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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... network presented by the war , diversions had to be arranged in some parts of the world . Thus to supply the Middle East with sufficient aircraft , an air supply route was developed across the African continent because of PROLOGUE 3.
Ashley Jackson. supply route was developed across the African continent because of the risks involved in shipping or flying large numbers of aircraft via the Axis - infested Mediterranean . As in the air , so too at sea . Imperial ports ...
... developed imperial consciousness in Britain too . In the film Hope and Glory a schoolteacher points to various parts of the world on the once - ubiquitous classroom wall map , and says * ' Pink . Pink . Pink . Pink . What are all the ...
... develop an adminis- trative , military and economic system to meet it . In doing this , the metropole shared its organizational role with other centres of imperial power . By the middle of the twentieth century the Empire was strong ...
... developed through litera- ture , art and the stage , education , newspaper and radio coverage of imperial affairs , royal tours and sporting events . There was also extensive movement of people to and from different parts of the Empire ...
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 |