Annie Wood Britannia

"War articles and notes" is a collection of short articles by Annie Besant on World War I, published in 1915. Besant was the leader of the Theosophical Society based in Adyar, India. She was also an activist for Indian "Home Rule". The Theosophists decided to support Britain and the Allies, hoping that loyalty to the British Empire would make the British more positive towards Indian independence. Thus, her articles on the war are strongly pro-British, almost to the point of absurdity.

The British Empire is benign, liberal, progressive, democratic, peaceful and what not. (Tell that to the Boer, the Irish or indeed the Indians!) By contrast, the Germans are brutal, authoritarian, militaristic war-criminals. Indeed, they are *worse* than the Huns. The German genocide of the Herero is mentioned several times. At one point, Besant waves lyrical of the southern German city-states and Catholic Austria who gave us Goethe, Schiller and (I suppose) Mozart (Besant doesn't say), while attacking the vile Prussians, who stole Schleswig-Holstein from Denmark, Alsace-Lorraine from France, defeated the Catholic Austrians, etc. The historical anachronism becomes even more absurd when Besant attacks Napoleon and expresses support for the Roman Empire against the Germanic tribes. Geezus. Or should I say "verdammt"?

Besant hails Czarist Russia in similar absurd terms, calls on the United States to enter the war, and demands swift action against German Christian missionaries in India. The Japanese are valiant and chivalrous, since they voluntarily ceded their Pacific conquests to Australia. Did Besant really believe all this? Or was she merely playing along, hoping that her adopted homeland Mother India could get dominion status if the Indians temporarily put aside their grievances? A kind of long con?

If so, I can only conclude that it was Mrs. Besant who was conned. She was played (for a fool) by Lady Britannia. The British used their victory in World War I to strengthen their empire, rather than devolving it. All half-hearted promises for Home Rule were quickly forgotten after the war. Besant died in 1933, but apparently the Theosophists in India refused to take sides during World War II, still feeling tricked by the British. A tragic story. Somehow, I feel they should have done the opposite: refuse to take sides during World War I, while supporting the Allies during World War II. But I suppose even Mahatmas have their foibles.