1.
United Kingdom
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
2.
Army group
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An army group is a military organization consisting of several field armies, which is self-sufficient for indefinite periods. It is usually responsible for a geographic area. An army group is the largest field organization handled by a single commander—usually a full general or field marshal—and it generally includes between 400,000 and 1,000,000 soldiers. In the Polish Armed Forces and former Soviet Red Army an army group was known as a Front, the equivalent of an army group in the Imperial Japanese Army was a general army. Army groups may be multi-national formations, for example, during World War II, the Southern Group of Armies comprised the U. S. Seventh Army and the French First Army, the 21st Army Group comprised the British Second Army, the Canadian First Army and the US Ninth Army. In U. S. Army usage, the number of a group is expressed in Arabic numerals. The French Army formed a number of groupe darmees during the First World War, the first of these was Army Group North, formed on a provision basis in October 1914. Army Group East and Army Group Centre both followed in 1915 while Army Group Reserve was established in 1917, a Franco-Belgian Army Group Flanders also existed briefly in 1918, under the command of Albert I of Belgium. The German Army formed its first two Heeresgruppen in 1915, to forces on the eastern front. A total of eight army groups would ultimately be raised, four for service on each front, originally the Imperial German army groups were not separate formations, but instead additional responsibilities granted to certain army commanders. Crown Prince Wilhelm for instance, was commander of the 5th Army and Army Group German Crown Prince from August 1915 to November 1916. All eight German army groups were named after their commanders, a Chinese army group was usually equivalent in numbers only to a field army in the terminology of other countries, as the regimental level was sometimes omitted. See Heeresgruppen and Armeegruppen The German Army was organized into army groups, some of these army groups were multinational, containing armies from several Axis countries. For example, Army Group Africa contained both German and Italian corps and these groupings were usually named after the commander of the unit in question, for example Armeegruppe Weichs, part of Army Group B during Operation Blau in 1942. The strength of the Kantōgun peaked at 700,000 personnel in 1941 and it faced and was destroyed by Soviet forces in 1945. Shina Hakengun, the China Expeditionary Army, was formed in Nanjing, in September 1939, at the end of World War II, it consisted of 620,000 personnel in 25 infantry and one armored divisions. Nanpo Gun was the Southern Army, also known as the Southern Expeditionary Army, after the surrender of Japan, the Imperial Japanese Army was dissolved, except for the Dai-Ichi So-Gun, which existed until 30 November 1945 as the 1st Demobilization Headquarters
3.
Headquarters
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Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility for managing all business activities, in the UK, the term head office is most commonly used for the HQs of large corporations. The term is also used regarding military organizations, a headquarters is the entity at the top of a corporation that takes full responsibility for the overall success of the corporation, and ensures corporate governance. Many companies have an office at a different address to their corporate office. A headquarters normally includes the leader of business unit and his or her staff as well as all functions to manage the business unit, the head of the business unit is responsible for overall result of the business unit. Military headquarters take many forms depending on the size and nature of the unit or formation they command, typically, they are split into the forward, main and rear components, both within NATO nations, and those following the organization and doctrine of the former Soviet Union. The forward or tactical HQs is a group of staff. The main HQs is less mobile and is involved in both the planning and execution of operations, there are a number of staff assembled here from various staff branches to advise the commander, and to control the various aspects of planning and the conduct of discrete operations. A main HQ for a large formation will have a chief of staff who coordinates the staff effort, the rear or logistic HQs is some distance from the battle or front line in conventional operations. The headquarters of the Catholic Church is Vatican City, the headquarters of the Russian Orthodox Church is in Danilov Monastery, Moscow. The World Council of Churches, including Orthodox Churches, has its headquarters in Geneva, the headquarters of Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople is located in Istanbul, Turkey. The headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is located in Salt Lake City, Utah, the Anglican Communion Office is in London. In Japanese budō martial arts such as karate, judo, aikido, kendo, there is usually a headquarters for each organization or region. The Japanese word honbu is generally used for that, also outside Japan, sometimes they refer to this headquarters as honbu dojo in which dojo is a facility provided for practicing discipline, the training ground. Sometimes honbu is written as hombu, the way it is pronounced, but according to the Hepburn transcription, weapons and Tactics of the Soviet Army Janes, London,516 pp. Wanner, Herbert Global and regional corporate headquarters in, Kählin, Christian, H. Switzerland Business & Investment Handbook, Orell Füssli and Wiley, Wanner, Herbert, LeClef, Xavier, & Shimizu, Hiroshi Global Headquarters on the Move, From Administrators to Facilitators Prims Second Semester 2004, Arthur D. Little
4.
Field army
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A field army is a military formation in many armed forces, composed of two or more corps and may be subordinate to an army group. Likewise, air armies are equivalent formation within some air forces, a field army is composed of 100,000 to 150,000 troops. Particular field armies are named or numbered to distinguish them from army in the sense of an entire national land military force. In English, the style for naming field armies is word numbers, such as First Army, whereas corps are usually distinguished by Roman numerals. A field army may be given a name in addition to or as an alternative to a numerical name, such as the British Army of the Rhine. The term is derived from the fact that they were commanded by Roman emperors, while the Roman comitatensis is sometimes translated as field army, it may also be translated as the more generic field force or mobile force. In some armed forces, an army is or has been equivalent to a corps-level unit, prior to 1945, this was the case with a gun within the Imperial Japanese Army, for which the formation equivalent in size to a field army was an area army. In the Soviet Red Army and the Soviet Air Forces, an army was subordinate in wartime to a front and it contained at least three to five divisions along with artillery, air defense, reconnaissance and other supporting units. In peacetime, a Soviet army was subordinate to a military district. Modern field armies are large formations which vary significantly between armed forces in size, composition, and scope of responsibility. For instance, within NATO a field army is composed of a headquarters, a battle is influenced at the field army level by transferring divisions and reinforcements from one corps to another to increase the pressure on the enemy at a critical point. NATO armies are controlled by a general or lieutenant general, Military unit Military history List of numbered armies
5.
South East Asia Command
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South East Asia Command was the body set up to be in overall charge of Allied operations in the South-East Asian Theatre during World War II. In August 1943, the Allies created the combined South East Asian Command, to assume overall command of all air, sea. In August 1943, with the agreement of the Combined Chiefs of Staff, Winston Churchill appointed Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten as Supreme Allied Commander South East Asia, the American General Joseph Stilwell was the first deputy supreme Allied commander, as well as heading the U. S. Mountbatten arrived in India on 7 October and SEAC came formally into being in Delhi at midnight 15–16 November, the headquarters moved in April 1944 to Kandy in Ceylon. The secondary advance was along the New Guinea-N. E. I. -Philippine axis under the South West Pacific Area Command, the South East Asia theatre, along with the North Pacific, the South Pacific and China efforts were designated to be supportive. At that time available forces were seen to be limited due to British commitment against Germany with major advances not anticipated until autumn of 1944 and after the defeat of Germany. The initial land forces operational area for SEAC was India, Burma, Ceylon, Malaya, northern islands of Sumatra, on 15 August 1945 this was expanded to include the rest parts of Dutch East Indies and southern part of French Indochina. Command arrangements in SEAC were always complicated, ideally there should have been under the Supreme Commander a Commander in Chief for each of the land sea and air forces. This was implemented for the naval and air forces but the British 11th Army Group, under SEAC itself, the Eleventh Army Group had the Fourteenth Army on the Burma front, and the British garrison in Ceylon under its direct command. Stilwell also served as Chief of Staff to Chiang Kai-shek, who was officially the Supreme Allied Commander in China, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Peirse was appointed the Air Commander in Chief under Mountbatten. Air units taking part in the Burma Campaign were, at first, Tenth Air Force came under SEAC only through Stilwell as commanding General CBI Theater. To avoid a potentially cumbersome chain of command and overlapping effort Mountbatten gave orders in December for the two air forces to be integrated under the name Eastern Air Command. At sea, the structure was relatively simple, since the Royal Navy was providing almost all naval forces in the area. Admiral Sir James Somerville, Commander-in-Chief, Eastern Fleet, became the commander under Mountbatten. It was not until late 1944 that the land forces chain of command was clarified, lt Gen. Daniel Sultan was promoted, from deputy commander of CBI to commander of US Forces, India-Burma Theater and commander of the NCAC. Once the Burma Road from Mandalay to Chungking was secured NCAC became passive and in March 1945 Mountbatten agreed to the US, RAF aircraft destined for SEAC had the word SNAKE applied after the serial during ferrying to prevent them being appropriated by other commands along the route. In February 1945 Air Marshal Keith Park was appointed Allied Air Commander of South-East Asia Command where he served until the end of the war, once most of Burma was re-captured by Fourteenth Army, the command turned its attention towards its next major operational objective, Malaya. However, the use of bombs on the Japanese mainland brought the war to an abrupt end
6.
British Army
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The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
7.
Southeast Asia
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Southeast Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies near the intersection of geological plates, with seismic and volcanic activity. Southeast Asia consists of two regions, Mainland Southeast Asia, also known historically as Indochina, comprising Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar. Maritime Southeast Asia, comprising Indonesia, East Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, East Timor, Brunei, Cocos Islands, definitions of Southeast Asia vary, but most definitions include the area represented by the countries listed below. All of the states are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the area, together with part of South Asia, was widely known as the East Indies or simply the Indies until the 20th century. Sovereignty issues exist over some territories in the South China Sea, Papua New Guinea has stated that it might join ASEAN, and is currently an observer. Southeast Asia is geographically divided into two subregions, namely Mainland Southeast Asia and Maritime Southeast Asia, Mainland Southeast Asia includes, Maritime Southeast Asia includes, The Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India are geographically considered part of Southeast Asia. Eastern Bangladesh and the Seven Sister States of India are culturally part of Southeast Asia, the eastern half of Indonesia and East Timor are considered to be biogeographically part of Oceania. Homo sapiens reached the region by around 45,000 years ago, homo floresiensis also lived in the area up until 12,000 years ago, when they became extinct. Austronesian people, who form the majority of the population in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, East Timor. Solheim and others have shown evidence for a Nusantao maritime trading network ranging from Vietnam to the rest of the archipelago as early as 5000 BC to 1 AD. The peoples of Southeast Asia, especially those of Austronesian descent, have been seafarers for thousands of years and their vessels, such as the vinta, were ocean-worthy. Magellans voyage records how much more manoeuvrable their vessels were, as compared to the European ships, Passage through the Indian Ocean aided the colonisation of Madagascar by the Austronesian people, as well as commerce between West Asia and Southeast Asia. Gold from Sumatra is thought to have reached as far west as Rome and this was later replaced by Hinduism. Theravada Buddhism soon followed in 525, in the 15th century, Islamic influences began to enter. This forced the last Hindu court in Indonesia to retreat to Bali, in Mainland Southeast Asia, Burma, Cambodia and Thailand retained the Theravada form of Buddhism, brought to them from Sri Lanka. This type of Buddhism was fused with the Hindu-influenced Khmer culture, very little is known about Southeast Asian religious beliefs and practices before the advent of Indian merchants and religious influences from the 2nd century BCE onwards. Prior to the 13th century CE, Hinduism and Buddhism were the religions in Southeast Asia
8.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
9.
British Indian Army
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The Indian Army was the principal army of India before independence from the United Kingdom in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of both British India and the Princely states, which could also have their own armies. The Indian Army was an important part of the British Empires forces, the term Indian Army appears to have been first used informally, as a collective description of the Presidency armies of the Presidencies of British India, particularly after the Indian Rebellion. The first army officially called the Indian Army was raised by the government of India in 1895, however, in 1903 the Indian Army absorbed these three armies. The Indian Army should not be confused with the Army of India which was the Indian Army itself plus the British Army in India, before 1858, the precursor units of the Indian Army were units controlled by the Company and were paid for by their profits. These operated alongside units of the British Army, funded by the British government in London. Many of these took part in the Indian Mutiny, with the aim of reinstating the Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah II at Delhi. The meaning of the term Indian Army has changed over time, The officer commanding the Army of India was the Commander-in-Chief, the title was used before the creation of a unified British Indian Army, the first holder was Major General Stringer Lawrence in 1748. By the early 1900s the Commander-in-Chief and his staff were based at GHQ India, Indian Army postings were less prestigious than British Army positions, but the pay was significantly greater so that officers could live on their salaries instead of having to have a private income. Accordingly, vacancies in the Indian Army were much sought after and generally reserved for the higher placed officer-cadets graduating from the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. British officers in the Indian Army were expected to learn to speak the Indian languages of their men, prominent British Indian Army officers included Frederick Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts, William Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood, Claude Auchinleck and William Slim, 1st Viscount Slim. Commissioned officers, British and Indian, held identical ranks to commissioned officers of the British Army, Kings Commissioned Indian Officers, created from the 1920s, held equal powers to British officers. Viceroys Commissioned Officers were Indians holding officer ranks and they were treated in almost all respects as commissioned officers, but had authority over Indian troops only, and were subordinate to all British Kings Commissioned Officers and KCIOs. They included Subedar Major or Risaldar-Major, equivalents to a British Major, Subedar or Risaldar equivalents to Captain, recruitment was entirely voluntary, about 1.75 million men served in the First World War, many on the Western Front and 2.5 million in the Second. Soldier ranks included Sepoys or Sowars, equivalent to a British private, British Army ranks such as gunner and sapper were used by other corps. In the aftermath of the Indian Mutiny of 1857, also known as the Sepoy Mutiny. The three Presidency armies remained separate forces, each with its own Commander-in-Chief, overall operational control was exercised by the Commander-in-Chief of the Bengal Army, who was formally the Commander-in-Chief of the East Indies. From 1861, most of the manpower was pooled in the three Presidential Staff Corps
10.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
11.
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma
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During the Second World War, he was Supreme Allied Commander, South East Asia Command. He was the last Viceroy of India and the first Governor-General of independent India, from 1954 until 1959 he was First Sea Lord, a position that had been held by his father, Prince Louis of Battenberg, some forty years earlier. Thereafter he served as Chief of the Defence Staff until 1965, during this period Mountbatten also served as Chairman of the NATO Military Committee for a year. He was the youngest child and the son of Prince Louis of Battenberg and his wife Princess Victoria of Hesse. His maternal grandparents were Louis IV, Grand Duke of Hesse, and Princess Alice of the United Kingdom and his paternal grandparents were Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine and Julia, Princess of Battenberg. His siblings were Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark, Queen Louise of Sweden, young Mountbattens nickname among family and friends was Dickie, although Richard was not among his given names. This was because his great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, had suggested the nickname of Nicky, but to avoid confusion with the many Nickys of the Russian Imperial Family, Nicky was changed to Dickie. Mountbatten was educated at home for the first 10 years of his life, he was sent to Lockers Park School in Hertfordshire and on to the Royal Naval College. His second son acquired the courtesy title Lord Louis Mountbatten and was known as Lord Louis until he was created a peer in 1946 and he paid a visit of ten days to the Western Front, in July 1918. He was appointed officer of the small warship HMS P.31 on 13 October 1918 and was promoted sub-lieutenant on 15 January 1919. HMS P.31 took part in the Peace River Pageant on 4 April 1919, Mountbatten attended Christs College, Cambridge for two terms, starting in October 1919, where he studied English literature in a programme that was specially designed for ex-servicemen. He was posted to the battlecruiser HMS Renown in March 1920 and accompanied Edward, Prince of Wales and he was promoted lieutenant on 15 April 1920. HMS Renown returned to Portsmouth on 11 October 1920, early in 1921 Royal Navy personnel were used for civil defence duties as serious industrial unrest seemed imminent. Mountbatten had to command a platoon of stokers, many of whom had never handled a rifle before and he transferred to the battlecruiser HMS Repulse in March 1921 and accompanied the Prince of Wales on a Royal tour of India and Japan. Edward and Mountbatten formed a friendship during the trip. Mountbatten survived the deep defence cuts known as the Geddes Axe and he was posted to the battleship HMS Revenge in the Mediterranean Fleet in January 1923. Promoted lieutenant-commander on 15 April 1928, he returned to the Signals School in July 1929 as Senior Wireless Instructor. He was appointed Fleet Wireless Officer to the Mediterranean Fleet in August 1931, in 1934, Mountbatten was appointed to his first command – the destroyer HMS Daring
12.
General officer
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A general officer is an officer of high rank in the army, and in some nations air forces or marines. The term general is used in two ways, as the title for all grades of general officer and as a specific rank. It originates in the 16th century, as a shortening of captain general, the adjective general had been affixed to officer designations since the late medieval period to indicate relative superiority or an extended jurisdiction. Today, the title of General is known in countries as a four-star rank. However different countries use different systems of stars for senior ranks and it has a NATO code of OF-9 and is the highest rank currently in use in a number of armies. The various grades of general officer are at the top of the rank structure. Lower-ranking officers in military forces are typically known as field officers or field-grade officers. There are two systems of general ranks used worldwide. In addition there is a system, the Arab system of ranks. Variations of one form, the old European system, were used throughout Europe. It is used in the United Kingdom, from which it spread to the Commonwealth. The other is derived from the French Revolution, where ranks are named according to the unit they command. The system used either a general or a colonel general rank. The rank of marshal was used by some countries as the highest rank. Many countries actually used two brigade command ranks, which is why some countries now use two stars as their brigade general insignia, mexico and Argentina still use two brigade command ranks. As a lieutenant outranks a sergeant major, confusion arises because a lieutenant is outranked by a major. Originally the serjeant major was, exclusively, the commander of the infantry, junior only to the captain general, the distinction of serjeant major general only applied after serjeant majors were introduced as a rank of field officer. Serjeant was eventually dropped from both titles, creating the modern rank titles
13.
New Delhi
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New Delhi is the capital of India and one of Delhi citys 11 districts. The National Capital Region is a larger entity comprising the entire National Capital Territory along with adjoining districts. The foundation stone of the city was laid by George V and it was designed by British architects, Sir Edwin Lutyens and Sir Herbert Baker. The new capital was inaugurated on 13 February 1931, by Viceroy, New Delhi has been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under Prime Minister of India Narendra Modis flagship Smart Cities Mission. Calcutta was the capital of India during the British Raj until December 1911, Delhi had served as the political and financial centre of several empires of ancient India and the Delhi Sultanate, most notably of the Mughal Empire from 1649 to 1857. During the early 1900s, a proposal was made to the British administration to shift the capital of the British Indian Empire, as India was officially named, from Calcutta on the east coast, to Delhi. The Government of British India felt that it would be easier to administer India from Delhi in the centre of northern India. The land for building the new city of Delhi was acquired under the Land Acquisition Act 1894. The foundation stone of New Delhi was laid by King George V and Queen Mary at the site of Delhi Durbar of 1911 at Kingsway Camp on 15 December 1911, during their imperial visit. Large parts of New Delhi were planned by Edwin Lutyens, who first visited Delhi in 1912, the contract was given to Sobha Singh. The original plan called for its construction in Tughlaqabad, inside the Tughlaqabad fort, construction really began after World War I and was completed by 1931. The city that was later dubbed Lutyens Delhi was inaugurated in ceremonies beginning on 10 February 1931 by Lord Irwin, Lutyens designed the central administrative area of the city as a testament to Britains imperial aspirations. Soon Lutyens started considering other places, however, it was rejected by the Viceroy when the cost of acquiring the necessary properties was found to be too high. The central axis of New Delhi, which faces east at India Gate, was previously meant to be a north-south axis linking the Viceroys House at one end with Paharganj at the other. During the projects early years, many believed it was a gate from Earth to Heaven itself. Eventually, owing to space constraints and the presence of a number of heritage sites in the North side. A site atop the Raisina Hill, formerly Raisina Village, a Meo village, was chosen for the Rashtrapati Bhawan, then known as the Viceroys House. The reason for this choice was that the hill lay directly opposite the Dinapanah citadel, which was considered the site of Indraprastha
14.
Kandy
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Kandy is a major city in Sri Lanka, located in the Central Province, Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the ancient kings era of Sri Lanka, the city lies in the midst of hills in the Kandy plateau, which crosses an area of tropical plantations, mainly tea. Kandy is both an administrative and religious city and is also the capital of the Central Province, Kandy is the home of The Temple of the Tooth Relic, one of the most sacred places of worship in the Buddhist world. It was declared a heritage site by UNESCO in 1988. The city and the region has been known by different names. Some scholars suggest that the name of Kandy was Katubulu Nuwara located near present Watapuluwa. However, the popular historical name is Senkadagala or Senkadagalapura, officially Senkadagala Siriwardhana Maha Nuwara. According to folklore, this originated from one of the several possible sources. The Kingdom of Kandy has also known by various names. The English name Kandy, which originated during the era, is derived from an anglicised version of the Sinhalese Kanda Uda Rata or Kanda Uda Pas Rata. The Portuguese shortened this to Candea, using the name for both the kingdom and its capital, in Sinhalese, Kandy is called Maha nuwara, meaning Great City or Capital, although this is most often shortened to Nuwara. Sena Sammatha Wickramabahu was followed by his son Jayaweera Astana and then by Karaliyadde Bandara who was succeeded by his daughter Dona Catherina of Kandy, Dona Catherina was succeeded by Rajasinha I. Rajasinha I however, preferred to rule the country from the Kingdom of Sitawaka on the west of the island. A period of turmoil for power ended with the ascent to the throne by Konappu Bandara who came to be known as Vimaladharmasuriya I, having embraced Buddhism, he consolidated his authority further by bringing the tooth relic of the Lord Buddha to Kandy from a place called Delgamuwa. In 1592 Kandy became the city of the last remaining independent kingdom in the island after the coastal regions had been conquered by the Portuguese. Several invasions by the Portuguese were repelled, most notably in the campaign of Danture, after the Sinhalese–Portuguese War and the establishment of Dutch Ceylon, attempts by the Dutch to conquer the kingdom were repelled. The kingdom tolerated a Dutch presence on the coast of Sri Lanka, the most ambitious offensive was undertaken in 1761, when King Kirti Sri Rajasinha attacked and overran most of the coast, leaving only the heavily fortified Negombo intact. When a Dutch retaliatory force returned to the island in 1763, Kirti Sri Rajasinha abandoned the coastline, the Dutch launched a better adapted force in January 1765, replacing their troops bayonets with machetes and using more practical uniforms and tactics suited to jungle warfare
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Geography of Sri Lanka
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Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in South Asia near south-east India. Sri Lanka has maritime borders with India to the northwest and the Maldives to the southwest, Sri Lankas documented history spans 3,000 years, with evidence of pre-historic human settlements dating back to at least 125,000 years. Its geographic location and deep harbours made it of strategic importance from the time of the ancient Silk Road through to World War II. Sri Lanka was known from the beginning of British colonial rule until 1972 as Ceylon, Sri Lankas recent history has been marred by a thirty-year civil war which decisively ended when the Sri Lankan military defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in 2009. A diverse and multicultural country, Sri Lanka is home to many religions, ethnic groups, in addition to the majority Sinhalese, it is home to large groups of Sri Lankan and Indian Tamils, Moors, Burghers, Malays, Kaffirs and the aboriginal Vedda. Sri Lanka has a rich Buddhist heritage, and the first known Buddhist writings of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka is a republic and a unitary state governed by a semi-presidential system. The legislative capital, Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, is a suburb of the capital and largest city. Along with the Maldives, Sri Lanka is one of the two countries in South Asia that are rated among high human development on the Human Development Index. In antiquity, Sri Lanka was known to travellers by a variety of names, according to the Mahavamsa, the legendary Prince Vijaya named the land Tambapanni, because his followers hands were reddened by the red soil of the area. In Hindu mythology, such as the Mahabharata, the island was referred to as Lankā, in Tamil, the island is referred to as Eelam. Ancient Greek geographers called it Taprobanā or Taprobanē from the word Tambapanni, as a British crown colony, the island was known as Ceylon, it achieved independence as the Dominion of Ceylon in 1948. The country is known in Sinhalese as Śrī Laṃkā and in Tamil as Ilaṅkai, in 1972, its formal name was changed to Free, Sovereign and Independent Republic of Sri Lanka. Later in 1978 it was changed to the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, as the name Ceylon still appears in the names of a number of organisations, the Sri Lankan government announced in 2011 a plan to rename all those over which it has authority. The pre-history of Sri Lanka goes back 125,000 years, the era spans the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and early Iron Ages. Among the Paleolithic human settlements discovered in Sri Lanka, Pahiyangala and it is said that Kubera was overthrown by his demon stepbrother Ravana, the powerful emperor who built a mythical flying machine named Dandu Monara. The modern city of Wariyapola is described as Ravanas airport, early inhabitants of Sri Lanka were probably ancestors of the Vedda people, an indigenous people numbering approximately 2,500 living in modern-day Sri Lanka. According to the Mahāvamsa, a written in Pāḷi, the original inhabitants of Sri Lanka are the Yakshas and Nagas. Ancient cemeteries that were used before 600BC and other signs of advanced civilization has also discovered in Sri Lanka
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Fourteenth Army (United Kingdom)
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The British Fourteenth Army was a multinational force comprising units from Commonwealth countries during World War II. Many of its units were from the Indian Army as well as British units, for most of the Armys existence, it was commanded by Lieutenant-General William Slim. The army was formed in 1943 in eastern India, eastern Command took over the rear areas of Bihar, Odisha and most of Bengal. Fourteenth Army, part of the British 11th Army Group, became responsible for operations against the Japanese, the Armys commander was Lieutenant General William Slim. Its principal subordinate formations were IV Corps in Assam and XV Corps in Arakan, in early 1944, the Allies began tentative advances into Burma. The Japanese responded with all-out offensives, intending to destroy the Allies in their base areas, the first Japanese move was a subsidiary attack in Arakan where XV Corps was advancing slowly south. After initial Allied setbacks, in which an Indian divisional HQ was overrun, a vital factor was the resupply of cut-off units by aircraft. The main Japanese offensive was launched on the front in Assam. While a division advanced to Kohima to isolate IV Corps, the main body attempted to surround, since the Japanese attack in Arakan had already failed, battle hardened units were flown from Arakan to aid the besieged forces in Assam. Also, XXXIII Corps was moved from southern India, where they had been training for operations, to relieve the garrison at Kohima. The result of the battles was a crushing Japanese defeat, the Japanese suffered 85,000 casualties, mainly from sickness and disease after their supplies ran out. The Allies had been supplied from the air, in the largest operation of its type to that date. In 1945, amphibious operations to recapture Burma had to be cancelled again because of shortage of resources. Instead, Fourteenth Army was to mount the main offensive, the Army was now subordinated to the headquarters of Allied Land Forces, South East Asia, and consisted of IV Corps and XXXIII Corps. Since the Armys supply lines by land were long and precarious, the Japanese attempted to forestall the Allied attacks by withdrawing behind the Irrawaddy River. Fourteenth Army was nevertheless able to change its axis of advance, IV Corps, spearheaded by armoured and motorised units, crossed the river downstream of the main Japanese forces and seized the vital logistic and communications centre of Meiktila. As the Japanese attempted to recapture Meiktila, XXXIII Corps captured Mandalay, the result of the Battles of Meiktila and Mandalay, known as the Battle of Central Burma, was the destruction of most of the Japanese units in Burma, which allowed the subsequent pursuit. While XXXIII Corps advanced down the Irrawaddy River, IV Corps made the effort along the Sittang River
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William Slim, 1st Viscount Slim
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Field Marshal William Joseph Slim, 1st Viscount Slim, KG, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, GBE, DSO, MC, KStJ, usually known as Bill Slim, was a British military commander and the 13th Governor-General of Australia. Slim saw active service in both the First and Second world wars and was wounded in three times. During the Second World War he led the 14th Army, the forgotten army in the Burma campaign. After the war he became the first British officer who had served in the Indian Army to be appointed Chief of the Imperial General Staff. From 1953 to 1959 he was Governor-General of Australia and is regarded by many Australians as a war hero who had fought with the Anzacs at Gallipoli. In the early 1930s, Slim also wrote novels, short stories, William Slim was born at 72 Belmont Road, St Andrews, Bristol, the son of John Slim by his marriage to Charlotte Tucker, and was baptised there at St Bonaventures Roman Catholic church, Bishopston. He was brought up first in Bristol, attending St Bonaventures Primary School, then St Brendans College, in Birmingham, he attended St Philips Grammar School, Edgbaston, and King Edwards School. He was badly wounded at Gallipoli, on return to England, he was granted a regular commission as a second lieutenant in the West India Regiment. In October 1916, he rejoined the Royal Warwickshire Regiment in Mesopotamia, on 4 March 1917, he was promoted to lieutenant. He was wounded a second time in 1917, having been previously given the temporary rank of captain, he was awarded the Military Cross on 7 February 1918 for actions in Mesopotamia. Evacuated to India, he was given the rank of Major in the 6th Gurkha Rifles on 2 November 1918. He was formally promoted to captain and transferred to the Indian Army on 22 May 1919, Slim married Aileen Robertson in 1926, later Viscountess Slim, by whom he had one son and one daughter. He became battalion adjutant with the 6th Gurkha Rifles in 1921, in 1926, Slim was sent to the Indian Staff College at Quetta. On 5 June 1929, he was appointed a General Staff Officer, Second Grade On 1 January 1930, he was given the rank of major. His performance at Staff College resulted in his appointment first to Army Headquarters India in Delhi and then to Staff College, Camberley in England, in 1938, he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and given command of the 2nd Battalion, 7th Gurkha Rifles. In 1939 he was given the temporary rank of brigadier as commander of his battalion. On 8 June 1939, he was promoted to colonel and appointed head of the Senior Officers School, on the outbreak of the Second World War, Slim was given command of the 10th Indian Infantry Brigade of the 5th Indian Infantry Division and was sent to Sudan. He took part in the East African Campaign to liberate Ethiopia from the Italians, Slim was wounded again during the fighting in Eritrea
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Joseph Stilwell
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Joseph Warren Stilwell was a United States Army general who served in the China Burma India Theater during World War II. His caustic personality was reflected in the nickname Vinegar Joe, although distrustful of his Allies, Stilwell showed himself to be a capable and daring tactician in the field but a lack of resources meant he was continually forced to improvise. He famously differed as to strategy, ground troops versus air power, with his subordinate, Claire Chennault, General George Marshall, the Army Chief of Staff, acknowledged he had given Stilwell one of the most difficult assignments of any theater commander. Stilwell was born on March 19,1883, in Palatka and his parents were Doctor Benjamin Stilwell and Mary A. Peene. Stilwell was an eighth generation descendant of an English colonist who arrived in America in 1638, Stilwells rebellious attitude led him to a record of unruly behavior once he reached a post-graduate level at Yonkers High School. Prior to this last year, Stilwell had performed meticulously in his classes and this last event, in which an administrator was punched, led to the expulsions and suspensions for Stilwells friends. Despite missing the deadline to apply for Congressional appointment to the military academy, in his first year, Stilwell underwent hazing as a plebe that he referred to as hell. While at West Point, Stilwell showed an aptitude for languages, such as French, in the field of sports, Stilwell is credited with introducing basketball to the Academy, and participating in cross-country running, as well as playing on the varsity football team. At West Point he had two demerits for laughing during drill, ultimately, Stilwell graduated from the academy, class of 1904, ranked 32nd in a class of 124 cadets. His son, Brigadier General Joseph, Jr. served in World War II, Korea, Stilwell later taught at West Point, and attended the Infantry Advanced Course and the Command and General Staff College. During World War I, he was the U. S, fourth Corps intelligence officer and helped plan the St. Mihiel offensive. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for his service in France, Stilwell is often remembered by his sobriquet, Vinegar Joe, which he acquired while a commander at Fort Benning, Georgia. Stilwell often gave harsh critiques of performance in field exercises, after discovering the caricature, Stilwell pinned it to a board and had the drawing photographed and distributed to friends. Yet another indication of his view of life was the motto he kept on his desk, Illegitimi non carborundum, between the wars, Stilwell served three tours in China, where he mastered spoken and written Chinese, and was the military attaché at the U. S. Legation in Beijing from 1935 to 1939, in 1939 and 1940 he was assistant commander of the 2nd Infantry Division and from 1940 to 1941 organized and trained the 7th Infantry Division at Fort Ord, California. It was there that his leadership style – which emphasized concern for the soldier and minimized ceremonies and officious discipline – earned him the nickname of “Uncle Joe. ”Just prior to World War II, Stilwell was recognized as the top corps commander in the Army and was initially selected to plan. Unfortunately, despite his status and position in China, he became embroiled in conflicts over U. S. Lend-Lease aid. Barbara W. Tuchman records that Stilwell was a lifelong Republican, elsewhere she notes that, in the view of an close friend, “Stilwell was liberal and sympathetic by instinct
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Northern Combat Area Command
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The Northern Combat Area Command or NCAC was a subcommand of the Allied South East Asia Command during World War II. It controlled Allied ground operations in northern Burma, for most of its existence NCAC was commanded by US Army General Joseph Vinegar Joe Stilwell. In 1945 after Stilwell was recalled, his deputy, Lieutenant General Daniel Sultan, was promoted to, Chinese National Army personnel constituted most of the combat units within NCAC. In 1942, Northern Combat Area Command was formed at Ramgarh Cantonment, in India, from X Force, units, after its arrival in India, X Force was reinforced – eventually becoming the New 1st Army – a corps-level formation. It was re-equipped at British expense and re-trained by US Army instructors, for the campaigning season of early 1944, NCAC was augmented with Merrills Marauders – a brigade-sized formation created by the US Army for commando-type operations in Burma. Towards the end of 1944, NCAC was reinforced by the British 36th Infantry Division, in 1945, under Sultans command, NCAC – which now included the Chinese New 6th Army – aided in the drive to retake the rest of Burma. The main combat power of NCAC, at least in terms of numbers were its Chinese divisions, when British and Chinese forces had been bundled out of Burma at the start of 1942, some Chinese forces had been obliged to retreat to India, rather than to China. It was from these formations that the genesis of NCAC came, many times during World War II, British and American commanders in India were frustrated by their Chinese allies. However, the Chinese forces in NCAC were considerably better than their contemporaries in China itself, greater access to American equipment and training and less influence from the Chinese leadership meant the four Chinese divisions in NCAC could be trusted a great deal more in combat. However, it was not only from NCACs divisions that trouble sprang and its first commander was an extremely controversial character. Stilwell had first been posted to China as Chief of Staff to Chiang Kai-shek, however, as the campaign in Burma developed, he also took on a role there. The US Army established the China Burma India Theater, and placed Stilwell in command, the CBI Theater was not supposed to be an operational headquarters. It was merely supposed to be in charge of the administration of the American military formations in China, Burma, so his command should be placed under 11th Army Group at the same level as the Fourteenth which was under the command of General William Slim. The attacks could then be co-ordinated at Army Group level, rather than sack him, Mountbatten reluctantly agreed to this, but it was a dangerous compromise. It created a chain of command where Slim theoretically had to report to two different commanders. Giffard for Fourteenth Army actions and Mountbatten for Stilwells formations, under a general less gifted than Slim this could have caused serious problems, if Slim had not been able to command Stilwell at an operational level without disagreement. But at an operational level Slim was able to work with Stilwell, Stilwell thus had four different jobs to perform, which required him to be in different places at once. NCACs first months were frustrating, as the time was for all Allied formations in the theater and its first real success did not come until the 1943-44 campaigning season
United Kingdom
