TheBritain’sempirewasfarmorecomplexthanitscriticsappreciateJOHNDARWINhasspenthiswholecareerthinkingaboutPaxBritannica.Threeyearsafterhismagisterialstudy,“TheEmpireProject:TheRiseandFalloftheBritishWorld-System,1830-1970”,theOxfordhistorianhasreturnedyetagaintothesubject.Thistime,though,hisfocusisdifferentandtheperiodhecoversislonger.HisnewbookisnotastraightforwardnarrativeoftheBritishempire’sriseandfall.Rather,itisabrilliantlyperceptiveanalysisoftheforcesandideasthatdrovethecreationofanextraordinaryenterprise.AtitszeniththeBritishempirewasalmostimpossiblygrandinconceptionandyetwasfrequentlyso“improvisedandprovisionalincharacter”astoappearalmostramshackle.Infact,arguesMrDarwin,therewas,atleastforitsfirst100yearsorso,nosinglevisionofempire,butseveral.ThesereflectedtheunusuallypluralisticandintellectuallyopensocietythatBritainhadbecomeduringthe“long”18thcentury(from1688to1815).Itwas,aboveall,atthisstageanempiredrivenlessbythestatethanbythepersonalambitionsofpeoplewithvastlydifferentbackgroundsandagendas:fromfortune-seekinggentrytomerchantslookingfornewmarkets,impoverishedeconomicmigrantsandevangelicalmissionaries.Overtimethestatebegan,oftenreluctantly,totakeonmoreoftheprotectionandultimatelytherunningoftheseinchoateventuresoverseas.Beforethat,thecolonisingofAmericaandthegradualtakeoverofIndiabytheEastIndiaCompanywerechieflycommercialprojectsthatweredependentonprivatecapitalandprivaterisk.AndtheAmericansettleruprisingthatbeganin1775wasessentiallyareflectionofthetensionsbetweenthisprivate-enterprisenotionofempireandthegrowingfinancialburdenofsecuringitbothfromrivalEuropeancolonialpowersandfromdisplacedindigenouspeoples.Iftherewasnosinglevisionofempire,neitherwastheprojectevermonolithicinpractice.Betweenthelate18thandtheearly19thcenturiesfourverydifferenttypesofBritishempirehadbeguntoemerge.Thefirstweretheself-governingcoloniesinNorthAmerica,theCaribbeanandAustralasia;second,IndiaandtheopportunityitprovidedforBritaintoprojectpowerfromthePersianGulftotheSouthChinaSea;a