In the wake of the dissolution of the Soviet empire in 1989,many believed that we had arrived at the'End of History'- that the global dominance of liberal democracy had been secured forever.
Now however,with Russia rattling its sabre on the borders of Europe and China rising to challenge the post-1945 world order,the liberal West faces major threats. These threats are not only external. Especially in the Anglosphere,the'decolonisation'movement corrodes the West's self-confidence by retelling the history of European and American colonial dominance as a litany of racism,exploitation,and massively murderous violence.
Nigel Biggar tests this indictment,addressing the crucial questions in eight chapters: Was the British Empire driven primarily by greed and the lust to dominate Should we speak of'colonialism and slavery'in the same breath,as if they were identical Was the Empire essentially racist How far was it based on the theft of land Did it involve genocide Was it driven fundamentally by the motive of economic exploitation Was undemocratic colonial government necessarily illegitimate and,Was the Empire essentially violent,and its violence pervasively racist and terroristic
Biggar makes clear that,like any other long-standing state,the British Empire involved elements of injustice,sometimes appalling. On occasions it was culpably incompetent and presided over moments of dreadful tragedy.
Nevertheless,from the early 1800s the Empire was committed to abolishing the slave trade in the name of a Christian conviction of the basic equality of all human beings. It ended endemic inter-tribal warfare,opened local economies to the opportunities of global trade,moderated the impact of inescapable modernisation,established the rule of law and liberal institutions such as a free press,and spent itself in defeating the murderously racist Nazi and Japanese empires in the Second World War.
As encyclopaedic in historical breadth as it is penetrating in analytical depth,Colonialism offers a moral inquest into the colonial past,forensically contesting damaging falsehoods and thereby helping to rejuvenate faith in the West's future.
Publisher: HarperCollins PublishersISBN: 9780008511630Number of pages: 480Weight: 780 gDimensions: 240 x 159 x 43 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'Biggar fearlessly goes where few other scholars now venture to tread: to defend the British empire against its increasingly vitriolic detractors...Those who wish to accuse the Victorians of genocide - who seek gulags in Kenya or Holocausts in the Raj - will probably not risk being'triggered'by reading this book. But they really should...Biggar's book simply cannot be ignored by anyone who wishes to hold a view on the subject'- Niall Ferguson
'A view of history that one set of modern voices will find outrageous,another considers obvious and reasonable... his moral analysis has enraged many academics and frightened some publishers. As a not-uncritical child of empire,I think his assessment is fair and accurate. Judge for yourself,but accept that it is important that this case should be put'- Matthew Parris
'A hugely impressive ethical map of empire,based on an encyclopaedic reading of events and the literature around them'- Dr Zareer Masani
'Wise,readable and full of the kind of information,ammunition and insight we need'- Dr Ruth Dudley Edwards
'This important book is a serious and substantial contribution to one of the great debates of our times'- Andrew Roberts
'Uncompromising and compelling'- Robert Tombs
'This scrupulous,fair-minded and scholarly analysis of the morality of colonialism offers welcome relief from the polemicists. It is vital reading both for historians and political theorists'- Vernon Bogdanor
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