1921 Imperial Conference

British Empire political event May 2013 March 2022 1921 Imperial Conference United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland United Kingdom 20 June 1921–5 August 1921 10 Downing Street London Australia Canada India New Zealand Union of South Africa UK Heads of Government 6 David Lloyd George(Prime Minister) Imperial War Conference(1917–1918) 1923 Anglo-Japanese Alliance The 1921 Imperial Conference met in London from 20 June to 5 August 1921. It was chaired by British prime minister David Lloyd George. The Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom and the Dominions met at the 1921 Imperial Conference to determine a unified international policy, particularly the relationship with the United States and the Empire of Japan.Tate Foy 1959 539 The most urgent issue was that of whether or not to renew the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, which was due to expire on 13 July 1921.Brebner 1935 48 On one side were the Prime Minister of Australia, Billy Hughes, and the Prime Minister of New Zealand, Bill Massey, who strongly favoured its renewal.Brebner 1935 54 Neither wanted their countries to be caught up in a war between the United States and Japan, and contrasted the generous assistance that Japan rendered during the First World War with the United States' disengagement from international affairs in its aftermath.Tate Foy 1959 535–538 "The British Empire", declared Hughes, "must have a reliable friend in the Pacific".Tate Foy 1959 543 They were opposed by the Prime Minister of Canada, Arthur Meighen, on the grounds that the alliance would adversely affect the relationship with the United States, which Canada depended upon for its security.Brebner 1935 48–50 As a result, no decision to renew was reached, and the alliance was allowed to expire.Brebner 1935 56 This was the first Imperial Conference to which the colony of India was invited, though it was still a colony and not a dominion. However, it was primarily represented by the British cabinet minister responsible for the subcontinent. Participants The conference was hosted by King-Emperor George V, with his Prime Ministers and members of their respective cabinets:Minutes of the 1921 Imperial Conference Nation Name PortfolioUnited Kingdom United Kingdom David Lloyd George Prime Minister (Chairman) Austen Chamberlain Lord Privy Seal Arthur Balfour Lord President of the Council George Curzon Foreign Secretary Winston Churchill Secretary of State for the ColoniesAustralia Australia William Hughes Prime MinisterCanada 1921 Arthur Meighen Prime Minister Charles Ballantyne Minister of Naval ServiceBritish Raj India Edwin Samuel Montagu Secretary of State for India Khengarji III Maharao of Cutch V. S. Srinivasa Sastri Member of the Council of State of IndiaNew Zealand New Zealand William Massey Prime MinisterSouth Africa 1912 South Africa Jan Smuts Prime Minister Sir Thomas Smartt Minister of Agriculture Hendrik Mentz Minister of Defence See also Imperial Conference References Sources Conference of Prime Ministers and Representatives of the United Kingdom, the Dominions, and India (Summary of Proceedings and Documents of the), Held in June, July, and August, 1921, at London. Journals of the House of Representatives New Zealand 1921 Session II Appendix, A-04 https://atojs.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/atojs?a=d&d=AJHR1921-I-II.2.1.2.4 Citations Bibliography Brebner J. Bartlet Canada, The Anglo-Japanese Alliance and the Washington Conference Political Science Quarterly 50 1 March 1935 45–58 The Academy of Political Science 0032-3195 2143412 10.2307/2143412 Tate Merze Foy Fidele More Light on the Abrogation of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance Political Science Quarterly 74 4 December 1959 532–554 The Academy of Political Science 2146422 0032-3195 10.2307/2146422 https://dh.howard.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1026&context=hist_fac subscription Category:Imperial Conference Category:1921 in London Category:1921 in international relations Category:1921 in the British Empire Category:1921 conferences Category:1920s in the City of Westminster Category:June 1921 in the United Kingdom Category:July 1921 in the United Kingdom Category:August 1921 in the United Kingdom Category:David Lloyd George Category:Winston Churchill Category:Jan Smuts Category:Arthur Balfour Category:First premiership of Arthur Meighen