Changes

In 1922, the fourth congress of the Communist International took up the policy of the United Front, urging Communists to work with rank and file Social Democrats while remaining critical of their leaders, who they criticized for "betraying" the working class by supporting the war efforts of their respective capitalist classes. For their part, the social democrats pointed to the dislocation caused by revolution, and later, the growing authoritarianism of the Communist Parties. When the Communist Party of Great Britain applied to affiliate to the Labour Party in 1920 it was turned down.

In 1922, the fourth congress of the Communist International took up the policy of the United Front, urging Communists to work with rank and file Social Democrats while remaining critical of their leaders, who they criticized for "betraying" the working class by supporting the war efforts of their respective capitalist classes. For their part, the social democrats pointed to the dislocation caused by revolution, and later, the growing authoritarianism of the Communist Parties. When the Communist Party of Great Britain applied to affiliate to the Labour Party in 1920 it was turned down.

==After World War II==

==After [[World War II]]==

In 1945, the world’s three great powers met at the ''Yalta Conference'' to negotiate an amicable and stable peace. UK Prime Minister [[Winston Churchill]] joined USA President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] and [[Joseph Stalin]], General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee. With the relative decline of Britain compared to the two superpowers, the USA and the Soviet Union, however, many viewed the world as "bi-polar" - a world with two irreconcilable and antagonistic political and economic systems. Many termed the Soviet Union "socialist", not least the Soviet Union itself, but also commonly in the USA, China, Eastern Europe, and many parts of the world where Communist Parties had gained a mass base. In addition, scholarly critics of the Soviet Union, such as economist [[Friedrich Hayek]] were commonly cited as critics of socialism.

In 1945, the world’s three great powers met at the ''Yalta Conference'' to negotiate an amicable and stable peace. UK Prime Minister [[Winston Churchill]] joined USA President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] and [[Joseph Stalin]], General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee. With the relative decline of Britain compared to the two superpowers, the USA and the Soviet Union, however, many viewed the world as "bi-polar" - a world with two irreconcilable and antagonistic political and economic systems. Many termed the Soviet Union "socialist", not least the Soviet Union itself, but also commonly in the USA, China, Eastern Europe, and many parts of the world where Communist Parties had gained a mass base. In addition, scholarly critics of the Soviet Union, such as economist [[Friedrich Hayek]] were commonly cited as critics of socialism.

This view was not universally shared, particularly in Europe, and especially in Britain, where the Communist Party was very weak. In 1951, British Health Minister [[Aneurin Bevan]] expressed the view that, "It is probably true that Western Europe would have gone socialist after the war if Soviet [[behavior]] had not given it too grim a visage. Soviet Communism and Socialism are not yet sufficiently distinguished in many minds."

This view was not universally shared, particularly in Europe, and especially in Britain, where the Communist Party was very weak. In 1951, British Health Minister [[Aneurin Bevan]] expressed the view that, "It is probably true that Western Europe would have gone socialist after the war if Soviet [[behavior]] had not given it too grim a visage. Soviet Communism and Socialism are not yet sufficiently distinguished in many minds."