Tagged content

Empire beyond the Imperial Domain: British Colonial Encounters in Cuba

Dr Jorge L. Giovannetti held a British Academy Visiting Fellowship at the Caribbean Studies Centre, London Metropolitan University in 2006, and has subsequently completed a history of British Caribbean migrants in Cuba. Here he discusses an archive of correspondence that reveals British Imperial attitudes to race.

Latin America, the Caribbean, and the British Academy

Professor Linda Newson FBA, Chairman of the British Academy’s Area Panel for Latin America and the Caribbean, describes how the Academy supports research on – and with – this dynamic part of the world.

In brief (BAR 13)

Short notices about 2009 British Academy events on: Language matters; Rescuing the housing market; Civil war and foreign intervention in Spain.

Democracy in Palestine and the Middle East Peace Process

As part of a wider British Academy-funded project on democracy in the Arab-Mediterranean world, Dr Michelle Pace conducted a number of interviews in Palestine, including with representatives of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas). Here Dr Pace provides an account of those interviews, and goes on to discuss ways in …

The Voluntary Sector in British Society

On 20 March 2009, the British Academy held a workshop to consider continuity and change in the socio-political roles of voluntarism and voluntary associations in British society. The convenor of the event, Professor Pat Thane FBA, charts the history of the voluntary sector from Victorian times to the present day.

The 'Winter of Discontent' in British Politics

The industrial strife that beset the Callaghan government in the winter of 1978–79, the ‘winter of discontent’, was seen at the time as a key factor in Labour’s defeat in the 1979 general election. On 22 January 2009 – the 30th anniversary of that winter’s first public sector ‘day of …

Celebrating excellence (BAR 14)

In September and October 2009, the British Academy held ceremonies to honour individual scholars for the excellence of their work in the humanities and social sciences.

Ancient Ethiopian Churches in Historical Perspective

Professor David W. Phillipson FBA has published a comprehensive account of Ethiopian Christian civilisation and its churches between the 4th and the 14th centuries, offering a fresh view of the processes that gave rise to this unique African culture. He describes the different styles and affinities of these striking religious …

The Marriage of Philology and Informatics

As part of the British Academy Literature Week in October 2009, Sir Brian Vickers FBA discussed ‘The Authors of King Edward III’, in conversation with Professor Laurie Macguire. Here he describes how information technology can be harnessed to the literary study of authorship attribution.

'The natives ... enquired what the Spaniards wanted. [They] answered "Food".'

The British Academy and the Mexican Embassy collaborated to organise a public study day at the British Museum on ‘Moctezuma’s Feast’, linked to the Museum’s ‘Moctezuma: Aztec Ruler’ exhibition. The event, which took place on 21 November 2009, offered lively presentations on topics ranging from the mystical powers attributed to …

Family Policies and Social Science

On 23 February 2010, the British Academy Policy Centre launched its first report, ‘Social Science and Family Policies’. At the launch, there was a lively debate, chaired by Polly Toynbee of the ‘Guardian’, on the respective roles of politicians and social scientists. Dr Simon Griffiths and Lili Hoag offer a …

How to Choose an Electoral System

The British Academy Policy Centre report on choosing an electoral system for the UK was launched on 10 March 2010. Its authors, Professor Simon Hix, Professor Ron Johnston FBA and Professor Iain McLean FBA, explain why it has turned out to be even more topical than it was when the …

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