The importance of studying Britain's past has never been in serious dispute. What has been in play, however, is just how to go about this study, especially when considering Britain's worldwide imperial system. This volume is an effort to begin reconciling three perspectives: first, the imperialistic viewpoint that the British transformed the world into their own image; second, the revisionist approach that characterizes the history of the
British Empire as essentially one of collaboration and interaction between the British and those they colonized; and, third, postcolonial criticism that focuses on opposition to imperialism and Western values. The essays in this book carry the reader into lively debates based on rigorous historical inquiry. They will be read with interest by those concerned not merely with the history of the British Empire but with the legacy of European imperialism. |
