Churchill and the Islamic World: Orientalism, Empire and Diplomacy in the Middle East

Copertina anteriore
I.B.Tauris, 20 mar 2015 - 392 pagine
Winston Churchill was the greatest statesman of the twentieth century, yet he began his career as a colonial policeman in the North-West borderlands of India, and this experience was the beginning of his long relationship with the Islamic world. Overturning the widely-accepted consensus that Churchill was indifferent to, and even contemptuous of, matters concerning the Middle East, this book unravels Churchill’s nuanced understanding of the edges of the British Empire. Warren Dockter analyses the future Prime Minister’s experiences of the East, including his work as Colonial Under-Secretary in the early 1900s, his relations with the Ottomans and conduct during the Dardanelles Campaign of 1915-16, his arguments with David Lloyd-George over Turkey, and his pragmatic support of Syria and Saudi Arabia during World War II. Challenging the popular depiction of Churchill as an ignorant imperialist when it came to the Middle East, Dockter suggests that his policy making was often progressive when compared to the orientalist prejudices of many of his contemporaries. Above all, the book shows how Churchill left a lasting legacy in the region, which continues to be felt in Middle Eastern politics and British policy today.

Informazioni sull'autore (2015)

Warren Dockter is a historian and writer who specializes in Churchill Studies. He is the author of Churchill and the Islamic World, which revealed Churchill's fascination with the Ottoman Empire and Islam. He is Honorary Professor of Politics at Aberystwyth University, former Researcher at Clare College Cambridge, and former academic advisor to the Churchill Society. He is currently Director of the East Tennessee Historical Association and a consultant who has regularly contributed to the Daily Telegraph and the Western Mail on British history, Winston Churchill, US/UK relations, and the Trump administration.

Informazioni bibliografiche