Oxford professor claims ‘Brits feel guilt about the Empire’ because they ‘know nothing about it’
by tylerthe-theatre
Oxford professor claims ‘Brits feel guilt about the Empire’ because they ‘know nothing about it’
by tylerthe-theatre
36 comments
That makes loads of sense Not.
I think he will find that most folks, know most the crimes this country did in the past.
The average Brit should feel no guilt for the atrocities of the empire, nor should they feel any pride in any good it done.
More like just a general misunderstanding of history
All of history has been pretty terrible. England just happened to hit their stride at a time where technology allowed us to dominate. If any other country hit that stride at the right time they’d have done the same thing. Remember when England wasn’t hitting its stride and the Vikings and the romans each separately fucked us up?
It’s not a British colonialism thing, it’s a human thing. The Khans did the same thing on horse back hundreds of years prior. Now imagine if they discovered gunsmithing and a navy on par with ours at the time. The entire world would be Mongolian
What a ridiculous statement, everybody in Britain has taken history courses
If you say “the Empire” to people, I wonder whether more people’s first though is Star Wars compared to the British Empire..
Most people really don’t care.
The Oxford professor who is a theologian, not a historian, and had no background in the field before beginning this project, whose work has been harshly criticised by people that actually specialise on the British Empire? That Oxford professor?
I feel no guilt about things which took place before I was born. But I feel a lot of anger towards the people who fetishise that time.
Why feel guilty for something you had no control over? It’s something I don’t get. I have no shame or guilt about what our country did in the past because that is the past and me and my peasant family would have no power anyways. Most important thing is the future and making sure the mistakes of the past aren’t repeated.
Why should I feel guilt about something I had no influence in, let alone it being before I was born.
Probably worth mentioning that this ‘History’ festival is more of a festival of the British Empire. It was sponsored by the Daily Mail for the first decade of it’s existence.
Why would I feel guilty about something I had nothing to do with?
Of course he’s a theological professor and priest and not a historian. A lot easier to downplay the empire when you view it from the lense of civilized good Christians bringing order to savage heathans.
postimperial melancholia. Paul Gilroy has an excellent book on this.
I feel no personal guilt nor pride over the actions of the empire. Our ancestors committed shameful and disgraceful atrocities and we should of course make sure we remember what happened as we should with all history. But nobody is responsible for the crimes of their ancestors. My father in law is German and members of my family were murdered in the holocaust. No of us hold him responsible for the crimes of his country and people before he was born.
Sorry no.
How on earth can I feel guilty for something I haven’t personally done. There is nobody left alive that remembers any of this stuff anyway so who cares.
My ancestors had nothing to do with the British Empire. In fact you could argue there were victims of it. However, I would never say that British people don’t have a right to honour and celebrate their heritage in their own country. That’s disgusting. British people, you have nothing to be ashamed of or guilty for. Your European heritage is rich and storied and deserves to celebrated just like every other. Don’t lose sight of who you are.
Why would I feel guilty? My ancestors are a long line of miners, pit workers and manual labourers who had nothing to do with it. This is probably the case for a high percentage of Brits. Regardless, we can’t exactly go back in time and change what the elite did to those countries? Saying this, it would be wrong to celebrate what the empire did, but tbh I’ve never met anyone who would.
Didn’t do it. Don’t agree with it. Don’t feel bad about it.
The thing with the British Empire is that, as per normal, there was a small majority of elites pludering and hoarding wealth, whilst a large portion of the British people still lived in poverty, with awful things happening to them too, like workhouses, debtors prison and child labour.
People shouldn’t feel guilty about stuff that they had no part in, and most people don’t. It doesn’t mean we should be proud of it either.
I know nothing about it; I’m a Brit and I don’t feel guilt about it.
If this is the standard of work you need to become an Oxford professor then, am hoping Cambridge blitz them in their gimpee boat race.
Correct. There’s so much misinformation it’s staggering the fact checkers stay silent, possibly in order to push a false narrative. For example the belief that Europe forced Christianity on Africa is incorrect. Christianity existed in Africa before Europe, so that one is easily debunked.
>professor of moral and pastoral theology
I feel no guilt about the empire. I only feel regret that my tax pays for such a useless professor.
He is correct, most people don’t know anything about history!
The more I learn about it, the more shame I feel.
Did you know we used concentration camps and slave labour in Kenya as late as **1960?**
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_British_concentration_camps_during_the_Mau_Mau_Uprising
Did the British Empire stood out at any point as “worse” than its contemporaries? I would argue that the opposite is true. Judging the past by current standards is always going to cause misunderstandings.
If they learn about the empire, they would feel horrified.
All you need to know about the British Empire is a line from Blackadder “If you saw someone in a skirt, you shot him and nicked his country”
‘The **Daily Mail sponsored festival** featured more than 200 talks on various historical topics across five different venues.
As part of his talk, Professor Biggar also suggested a **Labour government would start paying financial compensation to former colonies**.
“If and when we have a Labour government at the end of the next year, we can expect the issue of Britain paying **reparations for slavery to rise up the agenda**,” he said.’
So basically this guy was paid by the Daily Mail to push their white people are victims agenda with a little bit of Labour bashing on the side. BTW hes a theologian not a historian. And I doubt many Brits feel any sort of guilt about the Empire at all, you don’t have to feel guilty about something to criticise it.
This is an excellent post to explain the delusion at the heart of British self understanding. “The very many achievements” of the empire are simply rose tinted glasses looking at the brutal exploitation which it was. “Railways” is only the cry of fools.
If you weren’t there participating, don’t feel guilty about it. Same as you wouldn’t feel guilty because your great grandad murdered somone. I agree though that it is always a good thing to know more about history, rather than just saying things to play to the gallery.
Pretty much true. And the Empire was not popular with vast swathes of Brits at the time it existed. There was always a debate about the merits of it.
We All wade, waist deep in the blood, sweat and tears of our ancestors
Human history is filled with violence and exploitation, there’s not a culture in the world that should be made to felt more guilty than an another.
What we should feel guilt about is when there are still atrocities in this world.
I’ll re-write. Brit’s don’t feel guilty …..there ya go
Yes, our imperial history is getting quite a bashing, usual origin, the instantly hugely offended fragile constitution brigade. Who, due to intellectual inhibition, have an uncompromising fixed bias, offloading accusations, intended to create guilt by association. This done to garner sympathy for their, however moronic unchallengeable righteous standpoint.
Sad really as if true British History was taught in schools, where learning about the cultural, technological, social advances made by our ancestors. There are fascinating British people, whose accomplishments, positively shaped our culture who simply are being lost when they should be celebrated.