The last and best 100 years of the British empire
Type
presentation
Date Issued
2006-03-05
Author(s)
Abstract
A century after Mackinder's lecture and exactly fifty years after the fiasco of the Suez expedition fiasco, the British empire has become a de-territorialized entity with more sheep and whales than natives. On today's world map we would see only scarlet dots and limpet colonies. Being less tangible and remaining largely invisible, Tony Blair's new empire is much stronger than Queen's Victoria. It brings together nuclear submarines, offshore banking islands, scientific bases, data mining techniques, pundits, experts, and academics from the entire Commonwealth. It is capable of defending any desolate island it would judge vital. Its vulnerabilities are only two: the unpredictable behaviour of the American partner and the persistent flaws of professor Mackinder's doctrine.
Language
English
Keywords
British imperial theory and praxis (1904-1919)
schools of geopolitics (1919-1947)
Preserving the British Empire (1947-today)
HSG Classification
contribution to education
Refereed
No
Event Title
MAS public history, Institute of history, University of Zurich
Event Location
Zurich (Switzerland)
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
215218