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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... routes . These connected Britain to Australasia and the major theatres of conflict in the Middle East and South Asia . The air and naval forces of the Dominions ... 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 ...
... routes connecting Britain with America and Canada were the ' WS ' convoy routes connecting Britain with Suez via the Cape and the Indian Ocean . By March 1941 643,198 imperial servicemen had been escorted across the waters guarded by ...
... routes led to a rapid fall of stocks in countries bordering the Indian Ocean . Sixty - eight British tankers were ... route and the Burma Road delivered supplies to Chiang Kai - shek's beleaguered Chinese forces . The railways , roads ...
... route with a very respectable modern fleet . In the 1930s the grave threat to Britain in Europe and the Mediterranean posed by the dicta- tors meant that the Far East could not be adequately reinforced . Therefore the Singapore strategy ...
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 |