The volume focuses on colonialism’s dynamism, adaptability, and resilience, appraising a number of successive global colonial ‘waves' that affected different locales at different periods, each characterised by a particular method of exploiting colonised populations and territories. Outlining a succession of distinct colonising conjunctures, and the ways in which they ‘washed over’ what is today understood as the ‘Global South', shaping and reshaping institutions and prompting diverse responses from colonised communities, the book outlines the contemporary relevance of this unequal relation. With expanded coverage of post-WWII colonialism and factors driving decolonisation, new discussions of racial thought, nationalism, gender dynamics, and human rights, this new edition incorporates deeper perspectives from colonised peoples, providing a 'from the ground up' view of colonial experiences.
Now with an enhanced structure and chapter summaries, this book is an ideal resource for all students and scholars interested in globalisation, colonialism, and empire.
Professor Lorenzo Veracini teaches history and politics at the Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne (Australia). His research focuses on the comparative history of colonial systems. His recent books include Settler Colonialism: A Theoretical Overview (2010 and 2024), Colonialism: A Global History, (Routledge 2022), and The World Turned Inside Out (2021).