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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... defence policy in the pre - war period . Indeed imperial concerns , particularly the need to ensure imperial unity should war come , were paramount influences upon British policy . Britain's apparent vacillation and weakness in the face ...
... defence . ' A great British man - of - war - the Barham – lay before us as we came to the mouth of the Suez Canal at Port Said . ' Nearby was a steamer full of Italian soldiers off to Abyssinia . Baden - Powell told his young audience ...
... defence ' was an acknowledged term used as shorthand for the global military system , founded upon seapower , which provided for the security of Britain and the Empire . The system of imperial defence also guaran- teed the freedom of ...
... 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 current in 1939. It was an imperial navy like no other , maintaining fleets and squadrons all over the globe , along with all necessary port installations , shore bases , support units and ancillary vessels , from destroyer and ...
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 |