Distant Drums: The Role of Colonies in British Imperial Warfare

by Ashley Jackson

Distant Drumsreveals how colonies were central to the defence of the British Empire and the command of the oceans that underpinned it. It blends sweeping overviews of the nature of imperial defence with grass-roots explanations of how individual colonies were mobilised for war, drawing on the author's specialist knowledge of the Indian Ocean and colonies such as Bechuanaland, Ceylon, Mauritius, and Swaziland. This permits the full and dramatic range of action involved in imperial warfare -- from policy-makers and military planners in Whitehall to chiefs recruiting soldiers in African villages -- to be viewed as part of an interconnected whole. After examining the martial reasons for acquiring colonies, the book considers the colonial role in the First World War. It then turns to the Second World War, documenting the recruitment of colonial soldiers, their manifold roles in British military formations, and the impact of war upon colonial home fronts. It reveals the problems
associated with the use of

Genres: History

339 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010