BRITISH IMPERIAL POLICY AND DECOLONIZATION, 1938-64 British Imperial Policy and Decolonization, 1938-64 Volume 1, 1938-51 A. N. Porter Reader in History King's College, London and A. J. Stockwell Senior Lecturer in History Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, University of London Palgrave Macmillan ISBN 978-0-333-42085-0 ISBN 978-1-349-18769-0 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-18769-0 © A. N. Porter and A. J. StockweIl, 1987 Softcover reprint ofthe hardcover Ist edition 1987978-0-333-38512-8 All rights reserved. For information, write: Scholarly & Reference Division, St. Martin's Press, Inc., 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010 First published in the United States of America in 1987 ISBN 978-0-312-00554-2 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Porter, A. N. (Andrew N.) British imperial policy and decolonization, 1938-64. Bibliography: v. 1, p. Includes index. Contents: v. 1. 1938-51 1. Great Britain-Colonies-Administration- History. 2. Decolonization-History. I. StockweIl, A. J. 11. Title. JV1018.P66 1987 325'.31'41 87-4272 ISBN 978-0-312-00554-2 (v. I) Contents List of Documents vii Abbreviations xii Acknowledgements xiii Preface xiv PART I INTRODUCTION 1 1 Deeolonization and Patterns of Historieal Explanation 3 2 The Maehinery of Government and Poliey-making 8 3 The Colonial Empire in the 1930s 12 4 The Outbreak of the Seeond World War and the Mobilization of Colonial Resourees 18 5 The Seeond World War: International Relations and Colonial Poliey 25 6 The Seeond World War and the Planning of Politieal Development 32 7 Colonial Poliey, Eeonomie Development and Welfare, 1943-5 39 8 Britain' s Postwar Reeonstruetion and Colonial Poliey, 1945-51 46 9 International Problems and Imperial Polieies East of Suez, 1945-51 52 10 Native Administration, Loeal Government, and Politieal Change in British Afriea, 1945-51 65 Notes to Part I 76 PART 11 DOCUMENTS 79 Biographical Notes 379 Select Bibliography 390 Index 394 v List of Documents 1. West India Royal Commission: Extract from a Memorandum by the West Indian Department of the Colonial Office, 20 May 1938 81 2. West India Royal Commission: Minute by Sir John Campbell, 23 May 1938 82 3. West India Royal Commission: Extract from Conclusions of a Cabinet Meeting, 15 June 1938 86 4. Outbreak of the Second World War: Circular Telegram from the Secretary of State for the Colonies to Colonial Dependencies, 15 September 1939 88 5. Outbreak of the Second World War: Circular Telegram from the Secretary of State for the Colonies to a11 Colonies, 22 September 1939 89 6. West India Royal Commission: Note by C. Carstairs, 6 January 1940 92 7. Colonial Development and Welfare Bill: Speech in the House of Commons by Malcolm MacDonald, 21 May 1940 94 8. The Atlantic Charter, 14 August 1941 101 9. The Atlantic Charter: Extract from a Speech by the Prime Minister in the House of Commons, 9 September 1941 103 10. The Colonies and the Impact of War: Confidential Code Telegram to the Governors of African Dependencies from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, 21 March 1942, (A) 106 11. The Colonies and the Impact of War: Confidential Code Telegram to the Governors of African Dependencies from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, 21 March 1942, (B) 107 12. The War Effort and Colonial Policy: Speech by the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, (Harold Macmillan) in the House of Commons, 24 June 1942 109 13. Far Eastern Policy: Minute by Lord Cranborne, 14 July 1942 125 vii viii List o[ Documents 14. A Publie Declaration on Colonial Poliey: Minute by Harold Maemillan, 1 September 1942 128 15. A Publie Declaration on Colonial Poliey: Minute by Lord Cranborne, 4 September 1942 130 16. Far Eastern Poliey: Extract from the Minutes of a Meeting by G. E. Gent, 11 September 1942 132 17. A Publie Declaration of Colonial Poliey: The Vieeroy to Seeretary of State for India, 2 ]anuary 1943 135 18. A Publie Declaration of Colonial Poliey: Seeretary of State for the Colonies to Deputy Prime Minister (Attlee), 14 ]anuary 1943 142 19. 'Notes on Future Poliey in Central Afriea', Colonial Offiee Memorandum by G. F. Seel, April 1943 143 20. Note by Lord Hailey on 'Draft Declaration by the United Nations on National Independenee' by H. C. Hull, 5 May 1943 154 21. Colonial Affairs: Extraets from a Speeeh by the Seeretary of State for the Colonies (Oliver Stanley) in the House of Commons, 13 ]uly 1943 156 22. 'Constitutional Development in West Afriea', Colonial Offiee Memorandum by O. G. R. Williams, ]une/]uly 1943 168 23. 'Constitutional Development in West Afriea', Note of a Meeting Held on 29 ]uly 1943 178 24. Colonial Development: Extract from a Colonial Offiee Memorandum by S. Caine, 12 August 1943 183 25. Wartime Eeonomie Planning: Confidential Cireular Despatch from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, 28 April 1944 191 26. Draft Directives for Further Planning in South-east Asia: War Cabinet Paper, 18 May 1944 195 27. Colonial Development and Welfare: Secretary of State for the Colonies to Chancellor of the Exchequer, 21 September 1944 202 28. Colonial Development and Welfare: Chancellor of the Exchequer to Secretary of State for the Colonies, 25 October 1944 206 29. Colonial Development and Welfare: Cabinet List of Documents ix Memorandum by the Secretary of State for the Colonies, 15 November 1944 208 30. Colonial Development: Colonial Economie Advisory Committee questionnaire, with Colonial Offiee response, Autumn 1944 212 31. Colonial Development: Extract from the Minutes of a Meeting of the Colonial Economie Advisory Committee, 19 December 1944 215 32. Post-war Financial Poliey and the Colonies: Minute by S. Caine, 9 July 1945 225 33. Post-war Financial Policy and the Colonies: Minute by S. Caine, 15 June 1945 229 34. 'Federation of West Indies', Colonial Offiee Memorandum by P. Rogers n. d. (February 1946) 230 35. 'Future of the Italian Colonies', Memorandum by the Prime Minister, 2 March 1946 240 36. 'Future of the Italian Colonies', Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, 13 March 1946 243 37. Native Administration Policy: Colonial Offiee Memorandum by G. B. Cartland, n.d. (1946) 248 38. 'Native Administration Policy', Colonial Offiee Memorandum by A. B. Cohen, 28 September 1946 256 39. Native Administration Poliey: Minute by F. J. Pedler, 1 November 1946 264 40. Colonial Poliey in Afriea: Directive to the Agenda Committee for the Conference of African Governors, February 1947 267 41. Palestine: Joint Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and the Secretary of State for the Colonies, 6 February 1947 269 42. 'Prices of Colonial Export Products', Draft of a Memorandum by the Secretary of State for the Colonies, March 1947 274 43. Colonial Policy in Africa: Extracts from the Diary of Sir Philip MitchelI, Governor of Kenya, May-November 1947 276 44. Speech by Sir Stafford Cripps, Minister for x List 01 Documents Eeonomic Affairs, to the African Governors' Conferenee, 12 November 1947 278 45. Palestine: Extraet from Cabinet Memorandum by the Seeretary of State for Foreign Affairs and the Seeretary of State for the Colonies, 3 Deeember 1947. 284 46. Colonial Eeonomic Poliey: Sir Philip Mitehell to A. Creeeh Jones, 6 Deeember 1947 287 47. Loeal Government Poliey: Extract from aMinute by A. B. Cohen, 11 Deeember 1947 289 48. 'The First Aim of British Foreign Poliey', Memorandum by the Seeretary of State for Foreign Affairs, 4 January 1948 293 49. West Afriean Poliey: A. B. Cohen to Sir J. Maepherson, 12 June 1948 296 50. West African Poliey: Extraet from Sir J. Maepherson to A. B. Cohen, 28 June 1948 297 51. 'The Colonial Empire and the Eeonomic Crisis', Cireular Despateh on behalf of the Seeretary of State for the Colonies, 26 July 1948 299 52. 'Constitutional Development in Smaller Colonial Territories' , Memorandum by the Seeretary of State for the Colonies, 8 Deeember 1948 302 53. 'The East Afriean Groundnuts Scherne' , Memorandum by the Minister of Food, 11 November 1949 307 54. 'The East African Groundnuts Scherne' , Extraet from Conclusions of a Cabinet Meeting, 14 November 1949 321 55. The USA and British Colonial Poliey: Confidential Despateh from HM Ambassador in Washington to the Seeretary of State for Foreign Affairs, 14 January 1950 332 56. Central Afriean Territories: Memorandum by A. B. Cohen, 16 March 1950 331 57. Constitutional Development in South-east Asia: Extract from Minutes of the Fifteenth Commissioner-General's Conferenee, 7 June 1%0 D8 58. Native-born Administrators and the Colonial Civil Services: Memorandum by the Seeretary of List o[ Documents State for the Colonies, 17 July 1950 346 59. 'A Survey of Communism in Africa', Extract from a Paper by the Research Department, Foreign Office, August 1950 357 60. Colonial Resources and Defence Poliey: Extracts from Minutes written in the Colonial Offiee, August 1950 360 61. Central African Territories: Minute by P. C. Gordon Walker, 5 October 1950 366 62. Constitutional Development in East Africa: Extract from Conclusions of a Cabinet Meeting, 20 November 1950 368 63. 'Closer Association in Central Afriea', Memorandum by the Secretary of State for the Colonies and the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations, 3 May 1951 370