Britain's Sterling Colonial Policy and Decolonization, 1939-1958

(Hardback)

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Description

Arguing that Britain's sterling policy had a significant impact on its colonial economic policy, this book focuses on the connection between Britain's sterling and balance of payments policy, colonial economic policy, and the British government's decision to transfer power to colonial peoples. The volume considers such factors as sterling policy and the state of the British economy, U.S. and Western European pressure for multilateralism in Britain's trade and commercial policy, the movement toward independence in colonial territories, and the cost of financing colonial development and welfare. The book also considers postwar developments in Ghana, Nigeria, and the Malayan Federation--the three greatest dollar-earning colonies--that caused Britain to extricate itself and transfer power to these colonial peoples.

Reviews

[t]he ambitious arguments set out in the book makes an important addition to the existing literature....[s]uceeds in demonstrating the importance of finance in British imperial policy.-Journal of Imperial & Commonwealth History
[A] well-written contribution to the growing literature on the economics of de-colonization.-Economic History Review
"the ambitious arguments set out in the book makes an important addition to the existing literature....suceeds in demonstrating the importance of finance in British imperial policy."-Journal of Imperial & Commonwealth History
"A well-written contribution to the growing literature on the economics of de-colonization."-Economic History Review
"[A] well-written contribution to the growing literature on the economics of de-colonization."-Economic History Review
"[t]he ambitious arguments set out in the book makes an important addition to the existing literature....[s]uceeds in demonstrating the importance of finance in British imperial policy."-Journal of Imperial & Commonwealth History

Author Bio

ALLISTER HINDS is Lecturer in the Department of History at the University of the West Indies--Mona Campus.