ABSTRACT
Although geography has a long and varied past, the idea of a history of geographical knowledge is of relatively recent date. The idea of a critical history of geography is still more recent; indeed, some might argue that it is yet to be formulated. By ‘critical history’, I mean simply an account which is sensitive to the various ways in which geographical knowledge has been implicated in relationships of power. In this paper, I explore the possibilities and hazards of such a perspective by examining the interplay between colonial power and modern geography during the ‘age of empire’ (Hobsbawm, 1987). This theme is of more than antiquarian interest, I shall argue, for the age of empire constituted a significant moment in the making of modernity.
