The 20th century

The 20th century was a period of enormous upheaval and transformation for Britain — two world wars, the struggle for women's rights, economic depression, and mass emigration from across the Commonwealth all shaped the country we know today.

The First World War broke out in 1914 and lasted until 1918. Britain entered the war after Germany invaded neutral Belgium. The fighting took place across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and at sea.

Key facts about the First World War:

• Britain and its allies (France, Russia, later the United States) fought against Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire
• The war was characterised by trench warfare — soldiers lived and fought in long networks of trenches on the Western Front in France and Belgium
• Britain suffered enormous casualties — approximately two million British soldiers were killed or wounded
• Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig commanded British forces on the Western Front; his strategies — particularly at the Battle of the Somme in 1916 — were controversial but his forces ultimately helped defeat Germany
• The war ended with an Armistice on 11 November 1918 — observed to this day as Remembrance Day; the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month

Women played a vital role during the war — taking on jobs in factories, transport, and agriculture that had previously been done by men. This contribution strengthened the argument for women's right to vote.

The campaign for women's right to vote — known as the suffrage movement — had been growing since the late 19th century. Two main groups led the campaign:

• Suffragists — led by Millicent Fawcett, they campaigned peacefully through lobbying and persuasion
• Suffragettes — led by Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughters, they used more militant tactics including protests, hunger strikes, and acts of civil disobedience to draw attention to their cause

In 1918, the Representation of the People Act gave the vote to women over the age of 30 who met certain property qualifications. This was a partial victory.

In 1928, the Equal Franchise Act extended voting rights to all women over 21 on equal terms with men.

After decades of Irish demands for home rule (self-government), the Irish Free State was established in 1922, following the War of Independence. The Irish Free State eventually became the Republic of Ireland, a fully independent nation.

However, Northern Ireland — which had a majority of Protestants who wished to remain part of the United Kingdom — remained part of the UK. This partition of the island of Ireland created tensions that continued throughout the 20th century.

After the First World War, Britain faced severe economic difficulties. The Great Depression of the 1930s caused widespread unemployment across Britain and the world, following a global financial crisis that began in the United States in 1929.

This period saw the rise of new political movements across Europe, including fascism in Germany under Adolf Hitler and in Italy under Benito Mussolini — developments that would soon lead to another world war.

The Second World War began in 1939 when Germany, under Adolf Hitler, invaded Poland. Britain and France declared war on Germany in response.

Key events and figures:

• Winston Churchill became Prime Minister in May 1940, replacing Neville Chamberlain. Churchill's inspiring wartime speeches galvanised the British public to continue fighting
• The Battle of Britain (summer 1940) — Germany's Luftwaffe (air force) attempted to achieve air superiority over Britain to enable an invasion. The Royal Air Force (RAF) successfully defended Britain; Churchill famously said of the RAF pilots: "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few"
• The Blitz — Germany bombed British cities, particularly London, from 1940 to 1941, causing widespread destruction and civilian casualties
• The D-Day landings (6 June 1944) — Allied forces, including British, American, and Canadian troops, landed on the beaches of Normandy in France in the largest seaborne invasion in history, beginning the liberation of Western Europe
• VE Day (8 May 1945) — Victory in Europe Day — marked the defeat of Nazi Germany; celebrations took place across Britain and the Allied nations
• The war in the Pacific ended with VJ Day (15 August 1945) following the use of atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States

After the war, the newly elected Labour government under Clement Attlee introduced a series of sweeping reforms to create a welfare state — a system in which the government takes responsibility for the health, education, and welfare of its citizens.

These reforms were based on the Beveridge Report (1942), written by William Beveridge, which identified five "giant evils" in society: want, disease, ignorance, squalor, and idleness.

The most significant reform was the creation of the National Health Service (NHS) in 1948, which provided free healthcare for all regardless of ability to pay. The NHS was introduced by Aneurin (Nye) Bevan, the Minister of Health, and remains one of Britain's most valued institutions.

Up next: Britain since 1945 — post-war immigration, the end of empire, social change, and Britain's role in the modern world.