Ep.265 – The Indian Army in the First World War

Historian and teacher Dr Andrew T. Jarboe talks about his recent book Indian Soldiers in World War I: Race and Representation in an Imperial War, published by University of Nebraska Press in 2021.

In this podcast, Andrew argues that Indian soldiers contributed decisively to the British Empire’s final victory in the war. He suggests that while the war and Indian soldiers’ involvement led to a hardening of the British Empire’s pre-war racist ideologies and governing policies, the battlefield contributions of Indian soldiers fuelled Indian national aspirations and calls for racial equality.

Andrew is Assistant Professor at Berklee College of Music, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.