East of Suez is used in British military and political discussions in reference to interests beyond the European theatre, and east of the Suez Canal, and may or may not include the Middle East.[1] The phrase was popularised by Rudyard Kipling in his 1890 poem "Mandalay".[2] It later became a popular song when a tune was added by Oley Speaks in 1907.[3]
"Ship me somewheres east of Suez, where the best is like the worst,
Where there aren't no Ten Commandments an' a man can raise a thirst;"
- ^ Britain's Retreat from East of Suez: The Choice Between Europe and the World? by Houndmills and New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2002. xv + 293 pp. $65.00 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-333-73236-6, Published on H-Levant (December, 2002)
- ^ "Mandalay" by Rudyard Kipling (1890)
- ^ Oley Speaks (1874–1948) on IMDB