Conclusion
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Vron Ware
Abstract
The Covid-19 pandemic provided an opportunity to find out whether inhabitants of towns and villages on or near the training area felt protected as a result of living so close to soldiers, who were categorised as key workers. Previously, the attempted poisoning of the Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia Skripal drew global attention to the military laboratory at Porton Down, situated just outside Salisbury where the attack took place. The fact that this facility was associated with experiments in military ‘secret science’ dating back to the post-1945 era did little to reassure local residents that they might be safer living so close to the scene of the crime. While the housing of vulnerable asylum seekers in disused military bases is not unprecedented in post-1945 UK history, today the decrepit state of the buildings and their isolated locations raise questions about basic human rights. Once again, the fact that so many refugees are themselves casualties of war waged elsewhere – often in conflicts in which the UK armed forces are or have been involved – is integral to the wider military geographies that this book explores.
Abstract
The Covid-19 pandemic provided an opportunity to find out whether inhabitants of towns and villages on or near the training area felt protected as a result of living so close to soldiers, who were categorised as key workers. Previously, the attempted poisoning of the Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia Skripal drew global attention to the military laboratory at Porton Down, situated just outside Salisbury where the attack took place. The fact that this facility was associated with experiments in military ‘secret science’ dating back to the post-1945 era did little to reassure local residents that they might be safer living so close to the scene of the crime. While the housing of vulnerable asylum seekers in disused military bases is not unprecedented in post-1945 UK history, today the decrepit state of the buildings and their isolated locations raise questions about basic human rights. Once again, the fact that so many refugees are themselves casualties of war waged elsewhere – often in conflicts in which the UK armed forces are or have been involved – is integral to the wider military geographies that this book explores.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Epigraph v
- Dedication vi
- Contents vii
- Introduction 1
- I The place 17
- 1 Khaki country 19
- 2 Contact zones 49
- 3 Military sprawl 68
- II The cost 89
- 4 Relocation, relocation, relocation 91
- 5 The khaki economy 113
- 6 Living next to a pipeline 136
- III The legacy 163
- 7 The shadow of war 165
- 8 This land is our land 187
- Conclusion 212
- List of figures 226
- Acknowledgements 228
- Notes 230
- Index 252
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Epigraph v
- Dedication vi
- Contents vii
- Introduction 1
- I The place 17
- 1 Khaki country 19
- 2 Contact zones 49
- 3 Military sprawl 68
- II The cost 89
- 4 Relocation, relocation, relocation 91
- 5 The khaki economy 113
- 6 Living next to a pipeline 136
- III The legacy 163
- 7 The shadow of war 165
- 8 This land is our land 187
- Conclusion 212
- List of figures 226
- Acknowledgements 228
- Notes 230
- Index 252
