British Empire Exhibition Wembley London April October 1924 Poster

This collection of essays is based upon the assumption that the British Empire was held together not merely by ties of trade and defence, but by a shared sense of British identity that linked British communities around the globe. Focusing on the themes of migration, identity and the media, this book is an exploration of these and other interconnected themes that help define the British World of the late 19th and 20th centuries.

Buildings of Empire takes the reader on an exciting journey through thirteen territories of the British Empire. From Dublin Castle to the glass and steel of Sir Norman Foster's Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank skyscraper, these buildings capture the essence of the imperial experience, painting an intimate portrait of the biggest empire the world has ever seen: the people who made it and the people who resisted it, as well as the legacy of the imperial project throughout the world. Ashley Jackson visits classic examples of the buildings that the British governed from, the forts they (often brutally) imposed their rule from, the railway stations they travelled from, the banks they traded from, the educational establishments they spread their values from, as well as the grand colonial hotels they stayed in, the sporting clubs and botanical gardens where they took their leisure, and the monumental exhibition spaces in which they celebrated the achievements of settlement and imperial endeavour. The history of these buildings does not end with the empire that built them. Their story in the aftermath of empire highlights the continuing legacy of many of the structures and institutions the British left behind, as well as the sometimes unexpected role that these former symbols of alien rule have played in the establishment of new national identities in the years since independence.

A bestselling historian shows how the British Empire created the modern world, in a book lauded as "a rattling good tale" (Wall Street Journal) and "popular history at its best" (Washington Post) The British Empire was the largest in all history: the nearest thing to global domination ever achieved. The world we know today is in large measure the product of Britain's Age of Empire. The global spread of capitalism, telecommunications, the English language, and institutions of representative government -- all these can be traced back to the extraordinary expansion of Britain's economy, population and culture from the seventeenth century until the mid-twentieth. On a vast and vividly colored canvas, Empire shows how the British Empire acted as midwife to modernity. Displaying the originality and rigor that have made Niall Ferguson one of the world's foremost historians, Empire is a dazzling tour de force -- a remarkable reappraisal of the prizes and pitfalls of global empire.

Films for the Colonies examines the British Government’s use of film across its vast Empire from the 1920s until widespread independence in the 1960s. Central to this work was the Colonial Film Unit, which produced, distributed, and, through its network of mobile cinemas, exhibited instructional and educational films throughout the British colonies. Using extensive archival research and rarely seen films, Films for the Colonies provides a new historical perspective on the last decades of the British Empire. It also offers a fresh exploration of British and global cinema, charting the emergence and endurance of new forms of cinema culture from Ghana to Jamaica, Malta to Malaysia. In highlighting the integral role of film in managing and maintaining a rapidly changing Empire, Tom Rice offers a compelling and far-reaching account of the media, propaganda, and the legacies of colonialism.

In a rich unfolding of history and legend, the author of "Conquistadors" explores the character and origins of the Anglo-Saxon world, a culture that has had a significant impact worldwide. 30 illustrations, 16 in color.

"The story of Empire is central to Britain's national mythology and sense of its place in the world, and essential to an understanding of its changing role as we approach the end of the millennium. Denis Judd's fine, magisterial history does full justice to a complex and epic theme."--Jacket.