Engines for empire
The Victorian army and its use of railways
by Edward Spiers, Andrew Thompson, John Mackenzie
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Endorsements
Engines for empire examines the use of railways by the British army during a period of domestic political strife and unprecedented imperial expansion. This wide-ranging and extensively researched work reviews the way in which the British army exploited the potential of railways from the 'dawn of the railway age' to the outbreak of the First World War. It explores their use in the aid of the civil power, in home defence and as an increasingly efficient means of supporting the army on active service. The book reveals that the army monitored the use of railways in foreign wars, experimented in their use within rear areas, designed and built railways for strategic defence in India, and later exploited them to transform the prospects of military success in the Sudan and South Africa. The British army's innovation is also explored, through its design and use of armoured trains, the restructuring of hospital trains, and in its capacity to build and repair railway track, bridges and signals under field conditions. However, this volume shows that ultimately this was not simply a matter of the army learning to use, maintain and operate the latest technology. The Victorian army demonstrated a capacity to integrate the railway into its logistic planning, to grasp the imperative of operational management, and to envisage the railway as a key element in its mobilization and strategic planning. Engines for empire provides insights on the role of railways in imperial development, as a focus of social interaction between adversaries, and as a means of projecting imperial power. It will make fascinating reading for students, academics and enthusiasts in military and imperial history, Victorian studies, railway history and colonial warfare. -
Author Biography
Edward M. Spiers is Professor of Strategic Studies at the University of Leeds
Manchester University Press
Manchester University Press is a leading UK publisher known for excellent research in the humanities and social sciences.
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Bibliographic Information
- Publisher Manchester University Press
- Publication Date August 2015
- Orginal LanguageEnglish
- ISBN/Identifier 9780719086151
- Publication Country or regionUnited Kingdom
- FormatHardback
- Primary Price 100 USD
- Pages208
- ReadershipProfessional and scholarly
- Publish StatusPublished
- Dimensions234 X 156 mm
- IllustrationIllustrations, black & white|Line drawings, black & white
- SeriesStudies in Imperialism
- Reference CodeIPR6200
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