Breaking open colonization to reveal tangled cultural and economic networks, Webs of Empire offers new paths into colonial history. Linking Gore and Chicago, Maori and Asia, India and newspapers, whalers and writing, Ballantyne presents empire building as a spreading web of connected places, people, ideas, and trade. These links question narrow, national stories, while broadening perspectives on the past and the legacies of colonialism that persist today. Bringing together essays from two decades of prolific publishing on international colonial history, Webs of Empire establishes Tony Ballantyne as one of the leading historians of the British Empire.

Tony Ballantyne's profile page

Tony Ballantyne is a professor of history, head of the Department of History and Art History, and director of the Centre for Research on Colonial Culture at the University of Otago in New Zealand.

Webs of Empire demonstrates Tony Ballantyne’s archival richness and mastery of his profession, provoking new interpretations of history and historians. This is compelling and essential reading.

Lydia Wevers is a professor and director of the Stout Research Centre at the Victoria University of Wellington