This volume examines the Indian Army between the outbreak of war in 1939 and the partition of India in 1947. With contributions from many of those at the forefront of the study of the Indian Army and Commonwealth history, the book makes a substantial contribution to a range of subjects, from the Indian Army's participation in the Second World War, to the evolution of wartime training, frontier operations, and its role in the development of post-war counterinsurgency practice. The volume concludes with several chapters examining the impact and legacy of Partition in 1947.

Contents: Foreword, Sir John Chapple; Introduction; The evolution and use of British imperial military formations, Ashley Jackson; Indian Army command culture and the North West Frontier, 1919-1939, Patrick Rose; Did Winston matter? Churchill and the Indian Army, 1940-1945, Raymond Callahan; Training the Indian Army, 1939-1945, Alan Jeffreys; The Battle of Wadi Akarit, 6 April 1943; 4th Indian Division and its place in 8th Army, Chris Mann; 'Debunking the bunker': from Donbaik to Razabil, January 1943-March 1944, Tim Moreman; The re-capture of Rangoon, 1945: the last and greatest victory of the British Indian Army, Graham Dunlop; The 20th Indian Division in French Indo-China, Daniel Marston; Re-forging the Damascus blade: partition of the Indian Armoured Corps, 1947, Ashok Nath; A dismal story? Britain, the Gurkhas and the partition of India, 1945-1948, David Omissi; Small wars and internal security: the Army in India, 1936-1946, Robert Johnson; Index.