How Britain Going Broke Sparked a Century of Middle East Border Wars

In 1945, Britain went completely broke. Not defeated in war—just bankrupt. And that economic collapse is why the Middle East has the borders, and the wars, you see on today's news. This is the story they don't teach you in history class.
The British Empire controlled a quarter of the Earth's landmass after World War II—but it had burned through 300 years of accumulated wealth in just six years. Britain owed £3.4 billion (roughly £150 billion today) and couldn't even afford to feed its own people, let alone maintain an empire.
So what happened? Britain didn't carefully decolonize the Middle East. They liquidated it. Like a business selling off assets in a fire sale. And the people drawing the new borders weren't generals or diplomats—they were accountants, racing against bankruptcy, dividing territories for economic efficiency rather than peace.
This documentary reveals:

How John Maynard Keynes predicted Britain's collapse in 1945 (and died proving it)
Why Britain really abandoned Palestine in 1947 (hint: it wasn't about politics)
How a single phone call from President Eisenhower ended the British Empire forever
Why Middle East borders are straight lines through deserts (economic convenience)
The shocking connection between Britain's 1945 debt and your gas prices today

From the Suez Crisis to modern Middle East conflicts, every border dispute traces back to one simple fact: Britain ran out of money and drew borders designed for extraction, not independence. And we're still living with the consequences 80 years later.
The greatest empire in history didn't fall in glorious battles. It collapsed in spreadsheets and IMF meetings. And the Middle East paid the price.

📚 SOURCES & FURTHER READING:

"The Economic Consequences of Mr. Churchill" - John Maynard Keynes
"Britain's Sterling Colonial Policy and Decolonization" - David Fieldhouse
"A Line in the Sand: Britain, France and the Struggle for Mastery of the Middle East" - James Barr
UK National Archives: Anglo-American Loan Agreement (1945)
IMF Historical Documents: Suez Crisis Economic Data (1956)