Safeguarding the Empire. Book Review of ‘Policing Empire: Colonial Control and the British Military Thought during the Interbellum’ by S.G. Malkin

In recent years, Russian historiography on the colonial policies of the great powers during the interwar period has actively studied the strategy of the British Empire to preserve and strengthen control over dependent territories. The new monograph by S.G. Malkin, ‘Policing the Empire: Colonial control and the Britishmilitary thought during the Interbellum’, serves as a good example of this trend. The book provides a detailed analysis of the concepts for adapting the British colonial system to post-war realities. At the same time, the author notes that despite drawing on extensive literature and a broad source base, the monograph is rather a series of essays that do not claim to provide a comprehensive coverage of the subject. Nevertheless, the reviewer argues that the author managed not only to challenge the thesis, common to both the Russian and foreign historiography, about the effectiveness of the United Kingdom’s imperial policy after World War I, but also to formulate non-trivial thought-provoking conclusions on the theoretical and practical aspects of British colonial governance. Thus, reflecting on the military-theoretical foundations of British colonial policy in the interwar period, the author counterintuitively concludes that at the time the United Kingdom’s grand strategy was influenced by the ideas of C. von Clausewitz, despite the skeptical attitude of British politicians towards the latter. From a practical perspective, the author draws attention to the fact that Great Britain actively implemented counterinsurgency tactics and techniques in the fight against national liberation movements to preserve the imperial colonial system. The reviewer argues that the discourse analysis of doctrines and concepts aimed at consolidating the British colonial empire, carried out in the monograph, makes a significant contribution to Russian historiography on the issue and may be of interest to a wide range of readers, including academic researchers.