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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... defence scheme , submitted to the Overseas Defence Committee in London , and was expected to maintain a local defence force and plan for air raid precautions and scorched earth denial schemes , should war ever come to the particular ...
... Defence Services , such as the Auxiliary Quartering Corps that found billets for essential defence organiza- tions . There was also a small Hong Kong naval force . The Hong Kong ARP had enrolled 12,000 people , mostly Chinese , before ...
... defence in the event of a Japanese invasion . The Volunteer Defence Corps provided 5000 men for the defence of airfields , for coast - watching , anti- aircraft and guard duties , and the manning of coastal defence batteries . In ...