ABSTRACT
A milestone in the understanding of British history and imperialism, this ground-breaking book radically reinterprets the course of modern economic development and the causes of overseas expansion during the past three centuries. Employing their concept of 'gentlemanly capitalism', the authors draw imperial and domestic British history together to show how the shape of the nation and its economy depended on international and imperial ties, and how these ties were undone to produce the post-colonial world of today.
Containing a significantly expanded and updated Foreword and Afterword, this third edition assesses the development of the debate since the book’s original publication, discusses the imperial era in the context of the controversy over globalization, and shows how the study of the age of empires remains relevant to understanding the post-colonial world. Covering the full extent of the British empire from China to South America and taking a broad chronological view from the seventeenth century to post-imperial Britain today, British Imperialism: 1688–2015 is the perfect read for all students of imperial and global history.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
part |85 pages
Introduction, 1688–1914
chapter |40 pages
The Problem and the Context
part |104 pages
The gentlemanly order, 1850–1914
chapter |16 pages
Gentlemanly Capitalism and Economic Policy
chapter |18 pages
Two Nations? Foreign Investment and the Domestic Economy, 1850–1914
part |193 pages
The wider world, 1815–1914
chapter |42 pages
‘An Extension of the Old Society'
chapter |39 pages
‘The Imperious and Irresistible Necessity'
part |23 pages
Redividing the world
chapter |14 pages
Britain, Germany and ‘Imperialist' War, 1900–14
part |6 pages
The empire in the twentieth century
part |81 pages
The gentlemanly order, 1914–39
chapter |25 pages
‘A Latter-Day Expression of Financial Imperialism'
part |134 pages
The wider world, 1914–49
chapter |21 pages
‘A New Era of Colonial Ambitions': South America, 1914–391
chapter |29 pages
‘Playing the Game' in Tropical Africa, 1914–401
part |43 pages
Losing an empire and finding a role, 1939–2000