Imperialism and Colonialism

This work provides readers with a number of articles and essays on the general subject of European expansion. Part I discusses colonialism and contains two studies on colonial wars, an essay on the now hotly debated subject of the relationship between science and imperialism, and a study on the role the Netherlands played as a colonial model for such European powers as Britain, Germany, Belgium, and France. Part II contains an historical article about the debate on French imperialism, an essay on whether or not the Netherlands fits in with the general theory of imperialism, and two case studies on Africa. Part III discusses decolonization and its impact on the writing of European overseas history. Essays in this part include topics such as the first model to explain why decolonization took so many different forms, the consequences of the loss of empire for the Netherlands, and two essays which present an overview of the new trends in the writing of European overseas history after decolonization.

?This book is a collection of some of Wesseling's more important articles, revealing a great versatility, broad interests, and the application of a strong conceputal understanding of the forces leading to European expansion and the study of it.?-The International History Review, ?Wesseling's ideas are always interesting, and he presents them with both clarity and verve.?-Journal of African History, ?Wesseling's observations are thought provoking....the ideas that Wesseling presents...provide useful, broad analyses for students of late nineteenth- and twentieth-century imperialism. This book should be a welcome addition to the library of any scholar of European expansion.?-The Historian, "This book is a collection of some of Wesseling's more important articles, revealing a great versatility, broad interests, and the application of a strong conceputal understanding of the forces leading to European expansion and the study of it."-The International History Review, "Wesseling's ideas are always interesting, and he presents them with both clarity and verve."-Journal of African History

H. L. WESSELING is Professor of General History at the University of Leiden and Rector of the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study at Wassenaar. Previously he was the Director of the Centre for the History of European Expansion at Leiden (1975-1995). Dr. Wesseling is the author of Divide and Rule: The Partition of Africa, 1880-1914 (Praeger, 1996), which has been translated into three languages.