Empires of the Mind

The Colonial Past and the Politics of the Present

Robert Gildea (University of Oxford)

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English

Cambridge University Press
04 February 2021

History; Colonialism & imperialism; National liberation & independence, post-colonialism

Series: The Wiles Lectures

'The empires of the future would be the empires of the mind' declared Churchill in 1943, envisaging universal empires living in peaceful harmony. Robert Gildea exposes instead the brutal realities of decolonisation and neo-colonialism which have shaped the postwar world. Even after the rush of French and British decolonisation in the 1960s, the strings of economic and military power too often remained in the hands of the former colonial powers. The more empire appears to have declined and fallen, the more a fantasy of empire has been conjured up as a model for projecting power onto the world stage and legitimised colonialist intervention in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. This aggression, along with the imposition of colonial hierarchies in metropolitan society, has excluded, alienated and even radicalised immigrant populations. Meanwhile, nostalgia for empire has bedevilled relations with Europe and played a large part in explaining Brexit.

By: Robert Gildea (University of Oxford)
Imprint: Cambridge University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 227mm, Width: 153mm, Spine: 21mm
Weight: 540g
ISBN: 9781316612330
ISBN 10: 1316612333
Series: The Wiles Lectures
Publication Date: 04 February 2021
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Robert Gildea is Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford. He has written extensively on French and European history in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Among the many awards his publications have garnered, Fighters in the Shadows: A New History of the French Resistance (2015) was longlisted for the Samuel Johnson prize and Marianne in Chains: In Search of the German Occupation (2003) won the 2003 Wolfson History Prize.

Reviews for Empires of the Mind: The Colonial Past and the Politics of the Present

Advance praise: 'Empires of the Mind is a uniquely valuable account of the fate of the French and British empires.' William Roger Louis, University of Texas Advance praise: 'Accessibly written and genuinely comparative, Robert Gildea's new analysis of the lingering effects and bitter aftershocks of British and French colonialism is essential reading for anyone keen to understand where legacies of empire register in contemporary politics. A terrific read.' Martin Thomas, author of Fight or Flight: Britain, France and their Roads from Empire Advance praise: 'Empires of the Mind is a uniquely valuable account of the fate of the French and British empires.' William Roger Louis, University of Texas Advance praise: 'Accessibly written and genuinely comparative, Robert Gildea's new analysis of the lingering effects and bitter aftershocks of British and French colonialism is essential reading for anyone keen to understand where legacies of empire register in contemporary politics. A terrific read.' Martin Thomas, author of Fight or Flight: Britain, France and their Roads from Empire