The First British Empire: Global Expansion in the Early Modern Age

The First British Empire is a comprehensive, well-written book that explores the origins, growth, and transformation of the British Empire from its European beginnings to the aftermath of the American Revolution. It demonstrates that the early empire was a survival mechanism, not dominance, and shows how expansion was driven by the needs of the metropole, settler perspectives, and the experiences of the colonized, collaborators, and enslaved. It also highlights the fragility of British power in India, the potential for the loss of North America, and the strategic importance of the first Australian colony.

Format: Hardback
Length: 320 pages
Publication date: 15 October 2023
Publisher: Amberley Publishing

The First British Empire is a comprehensive, extensively researched, and substantial account of the origins, development, and transformation of the British Empire from its European beginnings to the aftermath of the American Revolution. Adopting a regional and chronological approach, and emphasizing the interplay between profit and power, the book reveals that the early empire served as a survival mechanism rather than a means of dominance. From the naval conflict with Spain to the 'Glorious Revolution' and the wars against Napoleon, with a population roughly one-third that of France, England sought an oceanic empire to compensate for its European weaknesses. The expansion from mainland North America to the Caribbean and West Africa to the Indian subcontinent is examined in the context of the metropole's needs, the narrower perspectives of settler societies, and the experiences of the colonized, collaborators, and enslaved. By drawing on recent research, the book demonstrates the fragility of British power in India, the possibility of avoiding the loss of North America, and the strategic significance of the first Australian colony rather than its use as a dumping ground for convicts. Above all, it underscores the importance of studying the long, arduous, and often haphazard rise of this 'first empire' in understanding modern British and world history.

Weight: 670g
Dimension: 244 x 164 x 36 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781445696805