Brexit and the ‘Imperial Factor’:A longue durée Approach to British Exceptionalism

To what extent can we detect echoes of the triumphantBritannia (Thomas Arne composed Rule Britannia in 1740) incontemporary Brexit debates? What were the subliminalrefractions of the refrain ‘Britons never will be slaves’ incomplaints about the frequently evoked ‘Brussels shackles’?Through a longue durée approach to two major elements ofmodern British history – Britannia and the celebration ofcolonial expansion as a ‘bringer of progress’, this article chartsthe persistence of political and cultural visions including theEmpire simultaneously as an expression, a tool and a channelof British exceptionalism. Positing that the Empire wasintegral to the emergence of British identity and itsconsolidation, it also underlines, through references to JohnRobert Seeley’s highly influential work, the key role played byEngland in this process. Based upon the hypothesis that pastreflections on Britain’s global role – including thosechampioned by Cecil John Rhodes – have left an imprint onthe Brexit conversation in the run-up to, and aftermath of, thevote, this article introduces the concept of ‘imperial factor’ asa way of taking into account the long-term impact that thedevelopment and possession of the world’s largest empirehas left on British ways of seeing the world, and, crucially, ofseeing Britain’s place in the world. Beyond the case-study ofexceptionalism offered here, further research, especially of aquantitative nature, is suggested to refine our understandingof the precise extent to which the ‘imperial factor’ played arole in the Brexit vote of 2016. Conceived as an instrument totake into account the potential imperial dimension of a multi-faceted phenomenon such as Britain’s departure from theEU, the ‘imperial factor’ is, more broadly, a useful tool togauge – in the UK but also among other formerly imperialnations – the potential and variable long-term influence thatthe possession of an empire left on national visions, psyche and practices

Book review: from deliberation to demonstration: politicalrallies in France, 1869-1939 by Paula Cossart

This book considers the transformation of political rallies in France from the last years of the Second Empire until the end of the Third Republic. Originally designed by Republicans as a tool of citizenship learning and formation of political opinion through open debate, rallies gradually became a stage dedicated to the show of force, at the initiative of various emerging political formations. From Deliberation to Demonstration offers a much-needed appraisal of an often forgotten, but crucial aspect of political sociability in France, which anyone with a good background knowledge of nineteenth-century French history will enjoy reading, writes Berny Sèbe

BREXIT and empire: the role of colonial nostalgia in the argument for “Global Britain”

To what extent has the argument for ‘Global Britain’ benefited from elements of colonial nostalgia that may have permeated British collective memory until the present day? In other words, can a genealogy be established between Britannia (Thomas Arne composed Rule Britannia in 1740) and Brexit? Whilst the concept of Empire 2.0 has often been used to engage with the range of reasons put forward by Brexiteers to support the principle of a breakaway from the EU, commentators have often neglected the long-term ramifications of the feelings that may have played a role in the choice of 52% of the British population in the summer of 2016. Yet, a longue durée approach reveals compelling continuities over several centuries. Historiographical developments since the 1980s have pointed towards the persisting influence of the imperial experience on the DNA of British culture and politics. This was reflected in a range of cultural manifestations reaching large constituencies of the population of the British Isles – what John MacKenzie has termed ‘Popular Imperialism’. This paper explores the hypothesis that this deeply rooted attachment to the Empire has been running consistently (although at varying degrees) at least since the eighteenth century, and has found a new lease of life among supporters of the Brexit process, who have celebrated often implicitly the strength of the imperial legacy as a suitable alternative to the EU project. Key words: ‘Global Britain’, colonial nostalgia, Brexit, European Union

Une vie consacrée à la science du Sahara et de son passé

Né en 1916, Henri-Jean Hugot est le dernier représentant de l’élite des savants pluri-disciplinaires du Sahara encore parmi nous. A l’instar des Théodore Monod ou des Henri Lhote, qui nous ont quittés dans les deux dernières décennies, il s’est intéressé au cours de sa longue carrière scientifique à de nombreux aspects du passé des grands espaces sahariens, offrant des perspectives pionnières qui ont permis de notables avancées dans la compréhension des populations préhistoriques du Sahara. ..

Une vie consacrée à la science du Sahara et de son passé

Né en 1916, Henri-Jean Hugot est le dernier représentant de l’élite des savants pluri-disciplinaires du Sahara encore parmi nous. A l’instar des Théodore Monod ou des Henri Lhote, qui nous ont quittés dans les deux dernières décennies, il s’est intéressé au cours de sa longue carrière scientifique à de nombreux aspects du passé des grands espaces sahariens, offrant des perspectives pionnières qui ont permis de notables avancées dans la compréhension des populations préhistoriques du Sahara. ..

Decolonising imperial heroes:Britain and France

The heroes of the British and French empires stood at the vanguard of the vibrant cultures of imperialism that emerged in Europe in the second half of the nineteenth century. Yet imperial heroes did not disappear after 1945 as British and French flags were lowered around the world. On the contrary, their reputations underwent a variety of metamorphoses in both the former metropoles and the former colonies. The introduction to this special issue of the Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History presents an overview of the changing history and historiography of imperial heroes half a century after the end of empire