- Messages
- 1,734
- Reactions
- Nation of residence
-
- Nation of origin
-
Okay gentleman [ladies all the more if we are so privilaged] this is a thread to compare and contrast two beasts from history. One the British Empire in Asia/Middle East often called the British Raj and the German Empire in Europe/North Africa often called the German Reich.
While the major differance is the German Reich was short lived and never got a chance to consolidate it's rule over those it had conquered. The other stark differance being the Reich was militarly unconditinally finished. Whereas the British Raj effectively made a conditional surrender. However the similiarties are telling.
`
Both ruled over vast, diverse geography, from freezing to hot, with population of 100s of millions that covered dozens of languages, ethnic groups, races ranging from European Latvian Nordics, Mediteranean peoples, East European Slavs, North African Berbers, Arabs. With differant religions - Christian, Orthodix Christian, Muslim, Jews etc
The British Raj ruled over dozen ethnic groups, varied races with followers from Muslim, Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist etc faiths. From Burmans, to Punjabi';s, to Tamils, to Bengalis to Tibeto-Ladakis etc
Both had the White British [British Raj], Germans [German Reich] as the chosen people whose destiny was to rule the others as lesser peoples.
Both the Raj and Reich used superior military power to conquer, to subjugate and to hold onto this vast empire. Being part of the Raj or Reich was not by choice but forced at point of bayonet and gun. Be that a British bayonet or German bayonet. Both empires were held together by force, pure naked force. Be it a British Tommy soldier or a German Wehrmacht soldier.
Both employed the conquered people as soldiers to fight for the British Raj or German Reich. The British employed over million men from the conquered races, Sikh, Punjab Muslim, Pakhtuns, Marattas etc in Raj Armies who would invariably be led by British officers. The German Reich similarly employed conquered races including Bosnian Muslim SS soldiers, Arab SS soldiers, Nordic SS, Flemish SS, Latvian SS etc again led by German officers.
Both used differant administrative tiers to rule their vast conquered lands. The British had provinces, states. The Germans had protectorates, commisariats etc. Both had direct military control or semi-independent states like Romania, Italy, French Vichy etc. The British equivalent of these semi-independent states were the princely states like Kashmir, Rajputana, Hydrabad which got to rule themselves but all foreign policy and dealings were in British Empires hands. We see the same pattern with Vichy France or Romania or Italy which effectively were German subjects only one call away from German military rule.
The German Reich carried out some particularly repugnant acts, foremost which was the Holocaust of the Jews with over 6 million killed. While this was going on in Europe British Raj was not too far behind with over 3 million dead from starvation in what is now India and Bangladesh in early 1940s. This was made all the more a crime when ships laden with food crops were sent to feed the hungry Greeks effectively sentencing the Indians and Bangladeshi's to death by hunger. If Hitler had his final solution Churchill was not too far behind with such comments a -
Famine or no famine, Indians will ‘breed like rabbits.’
www.bbc.co.uk
After the demise of the German Reich it devolved into dozen countries in Europe [many of which today have elected to confederate into the European Union] and Africa. After the demise of the British Raj it devolved into half a dozen countries in Asia and Middle East like Myanmar, India, Bangladesh, Yemen, UAE, Pakistan etc.
The bayonets and rifles that made the British Raj.
The bayonets and rifles that made the German Reich.
While the major differance is the German Reich was short lived and never got a chance to consolidate it's rule over those it had conquered. The other stark differance being the Reich was militarly unconditinally finished. Whereas the British Raj effectively made a conditional surrender. However the similiarties are telling.
`
Both ruled over vast, diverse geography, from freezing to hot, with population of 100s of millions that covered dozens of languages, ethnic groups, races ranging from European Latvian Nordics, Mediteranean peoples, East European Slavs, North African Berbers, Arabs. With differant religions - Christian, Orthodix Christian, Muslim, Jews etc
The British Raj ruled over dozen ethnic groups, varied races with followers from Muslim, Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist etc faiths. From Burmans, to Punjabi';s, to Tamils, to Bengalis to Tibeto-Ladakis etc
Both had the White British [British Raj], Germans [German Reich] as the chosen people whose destiny was to rule the others as lesser peoples.
Both the Raj and Reich used superior military power to conquer, to subjugate and to hold onto this vast empire. Being part of the Raj or Reich was not by choice but forced at point of bayonet and gun. Be that a British bayonet or German bayonet. Both empires were held together by force, pure naked force. Be it a British Tommy soldier or a German Wehrmacht soldier.
Both employed the conquered people as soldiers to fight for the British Raj or German Reich. The British employed over million men from the conquered races, Sikh, Punjab Muslim, Pakhtuns, Marattas etc in Raj Armies who would invariably be led by British officers. The German Reich similarly employed conquered races including Bosnian Muslim SS soldiers, Arab SS soldiers, Nordic SS, Flemish SS, Latvian SS etc again led by German officers.
Both used differant administrative tiers to rule their vast conquered lands. The British had provinces, states. The Germans had protectorates, commisariats etc. Both had direct military control or semi-independent states like Romania, Italy, French Vichy etc. The British equivalent of these semi-independent states were the princely states like Kashmir, Rajputana, Hydrabad which got to rule themselves but all foreign policy and dealings were in British Empires hands. We see the same pattern with Vichy France or Romania or Italy which effectively were German subjects only one call away from German military rule.
The German Reich carried out some particularly repugnant acts, foremost which was the Holocaust of the Jews with over 6 million killed. While this was going on in Europe British Raj was not too far behind with over 3 million dead from starvation in what is now India and Bangladesh in early 1940s. This was made all the more a crime when ships laden with food crops were sent to feed the hungry Greeks effectively sentencing the Indians and Bangladeshi's to death by hunger. If Hitler had his final solution Churchill was not too far behind with such comments a -
Famine or no famine, Indians will ‘breed like rabbits.’
BBC - Soutik Biswas's India: How Churchill 'starved' India
I'm Soutik Biswas and I’m the online correspondent for BBC News in India. This blog is my take on life and times in the world’s largest democracy.
After the demise of the German Reich it devolved into dozen countries in Europe [many of which today have elected to confederate into the European Union] and Africa. After the demise of the British Raj it devolved into half a dozen countries in Asia and Middle East like Myanmar, India, Bangladesh, Yemen, UAE, Pakistan etc.
The bayonets and rifles that made the British Raj.
The bayonets and rifles that made the German Reich.
Last edited:
