ABSTRACT
O ur first and most general conclusion is that the character and purpose o f Britain’s presence on the moving frontiers o f empire can be fully understood only by link ing events in diverse parts o f the w orld to causes that can be traced back to the metropole itself.1 This claim may seem to be self-evident to readers w ho are not themselves working underground in one o f the many deep shafts o f historical research, but specialists will probably be willing to acknowledge that a process o f continental drift has taken place in the course o f the last thirty years and that the various subdivisions created by detailed research, for all their merits, have not provided an accessible route to an understanding o f the larger issues that also demand our attention. The process o f reunification poses formidable problems. It is necessary, on the domestic front, to penetrate far below the level o f diplomatic exchanges and other direct representations o f Britain’s international interests; at the same time, it is now impossible to discuss events on the periphery w ith any pretence at adequacy w ithout incorporating the results o f the abundant new re search produced in the period since decolonisation. In terms o f scholarly output, the burdens o f empire are heavier today than they have ever been. O nce lifted, however, they become an indispensable asset, and one that future interpretations o f imperialism must surely mobilise if they are to achieve credibility.
