EmpireEmpire
the Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power
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Book, 2003
Current format, Book, 2003, , Available .Book, 2003
Current format, Book, 2003, , Available . Offered in 0 more formatsA narrative history profiles the British Empire as a "cradle of modernity," tracing the expansion of Britain's economy, population, and culture during the last four centuries and continuing with discussions on such topics as economic globalization, the communications revolution, the racial components of North America, humanitarianism, and democracy. 60,000 first printing.
Discusses how the expansion of the British Empire shaped the world and what can be learned from this once global empire.
The British Empire was the biggest empire in all history. At its peak it governed a quarter of the world's land and people and dominated all its seas.
Ferguson (financial history, New York U.) coins the word "Anglobalization" to describe the impact of the British Empire on its former colonies. While not completely dismissing the widely recognized "debit" column of Empire, he argues that the "credit" side has been unfairly denigrated, including the introduction of capitalism, the notion of limited government, and the ideal of freedom. His narrative is not one of unmitigated triumphalism however, for he implicitly cautions against the overextension of Empire, which in Britain's case was driven by "the truly global bond market, the military-industrial complex and the mass media." Annotation (c) Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
A grand narrative history of the world's first experiment in globalization, with lessons for an ever-expanding American Empire--from England's most talented young historian
The British Empire was the largest in all history, its reach the nearest thing to world domination ever achieved. By the eve of the Second World War, over a fifth of the world's land surface and nearly a quarter of the world's population were under some form of British rule. Yet for today's generation, the British Empire has come to stand for nothing more than a lost Victorian past--one so remote that it has ceased even to be a target for satire. The time is ripe for a reappraisal.In this major new work of synthesis and revision, Niall Ferguson argues that the British Empire should be regarded not merely as vanished Victoriana but as the very cradle of modernity. Nearly all the key features of the twenty-first-century world can be traced back to the extraordinary expansion of Britain's economy, population, and culture from the seventeenth century until the mid-twentieth--economic globalization, the communications revolution, the racial make-up of North America, the notion of humanitarianism, the nature of democracy. Displaying the originality and rigor that have made him the brightest light among British historians, Ferguson shows that far from being a subject for nostalgia, the story of the Empire is pregnant with lessons for the world today--in particular for the United States as it stands on the brink of a new kind of imperial power based once again on economic and military supremacy.
Discusses how the expansion of the British Empire shaped the world and what can be learned from this once global empire.
The British Empire was the biggest empire in all history. At its peak it governed a quarter of the world's land and people and dominated all its seas.
Ferguson (financial history, New York U.) coins the word "Anglobalization" to describe the impact of the British Empire on its former colonies. While not completely dismissing the widely recognized "debit" column of Empire, he argues that the "credit" side has been unfairly denigrated, including the introduction of capitalism, the notion of limited government, and the ideal of freedom. His narrative is not one of unmitigated triumphalism however, for he implicitly cautions against the overextension of Empire, which in Britain's case was driven by "the truly global bond market, the military-industrial complex and the mass media." Annotation (c) Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
A grand narrative history of the world's first experiment in globalization, with lessons for an ever-expanding American Empire--from England's most talented young historian
The British Empire was the largest in all history, its reach the nearest thing to world domination ever achieved. By the eve of the Second World War, over a fifth of the world's land surface and nearly a quarter of the world's population were under some form of British rule. Yet for today's generation, the British Empire has come to stand for nothing more than a lost Victorian past--one so remote that it has ceased even to be a target for satire. The time is ripe for a reappraisal.In this major new work of synthesis and revision, Niall Ferguson argues that the British Empire should be regarded not merely as vanished Victoriana but as the very cradle of modernity. Nearly all the key features of the twenty-first-century world can be traced back to the extraordinary expansion of Britain's economy, population, and culture from the seventeenth century until the mid-twentieth--economic globalization, the communications revolution, the racial make-up of North America, the notion of humanitarianism, the nature of democracy. Displaying the originality and rigor that have made him the brightest light among British historians, Ferguson shows that far from being a subject for nostalgia, the story of the Empire is pregnant with lessons for the world today--in particular for the United States as it stands on the brink of a new kind of imperial power based once again on economic and military supremacy.
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- New York : Basic Books, 2003.
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