This thesis examines the experience of Malawian soldiers serving in Britain’s
colonial army between 1891 and 1964. Until recently, the experience of East
African colonial soldiers in particular has been largely overlooked, and African
soldiers in general have been perceived either as collaborators in the machinery of
colonial oppression or, conversely, as victims at the hands of the military
authorities. However, little attempt has been made to unify these two views of
military service.
Using Malawi as a case study, this thesis investigates social relations within
the colonial army and examines perceptions of their often-violent role within wider
colonial society. Developing and expanding upon previous scholarship, this thesis
provides the first sustained and unified study of the colonial army in Malawi. The
project is based principally upon archival sources in Britain and Malawi, but also
draws upon interviews with British and Malawian veterans. Chapter one provides
an overview of the institutional history of the Malawian forces. Chapter two
outlines the development of recruitment policy, with special reference to the
concept of `martial races’, and examines the motivations behind Malawian
enlistment. Chapters three and four investigate the reactions of African soldiers to
the formal military environment and to barrack life. Chapter five examines
perceptions of soldiers’ roles in warfare and internal security, and contrasts this with
the place of soldiers in their own communities.
The thesis highlights the extent to which Malawian soldiers were successfully
co-opted by the military authorities, but also stresses the capacity of soldiers to influence the conditions under which they served. This, combined with the
unusually long association which many Malawians had with the army, fed into a
growing perception of the colonial army as a Malawian institution.