Legacy of Violence

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, a searing, landmark study of the British Empire that lays bare its pervasive use of violence throughout the twentieth century.

A NEW YORK TIMES, NEW STATESMAN, HISTORY TODAY AND BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE BOOK OF THE YEAR

Masterly... This book is dynamite - ROBERT GILDEA, author of Empires of the Mind

Winner of the NYU/Axinn Foundation Prize 2024
Shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize

A searing, landmark study of the British Empire that lays bare its pervasive use of violence throughout the twentieth century.

Drawing on more than a decade of research on four continents, Caroline Elkins reveals the dark heart of Britain's Empire—a racialised, systemised doctrine of unrelenting violence, which it used to secure and maintain its interests across the globe.

When Britain could no longer maintain control over that violence, it simply retreated—and sought to destroy the evidence. Legacy of Violence is a monumental achievement that explodes long-held myths and deserves the attention of anyone who seeks to understand empire's role in shaping the world today.

Not so much a history book as a book of historical significance - BBC History Magazine

Riveting - New Statesman

Crucial... as unflinching as it is gripping, as carefully researched as it is urgently necessary - Jill Lepore, author of These Truths