Discussion of Britain's imperial past is increasingly bifurcated along populist 'good' and 'bad' narratives. An account of the UK's colonial legacy through the prism of urban history allows for a more nuanced and reflexive critique of Empire. The rise and fall of the British Empire will be discussed through the history of ten cities, exploring how their architectural, planning, and commercial history elucidates their place within the imperial story.

The Royal Historical Society / Gresham College Annual Colin Matthew Memorial Lecture

The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: http://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/ten-cities-that-built-an-empire-understanding-british-imperialism-through-the-urban-past

Gresham College has been giving free public lectures since 1597. This tradition continues today with all of our five or so public lectures a week being made available for free download from our website. There are currently over 1,900 lectures free to access or download from the website.

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