The Penguin Historical Atlas of the British Empire

The British Empire and its peoples have an incredible history and strong legacy. During the "Heyday of Empire", from about 1815 to 1901 (p. 64-65) the territory reached all major economic regions and a substantial percent of the world's population. The British first, and then in cooperation with the French, opened up trade routes and maintained the freedom of the seas. It is said the British replaced many Dutch imperial settlements, who had earlier taken over areas from the Spanish. Today, it often seems the Americans have chosen to trade in and protect areas that were once British territory.Several of the topics of interest in the book are: the interplay between trends and individual achievement; the benefits of pioneering and innovating (ex. Age of Exploration leaders, settlements (p. 24-31); and the social costs of military service; the costs and benefits of commodity trade and industrialization; the role of the telegraph in the first wave of globalization around 1870-1914, (p. 88-89).Today it is encouraging to know that, among the high achievers of this world, British Commonwealth nations are well represented. India, also, is a world power partly because the British legacy, English language, modern railroads and telegraphs, and access to international trade.This book has fantastic maps, illustrations, and summaries. Many of the British trading posts and territories were intermingled with native as well as European ports (p. 36-37, p. 70-71). Great for quick reference while watching documentary films, TV, or just lounging around in the afternoon or evening.

A brief but thorough over view of a tricky topic. Very much a crucial part of learning history, at times hard to wrap ones head around but yet important

good condition

This short atlas makes an excellent reading on travel for example. All the essentials are there, plus a very interesting analysis on the British Empire's submarine cables since 1860's. Combined with the seven fleets located in different corners of the Empire this creates a fascinating parallel to today's USA.

This review can be applied as well to all the atlases in this series.The title is spot on. Anything you might need to satisfy a lingering curiousity about the Romans, the Celts, the Anglo Saxons and various other peoples arriving or departing from Britain while roaming the world get a highly condensed introduction. All subjects "animal, mineral, and vegetable", to quote Messrs. Gilbert and Sullivan, can be found herein, plus economical, sociological, and anthropological.How the inhabitats of the British Isles, a thinly populated group on the edge of the world and how they ended up controlling over half the world is here with more detail on the era since the Renaissance, the period of the the Empire's beginnings. The Dominions and Australia are covered also.The book is typical of the publisher, well thought, well designed and clear. Each major topic is covered by at least two pages arranged side by side. Each chapter consists of text and one or more cartographic gems commpiled at a scale which facilitates the reader's comprehension of the narrative.This volume is part of a series of similarly designd volumes, covering matters which are best understood in geospatial terms.As a professional cartographer and geographer I thoroughly appreciate the thought of which this is the result.My only quibble is the size of the books in this series. It would be much more useful in the magazine size rather than the trade paperback size it is in. The recommended size is still holdable when seated in your arm chair, and you would not need a stand or table as for full size atlases.. Unfortunately most historical books lack adequate maps or any at all. I once read one in whiich the major city that was at the center of the narrative was missing from the sorry sketch that was passed off as a map!A great virtue is its usefulness as a companion to more detailed works on the multitude of subjects merely touched on here.

The maps are very helpful. The writing is the just the self-loathing that the British Ministry of Truth seems to require about the Bad Old Empire: full of distortion and omission. Buy it for the maps; ignore the rest.

I'm a big map junkie so I really enjoyed peering through this book. There's plenty of background information on the various stages of the British Empire, but if you're familiar with this history already, then you can live without reading most of the text and just focus on the maps. Much of the text has no relation to the maps, which is confusing as it doesn't give the maps proper context. Some of the maps are a little confusing to work out the keys, but as I said it was an enjoyable afternoon sitting down to read this book. Excellent addition to my British Empire reference library. I particularly enjoyed the sections on British expansion in America and Australia.

It's a textbook...

Diagrams and maps etc very well produced.Text precise but comprehensive

Très bon ouvrage, synthètique mais très complet. Tout est regroupé par thèmes et selon un ordre chronologique. C'est un très bon ouvrage pour une introduction ou des piqûres de rappel (car parfois peu précis sur la timeline historique).

Ce livre est très bien fait, cartes et commentaires historiques synthétiques permettant de se faire rapidement une vision globale de la colonisation et de la décolonisation sous tutelle britannique avec une liste conséquente de lectures complémentaires pour ceux qui souhaiteraient approfondir la question. Un bon livre de référence.

This book is a fantastic, a concise historical reference of the whole span of the British Empire from 1100 up to today. The maps are of course the main thing in a historical atlas and these don't disappoint. They are very detailed and clear and there are lots of them. The book breaks down into 2-3 page sections e.g. "Conflict in Canada", "Peopling the Empire", with a map or two and substantial supporting text. Freshingly for books on the empire it sticks to the facts and doesn't overly indulge political or moral anaylsis that can often overshadow the events in books on this subject.At 144 pages long it's fairly short, but as an overview I'd find it hard to beat.

Perfect for those wishing a good overview on British imperial history.