Author: Ralph Winstone Fox
Foreword/Introduction: Ian Talbot
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Year: 2008
Language: English
Pages: 156
ISBN/UPC (if available): 9780195476583
Description
This book, written in 1933, in the dying years of British imperialism in India and elsewhere, seeks to explain from the common person's point of view how the British Empire was created, how it was ruled, and the condition of its people.
At the time it was written Britain was hard hit by the Depression and among the questions being regularly raised in the country were issues of British naval supremacy, empire trade and ‘imperial self-sufficiency’.
The author argues that British capitalism based on imperial monopoly is in crisis. He also argues that the question of socialism in Britain is determined by the exploitation of the colonial peoples. He believes, therefore, that there is an intimate connection between the national liberation of the peoples of the empire and the struggle of the British working class.
This book remains important to any intellectual historical understanding of theories of Empire. It reflects the understanding of the British Empire and its manifestations, particularly in India, from the intellectual framework of socialism. Its value lies in the insight it provides into this type of understanding at the time it was written.
Contents
Introduction to the 2008 Edition by Ian Talbot
Introduction to the 1933 Edition
1. FIRST STEPS IN COLONIAL POLICY
Early Colonial Rivalries
The Conquest of India
The 'Revolution' in Indian Society
The Chartered Monopolies
2. COLONIAL POLICY IN THE PERIOD OF INDUSTRIAL CAPITALISM, 1815-1895
The New Colonial Policy
The 'Development' of India
Land 'Reform' and Famine
The Opening-Up of Africa
3. IMPERIALISM AND COLONIAL POLICY
New Features in Colonial Policy
Colonial Policy and War
The Colonies and the Crisis of Capitalism
4. CHAPTER IV: BRITISH POLICY IN INDIA
India's Place in the Empire
The Indian Peasantry
The Condition of the Working Class
The 'Communal' Question
5. CLASS STRUGGLE IN INDIA, AND THE BRITISH 'REFORMS'
The Stages of British Policy
India is a Colonial Dependency
The Basis of the Class Struggle
Restraints on Industrial Progress
The Indian White Paper
6. THE REVOLUTIONARY MOVEMENT IN INDIA
Birth of the National Movement
The Post-War Revolt
The Development of the Working Class Movement
The Meerut Conspiracy Case
The Indian Trade Unions and Strikes
The Indian Workers and the National Struggle
A Programme of Action
Growth of the Economic Crisis
7. BRITISH IMPERIALISM IN AFRICA
Egypt, the Land of Cotton
Egypt and the Labour Governments
The Workers' and Peasants' Movements
The West African Colonies
The Women's Rising in Nigeria
How an 'Enlightened' Policy Works
The Slave Colonies of East Africa
8. THE NEAR-EASTERN COLONIES
The New Empire in the Near East
Irak
9. THE MILITARY POLICY OF BRITISH IMPERIALSM
The Empire and War
Colonial Revolt and the Soviet Union
The War Strength of the Empire
10. THE COLONIES AND THE WORKING CLASS
The Labour Aristocracy and the Empire
The Labour Party and the Colonies
The Second International Discusses a 'Socialist Colonial Policy'
The Labour Party Policy Report
'Capitalism' and 'Socialism'
The Labour Party and India
The Workers and the Colonies
Can Britain Exist Without Colonies
Appendix I: Some Useful Statistics
Appendix II: Public Health in India
Maps:
1. The World: Showing the British Empire
2. India
3. Africa: Showing British possessions
4. South-West Asia
Index