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Some years ago Donal McCracken was working on a book of Ireland and
the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902) when, in the British Ministry of
Defence Library, the old War Office Library, off Whitehall, he came
upon a slim volume. It was a war diary written by a young German
from Halbertstad named Ernest Luther. As a child, Luther went with
his mother to New York. From there, in a short period, he fought as
a volunteer in three wars: the Graeco-Turkish War, the United
States-Spanish War and the Anglo-Boer War. In South Africa Luther
joined an Irish commando in the Boer army and fought against the
British. Aged around twenty, he was killed in action in September
1900 during the Boer retreat through the Eastern Transvaal
(Mpumalanga) in the face of Lord Roberts's advancing army. So we
have a German-American, coming to South Africa to fight against the
British, in an Irish commando, in the Boer army. The diary,
published in 1900 in English, consists of only 54 small pages, but
it is packed with action and invaluable as a source about the Boer
retreat as well as about such matters as indiscipline in the
commando, drunkenness, use of dum-dum bullets, which Boer leaders
were where when, and so forth. But there is also a fascinating
postscript. British Military Intelligence took the diary off the
dying Luther. Within ten weeks, it had been shipped to London,
possibly translated (the original is lost so we do not know if it
was written in German), possibly altered and ultimately published
by British Military Intelligence at 16 Queen Anne's Gate. We also
know that in at least one instance and probably others, the
published diary was handed out to a journalist in the field with
General Roberts. So the diary also opens a window into the actions
of British Military Intelligence and the embedded journalist within
the advancing British army.
This volume on print and broadcast media in the 19th and 20th
centuries highlights the pivotal role that the media played in the
establishment and maintenance of imperial power. The media
bolstered both the ideological and financial objectives of the
empire in a myriad of overt, covert, and downright scandalous ways.
From jeopardising the introduction of wireless telegraphy in order
to maximise the financial gains of the investors of under-sea
cabling, to newspaper proprietors cashing in on the thrilling,
wonderful (and sometimes fabricated) adventures of war
correspondents in exotic lands, the media has had a constant
background influence in the public's perception of empire. By
covering diverse topics from Anthony Lejeune's radio talk-show
'London Letters' - which supported the Allies by boosting morale
and providing a link between soldiers fighting abroad and their
families during both World Wars, to the complete subversion of
imperial influence - as in the case of the proliferation of diverse
media platforms being used by migrant communities in Britain as a
means to promote 'colonization in reverse', the book hints at the
politics, suspense, and intrigue of both the print and broadcast
sectors. This book was originally published as a special issue of
Critical Arts.
This volume on print and broadcast media in the 19th and 20th
centuries highlights the pivotal role that the media played in the
establishment and maintenance of imperial power. The media
bolstered both the ideological and financial objectives of the
empire in a myriad of overt, covert, and downright scandalous ways.
From jeopardising the introduction of wireless telegraphy in order
to maximise the financial gains of the investors of under-sea
cabling, to newspaper proprietors cashing in on the thrilling,
wonderful (and sometimes fabricated) adventures of war
correspondents in exotic lands, the media has had a constant
background influence in the public's perception of empire. By
covering diverse topics from Anthony Lejeune's radio talk-show
'London Letters' - which supported the Allies by boosting morale
and providing a link between soldiers fighting abroad and their
families during both World Wars, to the complete subversion of
imperial influence - as in the case of the proliferation of diverse
media platforms being used by migrant communities in Britain as a
means to promote 'colonization in reverse', the book hints at the
politics, suspense, and intrigue of both the print and broadcast
sectors. This book was originally published as a special issue of
Critical Arts.
Born in Dublin in 1822, Lieutenant-General John Nicholson was
raised and educated in Ireland. He joined the East India Company's
Bengal Army as 16-year old boy-soldier and he saw action in
Afghanistan, the two Anglo-Sikh wars and the Great Rebellion or
Mutiny. He died in the thick of battle as the British army he was
leading stormed the ancient city of Delhi in September 1857. He was
only 34 years old. His legacy and his legend as the 'Hero of
Delhi', however, far outlived him. As well as the Indian cult drawn
to him, at home he became a hero and was portrayed in epic stories
for children, inspiring generations of young boys to join the army
in his footsteps. In more recent times, some turned the hero into a
villain; others continue to consider him the finest army front-line
British field commander of the Victorian era.
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