NORTH-WEST FRONTIER AND CENTRAL ASIA 1850-1947
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The book examines the British-Indian Army’s warfare on the North-West Frontier and in Central Asia from the nineteenth century to the early twentieth century. It argues that military technology and frontier tactics shaped each other in a reciprocal relationship. Rifles, mountain artillery, and air power all altered the conduct of war, but their development was also driven by the demands of fighting in difficult terrain against mobile and adaptable opponents. By combining technological innovation, military doctrine, and frontier geography, the book shows how imperial power tried to control a restless borderland through innovation, coercion, and adaptation. It also highlights the limits of technology in irregular warfare, where environment, logistics, and the intricacies of tribal resistance repeatedly constrained British-Indian ambitions.
Dr. Arka Chowdhury is an Assistant Professor of History at a Government college in West Bengal. He was a research fellow at Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studied, Kolkata and also received several national and international academic grants. His research interests pertain broadly to the field of Military History and specifically to warfare and technology, insurgency and counterinsurgency, war and state formation, war and environment, etc. Dr Chowdhury published several articles and book chapters, including articles from the Indian History Congress, for which he received the Professor P.S. Gupta and Professor J.C. Jha Memorial Prize in 2023.
Foreword, Preface, Abbreviations
CHAPTER 1: Introduction/ 13
Key Concepts and Definitions/ 17
Central Asia and the North-West Frontier: Geography, Society, and Economy/ 27
Chapterisation/ 29
CHAPTER 2: British-India’s Strategic Relations with the North-West
Frontier and Central Asia/ 37
Introduction/ 37
Russian Expansion into Central Asia/ 42
British-India, Russophobia, and the Strategic Imagination
of Central Asia/ 47
British-India’s Relations with the North-West Frontier/ 56
Conclusion/ 67
CHAPTER 3: Breechloading Rifle, Mountain Artillery and British-Indian
Frontier Warfare/ 73
Introduction/ 73
Development of Rifle Technology in the Nineteenth Century/ 76
Mountain Artillery and Warfare in the NWF/ 87
Development of Ammunition in the Nineteenth Century/ 94
Conclusion/ 101
CHAPTER 4: Air Power and the Control of Tribal Lands in
the North-West Frontier/ 111
Introduction/ 111
The Development of the RAF and its Deployment in the North-West Frontier/113
Origin of the Idea of Air policing/ 124
Conclusion/ 136
CHAPTER 5: Conclusion/145
Bibliography 153