#power

"Look at the map and ask yourselves what would have happened to that great splash of red down from India through Australia down to New Zealand, but for the Anglo-Japanese Treaty. How much of these great rich territories and portions of our Empire would have escaped had Japan been neutral? How much if she had been our enemy? It is certain the naval power of the Empire could not have saved India and Australia and still been strong enough to hold Germany bottled up in the narrow seas. ... Had elected to fight on the side of Germany we should most certainly have been defeated."

React to this quote

More by Billy Hughes

See all

“mongst the chief causes of this war the desire of Germany to wrest from Britain her industrial and commercial supremacy. ... f I have interpreted the temper of the people of the Empire aright, they have determined that the end of this war will see, not only the downfall of Prussian military power, but of that insidious and intolerable influence which had in very many cases reached a point when Germany actually dominated the trade, not only of this Empire, but of that of our Allies.”

“We are loyal to the Empire first and foremost because we are of the British race.”

“At the Peace Conference of 1919, Baron Makino insisted on the insertion of an amendment to the Covenant recognizing the principle of racial equality. Baron Makino assured me that the amendment was not for use, but was merely an assertion of principle. When I offered to accept it provided that words were incorporated making it clear that it was not to be used for the purpose of immigration or of impairing our rights of self-government in any way, Baron Makino was unable to agree.”

“They all hoped the peace which was to be presented to Germany...would be based upon Germany's responsibility for the war, that it would indeed make her repair the frightful ravages she had made by land, sea, and air, that it would make her responsible for the cost of the war, and that it would insist upon such territorial, military, and other conditions as would make another war by Germany impossible for ever. That is what the people of the world expected and demanded.”

“He was sick of this canting humbug about internationalism. Nationalism, not internationalism, was the policy for Britain.”

“The Dominions could not exist if it were not for the British Navy. We must not forget this. We are a united Empire or we are nothing.”