Harold Macmillan Facts & Worksheets

• When the Soviet satellite Sputnik was launched, it caused a crisis of trust in the United States. Macmillan saw this as a chance to increase British power over the US. He wanted a more fair relationship between Britain and the United States, and he used the Sputnik incident to try to get Eisenhower to get rid of the 1946 McMahon Act.
• Aside from that, Macmillan set up "working groups'' between Anglo-Americans to look into issues of foreign policy and called for a "Declaration of Interdependence."
• Macmillan led the Conservatives to victory in the 1959 election, which gave their party a majority of 100 seats instead of 60. The campaign was built on the idea that the economy was getting better, unemployment was low, and people were living better.
• During Macmillan’s second government as prime minister from 1959 to 1963, there were problems in Britain’s balance of payments, which led Chancellor Selwyn Lloyd to freeze wages for seven months in 1961. This made the government less popular and led to a number of by-elections. Eight ministers were fired by Macmillan in 1962, including Selwyn Lloyd.
• Macmillan supported the Beeching I report, aimed at transforming the British railroad into a profitable business. The result was the implementation of the Beeching Axe, which resulted in significant reductions in permanent tracks and isolated towns from the train network. Macmillan initially planned for a four-power summit in Paris to discuss the Berlin issue. However, his perspective on the European Economic Community shifted following the unsuccessful Paris meeting, and his envisioned Anglo-American "working groups" did not materialise as he had hoped.
• After President John F. Kennedy was elected, the special relationship with the US continued due to his strong concerns for the Third World. Macmillan advocated for changes to capitalism to ensure employment for all and emphasised the importance of supporting developing nations.
• Early in the 1960s, Macmillan's handling of the Vassall and Profumo scandals raised questions about his competence. The Vassall scandal exposed a case of Soviet espionage within the Admiralty. John Vassall, a civil servant, had been blackmailed into passing sensitive information to the Soviet Union.
• The Profumo affair added another layer of controversy as it involved a scandalous relationship between the War Minister, John Profumo, and a model named Christine Keeler, who was also linked to Yevgeny Ivanov, a Soviet naval attache in London. The affair escalated into a national security crisis and raised concerns about the potential compromise of classified information.
• Macmillan faced criticism for his initial handling of these scandals, with some accusing him of being slow to take decisive action and effectively address the security risks and public concerns. By the summer of 1963, Lord Poole, the chairman of the Conservative Party, had pushed Macmillan to step down. Following a discussion with Butler, Macmillan agreed to step down in the event that Baron Hailsham was selected to succeed him.
• In a contentious move, Foreign Secretary Alec Douglas-Home replaced Macmillan. On 18 October 1963, after seven years as prime minister, Macmillan submitted his resignation, believing that a backbench minority was pressuring him out of office.

“Winds of Change” and Decolonisation

• When Macmillan acknowledged the growing calls for independence and self-determination across the continent in his 1960 speech to the South African Parliament in Cape Town, he famously coined the phrase "Winds of Change." In this speech, he outlined the global shift towards decolonisation and emphasised its unstoppable momentum. His words served as a catalyst for decolonisation, echoing sentiments of liberation and self-governance. The speech underlined the need for recognition of burgeoning sovereignty and collaboration in international relations.
• Under his leadership, the sub-Saharan African independence movement gained momentum, mirroring the domestic and international pressures of the era. Fears of a potential union between white-ruled Southern Rhodesia and South Africa threatened the stability of the Central African Federation, which grouped Northern Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia, and Nyasaland since 1953. When the costs of holding a territory outweighed the benefits, Macmillan realised it was wise to give it up.
• The British government's attempts to keep the Kikuyu people safe from Mau Mau insurgents during the Kenyan Emergency involved internment camps whose living conditions starkly reminded many of the concentration camps of Nazi Germany. 
• These events, along with the pressing realities of costly wars, adverse global opinion, and the risk of Soviet influence in aiding "liberation" movements in the Third World, shifted Macmillan's perspective. He increasingly saw African colonies as liabilities rather than assets.
• By the time Macmillan left office, the Central African Federation had been dissolved by the end of 1963, and South Africa had departed from the Commonwealth in 1961 due to the policies he implemented, prevailing against the opposition of white minorities and groups like the Conservative Monday Club.
• The year 1963 also marked the creation of Malaysia through the independence of Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore from British rule, a significant transition in Southeast Asia. President Sukarno of Indonesia vehemently opposed this new federation, asserting a claim over Malaysia.
• Tensions rose when Brunei, a British protectorate, faced an Indonesian-backed insurrection in 1962—a situation Macmillan addressed by dispatching Gurkhas to quell the uprising. 
• Indonesia's subsequent campaign of konfrontasi ("confrontation") with Britain was another event Macmillan deeply resented. His apprehension about a full-scale confrontation with Indonesia stemmed from concerns about cost and further damage to British international standing.
• Macmillan’s tenure also saw critical developments in security and international relations. In 1961, he met with President John F. Kennedy to negotiate the Nassau Agreement, which involved the acquisition of Polaris missiles, reflecting ongoing efforts to sustain the ‘special relationship’ between Britain and the United States. The geopolitical landscape of the time was further complicated by the 1960 U-2 incident, which derailed attempts for a conciliatory summit in Paris.
• Macmillan's commitment to nuclear non-proliferation culminated in his significant participation in the negotiations leading to the signing of the 1963 Partial Test Ban Treaty by the US, UK, and Soviet Union—a testament to his efforts in promoting global security and stability.
• The end of Macmillan’s administration marked not just a transition in British leadership but also a turning point in the decolonisation narrative as territories across Africa and Asia were set on the path to independence. His legacy in this transformative period included the initiation and support of policies that enabled nations to emerge from the shadow of the British Empire, setting the stage for a new era of international relations and nation-building.

Retirement and Death

• After resigning as Prime Minister in 1963, Macmillan was granted a hereditary peerage as Earl of Stockton, allowing him to continue serving in the House of Lords. Despite his retirement from active politics, he remained involved in public life and continued to be influential within the Conservative Party.
• However, his health began to decline in the 1980s, and he passed away on 29 December 1986, at Birch Grove, the Macmillan family mansion on the edge of Ashdown Forest, in Horsted Keynes, West Sussex. On 5 January 1987, 200 people attended his private funeral at St. Giles' Church. A public memorial ceremony was held on 10 February.
• His legacy as a statesman and his impact on the decolonisation process continues to be remembered and studied by historians and political analysts around the world.