The vote to leave the European Union exposed tensions and fault lines in British society, but perhaps none more gaping than its generational divisions. A referendum results party at the Lexington pub in London. Credit:New York Times According to pre-election surveys by the polling organisation Survation, 57 per cent of Britons between ages 18 and 34 who intended to take part in Thursday's referendum supported remaining in the bloc, while an identical proportion - 57 per cent - of Britons older than 55 supported the opposite: leaving Europe behind. For those younger than 25, the desire to remain in the union was especially high: Three-quarters wanted Britain to stay in Europe. Many young people in Britain have grown up thinking of European integration as a given, not a political experiment that would be rolled back before they could fully take part in it.

They are often more comfortable living in a multicultural society than their elders are, particularly in cities like London and Edinburgh, which are flooded by people from across the Continent to study and work. The historic Brexit vote has divided Britain, and cost a pretty penny, as well. Credit:Bloomberg Many young Britons expressed astonishment, anger or despair that their parents and grandparents would seek to limit the travel, exposure to other cultures and opportunities to work and study abroad that being part of the European Union has afforded them. "Truly gutted that our grandparents have effectively decided that they hate foreigners more than they love us and our futures", one young Briton, Dan Boden, wrote on Twitter. A European Union flag, with a hole cut in the middle, flies at half-mast outside a home in Cheshire, Britain. Credit:Getty Images

The referendum hinged in part on youth turnout, and the government even tried to lower the voting age for the referendum to 16 from 18. It failed, but the Remain campaign still pushed to register young voters, with some success: The deadline to register was extended by two days after a voter-registration website crashed because it was overwhelmed by visitors. It could become cheaper to travel to Britain in the short term. Credit:New York Times Prime Minister David Cameron turned to Tinder, the dating app, and TheLADbible, a website popular among young men, to tout the benefits of staying in the European Union. The opposition Labour Party, which supported remaining in the bloc, also reached out to young voters. More than 1 million people between 18 and 34 registered in recent months, the most ever for a British election, according to Bite the Ballot and HOPE Not Hate, which encourage young people to vote. Turnout for the referendum, at about 72 per cent, was the highest for any national election in Britain since 1992.

But it was not enough. Of course, many young people supported the push to rid themselves of Europe. Ben Kew, 21, said he spent 30 hours at the Leave headquarters, watching the results come in. "I was surprised; I didn't think we'd go through with it, but I'm pleased that the establishment has been given a kick," he said, adding that the vote was a moment when Britons expressed a desire for real change. But many young voters wondered what would happen to European Union funding for research and sciences. British universities receive about 16 per cent of their research money and staff members from the European Union. Huddersfield

Anxiety about the economy and immigration drove the Leave campaign's victory. But many young people said they thought the decision would only set back their prospects. "I'm already part of a generation stuck in rented property unable to buy my own house", Hannah Shaw, 25, who works at a National Health Service hospital and lives with her parents, wrote in an email. "The older generation seem so happy with the result, almost smug like it's some sort of victory completely unaware of the chaos they've caused for my generation. I'm dreading what will happen to employment, workers' rights, the environment and our economy." She added that she had friends from countries like Slovakia, Poland, Spain and Romania. "It's hard to see it affect them and think of the amazing people I'll never meet after we leave the EU," she said. "The UK suddenly feels very small." New York Times