Distant Drums: The Role of Colonies in British Imperial Warfare

Revealing how colonies were central to the defense of the British Empire and the command of the oceans that underpinned it, this work blends sweeping overviews of the nature of imperial defense with grass-roots explanations of how individual colonies were mobilized for war, drawing on the author's specialist knowledge of the Indian Ocean and colonies such as Bechuanaland, Ceylon, Mauritius, and Swaziland. After examining the martial reasons for acquiring colonies, Distant Drums considers the colonial role in the Great War before turning to the Second World War and 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 colonial troops far from home, and the networks used to achieve the mobilization of a global empire, such as those formed by colonial governors and regional naval commanders. An important contribution to fully the understanding of the role of British colonies, this book champions the crucial role played by the other parts of the British Empire in delivering victory during the world wars of the 20th century.