http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/keyword/british-imperialism Inquiries Journal provides undergraduate and graduate students around the world a platform for the wide dissemination of academic work over a range of core disciplines. en-us Thu, 23 Apr 2026 03:36:42 -0400 Thu, 23 Apr 2026 03:36:42 -0400 http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1826/resurrecting-the-bog-queen-exploring-the-gender-politics-of-irelands-bogs-in-postcolonial-and-nationalist-literature By Rosie Ryan - Bogs are one of Ireland’s most notable and mysterious landscapes. As explored in the work of Seamus Heaney, the bog’s capacity to preserve memory across generations makes it a melancholic terrain that is uniquely suited to explorations of Ireland’s national identity, particularly as Ireland emerged out of the grip of British colonialism. This paper draws upon postcolonial, feminist, and literary theory to explore why the bog has become such a provocative terrain for the exploration of Irish identity and Irish femininity. Beginning with the writings of colonial administrators,... Mon, 26 Oct 2020 10:41 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1826/resurrecting-the-bog-queen-exploring-the-gender-politics-of-irelands-bogs-in-postcolonial-and-nationalist-literature http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1719/victorian-racism-an-explication-of-scientific-knowledge-its-social-character-and-its-relation-to-victorian-popular-culture By Peter Conlin - The British Empire of the nineteenth century displayed and embodied racism in its composite. In embodying this idea of racial inequality, the Empire created grounds on which it could justify the imperialist actions that it executed throughout the world during this century. Actions such as extending its power, influence, and domination to continents like Africa and Asia and imposing ‘Britishness’[1] in such places.[2] Many scholars in the existing scholarly literature have agreed on the point that racism was used as a tool of justification for imperial actions, such as Andrew Aptner... Wed, 17 Jan 2018 08:31 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1719/victorian-racism-an-explication-of-scientific-knowledge-its-social-character-and-its-relation-to-victorian-popular-culture http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1627/hegemonic-overreach-in-the-british-empire-economic-distress-strategic-imperative-and-the-fall-of-singapore By Peter Bennett-Koufie - Since the end of the Second World War, scholars of British military history have busied themselves with attempts to explain the British defeat at Singapore to Japan in February 1942. Research reveals that there existed what Peden has called an “imbalance between limited military power and extensive commitments” in the interwar era.[1] Put simply, the economic and military resources at Britain’s disposal were incommensurate with the scale of effort required to adequately defend her empire. This raises the question of why such an imbalance existed. One prominent explanation is... Wed, 19 Apr 2017 09:13 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1627/hegemonic-overreach-in-the-british-empire-economic-distress-strategic-imperative-and-the-fall-of-singapore http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1437/how-important-is-the-notion-of-the-civilising-mission-to-our-understanding-of-british-imperialism-before-1939 By Thanapat Pekanan - The ‘civilising mission' is a broad ideology that combines four main ideals; Enlightenment ideals, Christian / Evangelical ideas of pre-destination, racist ideas about white superiority and Liberalism. All these ideals have had a significant role in our understanding of British imperialism before 1939. Due to the limitations of this essay, I will focus on two of the most relevant and important aspects of the ‘civilising mission': racism and Liberalism. This essay proceeds in three parts. The first section demonstrates how important racism was in influencing the understanding of British... Wed, 24 Aug 2016 12:00 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1437/how-important-is-the-notion-of-the-civilising-mission-to-our-understanding-of-british-imperialism-before-1939 http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/817/rudyard-kiplings-literary-and-historical-legacy By Kelley S. Kent - Critical opinion of Rudyard Kipling, his imperialism, and his oeuvre has radically changed in the last century. Depending on the literary history and the time period, Kipling has been seen as either an exclusively South African poet (Warren 415), or “as little of an imperialist as Conrad” (Fowler 337). Always, however, he is a poet, novelist, and short story writer of the British Empire, whether or not critics believe Kipling supports that empire in his oeuvre. One measure of critics’ praise or censure is their critical opinion of Kim (1901). Although few think the novel has... Mon, 25 Nov 2013 08:54 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/817/rudyard-kiplings-literary-and-historical-legacy http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/781/propaganda-public-opinion-and-the-second-south-african-boer-war By Kelley S. Kent - The Second Boer War (1899‑1902) was costly for Great Britain and the semi‑independent South African Republic (Transvaal). It strained political relations between the British and the Boers, who did not gain independence from the United Kingdom until 1961. Political freedom and civil rights for South Africa's native population came later. What was the purpose of fighting this war? Many historians believe the Boer War was "the last of the gentleman's wars" (Krebs 55), a war to preserve the empire, but also, as seen in the mass street celebration of the relief of Mafeking on May 18, 1900... Mon, 28 Oct 2013 09:00 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/781/propaganda-public-opinion-and-the-second-south-african-boer-war