Synopses & Reviews
As the previous volumes in this series have shown, Britain's system of unfederal government had, by 1840, passed a cultural crossroads. There had been a parting of the ways in which the old representative system that had provided rule for colonies (including those in America and the Caribbean) in earlier centuries was being superseded. In this fourth volume Madden and Fieldhouse focus on those colonies in North America, Australasia, and South Africa where British subjects had settled in considerable numbers, and where the restrictions of the old system had been outgrown and representative and responsible government was developing toward full self-government. This fourth volume illustrates the larger themes in the evolution of self-government in these colonies.
The book examines the theme of self-government through four separate sections. Section I approaches the issue from the British viewpoint, surveying diverse concepts of the empire, the changes in imperial institutions, and attitudes toward trade, defense, and legal uniformity. Section II examines the evolution of, and later developments in, responsible government in these settled colonies, and Section III looks at the extension of self-government beyond the confines of internal domestic affairs. Finally, Section IV concentrates on the experiments in federal government among the contiguous groupings of colonies in North America, Australasia, and South Africa. The book also includes a preface with background and historical data, a note on primary and secondary sources, a listing of Secretaries of State from 1839 to 1903, and a comprehensive index. As with all the books in this series, this volume will be an important reference source for courses in British history as well as in the history of colonization. It will also be a valuable addition to university, research, and public libraries.
Synopsis
This volume focuses on the primary developments in the British empire's settlement colonies in the years leading up to the 20th century, and examines the changing relationship between British authority and colonial autonomy. In illustrating the larger theme of self-government, Madden provides sections on the British viewpoint of imperialism and self-government, the development of self-government in specific colonies, the extension of self-government beyond internal affairs, and the eventual federal governments and contiguous groupings of colonies.
About the Author
DAVID FIELDHOUSE is Vere Harmsworth Professor of Imperial and Naval History, the senior imperial chair at Cambridge University, and Fellow of Jesus College.
Table of Contents
Preface
Secretaries of State (September 1839-September 1903)
Imperial Authority and Colonial Autonomy: Some General Problems
The Nature of the Imperial Association
Metropolitan Administration
The Development of Colonial Responsible Government
The Assertion of Colonial Commercial Autonomy
The Problem of Imperial and Colonial Defence
The Extension of the Law of England
The Achievement and Working of Responsible Government
British North America
Australia
New Zealand
South Africa
The Extension of Self-Government
British North America
Australia
New Zealand
South Africa
Movements Relating to, and the Working of, Federal Government
British North America
Australia
New Zealand--The Collapse of a Quasi-Federal Government and the Rejection of Australasian Federation
South Africa--A First Attempt at Federation
Index