Remodelling to Prepare for Independence: The Philippine Commonwealth, Decolonisation, Cities and Public...

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Ian Morley

Remodelling to Prepare for Independence

The Philippine Commonwealth, Decolonisation, Cities and Public Works, c. 1935–46

Ian Morley

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Paperback

Forthcoming
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English

Routledge
30 July 2025

City & town planning - architectural aspects; Regional studies; Colonialism & imperialism; Urban & municipal planning; Civil engineering, surveying & building

Series: Routledge Research in Planning and Urban Design

Remodelling to Prepare for Independence: The Philippine Commonwealth, Decolonisation, Cities and Public Works, c. 1935–46 illuminates the implications of the USA’s final phase of colonial rule in the Philippine Islands. It explores the Filipino side of decolonisation and the management of the built environment in the years immediately prior to self-rule.

This book shakes off the collaboration vs. resistance paradigm that empire histories generally follow and consequently yields an original vantage point to comprehend transition within an Asian society in the years immediately prior to, during, and after World War Two. This will not only deepen insight of the American Empire, but also grants the opportunity to tie Philippine political-cultural change to the global history of urban planning’s advancement. Accordingly, it opens a new window to rethink Filipino ethno-history and societal evolution, alongside the opportunity to compare the Philippines with other nations that undertook planning projects as part of their decolonisation process and early-postcolonial advancement. The book utilises theoretical frames in order to help creatively excavate the era 1935–46 for the purpose of not just revealing what public works occurred, but to also uncover what those projects meant to the Commonwealth Government, the BPW’s staff, and the public who benefitted from public works projects.

The book will be relevant to students and researchers of Urban History, Asian and American (Empire) History, and Imperial and Colonial Studies. Architects, planners, and members of the public who are interested in the form and meaning of urban environments designed/constructed in the past will also find the publication to be of great interest.

By: Ian Morley
Imprint: Routledge
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9781032485379
ISBN 10: 103248537X
Series: Routledge Research in Planning and Urban Design
Pages: 276
Publication Date: 30 July 2025
Audience: College/higher education , Primary
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Ian Morley is an Associate Professor based in the Department of History at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. A graduate of the Centre for Urban History, Leicester University, UK, and the School of Architectural Studies, University of Sheffield, UK, he has published widely on the American colonial urban environment in the Philippines. The former book review editor for Urban Morphology: Journal of the International Seminar on Urban Form, he is currently the Vice President of the International Planning History Society. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, Royal Asiatic Society, and Royal Society of Arts.