Vietnam and the unravelling of empire
Subtitle: General Gracey in Asia, 1942-1951
By: T.O. Smith, Associate Professor of History, Huntington University, USA
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Published: 2014
Place of publication: Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire; New York, NY
Language: eng
Number of pages: 188
ISBN-13: 9781137448699
Subjects: Foreign relations; Generals; Biography; Officers; Indochinese War, 1946-1954; Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Causes; India-Pakistan Conflict, 1947-1949; Political violence; History; Colonies; HISTORY / Europe / Great Britain; HISTORY / Military / Vietnam War; HISTORY / Military / World War II; POLITICAL SCIENCE / History & Theory; POLITICAL SCIENCE / Government / International; Great Britain. Army. British Indian Army; Great Britain
Description: "Vietnam and the Unravelling of Empire examines the British management of political violence at the end of the Second World War. In doing so, the book demonstrates the way in which the Vietnam War and Indian independence had a devastating effect upon British policy towards Asia. The Labour government failed to understand the complexity of its commitments and it was unable to evolve a coherent policy towards these crises. At the same time, some senior British officers were prepared to work alongside Asian nationalism in order to secure British interests. Their actions created a radical local fusion of imperial, diplomatic and humanitarian policies. The most controversial of these officers was General Sir Douglas Gracey who commanded the British liberation forces deployed in southern Indo-China at the outbreak of the Vietnam War and later served as the Commander in Chief of the Pakistan Army during the Kashmir Conflict"--Provided by publisher.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 169-180) and index.
Table of contents: title: 1. The Prelude : Burma 1942-1945; title: 2. The Power Vacuum : Vietnam 1945; title: 3. The Sideshow : Cambodia 1945; title: 4. The Enforcement : Indo-China 1945-1946; title: 5. The Aftermath : Bengal and Kashmir 1946-1951; title: Conclusion; title: Select Chronology; title: Select Personalia.