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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... warships it could prevent enemy's ships passing in or out of the Red Sea , just as Gibraltar with its guns and warships can stop ships using the Mediterranean . But Perim has got guns , and they are British guns ! Also , as our ship ...
Ashley Jackson. there were nearly 400 Royal Navy warships of all classes in the Atlantic . Over the course of the war the Allies lost 3000 merchant ships and 175 warships in this theatre . One other fleet operated in the theatre , the ...
... warships , about forty aircraft and a regiment . The British lost nine warships , forty aircraft , four anti - aircraft regiments and a tank squadron as well as thousands of troops . The Australians lost two warships , thirty aircraft ...