Two views of the British Empire: book reviews

Dr. William Jackson (University of Leeds) reviews two recent books on the British Empire in the Institute of Historical Research's Reviews in History 


The books are

• Britain's Empire: resistance, repression and revolt, by Richard Gott
• Empire: what ruling the world did to the British, by Jeremy Paxman

You can read Richard Gott's response to the article and check out Britain's Empire yourself  at A325.341 / 735278

CLICK HERE TO LINK TO THE LIBRARY CATALOGUE

Jeremy Paxman's book is on order by the Library, but meanwhile you can also read the Guardian's opinion on his accompanying TV series 

Book review: Sovereignty and social reform in India

Dr Andrea Major's "Sovereignty and social reform in India : British colonialism and the campaign against sati, 1830-1860" is reviewed by Daniel Grey in the Institute of Historical Research's Reviews in History 

Andrea Major lecturers in the School of History at the University of Leeds
Dr Daniel Grey is a Junior Research Fellow in World History at Wolfson College (Oxford)

Read the book in SOAS Library at JA954.03 / 736856


CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE LIBRARY CATALOGUE RECORD

Reconsidering the mystery of Easter Island : book review

Terry Hunt and Carl Lipo reconsider the traditional view that the inhabitants of Easter Island (Rapa Nui) bore the prime responsibility for the catastrophe that befell their society in "The statues that walked : unravelling the mystery of Easter Island"

READ THE REVIEW IN THE TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT

and look out for the book when it arrives in SOAS Library (ordered 18th January)

Law and politics of British colonial thought: book reviews

Compare reviews of Law and politics of British colonial thought: transpositions of Empire by Dr. Shaunnagh Dorsett (Faculty of Law, University of Wellington) and Ian Hunter

The book is "mainly concerned with British Law as it developed in settler colonies", commencing with Britain's North American territories and concentrating on the Anglophone colonies such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand, although there is a "lively" account of English barrister Travers Twiss and his support of the Belgian King Leopold in the establishment of the Congo Free State

• Reviews in History (Institute of Historical Research) - review by Dr. Jack Harrington (Open University)
• Settler Colonial Studies  - review by Professor Peter Karsten (Department of History, University of Pittsburg) [PDF]

Find the book in SOAS Library at A344.2 / 737200

Click here to link to the Library catalogue

Colonial Film: Moving images of the British Empire

The Colonial Film Database is the ongoing result of a collaborative project between the British Film Institute National Archive, the Imperial War Museum, the British Empire and Commonwealth Museum, Birkbeck College and UCL.

The database has so far catalogued over 6,000 films dating from the late 1890s to the later 20th century from most countries of the former British Empire and Commonwealth. The collection ranges from dramatic "shorts" and amateur footage to official productions by organizations such as the Empire Marketing Board and the Crown Film Unit.

350 of the most important films have detailed critical notes by the project's academic research team.

150 are available to view online (Click the A-Z Films link at the bottom of the homepage to select and view)

--