The governance and administration of the Empire
Key issue(s)
Explanations for the growth of the British Empire: formal and informal Empire (including New Imperialism c.1875–1914 and the imperialism of free trade); forms of governance; security and coercion; trusteeship; ‘men on the spot’; collaboration and indigenous elites; negotiation
Explanations for the growth of the British Empire: formal and informal Empire (including New Imperialism c.1875–1914 and the imperialism of free trade); forms of governance; security and coercion; trusteeship; ‘men on the spot’; collaboration and indigenous elites; negotiation
Distinguishing between formal and informal empire (the areas of influence and control that extend beyond areas under formal administrative rule) is an important concept to convey to students. The key point of understanding then becomes that imperial expansion could be influenced by a range of factors – local and international – and were historically and locally contingent.
This opens up the idea that imperial expansion, especially after the introduction of ‘free trade’ occurred, was experienced differently in different places and in different times.
It challenges the hegemonic notion of imperial control that is promoted through the use of maps with distinct boundaries, and also an uncritical response to the notion of ‘free trade’ itself.
This opens up the idea that imperial expansion, especially after the introduction of ‘free trade’ occurred, was experienced differently in different places and in different times.
It challenges the hegemonic notion of imperial control that is promoted through the use of maps with distinct boundaries, and also an uncritical response to the notion of ‘free trade’ itself.
Internet Resources
There is a lot of debate around these issues, but for the purposes of the key topic, there are some key debates that should be highlighted:
There is a lot of debate around these issues, but for the purposes of the key topic, there are some key debates that should be highlighted:
- R. Robinson and J. Gallagher articulated the term ‘informal empire’ in this article: ‘The Imperialism of Free Trade’ (Economic History Review, Vol VI, No.1, 1953).
Responses to this article by D. C. M. Platt can be found here and here.
- A very influential development that critiqued this view further, by P. J. Cain and A. G. Hopkins
Cain, P.J and Hopkins, A.G., British Imperialism: Innovation and Expansion 1688 – 1914. - However, one of the most important recent developments in the debate has come from John Darwin: ‘Imperialism and the Victorians: The Dynamics of Territorial Expansion’ in English Historical Review (1997) CXII (447).
- An interesting overview article on Informal Empire can be found here.
The debates above tend to break down the notion that the New Imperialism was completely a break with the Free Trade that went before as Free Trade is itself seen to rely in significant ways on forcing open markets and compelling economic interactions.
Clearly, however, significant parts of the world were carved up between a limited number of imperial powers at this point and the rhetoric of Free Trade disappeared; maps with clear boundaries seem to demonstrate this. The debates on informal rule etc. help to give nuance to the many ways in which imperial control operated locally even during this time. Internet Resources There are some very good links to sources on explanations of New Imperialism, motives and attitudes and contested responses in the section of Imperialism (Internet History Sourcebooks). A sample on how to use digitalised primary sources for Imperialism: European, American, and Japanese (AHA Learning and Teaching). |