By
Lynne Olson

 

Eloise bought me the wonderful book for Father’s Day. The book, Troublesome Young Men, focuses on some twenty to forty primarily young, rebellious Conservative Members of Parliament who started in 1936 at great peril to their political careers to question the appeasement policies of Neville Chamberlain. Forcing Chamberlain out as Prime Minister was an uphill struggle, even after his disastrous policies of appeasing Hitler, the Munich sell-out, the failure to mobilize for war, and the pathetic British conduct of the war until May 1940. That is, pro-Chamberlain conservatives had a substantial majority of Parliament. The pro Chamberlain party apparatus were so contemptuous of disloyal Conservatives that they not only ridiculed dissidents, but actively worked to unseat them. Even after the loss of Norway, Belgium, and the Netherlands, Chamberlain won a no-confidence vote by 80 votes. Fortunately, for the sake of civilization, these young Tory dissidents ultimately toppled Chamberlain, and replaced him as Prime Minister with the best candidate, Winston Churchill. Churchill’s contribution to the British war effort particularly from May 1940 until America’s entry in December 1941 deserves the gratitude of the civilized world. Halifax, Churchill’s leading competitor for the top position, would have sought some peace agreement with Nazi Germany, particularly after the fall of France.

 

Until after World War II, almost all the Conservative Members of Parliament came from the most prestigious families. Thus, the dissident’s willingness to recognize the true dangers of fascism contrasted starkly with most of their Conservative colleagues. In essence, most Conservatives felt sympathy with fascism, harboring anti-Semitic and anti left-wing attitudes. In essence, most Conservatives derided the dissidents as traitors to their class. Despite such strong political disagreements, the dissidents participated in the tight social circle of the British upper classes. 

 

It is a mistake to dismiss Chamberlain as merely being naïve. In fact, he used dictatorial methods to silence his critics—wire tapped their telephones, denied them access to the BBC, and discouraged newspapers from printing negative articles about his administration. In a nutshell, critics of Chamberlain did not have access to the media. Moreover, Chamberlain used trusted lieutenants in Parliament to pressure potential dissidents into submission. Chamberlain repeatedly lied to the public, members of Parliament, and even his fellow cabinet members. Stated differently, he was totally focused on remaining Prime Minister irrespective of the damage his rule was inflicting on Europe and Britain.

 

Chamberlain naively felt that he could work with Hitler and Mussolini to destroy the Soviet Union. Even after the outbreak of World War II, Chamberlain was willing to concede Eastern Europe to Nazi control. From 1933- until 1938, Chamberlain dismissed critics who correctly predicted the Nazi military build-up. After the Nazi’s attained significant power, Chamberlain totally changed his position. Once Germany developed a formidable military capability, Chamberlain then argued that it was unwise to take any actions, including increasing Britain’s armament budget, because such actions would only provoke Hitler. Chamberlain acted unconstitutionally in selling out Czechoslovakia. That is, under the British constitution (Britain has an unwritten constitution, and policies reflect centuries old precedents), Chamberlain should have consulted both the Cabinet and Parliament before making major concessions to Hitler. Instead, he presented the government with a fait accompli that undercut opposition to appeasing Hitler.

 

During the first year of World War II, Chamberlain repeatedly restrained taking forceful actions such as bombing German armament factories because he felt such actions were uncivilized. In the winter of 1940, Chamberlain when visiting General Montgomery in France insisted that there would be no general war in Europe. Instead, Chamberlain predicted that Hitler would seek peace. The incredulous Montgomery pointed out the major build-up of German forces on the French and Belgium frontiers indicated an imminent Nazi attack when spring arrived. On the eve of the disastrous British defeat in Norway, Chamberlain announced in Parliament that Hitler had “missed the boat.” Chamberlain went on to predict that the British army and navy would occupy Norway, preventing a German seizure of Norway. Instead, British troops were overwhelmed by superior German armaments, aircraft, and strategy. The unmitigated British defeat in Norway was the final straw for Chamberlain. His opponents having recognized the critical condition of Britain militarily decided to take bold dramatic actions to oust him. Even after Chamberlain’s totally inept military leadership, a majority of Conservatives still favored his retention of power.

 

Chamberlain encouraged British industry to continue producing consumer goods during 1939 and 1940, feeling that reducing consumption would be bad for morale. Interestingly enough, the opposite was true. That is, the British public was far ahead of the politicians in demanding the necessary sacrifices to undertake a world war. Churchill became the most popular member of the Cabinet because of his take charge, belligerent attitude.

 

Leo Amery, a long-time opponent of Chamberlain, made a brilliant attack on Chamberlain in Parliament then finally turned the tide. Amery, quoting from Oliver Cromwell, shouted, “You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing! Depart, I say and let us have done with you! In the name of God, go!”

 

Until 1938, the Conservative dissidents initially favored Anthony Eden to replace Chamberlain. However, Eden lacked backbone. He was unwilling to criticize Chamberlain’s appeasement policies, and hoped that by supporting Chamberlain, he could succeed Chamberlain as Prime Minister. In essence, Eden sought the highest office, but was unwilling to take risks to achieve his objectives. Until 1938, Churchill was dismissed as reckless adventurous, untrustworthy, unstable, and a warmonger. In fact, after Chamberlain resigned a majority of Conservatives supported Halifax, also an appeaser, rather than Churchill to lead the country. Churchill was ultimately chosen because both the Liberal and Labour opposition would not participate in a coalition government under Halifax. Also, Halifax knew that he did not possess sufficient military knowledge to lead effectively the country during wartime conditions. Thus, despite Chamberlain’s support, Halifax conceded meekly to the elevation of Churchill as Prime Minister.

 

Sadly, despite their sacrifice, the dissidents were treated rather shabbily by Churchill once he acquired power. Churchill’s failure to promote these young supporters stemmed partially from his desire to win over a majority of Conservatives who historically distrusted him and partially from his fear that the dissidents favored Leo Amery rather than himself. The only prominent dissidents to achieve prominent positions in later years were Anthony Eden and Harold MacMillan.