Recently our attention has been drawn to a series of new books, articles and radio and television documentaries on the subjects covered by Britain's Small Wars. Their contents, in many cases, draw extensively on material published on this web site and used without acknowledgment or permission of the copyright holders. When this site was created and developed, its aim, which remains, was to record those conflicts since 1945 in which British service personnel have been called upon to do their duty, reported as far as possible through the eye-witness accounts of those involved, and to create Honour Rolls, where none existed before, of those who gave their lives in service to their country. As a result this web site has become a valuable historical resource due to the voluntary efforts of our contributors, free from the profit-making needs of media publishers. By using Britain's Small Wars copyright material without permission, some authors and publishers are not only taking credit falsely for their work, they are dishonoring British forces and their achievements. While we do not have the resources to 'police' the use of our material nor pursue costly litigation, we usually give permission freely to those who approach us to quote passages from our pages for their use. In fact, they honor us by doing so. All we request is that they acknowledge the fact in their published work. |
THE SENTRY
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Thus
stands the British soldier of today, yesterday, and tomorrow. It seems
to have become a tradition that the British Army must always be over stretched.
One man has therefore to suffice in place of two, and a battalion is assigned
a commitment broad enough for a brigade. Such has been the recurring pattern
over the past forty years. Officers and men have accepted it, without complaint.
They would appear to be at their happiest when thrust into some god forsaken
place in the world and presented with a task of awesome dimensions, that
some politician somewhere has blundered and called for help. The lone sentry
at the crossroads of Empire seems well aware of this great tradition and
we can confidently leave the reputations and traditions of the British
Army in his keeping.
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In this chapter we will try to cover some of the little known and mostly unheard of small conflicts that British forces have been involved in since the end of W.W.II. Some were successful operations to put down rebellions while others tell the story of British forces quelling riots in various parts of the old Empire. Often Britain has been asked by her former members of the Empire for help and British troops have been sent to hot spots throughout the world, sometimes not to the knowledge of the British public.
British troops have also been involved in peacekeeping operations since the end of W.W.II. This particular type of operation was sometimes the hardest to do. There are many of these bush fire wars to cover and information is sometimes scarce so please bear with us. It is not our intention to ignore any of these operations. We would very much like to hear from any one who was evolved in any of these operations.
Recommended books | |
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By Rowland White
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HMS Ark Royal, Britain's Last Top Guns and the Untold Story of Their Most Dramatic Mission. | |
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Batangas |
PHILIPPINES COUPS PART 1 |
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THE ATTEMPT OF DECEMBER 1989 |
THE CAGAYAN REBELLION March 1990
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Closure to the "Yangtze Incident"
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UNITED KINGDOM
Operations and Disaster Relief
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Other events we shall try to cover in this chapter in the future
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Gold Coast Riots 1948 |
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Nyasaland (Malawi) Riots 1959 |
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Swaziland 1963 |
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Zanzibar 1963 |
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British Guiana, civil unrest 1964 |
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Mauritius 1965 |
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Mauritius 1968 |
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Gibraltar, the Spanish blockade |
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