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. |
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... ports and naval bases , like Glasgow and Scapa Flow , were integral to the functioning of British maritime security , convoys and trade during the war . Even Ireland , a reluctant British Dominion that insisted on remaining neutral ...
... ports and naval shore bases provided a global network for the warships of the fleets and squadrons that had historically policed the world , from the South Atlantic Station to the Mediterranean Fleet and from the China Station to the ...
... ports and cities , though it had of course shed most of the squadrons that in 1918 had given it a front - line strength of over 1500 machines . The money afforded the RAF in the 1930s did not mean , however , that there was sufficient ...
... ports upon which the very survival of the British cause and the independence of the British people rested . In 1939 most Britons saw the Empire as a source of strength , as the very essence of Britishness , and as a vital buttress of ...
... ports , Americans were involved and active on Britain's side , even though their country was officially at war with no one . In the Western Desert campaign , often seen as the last great single - handed British victory , American ...
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 |