"Seminar Studies in History" aims to bridge the gap between the standardized text book and the specialist survey. Each book consists of a brief introduction or background to the subject, followed by a section of analysis focusing on the main themes and issues. There is an assessment of the subject and then a selection of documents. The contributors to the series are drawn from teachers in schools, colleges, polytechnics and universities and are all experts in their field. Rather than taking a neutral approach to their subjects, they express their own views whilst also giving due weight to alternative perspectives. During the 20th century, Britain has been engaged in numerous military conflicts, not all of them acknowledged as war. This book therefore considers the effects of just three wars, all recognised as such: the Second Boer War (1899-1902), World War I (1914-1918) and World War II (1939-1945). Without question, all three wars focused attention on British social conditions. All, it has been argued, led to changes in British society. It is these supposed political, social and economic changes, their extent, nature and degree of permanency and the debates among historians concerning their importance and their relationship to war, that form the subject matter of the greater part of this volume.