AQA_2024: A-level History - Component 2M Wars and Welfare: Britain in Transition, 1906–1957 (Merged Question Paper and Marking Scheme)

AQA_2024: A-level History - Component 2M Wars and Welfare: Britain in Transition, 1906–1957 (Merged Question Paper and Marking Scheme) A-level HISTORY Component 2M Wars and Welfare: Britain in Transition, 1906–1957 Friday 7 June 2024 Materials For this paper you must have:  an AQA 16-page answer book. Instructions Afternoon  Use black ink or black ball-point pen. Time allowed: 2 hours 30 minutes  Write the information required on the front of your answer book. The Paper Reference is 7042/2M.  Answer three questions. In Section A answer Question 01. In Section B answer two questions. Information  The marks for questions are shown in brackets.  The maximum mark for this paper is 80.  You will be marked on your ability to: – use good English – organise information clearly – use specialist vocabulary where appropriate. Advice  You are advised to spend about: – 1 hour on Question 01 from Section A – 45 minutes on each of the two questions answered from Section B. IB/M/Jun24/7042/2M 3 Key areas: 1. Social and Political Changes Before WWI (1906–1914):  Liberal Reforms: The Liberal Government (1906–1914) introduced significant welfare reforms, including National Insurance Act (1911), which provided unemployment and health insurance, and reforms in housing and education.  Women’s Suffrage: The suffragette movement gained momentum, culminating in the partial enfranchisement of women over 30 in 1918.  Labour Party Growth: The Labour Party became an important political force, representing the growing influence of socialism and working-class interests. 2. World War I (1914–1918):  Total War: WWI led to massive social, economic, and political changes, including conscription, women entering the workforce, and significant government control over the economy.  Impact on Society: There were huge casualties, economic strain, and post-war social unrest. The war also marked the beginning of state involvement in welfare and healthcare, such as the Ministry of Pensions. 3. Interwar Period (1918–1939):  Post-War Social Issues: After WWI, Britain faced high unemployment, economic instability, and social unrest, with the 1926 General Strike and the rise of fascism and communism.  The Great Depression (1929): The economic crisis led to widespread poverty, especially in industrial areas. The government's response was limited, leading to criticism of its inability to manage the economy.  Welfare and Unemployment: The interwar period saw limited advances in welfare policies, though Unemployment Insurance was extended in the 1930s. 4. World War II (1939–1945):  Total War Effort: WWII required complete mobilization of the economy, with government control over industries, rationing, and the expansion of welfare provisions.  Social Changes: Women played a crucial role in the workforce, and there was a growing sense of national unity. The war accelerated calls for post-war social reforms. 5. The Beveridge Report and the Welfare State (1942–1945):  Beveridge Report (1942): The report outlined a comprehensive plan for social reform, targeting the "Five Giants" of Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor, and Idleness. It formed the basis for the post-war welfare state.  Creation of the NHS (1948): Under the leadership of Clement Attlee and the Labour government, the National Health Service was established, providing healthcare free at the point of use. 6. Post-War Britain and the Welfare State (1945–1957):  Attlee Government: The Labour government nationalized key industries, created the NHS, and expanded the welfare state.  Post-War Consensus: There was general agreement across major political parties about the importance of the welfare state and the role of the government in managing the economy and ensuring social security. IB/M/Jun24/7042/2M 7042/2M Turn over ► IB/M/Jun24/G4006/E4 4 IB/M/Jun24/7042/2M Section A Answer Question 01. Source A From a speech in the House of Commons by Sir Edward Carson, Ulster Unionist, 15 February 1911. This was before the Liberal government introduced its Home Rule Bill for Ireland. I freely admit, that upon the question of Home Rule for Ireland, I am bitter. I loathe the idea because, in my opinion, it would be of no possible advantage to my country. I have never heard of any single financial or civil benefit that Home Rule can offer. When you have given us our separate Parliament I should like to know where you are going to get the taxes that are to run that Parliament, and where you are going to get the money which will enable you to implement those great reforms which we are always told can only be granted under a separate Parliament in Ireland. I prefer to depend for my liberties and my rights on the Imperial Parliament of a great United Kingdom. No civilised state in the world enjoys greater liberty than we have already. Home Rule is an issue that reaches to the very heart of the constitution, yet it is being sneaked through without being put to a people’s vote. 5 10 Source B From a public speech by Andrew Bonar Law, 27 July 1912. Bonar Law was speaking at a Unionist rally attended by 13 000 people at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire. The government is attempting to force through Home Rule at the bidding of Mr Redmond, against the will of the British people. The Conservative Party does not acknowledge the Liberals’ right to carry through a revolution by such means. We regard the government as a revolutionary committee, which has seized autocratic power by fraud. In our opposition to the government, we shall use any means to force them to face the people whom they have deceived. Even if the Home Rule Bill passes through the House of Commons, what then? I said in the House of Commons, and I repeat here, that there are things stronger than parliamentary majorities. I doubt that the government would ever attempt to impose its will on the people of Ulster by force of arms, but if the attempt were made they would succeed only in lighting the fires of civil war. I can imagine no length of resistance to which Ulster will go in which I shall not be ready to support them. 5 10 3 Source C From recollections submitted to the Irish National Archives by Kevin O’Shiel, March 1959. O’Shiel joined the Irish Volunteers in 1913 and later became a leading member of Sinn Féin. In 1912, we Irish Nationalists were full of optimism. We were all Home Rulers in Ireland in those days. Redmond’s prestige was never higher. We regarded him as a kind of prophet, leading his people out of slavery towards freedom. Yet, it was a strange contradiction that as we turned our back on violence, the Unionists wholeheartedly began to embrace it. At first, our general attitude to the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) was one of contempt. We felt it would soon fizzle out and that, if it became serious, the Liberal government would promptly suppress it. The ridicule was understandable, for I confess it was rather amusing to see adult men tramping along the Ulster roads dressed in bowler hats and suits carrying ridiculous wooden guns across their shoulders. However, the UVF continued to expand, acquiring considerable supplies of arms and ammunition, and the Liberals increasingly began searching for compromises with the Unionists. By 1914 Redmond seemed to be losing what little we had achieved. 5 10 0 1 With reference to these sources and your understanding of the historical context, assess the value of these three sources to an historian studying the Irish Home Rule crisis. [30 marks] Turn over for Section B IB/M/Jun24/7042/2M Turn over ► 6 IB/M/Jun24/7042/2M Section B Answer two questions.