Lloyd George, France & GermanyExam Schools11 November 2005Last Friday, history professors draped in gowns, as well as a few enthusiastic undergraduates, congregated to listen to a lecture given by renowned academic Pprofessor Lord Morgan. The fact that many of the audience were wearing Rrememberance Dday poppies added a poignant dimension to the occasion. Iindeed, this lecture was aptly scheduled, supporting the ethos of the day and prompting us to reflect on the Great Wwar and the reasons behind it.Oriel alumnus Lord Morgan was doubtlessly one of the reasons why the lecture was so well attended, his contribution to history having won him the honour of a life peerage in the year 2000. Hhis work includes a biography of the important figure Ddavid Lloyd George, Pprime Minister of Britain and First Wworld Wwar leader, whom Churchill described as his “master”. Yet, despite Cchurchill’s reverence, his predecessor remains a much less celebrated figure, lacking the profile of the man recently voted as “The Greatest Briton”. This was, therefore, an opportunity for Pprofessor Lord Morgan to set the record straight about this important politician, a statue of whom will be unveiled in Pparliament Ssquare in 2006.This lecture was not delivered as a perfunctory list of facts and figures chronicling Lloyd George’s political career. Iinstead, Pprofessor Lord Morgan focused on his relationships with the French and the Germans, shedding light on his often controversial attitudes toward the two nations. Hhis loyalties were torn between his sympathetic tendancies toward Germanyand the patriotism that forced him to ally with France.At the start of the twentieth century, Lloyd George greatly admired Germany’s protectionist commercial policy as well as its strategies for social reform. Moreover, he felt that Britain could learn a lot from Germany, which he perceived to be the embodiment of national efficiency. Iin contrast, there was an underlying tension within Franco-British relations, highlighted by a clash of personalities between Lloyd George and French Pprime Minister Georges Cclemenceau. Ddespite their differences and the British leader’s natural affinity towards Germany, they managed to come together to lead the alliance to victory in 1918.Professor Lord Morgan emphasised the depth of Lloyd George’s pro-German feelings, explaining how this was revealed in his suggestions at the Pparis Ppeace Cconference and in his notably mild criticism of Hhitler. The way in which the speaker delivered this fascinating lecture was engaging and particularly impressive not only in its content but also in his ability to express intellectual points without resorting to inaccessible jargon.ARCHIVE: 6th week MT 2005
