The Collapse of the British Empire

Timeline of Decolonization

• Mid-20th century marked the collapse of the British Empire.
• Decolonization largely took place from the end of WWII (1945) to the mid-late 1960s.
  • Political independence of countries in Asia and Africa.
  • South Asia led by India and Africa starting with Ghana in 1957.

Reasons for the Collapse

Internal Factors

• Post-WWII Britain faced material devastation.
• Focus shifted to rebuilding the national economy.
• Imperial trading arrangements became less important.
• Perception of the changing era, leading to voluntary withdrawal from colonies.

External Factors

• Global resistance to Empire, both politically and militarily.
  • Mass movements in India.
  • Insurgencies in Kenya.
• Influence of the Cold War.
  • Western interest in preventing countries from aligning with the Soviet Union.
• Ideological shifts at the United Nations.
  • 1960 UN declaration on decolonization pushing for rapid decolonization.

Contemporary Relevance of Empire

• Persistence of hierarchical structures from the Empire era in global economy and institutions.
• Tension between hierarchical imperial structures and ideals like self-determination and racial equality.

The Debate on Statues

• Statues as everyday symbols celebrating public figures.
• Reappraisal of public values and space.
• Britain's identity as a transnational entity.
• Statues debate relates to belonging, significance, and acceptable violence.
• Historical reappraisal, similar to post-WWII Germany.

Decolonization in Education and Public Space

• Critical awareness of colonialism’s impact on global perceptions.
• Exploring alternative perspectives in articulating meanings.

Rethinking Social Sciences

• Critiquing the traditional hierarchy of "advanced" vs. "backward" countries.
• Challenging the ideas of international and national development.
• Progress through reappraisal of these traditional comparative frameworks.