War in History

This article is a short collective biography of six so-called ‘Turkestan Generals’, all of whom played a prominent role in the Russian conquest and administration of Central Asia. These campaigns are usually seen as marginal to the military history of the Russian empire in the nineteenth century, but they were central to the reputations of three of the most prominent generals of the period, who became important public figures – Cherniaev, Skobelev, and Kuropatkin. The article shows that this was not accidental, but the product of a carefully constructed narrative in Russian military historiography.

This article explores the genesis, scope, and significance of the 1899 Hague Convention’s prohibition against pillage. It analyses how it intersected with the moral contours of pillage as revealed in the actions and attitudes of British soldiers, British commanders, and Boer civilians during the South African War. In doing so, it crosses from ideal moral theory to international law, to shared and disputed moral beliefs among participants in the South African War. Drawing from pillage in the South African War, it concludes that the motives, policing, and moral and political context of pillage are vital to understanding its historical significance.

The Ottoman–Italian War of 1911–1912, often overlooked as little more than a prelude to much greater calamities, produced a vibrant discourse in Ottoman-language newspapers that called attention to issues including the efficacy of international law, Ottoman sovereignty, and the place of North Africa in the Ottoman imperial imagination. This article explores the coverage of the war in the Ottoman-language press and argues that the outbreak of the Ottoman–Italian War produced similar claims on the need to protect the Ottoman nation – and Ottoman imperial ambitions – to those following the Balkan Wars to which historiography ascribes much more importance.

During the Second World War about 12,000 Palestinians volunteered to serve in the British army. These volunteers participated actively in battles in North Africa and Europe. Many of them lost their lives, others were wounded and many are still missing. It is interesting that despite this vital contribution of the Palestinian people and their leadership in the war against the Nazis especially among the opposition parties, the attention of historians was mostly directed towards the meeting held between the Mufti of Jerusalem and Hitler. This article explores in depth the contribution of the Palestinian volunteers to the British war effort during the Second World War from the beginning until its end.

This article identifies three loci of the British colonial state’s anxiety about communication of news and views in India during the Second World War: its own officials (and their families); the press (both English language and vernacular); and the Indian public. It explores war-time dilemmas of the state with regard to censorship of both news and rumour, and it discusses the central paradox of censorship in colonial India during war-time.

This article examines the utility of naval aviation, specifically the contribution of the British naval air arm to Operation Overlord. It argues that while there were practical reasons for carriers not being present directly off the Normandy beaches, British naval aviation supported the invasion both directly (from ashore, and from carriers operating at a distance) and indirectly, over a long period. It was also performing a range of other roles in several theatres. Navies and naval aviation contribute to campaigns in a way that is different to land-based forces; understanding this requires a bigger map and a longer timeline.