ENGLAND
In two respects England, or, more correctly speaking, the United
Kingdom of England and Ireland, occupies a peculiar position among
the great European nations. In the first place, it differs from all
the other European countries in that it is an island. This fact, of
course, makes a great many of its political and economic problems
altogether different from those which the other countries have to
face. Its defenses, both military and naval, are naturally greatly
influenced by its geographical location, and so are the policies
which England has followed in connection with foreign politics.
Nature, having put vast oceans between it and the rest of the world,
gave thereby to England the strongest possible natural defenses. On
the other hand, this gift of Nature necessitated that the island's
government should at all times maintain a navy, strong and efficient
enough to defend it, not only from the attack of any one other
nation, but from the attack of any possible combination of
countries. Inhabited as it is by almost half a hundred million
people, crowded into a space of only 120,000 square miles, its
economic problems also are strongly influenced by its geographical
location. For it stands to reason that on comparatively so small a
space it is impossible to raise sufficient food for the inhabitants,
and it also stands to reason that many of the raw materials which in
modern times are required by civilized nations have to be secured
from outside sources. This is a second reason why an immensely
strong and efficient navy has been indispensable to England at all
times.
A second peculiarity of England is found in the fact that, although
England itself--by this we mean the United Kingdom of England,
Scotland, Ireland--is exceeded in extent by every one of the other
important European nations except Italy, it possesses more numerous,
more scattered, and more profitable colonies than any of the other
countries. Just as it was said of the old Spanish colonial empire at
the time of Charles V that the sun never set on it, this claim can
now be made for the English colonies. Large parts of every one of
the three continents--Africa, Asia, America--are ruled either
directly or indirectly by England, and the fourth continent,
Australia, it possesses entirely. This added only another reason to
England's need of a navy. For unless the home country's lines of
communication with its colonies in all parts of the world were kept
open at all times, the latter would have lost a great deal of their
value. In a way it may be claimed that English foreign politics was
predicated by these three fundamental conditions: to defend the home
country against all comers; to insure a plentiful supply of all raw
materials and products needed by the home country at all times; to
keep open communication with its colonies in every part of the world
against any interference, and to protect these colonial possessions
against all attacks.
Needless to say, the fact that England possessed colonies in all
parts of the world made it at once the greatest, richest, most
influential, and most jealous nation. For one of the chief national
characteristics of the English race is its tenacity, and it is loath
to let go of anything that has once come into its possession. This
characteristic frequently brought it into conflict with other
nations who wanted some of England's possessions. Furthermore, there
were many other instances where other nations were desirous of
acquiring territory or, at least, certain rights in other countries,
the acquisition of which found England's disapproval and opposition,
not because England possessed these lands or wished to possess them,
but because English interests apparently did not make it desirable
that the nation which was trying to gain these lands should succeed.
If we, however, consider that a great many of England's colonial
possessions were wrested at one time or another from other nations,
and that in some other cases their acquisition by conquest or treaty
ran counter against the interests of some other nations which,
however, were not strong or subtle enough to prevent England from
carrying out its plans, it becomes clear why England up to
comparatively recent times may be said to have possessed more and
more bitter enemies than any other nation.
In the consideration of the historical development of the various
European nations which we have set forth so far we have seen that,
whenever a nation possessed or acquired colonies, it was brought
immediately into contact, sometimes friendly and more frequently
unfriendly, with other nations, and this, of course, is not only
equally true of England, but even more so, because its colonial
interests were so much more extensive than any others. In one other
important direction England exerted an immense influence on the rest
of the world. From this vast colonial empire there had been flowing
for generations a steady stream of unequaled riches into the coffers
of England. And much of the surplus wealth accumulated in this way
was invested by Englishmen in other countries, and, even though
there were quite a number of countries on the government of which
England possessed no direct influence, still there were very few
nations who were not financially entirely, or at least partly,
dependent on England. The vastness of English interests may readily
be understood if we remember that out of the total inhabited surface
of the earth of about 50,000,000 square miles with 1,750,000,000
inhabitants, 13,500,000 square miles with 500,000,000 inhabitants
are under the rule of England.
Comparatively little of this empire was acquired by England during
the last half century, but the acquisitions which were made in that
period were at once greater and more desirable than similar
acquisitions by other nations. With very few exceptions England's
new territorial conquests during the last fifty years were made at
the expense of uncivilized and unorganized nations, and there was,
therefore, comparatively little direct cause for animosity. But, on
the other hand, a great many of the choice morsels which England
gathered in were desired by some other nation or nations, and
England's successes, therefore, gave plenty of indirect causes for
animosity, especially if it is borne in mind that English statesmen
were not only at all times striving very hard to secure for their
country the best of everything, but were also working equally hard
to prevent, if at all possible, other nations from getting anything.
In the period of European history, to which we are restricting our
attention, the first milestone of the long line of conflicts between
the different nations and countries has been the war between Prussia
and Austria on one hand and Denmark on the other for the possession
of Schleswig-Holstein. In this matter England, previous to the
outbreak of actual hostilities, expressed very strongly that anyone
who would attack Denmark would have to reckon with other than
Denmark; but when the English Foreign Secretary of that period, Lord
John Russell, found that he could not get the active support of
Napoleon III in opposing Prussia and Austria's aggressive steps,
Lord Palmerston's Cabinet, of which Lord Russell was a member, found
it necessary to maintain neutrality during the war, especially in
view of the fact that Queen Victoria was strongly opposed to any
active interference on the part of England. In spite of this
attitude of the queen a marriage was arranged in 1863 between the
Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII, and the daughter of King
Christian IX of Denmark, Princess Alexandria. Although it is true
that the personal relations of the ruling houses of the different
European countries did not any longer possess the same importance
that they formerly had, this new alliance undoubtedly had, even if
not immediately, an important influence on English foreign politics.
For not only was the Princess of Wales, later Queen of England,
unable to forget and forgive the territorial loss which her father
had suffered at the hands of Prussia, but this attitude was shared
by her sister, who was to become a few years later, as wife of
Alexander III of Russia, a powerful influence at the Russian court.
To a certain extent, of course, the influence of the Princess of
Wales did not make itself felt until she had become Queen of
England, and possibly not very strongly then, and it was also
somewhat counteracted by the fact that one of Queen Victoria's
daughters was married to the Crown Prince of Prussia, who later, as
Frederick III, became for a short time the German Emperor.
During the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 England maintained the
strictest neutrality and showed the same attitude during the few
years following, covering Napoleon III's attempts to stop the tide
of Prussian ascendancy. The English Government of that period was
headed by one of the most famous statesmen that England has ever
produced, Benjamin Disraeli. There can be no doubt that his attitude
toward affairs on the European continent was strongly influenced by
Queen Victoria's own attitude, who, it may be frankly acknowledged,
was strongly pro-German on account of her personal relations, which
not only included a German prince as son-in-law, but also a German
prince as husband. The official explanation which the prime minister
gave of England's policy of noninterference at that time was that
England had "outgrown the European continent because she was no
longer a mere European power. England is the metropolis of a great
maritime empire extending to the boundaries of the furthest oceans
... she is as ready, and as willing even, to interfere as in the old
days when the necessity of her position required it. There is no
power, indeed, which interferes more than England; she interferes in
Asia because she is really more of an Asiatic than of a European
power." This undoubtedly was not an explanation made for
convenience' sake, but expressed truly and sincerely the broad view
which the English Prime Minister took of England's mission, and
later events showed that he adhered to this new gospel of English
imperialism which was preached then for the first time. One result
of French jealousy of Prussian success was Napoleon III's effort to
gain some territorial compensations. In this connection he even went
so far as to propose secretly to Bismarck that Prussia should allow
France to invade and annex the kingdom of Belgium provided France
would recognize without opposition the new North German
Confederation. Bismarck refused, and, as a counterstroke, Napoleon
III protested against the continuation of Luxemburg's occupation by
German troops. A conference of the powers was finally called at
London in May, 1868, and a treaty was arranged according to which
the fortifications of the city of Luxemburg were dismantled and the
entire duchy received a joint guarantee of continuous neutrality.
In the meantime, in 1867, Parliament had passed a bill embodying the
confederation of the various British provinces in North America and
creating a form of self-government under which the Dominion of
Canada had existed and flourished since then. Other internal
measures of grave importance occupied the attention of the English
nation at that time. Certain ritualistic tendencies in the Anglican
Church aroused great excitement and apprehension. Disraeli's Prime
Ministership, which he had assumed in February, 1867, after Lord
Derby's resignation, came to an end in December, 1868, through a
victory of the Liberal party at the general election, and Gladstone
formed his first ministry. Difficulties in Ireland culminated in a
revival of Fenian activities and in the committing of numerous
outrages. With the fate of the reform and other measures of
Gladstone's government we are not concerned, for they were almost
exclusively of an internal nature. Of England's neutral attitude
during the Franco-Prussian War we have already heard; but it is
worth mentioning that previous to the outbreak of the war England
attempted, even if unsuccessfully, to mediate between France and
Prussia. In spite of the official neutrality observed by England
during this war, public sentiment was pro-French, and France
undoubtedly received considerable legitimate commercial assistance
from England. This claim is well borne out by the fact that a short
time after the war, as we have already learned during the
consideration of French history, the French Parliament passed a
resolution expressing the thanks of the French nation to England for
its expressions of friendship during the recent war. In Germany this
attitude of the English public was well known and caused a
considerable amount of ill feeling. It was at that time that
Bismarck published Napoleon III's suggestion of 1867 in regard to
the invasion and annexation of Belgium, and its publication at this
particular moment had two results: it made English intervention in
favor of France absolutely impossible and it caused the English
Government to demand from both belligerents--France and
Germany--their signatures to a treaty guaranteeing the neutrality of
Belgium and arranging that in case either France or Prussia would
violate this neutrality Great Britain would intervene in conjunction
with the other for the defense of Belgium. This treaty was also
extended to include Luxemburg. Another indirect result of the
Franco-Prussian War, Russia's declaration in October, 1870, that it
considered itself no longer bound to the terms of the treaty of
Paris, 1856, in regard to the neutrality of the Black Sea, aroused
vigorous English protests. For a time it seemed as if public opinion
would force England to go to war against Russia, but a conference of
the powers who had signed the 1856 treaty was finally called at
London in December, 1870, the results of which we have already
learned. In December, 1870, the difficulties between England and the
United States, which had held over until then from the Civil War,
were satisfactorily settled by international commissioners at
Geneva. A revolution of French-Canadians broke out in 1872, but was
quickly put down. Cape Colony added to its territory in 1871 by
annexing, over the protests of the Orange Free State, territory
known then as Griqualand West. In the same year the Gold Coast was
acquired on the West Coast of Africa through a treaty with Holland,
Great Britain relinquishing in exchange its claims to Dutch Indian
Sumatra. Russia's increased activity in Asia caused considerable
apprehension, which, however, was removed by an understanding
between Russia and Great Britain, concluded in 1872, according to
which Afghanistan was to be considered not within the sphere of
Russian interests in Asia.
In 1874 the ties of relationship which connected Queen Victoria's
family to that of the czar were strengthened by the marriage of her
son, the Duke of Edinburgh, to Grand Duchess Marie of Russia. In the
same year Czar Alexander II visited London. The Gladstone Ministry
was succeeded by one headed by Disraeli. In 1875 the Government
announced the purchase of the Suez Canal shares, then held by the
Khedive of Egypt. This practically gave England control of the
canal, as the khedive's holdings amounted to nine-twentieths of the
entire issue. A great many of the other shares were in the hands of
French investors. But the French Government accepted England's
purchase without opposition. This move not only secured to England
control of the shortest and safest route to India, but also brought
it into closer contact with Egypt, one of the great colonial prizes
of the world then still available.
Disraeli soon gave proof of the sincerity of his imperialistic
views. In 1876, at his suggestion and as a result of his diplomacy,
the queen was proclaimed Empress of India. In 1877 the Transvaal was
annexed by England. In the Russo-Turkish War, which broke out that
year, England maintained neutrality, but in 1878 a defensive treaty
was signed between Great Britain and Turkey which gave the island of
Cyprus to England. In 1879 the Zulu War broke out and kept English
forces engaged through the greater part of the year. The following
year, 1880, was marked chiefly by riots and bloodshed in Ireland,
the resignation of Disraeli, and the return to the premiership of
Gladstone, who in 1881 succeeded in passing the Irish Land Bill. The
Irish difficulties lasted throughout 1882, 1883, and 1884.
Throughout that year, 1884 and 1885, English troops fought
rebellious natives in Egypt after having announced to Turkey that it
felt that it was necessary for the protection of the Suez Canal that
British troops should assume the responsibility of restoring order
in Egypt.
The Gladstone Ministry was defeated in 1885 and succeeded by a
Conservative Cabinet under the Marquis of Salisbury. Following the
outbreak of a war in Burma in the fall of 1885, English troops
entered the capital, and in 1886 Burma's annexation was announced.
Internal dissensions brought about two changes of cabinets in 1886,
bringing in Gladstone again, but only for four months, when Lord
Salisbury returned to the premiership. Zululand was the next
addition to Great Britain's possession, its annexation being
announced in 1887. In the same year the fiftieth anniversary of
Queen Victoria's accession to the throne was celebrated with great
splendor at London, and became a means of strongly emphasizing
Disraeli's imperialistic idea. It brought together the most
noteworthy gathering of rulers of nations, and led undoubtedly to an
exchange of views which, at least for a short time, had a beneficial
influence on the world's peace. In 1889 the British South African
Company was chartered and the foundation was laid thereby for the
immense expansion of England in South Africa. In 1890 Germany and
England adjusted various difficulties in regard to their respective
spheres of influence in Africa by signing a treaty. This gave to
England a protectorate over Zanzibar, in exchange for which it ceded
the island of Helgoland to Germany. Though this adjustment was not
popular in either country, and especially not in Germany, it led to
a betterment of conditions between England and Germany, as it
removed at least one source of continual dissension by adjusting the
African question. The young German Emperor accompanied by the
Empress, paid a visit to his grandmother, Queen Victoria, in 1891,
and thereby emphasized the cordiality of relations existing between
the two Governments. In the summer of 1892 the Salisbury Ministry
resigned as the result of renewed difficulties in Ireland, and was
again succeeded by a Gladstone Cabinet.
In 1893 relations between France and England became temporarily
strained on account of English aggressiveness in Egypt, where France
had been considerably interested previous to England's purchase of
the Suez Canal. In 1894 the Gladstone Ministry resigned once more
and was succeeded by one headed by Lord Rosebery. Labor difficulties
were characteristic of that year, 1894, as well as the preceding
one, 1893. Another acquisition was made in 1894 by the establishment
of a protectorate over Uganda in East Africa. The appearance in 1895
of a British fleet in Nicaragua to enforce the payment of certain
indemnities held possibilities of a conflict with the United States
on account of the Monroe Doctrine, but the matter was quickly
settled and the fleet withdrawn. The Rosebery Cabinet was succeeded
by one headed by Lord Salisbury in July, 1895, in which month a
protectorate was established over British East Africa, and in
November Bechuanaland was annexed to Cape Colony. In December, 1895,
the memorable raid of Dr. Jamieson on the Transvaal miscarried. An
ultimatum presented to Venezuela caused strained relations between
the United States and England, which, however, were adjusted
amicably by the end of 1896. Throughout 1897 and 1898 English troops
were busily occupied with the pacification of newly acquired
territory in Africa, especially in Egypt and the Sudan. Toward the
end of 1898 the Fashoda incident, of which we have spoken at greater
length under the French history, brought England and France
dangerously near to war.
We have seen now how England, without stirring up a great deal of
dust, had been adding continually to her possessions, especially in
Africa. This, of course, aroused gradually the attention and, to a
certain extent, the jealousy of other countries. By 1899 it had
become necessary to adjust some of these difficulties, and England
succeeded in doing this by treaties with France and Egypt, as she
had done before with Germany. Her aggressive policy in South Africa,
however, met determined opposition at the hands of the Boers, who
had begun to fear for their own independence which, being of Dutch
extraction, they valued greater than life. Conferences between Lord
Milner on behalf of England and President Krueger of the Transvaal
came to naught. On October 9, 1899, the latter country presented an
ultimatum which England did not answer. Then the Boer War broke out.
For our purposes it is not necessary to consider its details. It
suffices to state that it lasted until April, 1902. For almost three
years the brave Boers fought against almost impossible odds. Again
and again they defeated the English, but finally they succumbed to
the British Empire's inexhaustible resources in men and money, and
on May 31, 1902, they were forced to accept England's terms for
surrender which cost them their independence. Indeed, as early as
September 1, 1900, the South African Republic was annexed, and on
October 25, Transvaal became an English colony. In its international
aspect the Boer War cost England temporarily the friendship of many
nations, who resented the ruthlessness with which they carried on
war, and ridiculed the lack of efficiency which was so noticeable
during the early stages of the war. Relations with Germany became
especially strained as a result of the strong pro-Boer sentiment
which was evident throughout the German Empire, and which found even
official expression in a much-discussed telegram of the German
Emperor to President Krueger.
Although the Boer War cost England much in lives, money, and
prestige, its gain far overshadowed its cost. By it Great Britain
won the richest gold-producing mines and the most wonderful diamond
mines in the world. It consolidated its South African possessions,
and, though hard pushed at times, she emerged from it richer and
more powerful than ever. Even if this war occupied public attention
almost to the exclusion of everything else, a few noteworthy events
happened during it. In 1900 the bill providing for the federation of
the Australian colonies under the name of the Commonwealth of
Australia was approved by the crown, and completed the consolidation
of another important part of the British Empire. In January, 1901,
Queen Victoria died, after a reign of sixty-four years, and was
succeeded by the Prince of Wales as Edward VII.
While the preparations for the coronation of Edward VII were in
progress the king suddenly was taken seriously ill and an operation
had to be made to save his life. His coronation finally took place
in Westminster Abbey in August, 1902. The rulers of all the
important countries of the world attended either personally or were
represented by important members of their families, and it may well
be said that no other event of modern times had brought together
such an assembly of the great of the earth. Once more England seemed
to have assumed a leading part in the affairs of the world, and the
nations of it apparently were not only willing but anxious to
acknowledge British power and greatness. Just previous to the
coronation, in July, 1902, Lord Salisbury had resigned the
premiership and had been succeeded by his nephew, A. J. Balfour.
Another feature of the coronation was the enthusiastic loyalty which
all the British colonies showed for the new king and the mother
country. This found even more definite expression in a series of
conferences which were held in November of the same year, 1902,
between the prime ministers of the different colonies and the
British Secretary of the Colonies. These resulted in resolutions
expressing a desire for a closer union of the various parts of the
empire and for an arrangement by which the trade with the colonies
should receive preferential treatment. In December, 1902, Great
Britain and Germany presented a joint ultimatum to Venezuela
concerning the payment of debts, and established a joint blockade
after having seized the Venezuelan fleet. The South American
republic appealed to the United States, at whose suggestion the
matter was referred to the Hague Tribunal of International
Arbitration.
The friendship between France and Great Britain manifested
indisputable signs of rapid growth in 1903 when President Loubet payed
a three days' visit to England in July, and was followed later that
month by a deputation of French deputies and senators. In 1903 it was
also that Joseph Chamberlain, then Secretary for the Colonies, began
his campaign against free trade and for a policy of a retaliatory
tariff and reciprocity with the colonies. Throughout 1902, 1903, and
1904 British troops were fighting in Somaliland, where a revolution
had broken out among the natives under the leadership of the "Mad
Mullah." In 1904 the Franco-English entente became still more cordial,
and in April of that year, 1904, an agreement was signed between the
two countries regulating their relations in Newfoundland, Morocco,
Egypt, West Africa, Siam, and Madagascar, and removing thereby a
prolific source of misunderstandings and irritation. A military
expedition was sent to Tibet, one of the few important parts of Asia
which had hitherto escaped from the attention of European powers.
After many difficulties and considerable fighting this force reached
the Tibetan capital, Lhassa, the ancient seat of the Dalai Lama, who
fled at the approach of the English. As a result a treaty was signed
between Tibet and England giving preferential treatment to English
trade and arranging that no other power should thereafter be permitted
to have any influence in Tibetan public affairs. In the meantime war
had broken out, in February, 1904, between Japan and Russia over the
latter's refusal to withdraw from China. In accordance with the
Anglo-Japanese treaty of 1902, Great Britain maintained neutrality
throughout this war, which, however, was of the benevolent kind
toward Japan. English public sympathy was strongly with the latter
country. In October, 1904, the continuation of England's neutrality
was seriously threatened. After the defeat of the Russian fleet in the
Far East, the Russian Baltic fleet was ordered to go to the support of
the Russian forces. During its progress through the North Sea some
shots were fired at an English fishing fleet, killing two men and
wounding others. War between Russia and England was averted only by
the prompt disavowal of this action on the part of Russia, and an
equally prompt compensation of the Englishmen affected after the
incident had been submitted to an international commission of
arbitration, which met in Paris. It was at this time that the new
_entente cordiale_ between France and England had its first test. For
there is no doubt that France exerted considerable pressure on its
Russian ally in order to hasten a prompt amicable settlement of the
matter.
In 1905 considerable opposition developed against the increase in
naval expenditures, occasioned chiefly by the necessity of keeping
step with the accelerated pace in naval armament which Germany began
to set at that time. In July, 1905, Lord Roberts made a speech in
the House of Lords in which he called the attention of the country
to the fact that the English army was unfit for war both in members
and equipment and training. In August, 1905, the Anglo-Japanese
alliance of 1902 was modified to conform to the new conditions that
had been created by the Russo-Japanese War. The terms of this new
arrangement have already been considered fully in that section of
this book which is devoted to Japan's history. In April, 1906, an
Anglo-Chinese conference modified the Anglo-Tibetan treaty allowing
China to maintain its suzerainty over Tibet, but giving full
protection to all English interests. This year, 1906, also saw the
beginning of the agitation for woman suffrage, which in the
following years assumed rapidly great proportions and violence.
Other matters of internal importance--educational, religious,
financial, and other legislation--made English internal politics
during this period more virulent than at any other period in recent
times, and gradually led up to the change from a Conservative to a
Liberal Government and to a series of very radical legislative
measures.
One of the chief causes of recent friction between Russia and Great
Britain was removed in March, 1907, by the signing of an agreement
between the two countries regulating their respective interests in
Persia. A colonial conference, which met in London in April, 1907,
gave new impetus to the imperialistic movement and to the closer
union between the United Kingdom and the colonies. In June of that
year, 1907, the great parliamentary struggle between the two Houses
of Parliament began with the passage by the House of Commons of a
bill reducing very materially the powers of the Upper House. As a
result of their agreement, Russia and Great Britain decided in
December on joint intervention in order to prevent a threatening
uprising in Persia. Slight friction between Japan and Great Britain,
which had been caused by strong popular demonstrations in Canada
against the increased Japanese immigration, was removed by Japan's
announcement of its intention to limit extensively this immigration.
In April, 1908, Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman resigned the
premiership and was succeeded by Mr. Asquith and a Liberal Cabinet,
in which David Lloyd-George held the position of Chancellor of the
Exchequer, and soon began to push the most radical financial and
social measures which have ever been advanced in England. In May,
1908, Great Britain, together with France, Russia, and Italy,
withdrew her troops from the island of Crete, and in October joined
France and Russia in preventing the outbreak of war in the Balkans.
After the Franco-German agreement in regard to Morocco had been
signed in February, 1909, a conference was held between the German
Chancellor, Prince von Bülow, and Sir Charles Hardinge, with the
result that the German-English relations, which had been far from
cordial for a number of years, were adjusted. The refusal of the
House of Lords to pass Lloyd-George's budget, containing
revolutionary provisions for taxation, resulted in the dissolution
of Parliament by King Edward in February, 1910. The election of the
new Parliament clearly showed that the country was in favor of the
Liberal Government, which shortly after the opening of the new
Parliament showed its disapproval of the rejection of its budget by
the House of Lords by the introduction of a Parliament Reform Bill.
The budget was passed by the Upper House in April, 1910, but not
until after the Commons had passed a resolution limiting greatly the
veto power of the House of Lords. King Edward VII died on May 6,
1910, after a short illness and was succeeded by his son as George
V.
Just how much King Edward's personal influence was responsible for
the shaping of his country's foreign politics during his reign it is
hard to determine. Much has been written about this question, and
more undoubtedly will be said in the years to come. The fact
remains, however, that he had a strong dislike of his nephew, the
German Emperor, and an almost equally strong aversion of German
customs and ideals. On the other hand he had long been an admirer of
French culture and life, and he was a frequent visitor in the French
capital. The rapid growth of the Franco-British friendships
undoubtedly was helped along by him to his best ability. Naturally
he was influenced in this matter, not only by personal prejudices,
but chiefly by a conviction that his country's interests were
endangered by Germany's wonderful growth, and that they could be
preserved and improved more by strong alliances with other great
powers than by reaching an understanding with Germany herself.
The latter half of 1910 witnessed again violent parliamentary
dissensions in connection with the attempted reduction of the powers
of the House of Lords, resulting finally in another general election
in November, 1910, which gave to the Government a majority of 126.
That month also brought an announcement that English banks had
signed an agreement with German and French financial institutions to
join an American syndicate in advancing $50,000,000 to China, one of
the few instances of a joint financial undertaking by German and
British interests.
The greater part of 1911 was taken up with the settlement of the
difficulties between the Commons and the Lords, resulting finally in
the surrender of the latter and the adoption by them of the Commons'
bill depriving the Upper House of much of its former power. Hardly
had this troublesome question been adjusted when the question of Home
Rule for Ireland caused new difficulties of the severest nature. So
strong was the opposition of one part of Ireland to Home Rule, and so
strong the demand of the other part for it, that the dissensions
gradually reached the point where open revolution seemed to be
imminent. In July, 1911, the Anglo-Japanese alliance was renewed for a
period of ten years. During the Franco-German dispute about Morocco,
which threatened to disrupt the peace of Europe, Great Britain's
influence was thrown on the side of France, a fact which, of course,
resulted in increased bitterness against Great Britain on the part of
Germany. In November the king and queen left England on a trip to
India in order to be crowned as Emperor and Empress of India. In
common with other countries, England experienced in 1912 a great deal
of social unrest, which found expression in strikes as well as in
extremely radical legislation. The Irish question and the agitation
for woman suffrage continued to occupy public attention in 1912. In
August of that year, 1912, Great Britain joined with France and
Germany in accepting Austria-Hungary's invitation to confer on the
Balkan situation, which was rapidly assuming grave importance. In
conjunction with these powers, as well as Italy and Russia, it
maintained a strict neutrality during the Balkan Wars of 1912 and
1913, just as it had done during the Turko-Italian War of 1911 and
1912. At England's invitation the ambassadors of the powers met in
London in December, 1912, to discuss the Balkan question while the
representatives of the Balkan States and Turkey conferred concerning
peace.
Almost coincident with Germany's increased efforts to upbuild its
navy, a change had been made in the incumbency of the admiralty. One
of the younger and most active members of the Liberal party, Winston
Churchill, a member of the House of Marlborough, became First Lord. He
created a sensation by a speech made in the Commons in March, 1913,
suggesting that Germany and Great Britain should agree to stop naval
construction for a period of a year. Although this proposal received a
great deal of attention, it had no tangible result, and the race for
increased armament continued. Neither 1913 nor 1914 brought about any
diminution in the difficulties regarding the Irish question, in fact
rather the opposite, and the Government even went so far as to
prohibit the importation of arms into Ireland. Armed resistance
against Home Rule on the part of Ulster seemed to be unavoidable.
Agitation in England and Ireland over Home Rule had become so violent
that the murder of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne in June,
1914, did not arouse as much interest and attention in England as it
would have done otherwise. Revolution in Ireland was a matter that
England expected at that particular moment, rather than a general
European war. Not until the British fleet, assembled at Portsmouth for
maneuvers, left there on July 29, 1914, under sealed orders, was the
country aroused to the possibility of a world war, which had been
considered for so many years impossible by some and inevitable by
others, and which was now about to break out.