Empire, State and Society: Britain Since 1830

In the nineteenth-century, Great Britain was the world recognized superpower, with a daunting formal empire, networks of trade and investment outside its empire, and a formidable military. The geographical extent of British power was rivaled only by the opinion that the British had of themselves: as first in industry, first in culture, first in democratic institutions. By the twentieth century, many of these points of pride, tied up as they were with a progressive interpretation of history, had proven to be transitory. As Britain adjusts to her new place in the post-colonial world, this book assesses the external and internal forces behind the transformation. The book provides a broadly chronological narrative, drawing on recent scholarship to give due emphasis to social, economic and cultural change as well as politics and international diplomacy. The book is divided into five periods, with each of these sections sub-divided into three parts, reflecting the political narrative, beliefs and cultural forms, and social and economic trends. A key feature of the book is its comparative dimension - setting the experience of Britain alongside that of the twenty-first century superpower, the United States of America.