1: Introduction to Country Study – Great Britain

2.4. The Victorian Age.
In 1837, an 18-year-old woman named Victoria became queen. She reigned for 63 years, until 1901—the longest reign in British history. This period is called the Victorian Age. During this pe­riod, the British Empire reached its height. It included about a quarter of the world’s land and about a quarter of the world’s people. Wealth poured into Britain from its colonies. British industry continued to expand, and the country was called the workshop of the world. Rail­ways and canals covered Britain, and telephone and telegraph lines linked the big cities. Literature and sci­ence flourished.
1. World War I
World War I began in 1914. The Allies—Britain, France, the United States, and other countries—fought the Central Powers—Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ot­toman Empire, and Bulgaria. The war was caused chiefly by political and economic rivalry among the various na­tions. Part of this rivalry was between Britain and Ger­many. German industry was growing rapidly, and Ger­many also had built a powerful navy.
Britain entered the war on Aug. 4, 1914, after German troops invaded neutral Belgium on their way to attack France. The fighting lasted until 1918, when the Allies fi­nally defeated Germany.
The war had a shattering effect on Britain. About 750,000 members of the British armed forces died. Ger­man submarines sank almost 8 million short tons (7 mil­lion metric tons) of British shipping. The war also cre­ated severe economic problems for Britain and shook its position as a world power.
1.1. Postwar problems.
British industry thrived briefly after World War I, but the prosperous times ended in 1920. During the war, Britain’s factories produced war goods, and the country lost some of its markets to competitors. Two of Britain’s best customers before the war—Germany and Russia—could not afford its goods after the war. In addition, the United States and Japan had taken much of its export business. With the decline in foreign trade, a depression swept Britain.
Meanwhile, the Irish question had become explosive. In 1919, Irish leaders declared Ireland independent. In 1921, southern Ireland agreed to become a British do­ minion. That is, it would be a self-governing member of the British Empire, while maintaining its allegiance to the Crown. The new dominion was called the Irish Free State. Most of the people of Northern Ireland were Prot­estants, and they did not want to be part of the Roman Catholic Irish Free State. Northern Ireland remained in the United Kingdom, which was renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.