Ornamentalism: How the British Saw Their Empire - Hardcover

Cannadine, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0713995068 ISBN 13: 9780713995060

Publisher: Allen Lane, 2001

Synopsis

The British Empire has generally been seen as a racist empire (most influentially in Edward Said's ORIENTALISM). While not wholly denying this, Cannadine, in his funny, often horrifying new book, suggests a different dynamic. The British were motivated not by race but by class - they loathed Indians or Africans no more or less than they loathed the great majority of Englishmen. Imperialists were far more willing to work closely with maharajahs, kings and chiefs of whatever race than with 'sordid' white settlers. The often farcical gap between these views and reality make ORNAMENTALISM both highly enjoyable and extremely provocative for anyone wishing to understand how the British Empire really worked.

About this title

Review:

Like it or loathe it, there has never been any shortage of books about the British Empire. However, what David Cannadine's Ornamentalism shows is that until recently Britain itself has tended to be left out of the story. Serious academic research on the Empire has been dominated by specialists on Africa and India, or, in earlier generations, by experts on the 'white' colonies. Cannadine, the current Director of London University's Institute of Historical Research, and one of the most prolific historians of modern Britain, challenges this myopia in his provocative book. He argues that in its heyday--from the 1850s to the 1950s--the British Empire was based on a conscious effort to export a model of class hierarchy and status from home out to overseas possessions. The Indian Raj and the tropics of Africa were run as though they were the ornate stately homes or broad-acred landed estates of southern England. Readers of two of Cannadine's earlier bestselling books Aspects of Aristocracy and, more recently, on Class in Britain--will recognise and enjoy the extended airing he gives to these themes. As usual, Cannadine is at his best in chapters on the monarchy and honours system, when describing the whole flummery and symbolism of British imperial culture. Critics will no doubt complain that he marginalises the less flamboyant aspects of empire--race and economic exploitation most notably. And it might be objected that he has described only the "toffs'" view of empire. But whether you admire or abhor the Ornamentalism, there is plenty here to make you think.--Miles Taylor

Review:

"...completes the analysis [...] he began with The Decline and Fall of the British Aristocracy." -- Robert McCrum, The Observer, 6 May 2001

"No historian has written more shrewdly and subtly on [...] upper-class culture and politics in modern Britain than David Cannadine..." -- Niall Ferguson, The Sunday Telegraph, 22 April 2001

'. . . restores a dimension to British imperial history that deserves consideration . . .' -- Bernard Porter, TLS, 4 May 2001

'Cannadine is an adventurous, original and highly accessible historian . . .' -- Richard Gott, Guardian, 5 May 2001

'Cannadine is very funny, as well as informative, about the detailed workings of the system.' -- John Grigg, Times, 25 April 2001

'Cannadine seeks to give us a view from the inside: empire as social entity rather than political construct.' -- Iain Bamforth, Scotland on Sunday, 13 May 2001

'His writing is stuffed with revealing facts, quotations, and anecdotes, and is both scholarly and entertaining . . .' -- Patrick French, The Sunday Times, 29 April 2001

'Ornamentalism glitters with all the traits we have come to value in David Cannadine's writing...' -- Sunil Khilnani, Financial Times, Weekend 28/29 April 2001

'The importance of Ornamentalism lies not just in making us rethink the past; it helps us to re-evaluate the present.' -- Kenan Malik, New Statesman, 7 May 2001

'described in scintillating prose with a fine eye for telling detail' -- History, 27 April 2001

About this edition

• Publisher: Allen Lane
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0713995068
• ISBN 13: 9780713995060
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 288