Gwybodaeth Modiwlau

`Immigration on a large scale into a fully established society like ours could only be welcome without reserve if the immigrants were of good human stock and were not prevented by their religion or race from intermarrying with the host population and becoming merged with it' (Report of the Royal Commission on Population, 1949). Questions about how many people should be allowed to settle in Britain and the impact an immigrant population can make upon society have frequently dominated social and political debates in modern Britain. From the widespread settlement of the Irish in industrial centres from the mid-nineteenth century, through to the post-Second World War influx of people from the Commonwealth, how immigration impacts upon the native population and British identity has polarised opinions. In this module we will explore all aspects of the debate and will examine questions of what it means to be British, why immigrants from some countries are more welcome than others, and why the situation sometimes becomes so fraught that race riots have broken out. We will look at the impact of legislation, media representations of immigrants and will assess how far we can argue that Britain became a multicultural country. The module places immigration into Britain in historical context by examining the situation in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, before focussing on the large influx of immigrants in the post-Second World period.

Immigration and its impact upon society, and British identity in particular, are topics that have frequently dominated social and political debates in modern Britain. The response to the immigrant population has divided opinion, at best rousing discussion and at worst provoking riots. The purpose of this module is to explore the role immigration has played in modern British society. Students will examine immigration within the wider context of the history of race and ethnicity, and will be introduced to the impact of such discussions about notions of British identity and Britishness.