How did WW1 contribute to nationalism in the British
Colonies?
In 1914 the British Government knew that their armed forces alone were too small to
take on the power and strength of the Triple Alliance. The British Empire was called to
arms and volunteers from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, India and many other British
colonies flocked to the aid of the mother country. In his essay I will investigate how the
Great War contributed to the nationalism of other British colonies.
The Great War of 1914 to 1918 was a global conflict with an enormous loss of both life
and property that disturbed the growth of the European Empires. Their control of the
world’s resources, at the expense of colonized peoples, had given them the ability to
expand and develop at an accelerated rate. In Europe, the public embraced the Empire’s
acceptance to fight as a sign of unified colonial countries regardless of their differences.
The attitudes of the foreign soldiers in 1914 were very bold. They thought that this was
their chance to impress and to show that they were equal. This was their chance to free
themselves from the chains of discrimination and racism. To them, the war was a lifeline
where they could prove themselves, whilst earning a wage and supporting their family.
Military personnel also felt they had a duty to support the mother country and to help
those who were helping them. Country leaders believed this war to be a noble cause
where their men could demonstrate their loyalty. Countries’ loyalty was pressured into
joining the war and fighting for what they most respected at the time.
Many citizens of the British Empire were overcome by nationalistic sentiments. As this
nationalism began to grow, countries exaggerated their power and status as being
superior to others around them. Propaganda was also widely used to influence
colonies to join and ‘fight for their country’. These techniques played an extremely
important role in influencing and deceiving British colonies. The political side of the war
was kept secret in order to enhance this nationalistic view which many British colonies
had at the time.
The governments of all the colonies also had a main part in their country's involvement
in WW1. They wanted to be feared by other countries and wanted to show adherence
to Britain. This also gave their country the upper hand as Britain would return the
favour by joining them in battle if needed.
Troops were very naive at the thought of war and took it as an adventure. Pay was also
far substantial to the average working wage which also influenced more volunteers to
sign up. Foreign soldiers had also seen the highest of honours given out to others such
as the Victoria Cross. They wanted to be recognised and wanted their name to go down
in the history books.
All these attitudes were held in 1914 before each colony joined the war. They changed
as the war went on, leaving a stain on each colony nobility and nationalism and a fight
for freedom was expected from most of the major British colonies.
Many of the foreign soldier’s dreams were short-lived. They were hoping for heroic jobs
so if they did die, they could die as a martyr or a patriot. In fact, the foreign military
personnel were given very dangerous jobs but which were not heroic. Examples include
carrying dead or injured bodies from the battlefield.
Foreign soldiers were also expecting much better conditions within the camps. One
soldier describes the condition as absolutely disgusting. There were millions and
millions of flies who would be swarming around you if you went to have a biscuit or ate
a bit of sugar. It was a curse. Total losses from the Dardanelles campaign from only
sickness were l45,l54 men. This is an outrageous number of people even considering
the fact that this figure does not include those who died in action. This emphasizes how
awful the conditions were during WWl for foreign soldiers.
In addition, the English soldiers were continually discriminative and racist towards those
from other colonies. This significantly reduced their confidence in the camps. One soldier
recollects “They called us darkies” recalling the casual racism of the time. Even the
German prisoners who they had taken were racist to the foreign military personnel. They
were spitting on their hands and rubbing them on their face signifying that the soldiers
were painted black.
However the main reason why British colonies feel that they deserve independence is
because they helped the British Empire so much and they spared so many lives for Great
Britain; but Great Britain did not return the favour in any way or form. George Blackman
was born in Barbados and served as a private in the British West Indies regiment. When
the war finished, there was nothing. Blackman had to come and look for work. The only
things that the army let him keep were the clothes and the uniform that he was wearing the pants, the jacket and the shirt and the boots. You can’t come home naked.
When George Blackman did return to Barbados, he was alone. He found out that his
parents had died and he had no-one. He had to find work and he had to eat and buy
clothes. He claims that the English are ‘worthless’ and ‘no good’. Blackman then went to
Jamaica and met up with a few more soldiers who had returned back to their homeland.
They were in the same situation as him. For George Blackman, the situation has become
simpler – England has nothing to do with him anymore.
The anger from the soldiers was channelled into drive and determination to become
independent. They wanted nothing to do with England anymore. The sacrifices made by
the Empire on the battlefields of Europe echo across the years as part of a proud
Commonwealth history. The graves of the fallen are powerful reminders of our debt to
the Empire.