Empire of Liberty? Britain and the World, 1780 – 1840

Harvard FAS

After the losses of 1783, could Britain resolve what one historian has called the “marvelous paradox” of empire and liberty?Historical actors of all kinds wrestled with this question as the eighteenth century gave way to the Victorian era. In this seminar we focus on controversies over imperial rule that played out in India, the West Indies, Australia, South Africa and in Britain itself. What impact did wars and revolutions in the Atlantic world have on conquest, settlement and cultures of…