What we offer for Schools and Colleges - Post 16
Illustrated Talks (These last approximately 45 minutes)
Life in Wartime Britain
A general survey, making use of the rich resources of the Photographic and Art departments of the Imperial War Museum, and including evacuation, gasmasks, shelters, bombing, rationing, women’s work and the impact of Commonwealth and US personnel on British life
GIs, Girls and Gum
‘Overpaid, oversexed and over ‘ere’; but were they? What were the effects of the friendly invasion of Americans on wartime and post war Britain?
Women at War
The contribution of women to the war effort, and the impact of war on their lives.
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Aldwych Tube Station |
Subterranean Secrets of Wartime London
Just how much went on beneath the streets of this city?
British Wartime Propaganda
A consideration of the aims and methods or the Ministry of Information, focusing particularly on posters and film and with some comparison with German methods.
The Two Home Fronts
Comparing life and work in Britain and Germany during the Second World War.
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Sir Winston Churchill |
Churchill’s Finest Hour?
What was his background, and what was he like as Prime Minister?
Churchill and D-Day
What part did Churchill play in the planning and operations of the Normandy Landings?
Churchill and the Cold War
How did Churchill view the conflicts which followed the peace of 1945?
Handling Workshops and Study Sessions (These last approximately 45 minutes)
British Wartime Images of Nazism
Using film, photographs and posters to investigate how the Ministry of Information portrayed the Nazi Leadership and the German people.
Power, Symbolism and Leadership
A study of the differing styles of leadership, and the varying uses of symbolism by Churchill, Hitler, Stalin and Mussolini, during the Second World War.
Research, discussion and presentation Workshops (These last approximately 90 minutes)
The Civilian War Readiness Committee, June 1939
With war becoming increasingly likely, the committee meets to discuss seven different issues, such as what can be done to protect civilians against bomb and gas attacks? What should be done about shortages, and the threat of invasion? Download the briefing papers.
D-Day Decisions
Planning for the ‘Second Front’ includes decision making about landing area, weather conditions, engineering needs and leadership.
Cabinet Meeting, 27 January 1941
A general Cabinet Meeting, as the Blitzing of the cities continues, enables each Cabinet Minister to report and to raise topics of general concern, and issues which overlap different departments. In the absence of Mr Churchill, Ministers are able to focus more on home affairs than is often possible.
The Great Abdication Debate, 1936
Churchill famously sided with King Edward VIII over the issue of the abdication. Now representatives of the government, media, and general public can discuss the whole issue and air their views, both about the King’s relationship, and about its constitutional and international implications.
Churchill and India
As a young Officer, Churchill was stationed in India, and his future perceptions were coloured by his experiences. In the 1920s and 30s he was implacably opposed to the independence movement. This role play enables participants to consider the question of India from a variety of viewpoints, including his own and those of members of the movement for independence
Women in Wartime
Image and Reality, is another topic which can benefit from an extended examination of women’s roles, and their depiction in film, posters and printed sources.
Comparing the Two Home Fronts
This offers an opportunity for extended discussion of leadership styles, propaganda methods and day to day life in Britain and Germany.
