Sean Gabb: In Defence of the Empire

Sean Gabb

Once the largest Empire the world has ever seen, the contentious legacy of the British Empire has been traditionally seen as a negative influence on the world. Some aspects however have caused historians to emphasise its legacy in a more positive light, pointing towards the dissemination of democracy, common law and education, including the spread of the English language. Critics of the legacy of the British Empire argue that the humanitarian atrocities, interference with territorial sovereignty, and the thin veneer of assistance acted only as a guise for a brutal form of capitalism and control.

There is no argument that the British Empire has had a lasting geo-political influence on the development of the globe, so this week the Manchester Debating Union ask: should we regret the legacy of the British Empire?

Speakers include:

-Proposition-

– Professor Jon Wilson
Senior Lecturer in British Imperial and South Asian History at Kings College London
http://www.kcl.ac.uk/artshums/depts/history/people/staff/Academic/wilsonj/index.aspx

-Opposition-

– Dr Sean Gabb
Director of the Libertarian Alliance, PhD in Political and Intellectual History from the University of Middlesex.
http://www.seangabb.co.uk/

– Cllr Oliver Johnstone
Conservative Councillor for Hazel Grove