In the field of social science, it is commonly acknowledged that we are what we do. 'Learning to be you' is a qualitative, longitudinal study, which examines career transitions from the British Army to civilian life. This study is not about the success or failure of any particular feature of the administrative process. It is concerned with people's identity, and by focussing on identity, certain successes and failures of the journey become visible. This study is multifaceted, just as identity is complicated and heterogeneous. Consequently, I have sought to develop a collaborative academic framework, combining the psychoanalytical theories of Freud, the discourse paradigms of Foucault, the structuralist perspectives of Bourdieu and the performed identities of Goffman. I envisage gliding surfaces of identity and I use the four theorists to account for these interrelating planes. Two main questions are addressed. How do transitions from the British Army to civilian life impact on identity? How does an institutionalised identity, positioned by rank and structure have to adapt to civilian career transitions? The findings illustrate a learning to cope via adaptation that is simultaneously frightening yet also emancipating. Even in successful transitions, there is disturbance and largely these prominent upheavals at the point of service departure have become normalised' within the military community. The key conclusions made by my study are: • Ex- service personnel have to adjust and modify their identity to fit to the new civilian environment. The adjustment can be painful, emancipating and it can be sudden to the individual. • Stress and risk at the point of service departure has been normalised. • Greater visibility of the civilian world is essential in order to make the best career choices. • Some military jobs have greater transferability than others do. • A predictability matrix may provide practitioners and service leavers with a helpful assessment of the resettlement spectrum. • Indications point toward an increasing need to consider wider post-discharge resettlement provision. • Further longitudinal resettlement research is required with the findings made available to key practitioners. 1 I use the term normalised to refer to the perceived natural concept of service departure. At some point, an individual must leave the military; however, those in transition report that it is far from natural.

The Soviet blockade of western Berlin between the 23 June 1948 and 12 May 1949 - and the airlift that was organized to defeat it - was the first major confrontation between the Soviet Bloc on the one side and the United States and its allies on the other. It was at the point where the shared cooperation arising from common interests during the Second World War finally dissolved and became the Cold War with the potential to develop into a hot war. Yet for all its acknowledged importance in the history of the Cold War, no historian has hitherto investigated the British component of the Berlin Airlift to discover how it worked in practice and if British involvement was actually necessary to the success of the Allied operation as a whole, or whether the Airlift could have been undertaken more effectively by different approach. Given its acknowledged importance, the Airlift has been poorly served by its historiography. It forms a very minor part in the post-war histories of Germany; and even in the more specialist scholarly literature on the early stages of the Cold War, it receives scant attention. Insofar as it has received any detailed scrutiny, the Airlift of 1948-9 is presented regularly as a sub-plot in the wider drama of the Berlin Blockade, and it is the US dimension of the Airlift which has produced the best historiography. The American aspect, Operation VITTLES, predominates in the current literature and there is no equivalent on the RAF side to the USAF professional historians' output. Beyond this US dimension, there is a general dearth of academic papers in journals and of scholarly monographs. Popular books exist in quantity providing narrative overviews for the general public but this literature can be based on assumptions about the British dimension to the Airlift that do not stand up when tested against the surviving evidence. This study seeks to address its principal questions - examining the scale and extent of the British participation, and gauging its utility and significance in iii relation to the broader multi-national endeavour to defeat the Blockade - by a close study of the rich and plentiful primary archival sources held in Britain, the United States and elsewhere using the combined methodologies of the historian and the logistician. The thesis evaluates British participation in the Berlin Airlift and reveals that her aircraft were demonstrably indispensable logistically. However, performance - and that of the Royal Air Force especially - was substantially lower than that of the American task force. At the time, the official explanation given to the public was that the USA operated more and larger aircraft. The thesis reveals that there were additional causes. It examines how the Americans might have replaced the British, as was feared within the Foreign Office and the RAF and as they had the French. Redistribution of the whole American task force to bases nearer to Berlin in the British Zone of Germany would have increased the tonnage delivered but the thesis finds it would not have been sufficient. Deploying more US resources is the other possibility investigated and the limitations of American capability to do so are revealed and the potential impact on the plans to continue the Airlift into 1951 identified.

This thesis proposes major revisions to the history of the naval defence of Britain’s Eastern Empire during the critical period 1935 – 42 as the Royal Navy (RN) sought to manage the increasing risks posed by three potential Axis enemies across divergent theatres. It challenges the prevailing historical interpretation which explains the successive defeats suffered by the RN at the start of the war with Japan as the inevitable consequence of resource weakness and imperial overstretch already evident in a deeply flawed pre-war strategy “Main Fleet to Singapore”. The dominant narrative argues that: Britain never had the naval resources to protect a two hemisphere Empire let alone cope with a triple threat from Germany, Italy and Japan; it certainly could not pose any effective counterweight to Japan once it was fighting for its life in Europe; and it compounded resource weakness by consistently underestimating the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and failing to recognise the potential of modern airpower at sea. Britain’s strategy for defending its Eastern Empire through naval power therefore rested on convenient self-deception regarding Japanese intent and the balance of relative capability whereas in reality the RN was decisively outmatched. Furthermore, most historians suggest that, while Britain’s initial war with Japan ended in ignominy, this had little impact on the overall global struggle against the Axis because Britain’s role in the East was essentially irrelevant to the Allied cause whatever the losses to its own imperial standing. This thesis contends that the dominant narrative is neither satisfactory nor sufficient and reflects important gaps in the historical record. But it also argues that the historiography of the last 50 years has defined the RN role in protecting the Eastern Empire in very narrow terms, focusing almost exclusively on the defence of the Far East territories and the prospects of deploying a fleet to Singapore. In reality, the Eastern Empire encompassed a much wider area and it faced existential threats on its western boundary as well as in the east. Ensuring the security of this wider area had profound implications not just for Britain’s own war-making potential but for the overall Allied cause too. The thesis therefore offers an interpretation which, for the first time, investigates thoroughly the inter-dependencies between different theatres of war hitherto viewed principally in their own terms. By taking this wider perspective, it demonstrates that not only was there more coherence and continuity to RN policy and strategy towards the Eastern Empire in this period than historians have traditionally accepted but that it also reflected greater realism about what truly mattered and where naval resources should best be concentrated at any given time. In doing so, it shows how and why prevailing accounts are defective. The thesis proposes five main arguments across the period 1935 – 1942. First, it shows that the RN of 1939 was stronger, more capable, more innovative, and more ambitious in its strategic goals than the mainstream accounts of its inter-war history have generally ii accepted. It is simply not the case that meeting the demands of a multi-theatre war over the next three years as the output of the rearmament programme became available was out of reach as many have argued. It then demonstrates that British strategy to ensure adequate security through naval power for the core territories of the Eastern Empire in the face of the Triple Threat was more flexible and realistic, and better directed at what would prove to be the critical points in the first half of the war, than the prevailing historical narrative recognises. Thirdly, by looking at all relevant theatres simultaneously, it argues that Britain’s investment in the Middle East, and the RN commitment to the Eastern Mediterranean, from 1940 – 42, were essential both to protect the Eastern Empire and its resources and to enable it to generate maximum war potential. This commitment also vitally influenced the security of the Atlantic lifeline. It was not a diversion but an essential complement to meeting the threat from Japan. The thesis then re-examines the disasters suffered by the RN in the first phase of the war with Japan. It argues that promises of US naval support in the Atlantic and exaggerated expectations of the deterrent power the US could exercise against Japan allowed Britain’s war leadership to believe it could maintain a forward defence strategy in the Middle and Far East theatres simultaneously. This goal was never realistic with the resources Britain was able and willing to deploy overseas; yet it was the Admiralty, rather than the Prime Minister, who showed a reckless disregard for the resulting risks in the immediate run-up to war. In reality, the exercise of naval power to secure what mattered in the Eastern Empire did not ultimately depend on holding Singapore. The final line of argument is that it is simply not possible to reach a secure judgement on the eastern theatre without a proper understanding of how it interacted with the other war theatres and how this then influenced the decision-makers of the day. The thesis shows how the entry of Japan into the war confirmed that the Indian Ocean was an inescapable defence commitment, critical not just for Britain but also the wider Allied cause, ranking indeed second only to the Atlantic lifeline in importance. Despite the defeats suffered in the first months of the Far East war, the thesis demonstrates how the RN could still generate sufficient power by mid-1942 to defend this theatre against any naval force Japan was likely to deploy. The 1935 start date for the thesis marks the point when the threats posed by a resurgent Germany, an increasingly hostile Japan, and unpredictable Italy, moved from theoretical to real. The end of 1942 is an appropriate finishing point because, as the thesis explains, it marks the end of any credible threat from the Axis to the core Eastern Empire through either the Indian Ocean or the Middle East.

This thesis examines the technology used for tools and equipment for humanitarian landmine clearance. The main focus is on the removal of mine and unxeploded ordnance contamination in the poor, heavily mined countries, particularly Afghanistan and Cambodia. Initially, the process of humanitarian demining in these countries was examined and described, and the relevant literature reviewed. Three studies were undertaken with a dual purpose of (a) providing relevant contributions to the science of mine clearance and (b) evaluating some of the methods commonly used in humanitarian demining research. (i) A statistical analysis of the evaluation of mine detection systems in trials was undertaken. This demonstrated that (a) this statistical analysis is straightforward, and (b) feasible sized trials do not yield useful results from analysis of the crude minedetection rate. An enhancement to the evaluation process, "Margin of Detection," was suggested. (ii) Research into improved "prodders" for detecting mines was undertaken with as much consultation with deminers as possible early in the research cycle. "Sensing prodders" were shown to function technically but not to improve the overall demining process. Measurements showed that many deminers prod in hard soils with suÆcient force to detonate some mines; rotary prodders were developed to reduce the force required for excavation, but success in the laboratory could not be duplicated in eld conditions. From this work a potentially useful tool for deminer training was developed, which might reduce the risks of accidental detonation. (iii) The limits of a high-tech detection technique (neutron irradiation and detection of prompt gamma rays) were examined (a) to advance understanding of this method and (b) to demonstrate the feasibility of early evaluation of technologies before extensive research is started. This neutron technology was shown to oer potential benets to military demining, but to be unlikely to have general application when the higher clearance standards and lower equipment budgets of humanitarian demining were applied. The thesis ends with conclusions and suggestions for some further work. Throughout the thesis, the research is focussed on investigating practical problems which deminers have suggested as important constraints on their work.

This thesis begins by arguing that dominant ethical approaches to the study of war in International Relations have failed to illuminate the moral and ethical complexities present in contemporary war practices such as drone warfare, private military contracting, and counterinsurgency. Such approaches are unable to account for the changing nature of war and resultant shifts in the ethical landscape of modern conflict. In particular, there has been a tendency amongst mainstream perspectives on the ethics of war (including here just war theory as well as traditions based in conceptions of rights and justice) to continue to view contemporary political violence in an abstract and individuated sense, whereby subjectivity and agency are constituted in isolation from other actors. This viewpoint obscures a central realm of ethical activity in war: the relational and experiential aspects of modern warfare where moral knowledge and understanding are constituted in relation to the needs of others, through a sense of responsibility, awareness, and connectedness with those around us. As an alternative to these existing approaches, this thesis engages in a redescription of feminist ethics premised on the notion of care. The theoretical framework constructed therein articulates a feminist care ethical vision based in four key areas: relationality, experience, empathy, and responsibility. These points assert the need for a relational ontology; recognize the importance of lived reality and experience; demonstrate a commitment to responsiveness and connectedness to others; and acknowledge a responsibility to the needs of particular others as central to morality. Using this framework, the remainder of the thesis explores the ethical nature of drone warfare, private military contracting, and counterinsurgency to demonstrate the usefulness of such a feminist ethical lens to our understandings of morality in post-9/11 conflict. In so doing, the framework exposes the complex web of relationships and experiences that are at work in the ethical decision-making processes of those who participate in and are impacted by war. It uncovers a new articulation of how ethics plays out in international conflict – one that acknowledges our constant interactions as social beings in the world, which continuously shape and reshape moral action.

Periods of military transition contain unique experiences. For those serving this includes the transition to military deployment, and upon leaving the armed forces, this includes the transition into civilian life. Given the implementation of Britain’s armed forces community covenant, which aims to bridge the gap between military and civilian communities, further exploration of the needs of military personnel is required. This thesis informs understanding of military transition experiences at a time when, following the recent restructuring of the UK armed forces the number of veterans, reservist personnel and their families requiring care from the National Health Service is likely to increase significantly. Chapter one is a critical review of the qualitative research exploring the influence of military deployment on women military spouses. Following both database and manual searches twelve studies were included and reviewed. Spouses described complex experiences that contained both challenges and opportunities for positive growth. Differences between spouses of those from reserve or regular armed forces are explored. The review highlights the heterogeneity of the population and the need to modify current conceptualisations of deployment experiences, to understand the complexity of individual needs. Suggestions for future research are discussed. Chapter two is a qualitative research study that explored Army veterans’ lived experiences of relationships built with military comrades, and how these might have influenced the transition into civilian life. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis, it provides an in-depth account of military relational experiences and the integral role that these experiences had in the formation and maintenance of military identity. Implications for future research, alongside suggestions for clinical practice and service development are discussed. Chapter three is reflective account, exploring the interface between the researcher’s self and the research process. It explores the position of the researcher and the parallels between the research topic and their own impending professional transition into qualified life.

The British Army’s regular Mounted Infantry was arguably one of the most important innovations of the late Victorian and Edwardian armies. This thesis explores the regular Mounted Infantry model from its origins in extemporised infantry detachments overseas to its formal organisation as non-cavalry mounted troops before the First World War and juxtaposes its organisation and changing roles with its fractious relationship with the cavalry. Using four campaigns as case studies, the thesis provides a comparative assessment of the Mounted Infantry’s military effectiveness that culminated in it becoming the successful archetype for the British soldier in South Africa in the years 1901- 02. The Mounted Infantry’s uniqueness compared to other nations’ armies is considered and the thesis identifies how other armies satisfied the requirement for mobile firepower. The Mounted Infantry was abolished in 1913 prior to the First World War. The reasons influencing this decision are analysed and indicate that the Mounted Infantry’s abolition owed more to politics than lack of military utility. The thesis concludes that rather than an impecunious alternative to an inadequate cavalry, the Mounted Infantry paradigm satisfied a particular need borne out of colonial campaigning.

The Algerian War (1954-62) has been recognised by historians, sociologists and cultural theorists as one of the most divisive episodes in recent French history. Yet the historiography of the conflict is marked by periods when the war was broadly absent from the national memorial sphere, contrasting against others where violent memories of the conflict have coalesced around issues such as immigration, torture, and historical education. This thesis articulates how these and other social frameworks have influenced the cultural memory of the 1.2 million French military service conscripts, or appelés, who served during the Algerian War. Taking a quantitative and qualitative approach, informed by a Halbwachsian model of collective memory formation, and interdisciplinary readings on the social frameworks of Algerian War memory in France, this thesis thus outlines a historiography of constructions of the appelés in French cultural memory, which pays due attention to the medium in which that memory is constructed. Beginning with an overview of a wide corpus of appelé cultural memories from five media, through dialogue with historical, cultural and sociological literature about the conscripts and models of Algerian War memory, the thesis develops an appelé specific phasing of cultural memory. The thesis then advances four case studies which each examine constructions of the appelés in a distinct medium, and situates them within the appropriate phase in the evolution of appelé cultural memory. These studies consider the construction of the appelés in: firstly, television news magazine Cinq colonnes à la une (1959-60); secondly, two prose texts, Philippe Labro’s Des Feux Mals Éteints (1967) and Noël Favrelière’s Le Déserteur (1973); thirdly, Marc Garanger’s photo album La Guerre d’Algérie vue par un appelé du contingent (1984); and finally, three sets of texts drawn from contemporary online digital media.

This thesis assesses British naval and military co-operation in the form of combined operations during the Nine Years War, 1688-1697, and the War of the Spanish Succession, 1702-1713. The operational history of the joint actions is related and used to drive forward the determination of two inter-related themes. These are, how combined operations might be defined as an instrument of warfare during this period; and secondly, the place of such operations within the military component of Britain's wartime Grand Strategy. With respect to the former, previous definitions embodying the benchmarks of objectives and composition of force are set against the history and built upon to incorporate three further categories of definition: theatre of war, bureaucratic control and command structure. As a result, it is argued that no blanket definition for combined operations can be arrived at, but that any one of the five categories can provide insights into combined operations as an instrument of warfare. The second theme places the strategic objectives of these operations within the context of British war policy and explores their relationship to the 'Maritime' and 'Continental' strategic traditions. While it becomes clear that combined operations were thought to possess neither an independent nor a war-winning strategic capability, they do appear to have consistently filled a role in Grand Strategy which acted either simultaneously or separately in support of the naval and military strategic interests. With the categories for definition and a strategic role established for such joint army-navy ventures, the thesis concludes by considering whether during these wars there were any factors common to the more successful, and conversely to the failing, combined operations. Although a pattern or mould for a successful combined operation cannot be established, it is shown that the origins of the developed historical practice of this type of warfare - demonstrated to such effect later in the eighteenth century - can be traced in the two wars considered in this study.

Due to the current military climate, a large number of military service men and women often experience prolonged and repeated separations from their families due to overseas deployment. This has been shown to have potentially detrimental effects on the family system, spouse relationships and on the child. This study aimed to use qualitative methods to explore the individual experiences of UK mothers who had children living at home when their husbands deployed overseas. It aimed to examine their views on how they believed the deployment experience impacted on their children. This included reports on their experiences of welfare packages offered by the military and related support services. The study also aimed to highlight any personally developed examples of possible good practice. A single method design was used, utilising semi-structured interviews following a discovery spine interview technique. The conducted interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis based on Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis and drawing on aspects of Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis approach (2006). From the analysis it was shown that it was felt by mothers that deployment affected children both positively and negatively. For some there were negatively perceived changes in behaviour as well as significant feelings of loss both in terms of relationship and physical presence. There were also descriptions of increased negative emotional states and an ongoing experience of maladaptive life events concurrent with life within a military community. In positive terms, the experience of deployment was described as prompting beneficial behavioural changes as well as enabling them to develop more positive aspects to their character. Their increased thoughtfulness and ability to empathise was seen as a contributing factor to enhancing their relationships both with the deployed parent and with those who remained at home. This study highlights the need for increased attention to military children’s well-being in the UK and the under-researched impact of overseas parental deployment on their development and functioning. It also demonstrates the need for improvements to support services and welfare packages to families who currently feel unsupported at times of deployment. It suggests the importance of acknowledging and addressing the concerns of those individuals most closely affected by these procedures and the benefits that sharing their experience with others in similar positions can have.