The post war years, by contrast with the first 45 years of the 20th century, were marked by peace and stability. For much of the period, ideological conflict gave way to consensus and the convergence of political creeds. Yet, by the end of the century, Britain seemed a markedly less optimistic society than it had been in 1945. Indeed, perhaps a central theme of the post war period is the decline in national self-confidence and confidence in British institutions. How is this to be explained?
For the transcript or download versions of this lecture, please visit the event’s page on the Gresham College
website: Britain in the 20th Century
Bio
Professor Vernon Bogdanor
Vernon Bogdanor CBE is EmeritusGresham Professor of Law, current Visiting Gresham Professor of Political History, Research Professor at King's College London, a Fellow of theBritishAcademyand an Honorary Fellow of theInstituteofAdvanced Legal Studies. Prior to 2010, Professor Bogdanor Fellow ofBrasenoseCollege, is Professor of Government atOxfordUniversity.
He has been an adviser to a number of governments, including those of theCzechRepublic,Hungary,Kosovo,IsraelandSlovakia. His books include The People and the Party System, Multi-Party Politics and the Constitution, Power and the People, and Devolution in theUnited Kingdom. He is a frequent contributor to TV, radio and the press and is a sometime special advisor to the House of Lords Select Committee on the European Communities (1982-83), and the House of Commons Public Service Committee. Most recently he was awarded the Sir IsiaiahBerlinprize for Lifetime Contribution to Political Studies by the Political Studies Association.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Island country, western Europe, North Atlantic Ocean. It comprises Great Britain (England, Scotland, and Wales) and Northern Ireland. Area: 93,851 sq mi (243,073 sq km). Population (2009 est.): 61,855,000. Capital: London. The population is composed of English (major ethnic group), Scots, Irish, and Welsh and immigrants and their descendants from India, the West Indies, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Africa. Languages: English (official); also Welsh, Scottish Gaelic. Religions: Christianity (Protestant [Church of England—established; Church of Scotland—national], Roman Catholic, other Christians); also Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism. Currency: pound sterling. The country has hill, lowland, upland, highland, and mountain regions. Tin and iron ore deposits, once central to the economy, have become exhausted or uneconomical, and the coal industry, long a staple of the economy, began a steady decline in the 1950s that worsened with pit closures in the 1980s. Offshore petroleum and natural gas reserves are significant. Chief crops are barley, wheat, sugar beets, and potatoes. Major manufactures include motor vehicles, aerospace equipment, electronic data-processing and telecommunication equipment, and petrochemicals. Fishing and publishing also are important economic activities. The U.K. is a constitutional monarchy with two legislative houses; its head of state is the sovereign, and the head of government is the prime minister.
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