ABSTRACT
Imperialism can be broadly defined as the complex of intentions and material forces which predispose states to an incursion, or attempted incursions, into the sovereignty of other states. 1 General historical works about empires are etiolated and bloodless without the concept of imperialism. They risk becoming little more than a litany of special cases or an elegy of exceptions. Nor does the passive, naturalistic term ‘expansion’ fill the bill; the word gives no hint of the ruthless drive for dominance in the overseas world which periodically seized metropolitan statesmen, missionaries, soldiers, and sailors.
