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Decolonisation and The Erosion of the Imperial Idea

Svensson, Ted LU (2021) p.368-378
Abstract
The chapter maintains that 20th-century decolonisation, unlike previous historical episodes wherein particular empires were resisted and declined, represented a critical juncture at which the very idea of empire was substantively challenged and radically rejected. It led to the establishment of a large number of postcolonial states and signified a decisive reshaping of the international system—both in terms of its actual composition and the norms that came to guide recognition, membership, and ideas of sovereign equality. The chapter, moreover, stresses that the change to international order, which decolonisation after the Second World War propelled and embodied, should not primarily be seen as the outcome of an ostensibly global and... (More)
The chapter maintains that 20th-century decolonisation, unlike previous historical episodes wherein particular empires were resisted and declined, represented a critical juncture at which the very idea of empire was substantively challenged and radically rejected. It led to the establishment of a large number of postcolonial states and signified a decisive reshaping of the international system—both in terms of its actual composition and the norms that came to guide recognition, membership, and ideas of sovereign equality. The chapter, moreover, stresses that the change to international order, which decolonisation after the Second World War propelled and embodied, should not primarily be seen as the outcome of an ostensibly global and totalising diffusion of European ideas, institutions, and practices. Instead, a general account of decolonisation has to acknowledge the key role of anti-imperial agency, which manifested itself in many localised guises, and the still incomplete and ongoing endeavour to bring about decolonisation in a more comprehensive sense. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
organization
publishing date
type
Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
publication status
published
subject
keywords
decolonisation, International Relations, empire, self-determination, statehood
host publication
Routledge Handbook of Historical International Relations
editor
de Carvalho, Benjamin ; Costa Lopez, Julia and Leira, Halvard
pages
11 pages
publisher
Routledge
external identifiers
  • scopus:85114922733
ISBN
9781351168960
9781351168960
DOI
10.4324/9781351168960
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
0ec0f9a5-1471-4f83-92c8-26d587528364
date added to LUP
2021-06-23 09:15:06
date last changed
2022-04-27 02:31:05
@inbook{0ec0f9a5-1471-4f83-92c8-26d587528364,
  abstract     = {{The chapter maintains that 20th-century decolonisation, unlike previous historical episodes wherein particular empires were resisted and declined, represented a critical juncture at which the very idea of empire was substantively challenged and radically rejected. It led to the establishment of a large number of postcolonial states and signified a decisive reshaping of the international system—both in terms of its actual composition and the norms that came to guide recognition, membership, and ideas of sovereign equality. The chapter, moreover, stresses that the change to international order, which decolonisation after the Second World War propelled and embodied, should not primarily be seen as the outcome of an ostensibly global and totalising diffusion of European ideas, institutions, and practices. Instead, a general account of decolonisation has to acknowledge the key role of anti-imperial agency, which manifested itself in many localised guises, and the still incomplete and ongoing endeavour to bring about decolonisation in a more comprehensive sense.}},
  author       = {{Svensson, Ted}},
  booktitle    = {{Routledge Handbook of Historical International Relations}},
  editor       = {{de Carvalho, Benjamin and Costa Lopez, Julia and Leira, Halvard}},
  isbn         = {{9781351168960}},
  keywords     = {{decolonisation; International Relations; empire; self-determination; statehood}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{368--378}},
  publisher    = {{Routledge}},
  title        = {{Decolonisation and The Erosion of the Imperial Idea}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781351168960}},
  doi          = {{10.4324/9781351168960}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}