Early in her Prime Ministership, Margaret Thatcher fought an unlikely diversionary war far from home for the ownership of the Falkland Islands. The Islands lie off of Argentina’s coast about 8,000 miles from London, but have been subject to Britain’s rule since 1836. In April 1982, hoping to distract from domestic political and economic turmoil, Argentina’s military dictatorship ordered a surprise invasion of the Islands. Thatcher, Britain’s first female Prime Minister, responded in full force. By early May, a British fleet reached the Islands. By June, despite American efforts to stop a war between its allies, Britain launched an assault on the Islands and took them back by force. Thatcher’s victory propelled her to immense popularity in late-1982 and 1983, and the Argentine dictatorship’s defeat gave life to a people’s revolt that quickly ended the regime and decades of military leadership. This thesis examines Thatcher’s leadership in April 1982, before Britain launched its retaliatory invasion of the Islands. It seeks to answer how Thatcher managed to make the war possible and popular in three key arenas: with her own cabinet and government, with the United States and the United Nations, and ultimately with the British public. This study operates on the idea that the war served as an intentional diversion for Thatcher, who had struggled domestically as Prime Minister up until the Falklands Crisis. Utilizing newly released archival documents from the Thatcher government, this study shows the Prime Minister never had any interest in avoiding war, undermining any potential for peace as it emerged.

Sir Henry Wilson remains one of the most controversial British Army generals of the Great War. A colourful character in life, he attracted admirers and detractors in equal measure; in death, his reputation was ruined by a biography based on his personal diaries. The Wilson of the historiography is, at best, a politician rather than a soldier, at worst an ambitious Francophile intriguer. This thesis looks beyond this accepted characterisation, reassessing his role in the formation of British and Allied strategy in the final months of the war. Wilson attained influence, and subsequently power, when Lloyd George consulted him after failing to persuade Britain’s leading generals to change their strategic focus. The thesis re-examines Wilson’s policy critique, which led to the creation of the Supreme War Council, and negated plans for a major Allied offensive on the Western Front in 1918. This thesis aims to shine new light on Wilson’s work on the Council, with an analysis of its policy recommendations. The research will also explore the manpower crisis, the key issue for the entente in this period, and Wilson’s contribution to the establishment of Allied unity of command. The diplomatic skills Wilson deployed to defuse serious strains between the entente powers will be examined, with particular reference to his time as Chief of the Imperial General Staff. His contribution to the debate on Britain’s post-war imperial grand strategy will also be evaluated. The thesis will refute the long-established onedimensional view of Wilson and suggest that he played a more influential role in British strategic development than has hitherto been acknowledged.

<p>Abstract:</p><p>Title: The popular blog – on updating and its effects on vistor statistics</p><p>Number of pages: 35</p><p>Author: Wilhelm von Sydow</p><p>Tutor: Else Nygren</p><p>Course: Media and Communication Studies C</p><p>Period: Autumn 2006</p><p>University: Division of Media and Communication, Department of Information Science, Uppsala University</p><p>Purpose/Aim: To examine to which, if any, extent the update frequency of blogs affects their visitor statistics.</p><p>Material/Method: Quantitative method, Swedish blogs, visitor statistics and updating frequency.</p><p>Main results: No results could prove the causal effects of the relation between visitor statistics and updating frequency. A noticeable connection between the two variables could, however, be identified.</p><p>Keywords: Blog, update frequency, visitor statistics, quantitative, Habermas, public sphere, Else Nygren, intranet, Matt Haig, business websites</p>

Abstract: Title: The popular blog – on updating and its effects on vistor statistics Number of pages: 35 Author: Wilhelm von Sydow Tutor: Else Nygren Course: Media and Communication Studies C Period: Autumn 2006 University: Division of Media and Communication, Department of Information Science, Uppsala University Purpose/Aim: To examine to which, if any, extent the update frequency of blogs affects their visitor statistics. Material/Method: Quantitative method, Swedish blogs, visitor statistics and updating frequency. Main results: No results could prove the causal effects of the relation between visitor statistics and updating frequency. A noticeable connection between the two variables could, however, be identified. Keywords: Blog, update frequency, visitor statistics, quantitative, Habermas, public sphere, Else Nygren, intranet, Matt Haig, business websites

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