Imperial Incarceration by Michael Lobban

Imperial Incarceration by Michael Lobban

For nineteenth-century Britons, the rule of law stood at the heart of their constitutional culture, and guaranteed the right not to be imprisoned without trial. At the same time, in an expanding empire, the authorities made frequent resort to detention without trial to remove political leaders who stood in the way of imperial expansion. Such conduct raised difficult questions about Britain's commitment to the rule of law. Was it satisfied if the sovereign validated acts of naked power by legislative forms, or could imperial subjects claim the protection of Magna Carta and the common law tradition? In this pathbreaking book, Michael Lobban explores how these matters were debated from the liberal Cape, to the jurisdictional borderlands of West Africa, to the occupied territory of Egypt, and shows how and when the demands of power undermined the rule of law. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

'Michael Lobban has produced an extraordinary work of forensic history-reconstructing a wide range of legal practices spanning the breadth of English dominion throughout Africa over two centuriesHis book stands as a 'truth commission' for past wrongs and an essential precursor to any possible reconciliation.' Richard Abel, author of Law's Wars and Law's Trials
'Original and meticulously researched, Lobban's book places the legal politics of detention at the heart of histories of rebellion, protectorates, and martial law. A valuable addition to the legal history of Africa and the British Empire.' Lauren Benton, Barton M. Biggs Professor of History and Professor of Law, Yale University
'Michael Lobban is the leading historian of English legal thought. Here he brings his formidable talents to bear on law's role in facilitating and regulating detention without trial in Britain's African colonies. This is at once an important contribution to history, to legal theory, and to our understanding of empire.' David Dyzenhaus, University Professor of Law and Philosophy, Toronto
'The author of this book deserves credit for producing a work of such ambition and scope.' Thomas Mohr, Irish Jurist
'Recommended.' M. M. Heaton, Choice
'Lobban concludes his readable and comprehensive account of the various regions by clearly emphasizing one overarching element: namely, that the assertion of British power and the elimination of any opposing structures or persons took precedence over compliance with the spirit of the common law and the principles of the rule of law.' Winner Ijeoma, Rechtsgeschichte - Legal History

Michael Lobban is a Professor of Legal History at LSE. He is the author of a number of notable works, including White Man's Justice: South African Political Trials in the Black Consciousness Era and A History of the Philosophy of Law in the Common Law World.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781316519127
ISBN 10	1316519120
Title	Imperial Incarceration
Author	Michael Lobban
Series	Studies In Legal History
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Cambridge University Press
Year published	2021-09-09
Number of pages	379
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.