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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... Rifles search Japanese soldiers , Malaya , 1945 21 An Australian Matilda tank , Solomon Islands , May 1945 22 HMS Anson , in Sydney Harbour , 1945 To my grandmother Pauline Vivienne Townshend One of the many Illustrations.
... Malaya were fought because of Britain's imperial heritage in these regions . Because of the Empire , events in Europe , such as the fall of France and Italy's declaration of war , had ramifications for Britain throughout the world ...
... Malayan Communist Party Middle East Command MESC Middle East Supply Centre MNBDO Mobile Naval Base Defence Organization Malayan Communist Party Northern Combat Area Command ( Burma - China ) Newfoundland Escort Force Northern Rhodesia ...
... Abyssinia and north - east India , or the jungles of Borneo , Burma and Malaya . An imperial perspective helps connect all of these scenes of Second World War action to the European war , as well as providing a perspective on 1 Prologue.
... Malaya and British Borneo ; Polish servicemen fought in Iran , Iraq , West Africa and the Western Desert , as well as in the Battle of Britain ; and Free French forces fought with the Eighth Army in the Middle East and the French ...
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 |