This volume adopts a distinctive thematic approach to the history of British imperialism from the eighteenth to the twentieth century, bringing together leading scholars representing an unusually wide range of historical approaches to the British Empire. The contributors tackle the core issues surrounding the British Empire, including the economics and empire, the empire and religion, and imperial identities. The essays trace the trajectory of their subject and explore how current understandings of issues have developed, examining key debates among historians. Moreover each contributor offers a personal assessment of the topic at hand. The British Empire is essential reading for all students and scholars of imperial and colonial history. Contributors: Tony Ballantyne, John Darwin, Andrew Dilley, Elizabeth Elbourne, Kent Fedorowich, Eliga Gould, Catherine Hall, Stephen Howe, Sarah Stockwell, Andrew Thompson, Stuart Ward, and Jon Wilson.