Empire cover art

Empire

How Britain Made the Modern World

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Empire

By: Niall Ferguson
Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble, Niall Ferguson
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About this listen

Penguin presents the unabridged audiobook edition of Empire by Niall Ferguson, read by Jonathan Keeble.

Once vast swathes of the globe were coloured imperial red, and Britannia ruled not just the waves but the prairies of America, the plains of Asia, the jungles of Africa and the deserts of Arabia. Just how did a small, rainy island in the North Atlantic achieve all this? And why did the empire on which the sun literally never set finally decline and fall?

Niall Ferguson's acclaimed Empire brilliantly unfolds the imperial story in all its splendours and its miseries, showing how a gang of buccaneers and gold diggers planted the seed of the biggest empire in all history - and set the world on the road to modernity.

©2017 Niall Ferguson (P)2017 Penguin Audio Europe Great Britain Modern Politics & Government World Africa Imperialism England Latin American Middle Ages Thought-Provoking United Kingdom Military Capitalism War Self-Determination Social justice British Empire Imperial Japan Taxation Colonial Period Socialism Middle East

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Critic reviews

"The most brilliant British historian of his generation...Ferguson examines the roles of 'pirates, planters, missionaries, mandarins, bankers and bankrupts' in the creation of history's largest empire...he writes with splendid panache...and a seemingly effortless, debonair wit." (Andrew Roberts)
"Dazzling...wonderfully readable." ( New York Review of Books)
"A remarkably readable précis of the whole British imperial story - triumphs, deceits, decencies, kindnesses, cruelties and all." (Jan Morris)
All stars
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An interesting overview of the history of the British empire. I thoroughly enjoyed this and thought it was well read.

Two small criticisms:
1. I did feel the overall structure could have been improved slightly and timelines jumped about a bit though appreciate it's difficult to stick to chronological or geographical structure given the vastness of the topic.
2. There was an undercurrent of the need to justify British Colonialism as being 'not too bad' or 'not as bad as other colonial powers rule'. I don't think this was entirely necessary and slightly undermined the impartiality of the analysis.

Overall I would recommend the book and on the whole it was well balanced and insightful.

Enjoyable

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Very detailed and the book delivers the weight and gravity that the British Empire had on the history of creating the modern world. Also how the British impacted on other empires that rose and fell along side its own. The shear size and organisational complexity in its heyday is breathtaking. The reader's delivery of characters within the storyline is excellent.

An indepth anthology of the British Empire

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A short and sweet moral defence and history of the world's largest empire. Excellent narrator, highly engaging and clear narrative telling stories of the empire we're no longer allowed to hear.

Superb

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This book starts off very slowly and continues like this until it talks about WW2 and then it changes pace. Although it is slow it is very encapsulating and never brushes over anything.

A steady but very dense book

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I really enjoy Jonathan Keeble’s narration. Brings so much to audio books. Another great example. I learned a lot from this book and will hear Amazing Grace with a new perspective going forward.

Excellent

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a concise and not necessarily as expected look at imperial history Ferguson presents an un biased not wholly condemnatory conclusion that surprised me. I suspect not for everyone who has an entirely un nuanced view of empire but an entertaining and interesting overview.

Brilliant

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What did you like most about Empire?

Providing a very balanced and dispassionate view of the British Empire throughout under pined with key economic data to back it up. This data is used to dispel many of the popular and politically correct myths about the the Empire that prevail and raises questions of the modern world order.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Empire?

There are many but one that you keep being reminded of is how the empire that ruled over a quarter of the world was created and maintained for so long on such limited manpower and resources. Something hard to imagine in today's world

Have you listened to any of Jonathan Keeble’s other performances? How does this one compare?

No

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Film would not do this book justice given the breath and depth of the subject matter

Any additional comments?

If you have an interest in history this is a compelling listen. Hard to put down. Despite all the bad press about the British Empire it does make you feel proud of the many achievements of our ancestors while at the same time being ashamed of some of their behavior too.

Enthralling book and has great relevance today

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For many years I had lived in the private shame of my ignorance about the British Empire. This book was my first proper education on one of the most interesting pieces of British/World history and if I were to be told it would be my last education about it I would not be overly dissatisfied- due to having been grounded in Ferguson's focused yet comprehensive account (otherwise known as incredibly well written.) It won't however be my last dabble in this period of history because it has inspired in me the interest to focus more on the themes and aspects raised within.

No boring history lecture, this is a story- an exciting story full from the beginnings to the end, the ups and downs, the good and the bad of the Empire. Ferguson tells this episode in a very interesting manner, frequently utilising: quotes, diary entries, poems, and other key texts from the times in order to entrench the listener in the atmosphere and context of the situation, a fantastic way of storytelling.

Ferguson also confronts all of the big questions that Empire raised: was it a good thing? was it really beneficial to the average Brit? How did it differ in comparison to the other European empires? and of course, How did Britain Make the Modern World?


No empire has spread as wide or has determined as much the shape of the planet we see today. Consequently everyone should read this book, but every Briton must read this book.



The only book about Empire you will ever need

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I probably know the subject too well to be impressed, didn’t really draw any new conclusions but it could be an excellent primer for those looking to understand the world’s imperial past and to some extent present

Not much new

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I found the book very informative, it’s clearly written for fully formed adults who understand he nuanced realities of life. As opposed to the vocal minority who prefer dealing in absolutes, the narration was wonderful as is always the case with Jonathan Keeble.

An excellent account of British imperialism

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