Dundee at War 1939–45


Book Description

During the Second World War a number of industries in Dundee were of importance to the war effort. The jute industry, which had previously dominated the local economy, had suffered badly during the 1930s. However, the war gave a temporary boost to the industry with as the material was in high demand for use in sandbags. The shipbuilding industry was also important, with the Caledon Yards being busy throughout the war. The yard refitted two Polish submarines at the beginning of the war and constructed a number of Castle and Loch Class frigates, as well as a number of merchant vessels. With its strategic importance it was believed that Dundee would be an obvious target for the Luftwaffe. Fortunately, however, Dundee escaped relatively unscathed and the city itself was only bombed on twenty-four occasions. Dundee also played a significant role in the war at sea, the city being home to a major Royal Navy submarine base, HMS Ambrose. Consequently, sailors came to be an important part of the wartime scene in Dundee and came not only from Britain and its Empire, but also from France and Norway. A great many Dundee men and women served in the armed forces during the war and the city suffered many casualties, but many also received decorations as a result of their bravery. Amongst them was Wing Commander Gordon Hugh Malcolm, who received the first RAF VC awarded for action in North Africa.




Aberdeen at War 1939–45


Book Description

A close-up look at what World War II was like for this Scottish city—the second most raided in Britain. Includes photos. Scotland was of grave strategic importance during WWII due to its geographical position, while its capital hosted many military and civil organizations. Further north, Aberdeen possessed significant shipbuilding facilities, including Hall, Russell & Co., which built such vessels as corvettes and frigates—resulting in the yard being targeted by the Luftwaffe on multiple occasions. The fishing fleet was also crucial in supplying food for a war-starved Britain, and many Aberdeenshire men risked their lives putting out to sea. Many were killed by enemy aircraft or mines. No member of the population escaped the war, whether it was the many men and women who served in the military or in roles such as the Home Guard, ARP services, nursing, working in vital war industries, or struggling to keep a household under strict rationing and wartime stress. Aberdeen was originally classed as a “neutral area” and no plans were made for evacuation. By 1940, however, anger and frustration drove many to petition for changing this classification. The petitioners were likely proved correct as Aberdeen went on to become the most frequently raided city (after London) in Britain—earning it the nickname the ‘Siren City.’ It was also the site of the final Luftwaffe attack on Scottish soil when a concerted attack was made on April 21,1943, resulting in 125 deaths and about 12,000 houses destroyed or damaged. Aberdeenshire also played a large role in the war effort in the air. It was ideally placed to enable the RAF to patrol not only northeast Scotland, but also the North Sea and vital approaches to the naval base at Orkney, while the RAF also launched raids on occupied Norway and enemy shipping. Aberdeen at War 1939–1945 poignantly commemorates the efforts and achievements of Aberdeen: workers, fighters, families divided, all surviving astounding tests.




Empire, Industry and Class


Book Description

Presenting a new approach towards the social history of working classes in the imperial context, this book looks at the formation of working classes in Scotland and Bengal. It analyses the trajectory of labour market formation, labour supervision, cultures of labour and class formation between two regional economies - one in an imperial country and the other in a colonial one. The book examines the everyday lives of the jute workers of the imperial nexus, and the impact of the 'Dundee School' of Scottish mechanics, engineers and managers who ran the Calcutta jute industry. It goes on to challenge existing theories of imperialism, class formation and class struggle - particularly those that underline the exceptional nature of the Indian experience of industrialization - and demonstrates how and why Empire was able to provide an opportunity to test and perfect ways of controlling the lower classes of Dundee. These historical debates have a continued relevance as we observe the impact of globalization and rapid industrialization in the so-called developing world and the accompanying changes in many areas of the developed world marked by de-industrialization. The book is of use to scholars of imperial history, labour history, British history and South Asian history.




Dundees Literary Lives


Book Description

The author explores working class poets and hundreds of self-styled writers as well as the newspapers and magazines which made Dundee such an important cultural center. These volumes are intended to be a concise reference work, a guide to the numerous writers, poets and playwrights who have contributed to Dundee's imaginative view of itself. It is intended as a useful affirmation of the city's voyage of discovery into the new millennium.







British Character and the Treatment of German Prisoners of War, 1939–48


Book Description

This book examines attitudes towards German held captive in Britain, drawing on original archival material including newspaper and newsreel content, diaries, sociological surveys and opinion polls, as well as official documentation and the archives of pressure groups and protest movements. Moving beyond conventional assessments of POW treatment which have focused on the development of policy, diplomatic relations, and the experience of the POWs themselves, this study refocuses the debate onto the attitude of the British public towards the standard of treatment of German POWs. In so doing, it reveals that the issue of POW treatment intersected with discussions of state power, human rights, gender relations, civility, and national character.




Oblivion Or Glory


Book Description

An engaging and original account of 1921, a pivotal year for Churchill that had a lasting impact on his political and personal legacy After the tragic consequences of his involvement in the catastrophic Dardanelles Campaign of World War I, Churchill's political career seemed over. He was widely regarded as little more than a bombastic and unpredictable buccaneer until, in 1921, an unexpected inheritance heralded a series of events that laid the foundations for his future success. Renowned Churchill scholar David Stafford delves into the statesman's life in 1921, the year in which his political career revived. From his political negotiations in the Anglo-Irish treaty that created the Irish Free State to his tumultuous relationship with his "wild cousin" Clare Sheridan, sculptor of Lenin and subject of an MI5 investigation, this broad account explores the nuances of Churchill's private and public lives. This is an engaging portrait of this overlooked yet pivotal year in the great man's life.




Who's who of Southern Africa


Book Description

Vols. for 1967-70 include as a section: Who's who of Rhodesia, Mauritius, Central and East Africa.




The Secret War


Book Description

"Monumental." --New York Times Book Review NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER From one of the foremost historians of the period and the acclaimed author of Inferno and Catastrophe: 1914, The Secret War is a sweeping examination of one of the most important yet underexplored aspects of World War II—intelligence—showing how espionage successes and failures by the United States, Britain, Russia, Germany, and Japan influenced the course of the war and its final outcome. Spies, codes, and guerrillas played unprecedentedly critical roles in the Second World War, exploited by every nation in the struggle to gain secret knowledge of its foes, and to sow havoc behind the fronts. In The Secret War, Max Hastings presents a worldwide cast of characters and some extraordinary sagas of intelligence and resistance, to create a new perspective on the greatest conflict in history.




Public Choice Analysis in Historical Perspective


Book Description

In this volume, Sir Alan Peacock, one of Britain's most noted public economists, poses the question as to whether the history of economic thought is an essential part of the training of public finance economists. He argues that the perspective gained by studying the origins of public choice analysis can offer an important stimulus to scientific progress. The first lecture analyses the increasing popularity in recent years of the modernist, anti-historical point of view. The second criticises those theories of growth in government expenditure which ignore the political process. The third lecture draws on Adam Smith and David Hume to extend the conventional economic model of bureaucracy. In the final lecture, Peacock considers the problem of controlling public sector growth and points to ways of overcoming them. The book ends with short commentaries by seven public economists.




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