'. It was kind of rocket called a VI flying bomb. (The British public called them 'doodlebugs'). From September 1944 V2 rockets were launched. altogether 1,115 V2s hit England and about half of them hit London. The last V2 was fired on 27 March 1945. At first the government claimed the explosions were caused by exploding gas mains (which didn't fool anybody!). They did not admit the truth until November 1944. Hitler called his new weapons vengeance weapons yet German bombing failed to dent British morale and it failed to seriously affect industrial output.

About 1 million houses were destroyed or severely damaged during World War II. About 40,000 civilians were killed. After the war Britain was left with a severe shortage of housing. The Housing Act of 1946 gave grants and subsidies for building houses. By 1951 900,000 new houses had been built.

Germany surrendered on 8 May 1945. Immediately afterwards a general election was held (the first since November 1935). The Labour party won by a landslide and Clement Attlee (1883-1967) became prime minister until 1951. The new government set about introducing a welfare state. By the National Insurance Act of 1946 everyone was entitled to unemployment benefit, sickness benefit, old age pensions and widows pensions. The National Health Service was introduced in 1948. (Many of the ideas for the welfare state were laid out by a Liberal named William Beveridge 1879-1963).

During World War II Britain was run by a coalition government. In 1944 it passed the Butler Education Act. (It was named after a Conservative, Richard Butler). In future all 11-year-old children would sit an exam (it became known as the 11+). Afterwards some went to grammar school to study academic subjects while others went to secondary modern schools to study technical subjects. In 1947 the school leaving age was raised to 15.

However the period 1945-1951 was one of 'national austerity' when many goods were in short supply and long queues were common. Rationing continued and it actually grew stricter than during the war. Conditions were hardest in 1947 when there was a severe winter. Bread was rationed in July 1946 and in November 1947 potatoes were rationed.

The Labour party also nationalized certain industries (made them state owned). Coal was nationalized in 1947. So were the railways. In 1948 gas and electricity were nationalized.

Meanwhile shortages gradually lessened. Clothes rationing ended in 1949 and petrol rationing ended in 1950. However rationing of butter and meat lasted until 1954.

However in the mid-1950s Britain became an affluent society. For the first time ordinary people had substantial amounts of money to spend on luxuries. Consumer goods became common. By 1960 44% of homes owned a washing machine. In 1959 about 2/3 of homes owned a vacuum cleaner.

In the 1960s washing machines and vacuum cleaners became near universal. Cars and fridges became common. Foreign holidays became common for the first time. Central heating, electric blankets, electric kettles and toasters and a host of other goods became common in the 1960s. By 1975 90% of homes had a vacuum cleaner, 85% had a fridge and 70% owned a washing machine. Furthermore 52% had a telephone and 47% had central heating.

Meanwhile until the mid-1970s there was full employment in most areas of Britain. For most of the period 1945-1973 unemployment was less than 5%. By 1973 it was creeping upwards but it was still only 3%.

From 1951 to 1964 Britain was ruled by the Conservatives. From 1951 to 1955 Winston Churchill was Prime Minister. Anthony Eden who was Prime Minister till 1957 replaced him. He was followed by Harold Macmillan who was prime minister till 1963.

Sir Alec-Douglas Home was prime minister for a short period in 1963-64. However in 1964 The Labour party won a general election and Harold Wilson became prime minister. Labour won another election in 1966. Wilson remained prime minister until 1970.

Meanwhile in the 1960s and 1970s most secondary schools became comprehensives. Also in the 1960s there was a big expansion of further and higher education. In 1945 there were only 17 universities. By the 1970s there were 46. There were also 30 polytechnics. (In 1992 they were upgraded to universities). Meanwhile in 1973 the school leaving age was raised to 16. In 1988 a national curriculum was introduced.

Meanwhile in the years after 1945 the trade unions grew very powerful. By 1970 their membership had almost doubled. Nearly half the workforce belonged to a union.

In the winter of 1972 the coal miners went on strike and the government was forced to give in to their demands. They went on strike again in the winter of 1974. This time Heath called an election in February 1974 on the issue 'who governs the country?'. However Heath lost the election and Wilson became prime minister again. Wilson won another election in October 1974.

Meanwhile in 1973 Britain joined the EEC (forerunner of the EU). The first elections for the European parliament were held in 1979.

By 1973 the long period of economic prosperity was coming to an end. By the spring of 1975 unemployment had climbed to 1 million. It was over 5% of the workforce. By 1977 it had risen to 5.5% and in 1979 it stood at 5.3%. Meanwhile there was also high inflation.

In 1978 in an effort to tackle inflation the government tried to persuade trade unions to limit pay rises to no more than 5%. The trade unions refused to accept the limit and Britain was hit by a wave of strikes. As a result the government's popularity diminished and in May 1979 the Conservatives won a general election. Margaret Thatcher became Britain's first woman prime minister.

In 1980-82 Britain suffered a severe recession. Unemployment rose sharply. By January 1982 it was 11.5%, double the May 1979 figure. Not surprisingly the government was deeply unpopular.

However in April 1982 Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands. The British sent a task force and on 14 June 1982 the Falklands were recaptured. The war greatly boosted the government's popularity and it contributed to the government's victory in the general election of 1983. (The Conservatives won a third election in 1987).

Meanwhile recession ended in the autumn of 1982 and recovery began. Furthermore unemployment leveled off. Unemployment remained very high until 1986. In the summer of that year the official figure was 14.1%. However unemployment then fell steadily. The government also succeeded in greatly reducing inflation.

Despite the mass unemployment of the 1980s most people with a job experienced a significant rise in their living standards during the decade.

The Conservatives also sold council houses cheaply and the number of council houses fell significantly. The government also privatized industries. British Aerospace and Cable and Wireless were sold in 1981. Then in 1982-83 the National Freight Corporation and Associated Business Ports were sold. British gas was sold in 1986. British telecom was sold in 1984. British gas was sold in 1986. Furthermore during the 1980s the government passed a series of laws restricting the powers of the trade unions.

In 1990 the government introduced a new tax in England called the community charge (popularly known as the poll tax). It was very unpopular and in 1993 it was replaced by the council tax. Meanwhile Margaret Thatcher resigned in 1990. She was replaced by John Major.

In the middle of 1990 a long recession started and unemployment rose sharply. however economic recovery began in 1993. From 1993 onward unemployment fell steadily and by 2000 it was at a level not seen since 1979.

Meanwhile in April 1992 the Conservatives won another general election, even though the country was in recession. However in 1997 Labour finally won an election and Tony Blair became prime minister.

Life in the 20th Century

England in the 21st Century

Blair was followed by Gordon Brown in 2007. Then in 2010 a general election resulted in a hung parliament and a coalition government of Conservatives and Liberals was formed. However in 2009 Britain entered a recession and unemployment rose. However Britain soon recovered. Then in 2015 the Conservatives won the general election. In 2016 the British people voted in a referendum to leave the EU.