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The Rise and Fall of the British Empire
- Narrated by: Patrick N. Allitt
- Length: 18 hrs and 9 mins
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Publisher's summary
What were the forces that thrust the British Empire to its extraordinary position of greatness and then just as powerfully drove it into decline? And why is nearly every nation on earth, in one way or another, the consequence of the British Empire?
In these 36 lectures, Professor Allitt leads you through four centuries of British power, innovation, influence, and, ultimately, diminishment - four profound centuries that literally remade the world and bequeathed the complex global legacy that continues to shape your everyday life. This is a remarkable lecture series; one that will give you fresh insights into world history in a wide range of areas - political, economic, technological, social, and more. And it will also give you a comprehensive overview you won't find offered anywhere else - a context into which you can integrate new knowledge about this country, as well as understand the background of current events in so many other countries that were once part of Britain's empire, from Ireland to China, and in Africa and the Caribbean. Indeed, it seems fair to say that one cannot truly understand the most important aspects of world history without a firm grasp of the history of the British Empire. In giving you that grasp, these lectures draw on a vast range of critical events, riveting personalities, revealing anecdotes, and eloquent quotations.
Compelling, comprehensive, and astonishing in the force of its narrative power, each lecture will give you a refreshing new understanding of what made the British Empire both great in its achievements and vulnerable to its eventual downfall.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
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What listeners say about The Rise and Fall of the British Empire
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Mike
- 04-26-14
Learn About Great Britain from a Great Briton!!!
Any additional comments?
This was a masterful survey of the British Empire. It is a lecture series from the Great Courses series. The professor is intelligent, well organized in his thoughts, and very interesting to listen to. He takes you on a sweeping survey of the British empire from its beginnings in late Medieval Europe to its dismantling after the Second World War and beyond.
What it Covers: The lectures are thematic with a generally chronological progression. In them you will hear about every major part of the empire and its story, including the American Colonies, Canada, the Caribbean, India, South Africa, other African ventures, the British presence in Egypt and the middle east, Ireland, British East Asia, as well as the colonization and development of Australia and New Zealand.
Some Highlights: The professor is thorough and engaging in his covering of the material. He is great at highlighting and bring out the different major personalities that were important to the British Empire such as Cecil Rhodes and Winston Churchill. Touches like this bring life and character to his overview. Likewise he also gives some mention of the arts, especially literature. I also think he was very fair in his approach to the morality of the British empire. He tries hard to be balanced and recognize both the blessings and the curses of British rule. Also, as an added treat, the last few of his lectures go on to talk about Britain in the modern era since the loss of its empire.
Some Limitations: As an overview, the professor covers everything in brief but few things in detail. If you are looking for a deep history on any one area, such as the history of British rule in a region, in depth political or military history, or an overview of British monarchs and government, you will be disappointed. But, if you are looking for a general but thorough overview you will be satisfied. There were some personalities, places, and events that were left out. For example, little was said about Britain's scattered island possessions, save some of the Caribbean islands and a brief mention of the Falklands, or British Guyana.
Overall this was a very enjoyable and worthwhile listen. Anyone who is interested in the topic will leave with a nice overview of the history of the British empire... and probably enjoy the ride! : )
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42 people found this helpful
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- wag more
- 09-22-13
British imperial history for Americans
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
I would for someone interested in history
What did you like best about this story?
I liked that each of the lectures were generally around 30 minutes. Each lecture was well organized and presented in an easy to understand manner.
What does Professor Patrick N. Allitt bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
He does bring to life many interesting topics, such as Britain's various colonial occupations of India, Australia, the US, Canada, Egypt and the Middle East, South Africa, West Indies. The more modern chapters were particularly compelling, particularly how Britain ultimately dissolved the empire in India/Pakistan and Israel/Jordan/Palestine/Egypt.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Many, but the chapters most interesting were on Africa - Boer War, finding Dr. Livingston, Egypt.
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32 people found this helpful
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- Carole T.
- 03-18-14
Comprehensive and Thoughtful
The full consequences of the rise and (perhaps especially) the fall of the British Empire are still very much unfolding in our world. In Africa and the Middle East especially, the transformation to independence has been so recent that no historian can give true perspective to the influences, rights, and wrongs of the Age of Empire.
That said, it seems to me that Professor Allitt's course is very comprehensive and as balanced as any modern European historian's can be at this point. I learned a tremendous amount and am so glad for the recent inclusion of "The Great Courses" series into the Audible library.
There are 400 years of stories in this (some familiar, some not), well organized and very entertainingly presented. My husband has been abruptly disturbed many times by my exclamations of "did you know?" and "can you believe?" and "wow, I didn't know that!"- always a sign that I'm deeply involved in an absorbing and valuable listening experience!
This is certainly a wonderful overview of a long arc of history which has so influenced the development of today's political map. The evolving and widely differing motives and opinions about empire are presented with modern sensibilities (of course), but also with an attempt to recapture the mindset of the times, both in Britain and in the countries of the Empire. Non-Western historians no doubt have differing points of view, ones of equal value, but this is a great introduction to the complexities that have defined the age of imperialism.
Whether inclined or not to agree with his perspective and his conclusions, I believe anyone will benefit from listening to Professor Allitt!
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23 people found this helpful
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- Lance
- 12-09-14
Awesome overview of the British Empire
I am a bit of a history amateur. I've read plenty of history books, but as far as the history of the British Empire, the closest I had come was schoolboy textbooks and a few Winston books. So I was a little wary about whether I really wanted to indulge in 36 or so lectures about the subject.
But I was wrong. I found this subject to be very fascinating. To gain an appreciation for the other side of the US revolution, gave me a better appreciation for the uniqueness of the British and American empires. Seeing how the spheres collided time and time again, finally leading to the passing of the torch is interesting in that it never really needed to be this way. Not that I've become a Tory or that the book lectures the British in a positive light, its just that seen through the prism of time and global influence, the English speaking peoples had much more in common than they had differences. Of course most serious historians have been repeating that for decades, but these lectures really drove the point home. It was also refreshing to see the history from the eyes other than a Churchill biographer. Churchill had a profound impact upon the world, but was a rare and unique breed of person that said little about the British leaders themselves. People and their aspirations perhaps, but even then the record is mixed.
It also struck me that the US from the time of WWI argued through WW's principles that imperialism had run its course and by the end of WWII, the British themselves agreed they no longer wanted to be responsible for running an imperialist system either from an economic or moral perspective. There is quote about opportunities for freedom bringing forth the best in the nature of man, the opportunities to allocate the governance once that freedom has been won bringing forth the worst in that same man. And so it began as the British Empire dissolves, myriad immature systems elevate their men to the pedestal... nationalism, socialism, fabianism, democracy ... the book touches upon how these and other systems compete for power as men and women across the Empire are given their "freedom".
For me a good book whets the appetite, and this series will certainly inspire many more book choices for me. There is much more in the lecture series to recommend. Recommend going to the great courses website to see the titles of the lectures. This covers the major territories of the British Empire, including India, South Africa, US, Australia and discussed their formation, operating modes and events, and dissolution from the empire. It also touches upon social and political changes over the years and shows how they had a very large impact upon public opinion and subsequent British desires to stop the imperialist system. Highly recommended lecture series. Seemed to be fair and balanced to me, but I am a bit of a history noob. I may have called this lecture series a book, but there is no book that I could find. Just 36 lectures.
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17 people found this helpful
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- Sarah
- 08-07-13
A good educational course on the British Empire
What made the experience of listening to The Rise and Fall of the British Empire the most enjoyable?
Professor Patrick N. Allitt's clear and easy-to-understand presentation of the history of the British Empire.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
It gave me a good perspective on world history esp. between the world wars.
Any additional comments?
I would recommend this to anybody interested in British history. It is easy to follow, with key events well presented.
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- Virginiawallah
- 08-11-14
One sided imperialist view of History
Would you try another book from The Great Courses and/or Professor Patrick N. Allitt?
Probably yes. I like to hear/read people who has opposing view. Also, I like the skill of hiding and embellishing facts to create your own narrative.
What was most disappointing about The Great Courses’s story?
Disappointment-- that 40-50 years after end of british empire, history is still written, rendered and explained based on the point of view of ill-placed colonial pride. I don't think there is any pride in ruling over people against there will.
Which scene was your favorite?
Well It is a lecture course so, this question really does not apply.
You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?
It would be a great course if a more thorough review of different points of view of British Imperial History was included. This looks like a rendition from writing of Britishers imperial historian about "subject people" (likes of James Mill and his famous son John Mill, --by the way-- John Mill worked his whole life for East India Company London Office justifying every action of East India Company, mostly unjust--so even great thinkers may have had rather unsavory view of 'oriental people'). This course seems to have no input about the history by historians from the 'subject people' thus making it a one sided imperialist view (Professor's claim that it is a middle of the road historical view is certainly his own view and probably can't be justified by the facts).' This is a VERY orientalist/imperialist view. I can take 100s of examples from the course but let me put two--"Black hole of Calcutta" and Suttee. Black Hole--This tale has one source, Holwell---his accounts has been challenged by multiple sources including British/American Historians--like Little and Wolpert including Holwell-- and East India Company's description or culpability of Nawab of Bengal. British press, East India Comp, and British people believed it because all Orientals were despot according to them, hence, they can justify there rule in India/Bengal. Second -- Suttee--yes agreed an abhorable practice, however, there is ample evidence that Suttee increased after British took over of Diwani of Bengal--Remember great famine which killed 10 million people (Dr. Allitt presented none of it--100 odd Britishers death claimed in Black Hole of Calcutta needs several mentions and 10 million--approx double the number of Holocaust victims --Bengali die is not big history in this rendition, famine was certainly aggregated if not caused by Britishers, there were large number of famines which were hallmark of British India found no mention but cricket found a whole lecture) increased Suttee as family refused to bore responsibility in time of great stress. ALSO Flat out wrong are the annual figure of 8,000. Britishers collected thousands of pages of notes/parliamentary reports on Suttee in Bengal and it was never crossed 700 to 800, so there was a extra oriental zero even in the factual data.
Any additional comments?
Sometime historians are hung on the events and subsequent outcomes. Like once Britisher left Africa--African people can't managed there affair hence they should have been there longer. Well, there are many other possibilities-- who knows if Western colonialists were not there at all, African people would have been better off or worse off. Their current dire state may be an outcome of long subjugation and not because of the colonialist left early (according to the lecture, very self congratulatory.) History we study is just one path based on the past, which means different past may have resulted in a different outcome--which can't be derived from other initial conditions. Look at Iraq, it was very bad now it is very very bad. If one looked Europe in 1200-1500, they will never make a suggestion that these little rag-tag warring principalities will rule the whole of humanity. Borrowing from quantum physics one has to consider "all possible paths/histories" don't over analyze one path render the judgement. History can be cruel.
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- Sean
- 12-07-17
Great but not what I expected
The lectures are exceptionally well performed and very informative. I deeply enjoy the fact than instead of taking a stance of the empire being strictly good or bad, it takes a neutral approach that shows both the benefits the British brought and the atrocities they committed.
My only gripe is the lack of British history. I was hoping for a history of The UK and both why and how the empire was created and sustained. It instead focuses entirely on the colonies and how they were run. I learned more about India, Canada and Australia than the U.K. during these lectures. It shows a lot about what the empire was, but very little about the people who ran it in there far off islands.
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- John Gathly
- 11-11-18
Not bad on the history, but...
the professor goes out of his way to introduce his philosophy of history, the idea that you just say what happened as fact, and don't import your own political views into it, don't moralize over these facts of history. He wants to just present the facts and let the audience decide on their own what they think about them. As usual, when people propose this view, they tend to view "the facts" of history as aligning with whatever powerful force wrote the history, and dismiss the people who suffered under that force as "moralizing the history". It's certainly easier to do history this way, as the powerful are usually the ones who leave the records behind. However, this idea of leaving your own political opinions at the door, as usual, fall completely short with this professor, because literally no one actually does leave their politics at the door. politics is infused with every act of life. So when this professor presents slavery, it's just a fact of life, and here's why they needed slaves, and here's what they did. When the professor presents the rampant death from malaria for these white colonists who were more prone to die from it, this suddenly becomes a "tragedy". When the rich and powerful die, tragedy. When the poor and brown die, fact of history. He also just presents his own view that Adam Smith was definitely right, and "free trade" is beneficial and helpful to all without argument or discussion, as another "fact of history". It's not that these ideas caused massive suffering in the very colonies of the British Empire that he's discussing, just some "facts of history" happened, yadda yadda, everybody wins. But again, despite failing utterly at his stated goal of presenting the facts of history with no moralizing, he does present the basic facts of the British Empire in a concise and clear way, that, were you to only be interested in the superficial details of British settler colonialism and empire, you won't be dissatisfied.
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- Kevin McCoffee
- 12-31-14
A Balanced History and Good Chapters on Literature
Prof Allitt gives an even appraisal of the British Empire finally concluding that despite shameful moments, it left the world with positive institutions and ideas--and in comparison to other empires (think of the Spanish conquistadors, or Stalin) the British empire comes out looking pretty good.
I do enjoy a British voice too. So many Great Courses professors are American.
Oh, the two chapters on empire literature fit in really well.
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- Mouhannad K.
- 07-04-18
should be removed from audible
i respect the lecturer views that history should not make you feel good otherwise it is biased, but listening to him gave me the impression that the lecture was given in 1906 in all Male country club in oxford. while he emphasized the benefits that the British empire gave to its subjects, the suffering and atrocities were almost a footnote, the death of 200 British subjects were an atrocity but millions dying in it colonies were just a prize for modernization and civilization. The most vile statement was when he seemed to agree with rudyard kipling's racist poem the white man's burden. i am not sure if someone ever reviews these lectures before they become public but this guy did not do the British empire any favors. i am still in shock how something like that is advertised as the way we should learn about the rise and fall of the British empire
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