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Economy and the Second World War

Women munition workers in a British arms factory in 1943.
Women munition workers in a British arms factory in 1943.
©TopFoto

When mobilising for the Second World War, Britain was transformed from a primarily free market economy to a planned economy. Increasing state control of the economy was necessary to further the war effort.

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Further reading

  • Milward, A.S., War, Economy and Society: 1939-1945 (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1947)
  • Jefferys, K., The Churchill Coalition and Wartime Politics, 1940-1945 (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1991)