What are the forces which drive empires? Conservative politician and historian Kwasi Kwarteng ranges through world history, from the Mongols to the British, the Nazis to the USA, to argue that narratives of dominance – of moral, religious or racial superiority – have been dramatically under-emphasised. Kwarteng considers the role of commerce, class and military power but identifies over-arching narratives as vital to the success and coherence of imperial projects.

Noting a dramatic shift in the twentieth century, Kwarteng presents us with a challenge: in a world where the idea of empire has been discredited, how do we achieve stability and world order?

By the end of this course, you will have learned:

• The key forces that have historically driven empires.
• How different empires built and sustained dominance.
• The ways in which empires used ideology and narrative to justify expansion and rule.
• How imperial power shifted in the twentieth century and why empire as a concept became discredited.
• The lasting legacies of imperialism in shaping global politics and economics.

IAI Academy courses are designed to be challenging but accessible to the interested student. No specialist knowledge is required.

• Cain, P. J. and Hopkins, A. G., British Imperialism, 1688–2015, (London: Routledge, 2016).
• Darwin, J., After Tamerlane: The Rise and Fall of Global Empires, 1400–2000, (London: Penguin, 2008).
• Ferguson, N., Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World, (London: Penguin, 2004).
• Kwarteng, K., War and Gold: A Five-Hundred-Year History of Empires, Adventures and Debt, (London: Bloomsbury, 2014).
• Lieven, D., Empire: The Russian Empire and Its Rivals, (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001).
• Pagden, A., Lords of All the World: Ideologies of Empire in Spain, Britain and France c.1500–c.1800, (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1995).
• Snyder, T., Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin, (New York: Basic Books, 2010).