Imperial Cities: Landscape, Display and Identity (Studies in Imperialism) [Hardcover]

Felix Driver (Editor), David Gilbert (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0719054133 | ISBN-13: 978-0719054136 | Publication Date: September 1999

This work explores the influence of imperialism in the landscapes of modern European cities. Many still display unmistakable signs of their imperial past, not only in their architecture and momuments, but also in the ways in which their identities are constructed by their inhabitants and by international tourists. The 15 essays in this book explore the influence of imperialism in a range of urban centres, including London, Paris, Rome, Vienna, Marseille, Glasgow and Seville. The first part on "imperial landscapes" is devoted to large-scale architectural schemes and monuments, including the Queen Victoria Memorial in London, and the Vittoriano in Rome. In the second part, the focus is on imperial displays throughout the city, from spectacular exhibitions and ceremonies, to more private displays of empire in suburban gardens. The final part considers the changing cultural and political identities in the imperial city, looking particularly at nationalism, masculinity and anti-imperialism.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This volume will certainly be original, scholarly and important. It is genuinely multi-disciplinary effort and . . . considers a very wide range of very important themes across the arts, humanities and social sciences."--Mike Hefferman, Loughborough University.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Felix Driver is Reader in Geography, and David Gilbert is Senior Lecturer in Geography at Royal Holloway, University of London.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Manchester University Press (September 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0719054133
• ISBN-13: 978-0719054136
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,674,389 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hidden messages from Imperial cities, December 6, 2001

By 

Eric Vertommen (Brussels Belgium) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Imperial Cities: Landscape, Display and Identity (Studies in Imperialism) (Hardcover)

Imperial cities offer an unexpected view of the late 19th, early 20th century imperial cities. The book is divided in 3 parts, Imperial Landscapes, Imperial Display and Imperial Identities and gives us several examples in each category.

In Imperial landscapes we see London, Rome, Paris, Vienna. London is a world trade hub with a hodgepodge urbanism upgrading its landscape to match its global position after cities like Paris, Brussels and Vienna created their own landscapes to match their global status. Rome, the recent capital of Italy wants to become a national symbol and erase centuries of papal power. Paris is consciously targeting rich travellers, intellectuals, artists to become the world capital of pleasure and attract who's who in the World by her beauty. Vienna is trying to combine tradition of her centuries old empire, cultures of her multinational empire and prove the world she is also capital of an industrial power but does not quiet succeed. And a last chapter dedicated to the Bank of England remodelling between 1919-1939 shows the evolution from Imperial to Late Imperial England and its impact on the building concept.

In Imperial Display we see the the Pageant of London in 1911, the colonial exposition of Marseilles, `capital of the French colonies' in 1920, the Iberoamerican Fair of Sevilla in 1929, the colonial displays at Sydenham Crystal Park and the tropical plants in English gardens to analyse the imperial discourse and how Imperial cities see their world.

In Imperial Identities, authors show us Glasgow, imperial municipality and the importance of the Empire for the city, the way empires do impact on man clothing and identities between 1860-1914 and reactions to Empire, the Pan-African Conference of London in 1900. And for a final conclusion, how this imperial age still remains visible/invisible in our societies and prepared us to the multinational and global culture of today.

The book is really worth reading because it explains the whole thinking process beyond those landscapes, tourists guides, displays and attitudes which modelled the cities and the people living in them. Once read you will understand London, Rome, Paris, Vienna, Brussels, Marseilles, Glasgow, Sevilla and other imperial cities and never look at them the same way because of the decoded message it suddenly offers. An excellent complement to `Ornementalism' from David Cannadine.