Stanford University Press
Losing Hearts and Minds: Race, War, and Empire in Singapore and Malaya, 1915-1960
Key Metrics
- Kate Imy
- Stanford University Press
- Paperback
- 9781503639850
- -
- -
- History > Asia - Southeast Asia
- English
Secure TransactionBook Description
Losing Hearts and Minds explores the loss of British power and prestige in colonial Singapore and Malaya from the First World War to the Malayan Emergency. During this period, British leaders relied on a growing number of Asian, European and Eurasian allies and servicepeople, including servants, police, soldiers, and medical professionals, to maintain their empire. At the same time, British institutions and leaders continued to use racial and gender violence to wage war. As a result, those colonial subjects closest to British power frequently experienced the limits of belonging and the broken promises of imperial inclusion, hastening the end of British rule in Southeast Asia.
From the World Wars to the Cold War, European, Indigenous, Chinese, Malay, and Indian civilians resisted or collaborated with British and Commonwealth soldiers, rebellious Indian troops, invading Japanese combatants, and communists. Historian Kate Imy tells the story of how Singapore and Malaya became sites of some of the most impactful military and anti-colonial conflicts of the twentieth century, where British military leaders repeatedly tried--but largely failed--to win the hearts and minds of colonial subjects.
Author Bio
I am a historian of war and empire teaching classes on questions of identity (race, gender, class, religion) in the twentieth-century British imperial world. My first book, Faithful Fighters: Identity and Power in the British Indian Army was released by Stanford University Press in 2019. My second book project examines the colonial origins of the "hearts and minds" idea of war, and is entitled "Hearts and Minds: War, Empire, and Military Culture in Singapore and Malaya."
I have conducted research and presented my work in India, Nepal, the U.K., Australia, Singapore, and New Zealand. I have received a Lee Kong-Chian Stanford-NUS fellowship, a Fulbright fellowship (India), a fellowship from of the Institute of Historical Research (London), and two U.S Department of State Critical Language Fellowships (Hindi and Urdu). My service to the university and profession include my current role as managing editor of the British Journal for Military History.
I have coordinated or co-organized several international conferences and events, including mentoring networks on "Borderlands and Migrations" and "Women in Military History," three conferences related to the History of the Body, and a conference at UNT entitled "Imperial Legacies of 1919." I am interested in advising students on topics related to war, identity, and empire.
Source: University of North Texas
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