The British Empire and the Second World WarIn 1939 Hitler went to war not just with Great Britain; he also went to war with the whole of the British Empire, the greatest empire that there had ever been. In the years since 1945 that empire has disappeared, and the crucial fact that the British Empire fought together as a whole during the war has been forgotten. All the parts of the empire joined the struggle and were involved in it from the beginning, undergoing huge changes and sometimes suffering great losses as a result. The war in the desert, the defence of Malta and the Malayan campaign, and the contribution of the empire as a whole in terms of supplies, communications and troops, all reflect the strategic importance of Britain's imperial status. Men and women not only from Australia, New Zealand and India but from many parts of Africa and the Middle East all played their part. Winston Churchill saw the war throughout in imperial terms. The British Empire and the Second World War emphasises a central fact about the Second World War that is often forgotten. |
From inside the book
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... world , from the South Atlantic Station to the Mediterranean Fleet and from the China Station to the Eastern Fleet . All over the world imperial ports were used to the full by warships and merchantmen , as they travelled ... SECOND WORLD WAR.
... great ' fortress ' of Singapore , in which so many hollow inter - war security hopes had reposed . Losses to Japan also escalated the demand for production in places such as West Africa , necessitating conscription to provide the cotton ...
... Second World War were from the Dominions , including the Australian general Thomas Blamey , the New Zealand general Bernard Freyberg ( who nearly became Commander - in - Chief Middle East in August 1940 ) , and the New Zealand air ...
... war and the global conflict that it soon spawned , the great democracies of the day proved ill - equipped to meet the violent challenge of states that played outside the rules of international relations as those great ... SECOND WORLD WAR.
... world . In fact there was not one adequately defended base throughout the entire Empire when judged against the scale of likely attack using modern weapons . Yet the maintenance of naval supremacy , and the consequent ... SECOND WORLD WAR.
Contents
1 | |
11 | |
21 | |
41 | |
5 The Atlantic | 53 |
6 The Caribbean | 77 |
7 The Mediterranean | 97 |
8 Iraq Iran and Syria | 145 |
11 The Islands of the Indian Ocean | 307 |
12 India and Burma | 351 |
13 SouthEast Asia and the Far East | 405 |
14 Australia and New Zealand | 463 |
15 The Pacific | 513 |
16 Epilogue | 525 |
Notes | 535 |
Bibliography | 561 |