| Description |
1 online resource. |
| Physical Medium |
polychrome |
| Description |
text file |
| Series |
Harvard historical studies ; volume 189
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Harvard historical studies ; v. 189.
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| Summary |
"Rule Britannia! Britannia rule the waves" goes the popular lyric. The fact that the British built the world's greatest empire on the basis of sea power has led many to assume that the Royal Navy's place in British life was unchallenged. Yet, as Sarah Kinkel shows, the Navy was the subject of bitter political debate. The rise of British naval power was neither inevitable nor unquestioned: it was the outcome of fierce battles over the shape of Britain's empire and the bonds of political authority. Disciplining the Empire explains why the Navy became divisive within Anglo-imperial society even though it was also successful in war. The eighteenth century witnessed the global expansion of British imperial rule, the emergence of new forms of political radicalism, and the fracturing of the British Atlantic in a civil war. The Navy was at the center of these developments. Advocates of a more strictly governed, centralized empire deliberately reshaped the Navy into a disciplined and hierarchical force which they hoped would win battles but also help control imperial populations. When these newly professionalized sea officers were sent to the front lines of trade policing in North America during the 1760s, opponents saw it as an extension of executive power and military authority over civilians--and thus proof of constitutional corruption at home. The Navy was one among many battlefields where eighteenth-century British subjects struggled to reconcile their debates over liberty and anarchy, and determine whether the empire would be ruled from Parliament down or the people up.-- Provided by publisher. |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Contents |
Seventeenth-century foundations -- Walpolean imperial and naval policy -- Disorder, discipline, and the politics of naval reform -- The Seven Years War and the patriot alternative to professionalization -- The authoritarian navy and the crisis of empire -- Conclusion: The American Revolutionary War. |
| Local Note |
eBooks on EBSCOhost EBSCO eBook Subscription Academic Collection - North America |
| Subject |
Great Britain. Royal Navy -- History -- 17th century.
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Great Britain. Royal Navy. |
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History. |
| Chronological Term |
17th century |
| Subject |
Great Britain. Royal Navy -- History -- 18th century.
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| Chronological Term |
18th century |
| Subject |
Great Britain -- History, Naval -- 17th century.
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Great Britain. |
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Naval history. |
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Great Britain -- History, Naval -- 18th century.
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Great Britain -- Politics and government -- 1603-1714.
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Politics and government. |
| Chronological Term |
1603-1714 |
| Subject |
Great Britain -- Politics and government -- 18th century.
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Civil-military relations -- Great Britain -- History -- 17th century.
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Civil-military relations. |
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Civil-military relations -- Great Britain -- History -- 18th century.
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Great Britain -- Colonies -- America -- Administration.
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Colonies. |
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America. |
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Administration. |
| Chronological Term |
1600-1799 |
| Genre/Form |
Electronic books.
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Electronic books.
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History.
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Naval history.
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| ISBN |
9780674985339 (electronic book) |
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0674985338 (electronic book) |
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9780674976207 |
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0674976207 |
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