Editing British Empire (section)

=== Second World War ===
{{Main|British Empire in World War II}}
[[File:El Alamein 1942 - British infantry.jpg|thumb|During the [[Second World War]], the [[Eighth Army (United Kingdom)|Eighth Army]] was made up of units from many different countries in the British Empire and Commonwealth; it fought in the [[North African campaign|North African]] and [[Italian Campaign (World War II)|Italian]] campaigns.]]

Britain's declaration of war against [[Nazi Germany]] in September 1939 included the Crown colonies and India but did not automatically commit the Dominions of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Newfoundland and South Africa. All soon declared war on Germany. While Britain continued to regard Ireland as still within the British Commonwealth, Ireland chose to remain [[Irish neutrality during World War II|legally neutral]] throughout [[The Emergency (Ireland)|the war]].{{Sfn|Lloyd|1996|pp=313–314}}

After the [[Fall of France]] in June 1940, Britain and the empire stood alone against Germany, until the [[German invasion of Greece]] on 7 April 1941. British Prime Minister [[Winston Churchill]] successfully lobbied President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] for [[military aid]] from the United States, but Roosevelt was not yet ready to ask [[United States Congress|Congress]] to commit the country to war.{{Sfn|Gilbert|2005|p=234}} In August 1941, Churchill and Roosevelt met and signed the [[Atlantic Charter]], which included the statement that "the rights of all peoples to choose the [[form of government]] under which they live" should be respected. This wording was ambiguous as to whether it referred to European countries invaded by Germany and Italy, or the peoples colonised by European nations, and would later be interpreted differently by the British, Americans, and nationalist movements.<ref>{{Harvnb|Lloyd|1996|p=316}}; {{Harvnb|James|2001|p=513}}.</ref> Nevertheless, Churchill rejected its universal applicability when it came to the self-determination of subject nations including the [[British Raj|British Indian Empire]]. Churchill further added that he did not become Prime Minister to oversee the liquidation of the empire.<ref name="i203">{{cite book | last=Mehta | first=B.L.G.A. | title=A New Look at Modern Indian History : From 1707 to The Modern Times | publisher=S. Chand Publishing | isbn=978-93-5501-683-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yc64EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA319 | page=319}}</ref>

For Churchill, the entry of the United States into the war was the "greatest joy".{{Sfn|Churchill|1950|p=539}} He felt that Britain was now assured of victory,{{Sfn|Gilbert|2005|p=244}} but failed to recognise that the "many disasters, immeasurable costs and tribulations [which he knew] lay ahead"{{Sfn|Churchill|1950|p=540}} in December 1941 would have permanent consequences for the future of the empire. The manner in which British forces were rapidly defeated in the Far East irreversibly harmed Britain's standing and prestige as an imperial power,<ref>{{Harvnb|Louis|2006|p=337}}; {{Harvnb|Brown|1998|p=319}}.</ref> including, particularly, the [[Battle of Singapore|Fall of Singapore]], which had previously been hailed as an impregnable fortress and the eastern equivalent of Gibraltar.{{Sfn|James|2001|p=460}} The realisation that Britain could not defend its entire empire pushed Australia and New Zealand, which now appeared threatened by Japanese forces, into closer ties with the United States and, ultimately, the 1951 [[ANZUS|ANZUS Pact]].{{Sfn|Lloyd|1996|p=316}} The war weakened the empire in other ways: undermining Britain's control of politics in India, inflicting long-term economic damage, and irrevocably changing [[geopolitics]] by pushing the Soviet Union and the United States to the centre of the global stage.{{Sfn|Darwin|2012|p=340}}