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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... Military Administrations . In this category were countries such as Italian Somaliland , Libya , Madagascar and Syria . NOTE ON THE BRITISH EMPIRE AND COMMONWEALTH XIII The Commander XII THE BRITISH EMPIRE AND THE SECOND WORLD WAR.
... Madagascar . As a global economic community , the transfer of resources by sea was the lifeblood of the British Empire , in war as in peace . In war , the sea lanes of the world were also vital for the movement of martial resources to ...
... Madagascar , Sicily and Syria . Southern Iran was also invaded and taken over in order to prevent a German invasion from the north , to guard Britain's precious oil reserves and to maintain an Anglo- American supply link with Russia ...
... Madagascar and Syria , were conquered and occupied . British bases and military power were also established in other new areas , for example in the French Comoros Islands off the African coast , in Iceland , the Faroe Islands and the ...
... Madagascar - but in others they were entirely inadequate , and the lack of preparation and of sufficient numbers of modern fighters and bombers was to cost dear in South - East Asia and the Dutch East Indies . Britain's air forces were ...
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 |