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World War I in the Non-European World. Colonial soldiers Losses The Spanish Flu The East Africa Campaign The Middle East. Colonial soldiers. The British kept a peacetime army of 247,432 regular troops They were well prepared and feared
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World War I in the Non-European World Colonial soldiers Losses The Spanish Flu The East Africa Campaign The Middle East
Colonial soldiers • The British kept a peacetime army of 247,432 regular troops • They were well prepared and feared • The British had learned lessons fighting against the Boers in Africa • Almost 9,000,000 colonial soldiers were conscripted (the draft) • A million and a half came from India—all ethnicities: Sikhs, Pakistani Muslims • Others came from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica • They were given indigenous uniforms and led by an ethnical “national”
Colonial Military Losses • British losses: 35,700 (Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, etc.) • French losses: 82,000 (Morocco, Niger, Vietnam [12,000], etc.) • German losses: 17,000 (Cameroon, Togo, Namibia) • Total losses in the war: around 1,000,000 military deaths • Civilian losses: around 2,000,000 (disease and Spanish flu)
The Spanish Flu • Outbreak in 1918, spread even to the Arctic and remote Pacific islands • Most victims were young healthy adults • This flu is run by a cytokine storm—the immune system goes into overdrive, is uncontrolled by the body, and attacks itself • First observed in Kansas in March 1918 • Between 2 and 5% of the human population was killed from it, and roughly 20% of the world suffered from this flu to some extent • Not caused by WWI, but spread easier in the trenches, troop movements, and close military quarters • Modern transportation increased worldwide travel, further spreading the disease
The Spanish Flu, documents • I had a little bird,Its name was Enza,I opened the window,Andin-flew-enza.-American Skipping Rhyme circa 1918 • Obey the lawsAnd wear the gauze.Protect your jawsFrom septic paws. • Street car conductor in Seattle not allowing passengers aboard without a mask in 1918.
German East Africa Campaign • British and German forces fought each other in today’s Tanzania, Rwanda, and neighboring countries • For every soldier killed, 30 died of disease • Memory focuses on the Western front, but a great price was paid in this war area • Estimated 100,000 black Africans were killed (no official numbers kept)
The Middle East • The Battle of Mecca 1916 • Resulted in the end of the Ottoman Empire, European domination in the area, the ultimate creation of Israel • Marks the end of the realization of an Arab nation dream • Nationalistic tendencies and bitterness around this time still run strong—see document handout from Jordanian web site.