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Indian Labour Corps
The Indian Labour Corps was a force of workers recruited from the British Raj during World War I. Recruitment began on a voluntary basis in 1915, but by 1917 the British Government was requiring that localities provide quotas of men. The corps undertook construction duties around the world during the war with the workers frequently enduring difficult conditions. It was disbanded in 1921. History Prior to World War I, the British Indian Army regularly used 'Coolie Corps' to support its operations within the Raj and overseas. During World War I, similar formations were raised as the Indian Labour Corps (ILC) and the Porter Corps (PC). Members of the ILC and PC were enlisted under the terms of the '' Indian Army Act''. Two ILC units were raised in 1915 to participate in the Gallipoli Campaign. They were diverted to support the Mesopotamian Campaign, and other ILC units served in Persia and the Salonika Campaign in Greece. The British Indian Government agreed in 1917 to send 50,000 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himself employed by the British East India company from the age of seventeen until the British government assumed direct rule over India in 1858." * * and lasted from 1858 to 1947. * * The region under British control was commonly called India in contemporaneous usage and included areas directly administered by the United Kingdom, which were collectively called British India, and areas ruled by indigenous rulers, but under British paramountcy, called the princely states. The region was sometimes called the Indian Empire, though not officially. As ''India'', it was a founding member of the League of Nations, a participating nation in the Summer Olympics in 1900, 1920, 1928, 1932, and 1936, and a founding member of the United Nations in San F ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Labour Corps
The Chinese Labour Corps (CLC; french: Corps de Travailleurs Chinois; ) was a force of workers recruited by the British government in the First World War to free troops for front line duty by performing support work and manual labour. The French government also recruited a significant number of Chinese labourers, and although those labourers working for the French were recruited separately and not part of the CLC, the term is often used to encompass both groups. In all, some 140,000 men served for both British and French forces before the war ended and most of the men were repatriated to China between 1918 and 1920. Origins In 1916, Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig requested that 21,000 labourers be recruited to fill the manpower shortage caused by casualties during the First World War. Recruiting labourers from other countries was not something unusual at that time. Other than the Chinese, labour corps were serving in France from Egypt, Fiji, India, Malta, Mauritius, Seychelles, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
India In World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. It was fought between two coalitions, the first being the Allies, whose key members included France, the United Kingdom, Russia, Italy, Japan and their respective colonial empires, with the United States joining as an associated power in 1917. They faced the Central Powers, primarily Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire, with fighting occurring throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia. An estimated 9 million soldiers were killed in combat, plus another 23 million wounded, while 5 million civilians died as a result of military action, hunger, and disease. Millions more died as a result of genocide, while the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic was exacerbated by the movement of combatants during the war. The first decade of the 20th century was a period of increasing diplomatic tension between the European ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Expatriate Military Units And Formations
An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either independently or sent abroad by their employers. However, the term 'expatriate' is also used for retirees and others who have chosen to live outside their native country. Historically, it has also referred to exiles. Expatriates are immigrants or emigrants who maintain cultural ties such as the language of their country of origin. Etymology The word ''expatriate'' comes from the Latin terms '' ex'' ("out of") and ''patria'' ("native country, fatherland"). Semantics Dictionary definitions for the current meaning of the word include: :Expatriate: :* 'A person who lives outside their native country' (Oxford), or :* 'living in a foreign land' (Webster's). These definitions contrast with those of other words with a similar meaning, such as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Non-combatant Military Personnel
Non-combatant is a term of art in the law of war and international humanitarian law to refer to civilians who are not taking a direct part in hostilities; persons, such as combat medics and military chaplains, who are members of the belligerent armed forces but are protected because of their specific duties (as currently described in Protocol I of the Geneva Conventions, adopted in June 1977); combatants who are placed ''hors de combat''; and neutral persons, such as peacekeepers, who are not involved in fighting for one of the belligerents involved in a war. This particular status was first recognized under the Geneva Conventions with the First Geneva Convention of 1864. History Pre-Geneva Conventions The Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 were one of the first multi-country treaties to agree on rights for non-combatants. These meetings occurred in 1899 and in 1907. Three treaties were signed and put into effect in 1899, including the treatment of prisoners of war and the pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Military Units And Formations Of The British Army In World War I
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct military uniform. It may consist of one or more military branches such as an army, navy, air force, space force, marines, or coast guard. The main task of the military is usually defined as defence of the state and its interests against external armed threats. In broad usage, the terms ''armed forces'' and ''military'' are often treated as synonymous, although in technical usage a distinction is sometimes made in which a country's armed forces may include both its military and other paramilitary forces. There are various forms of irregular military forces, not belonging to a recognized state; though they share many attributes with regular military forces, they are less often referred to as simply ''military''. A nation's military may f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South African Native Labour Corps
The South African Native Labour Corps (SANLC) was a force of workers formed in 1916 in response to a British request for workers at French ports. About 25,000 South Africans joined the Corps. The SANLC was utilized in various menial noncombat tasks. The SANLC was disbanded by the South African government in January 1918. Background The South African Native Labour Corps or Contingent has its origins in a plan by the Imperial War Cabinet to employ labour from South Africa and other Commonwealth nations to relieve the shortage of labour at the front and at French ports as ship shortages required that ships be unloaded and returned to transport duties as quickly as possible. About 25,000 South Africans were to be recruited, of whom 21,000 were transported via requisitioned merchant steamships to France. The first two companies arrived in France on 20 November 1916 and the last group of men left France on 5 January 1918. Prime Minister Louis Botha, also Minister of Native Affairs, was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maltese Labour Corps
The Maltese Labour Corps (MLC) was a labour unit raised in Malta during the First World War to support the British Army. It comprised two battalions of labourers and stevedores; two companies of cooks, waiters, and servants; and a company of miners. The units served at Gallipoli, Salonika, Italy, and in Turkey (after the armistice). There may have been a further independent labour company that served in Malta. Many of the units' commanding officers were drawn from the King's Own Royal Malta Regiment of Militia. More than 5,000 men served in the corps, with members receiving the British War Medal in bronze. In the course of their service 124 members died, at least one killed in action with many of the remainder dying during the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918. First Battalion In August 1915, there was a request for 750 volunteers from Malta to form a labour battalion for service with the British Army. More than 1,000 applied and by the start of September 864 of these had ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Labour Corps (British Army)
The Labour Corps was a British Army unit formed in 1917 for manual and skilled labour on the Western Front and Salonika during the First World War. In previous centuries the British Army had fulfilled this role through the Royal Pioneer Corps (1762–1763), the Corps of Pioneers (1795–1800) and the Army Works Corps (1855-c.1856). Though it disbanded in 1921, it is often seen as the predecessor to the Royal Pioneer Corps of the Second World War. History Earlier in the war the Army Service Corps had formed labour companies to work docks and railways and unload ships and the Royal Engineers had formed eleven labour battalions for manual work. From December 1914 onwards each infantry division had also been provided with a Pioneer Battalion, with full infantry training but usually used in manual and skilled work and thus consisting of those with experience in those areas. From early 1916 onwards conscripted men with health too poor for fighting were also assigned to these battalions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Egyptian Labour Corps
The Egyptian Labour Corps (also known as the ELC or Labour Corps) was a group of Egyptian labourers who worked for the British Army in Egypt during the First World War's Sinai and Palestine Campaign. Historical context Egypt had historically been part of the Ottoman Empire for hundreds of years. However, starting in the late nineteenth century, British influence in the country began to expand as the Sultans of Egypt proved increasingly incapable of managing the country's financial affairs and start to borrow heavily from foreign financiers, including British businessmen. Eventually, the British conquered Egypt and established a protectorate over the country, bring Egypt (de facto) into the British Empire. As part of this protectorate, the British promised to defend Egypt from Ottoman, African and European incursions and never to request their aid in future conflicts. However, the British quickly realised that they desperately needed the support of Egyptian labour in a land whi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fighting occurring throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia. An estimated 9 million soldiers were killed in combat, plus another 23 million wounded, while 5 million civilians died as a result of military action, hunger, and disease. Millions more died in genocides within the Ottoman Empire and in the 1918 influenza pandemic, which was exacerbated by the movement of combatants during the war. Prior to 1914, the European great powers were divided between the Triple Entente (comprising France, Russia, and Britain) and the Triple Alliance (containing Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy). Tensions in the Balkans came to a head on 28 June 1914, following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
