The British Aren’t Coming: Why the French Intervene in their Former African Colonies and the British Do Not
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Despite close parallels throughout their imperial histories, Britain and France have diverged greatly in how often they have intervened in former African colonies since independence. In this thesis, I explore how the nature and frequency of military interventions is directly rooted in the histories of the empires themselves, including imperial governance, decolonization, and post-colonial regimes. Through case studies of some of the most recent and prominent interventions for each country (Sierra Leone in 2000 for Great Britain; Côte d’Ivoire in 2002 and 2011 for France), as well as instances of non-interventions, I show how colonial legacies play a direct role in determining intervention. Although neo-colonial links and legacies have a significant and expected impact for France through its network of “Françafrique,” their influence on the British is subtler. History shows us that Britain did not value its African empire as much as France did, and consequently it intervened there less. Nonetheless, Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Doctrine of the International Community, under which the Sierra Leone and other interventions took place, had subtle neo- imperial undertones, suggesting a different kind of colonial legacy. This legacy has been indirectly continued across party lines by the government of Prime Minister David Cameron. Additionally, I find that interventions to protect certain postcolonial interests, such as significant expatriate populations, might elicit a swift, but limited, response that then evolves into a more robust mission. Other legacies, like regional military presence, facilitate interventions once decided or preclude their possibility. Finally, I conclude that assumptions that the international community can rely on former colonial powers to shoulder the military burden in Africa is inaccurate, having never been the case for Britain and decreasingly so for France, as it shifts to a less neo-imperial attitude toward Francophone Africa.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Date created | May 22, 2013 |
Creators/Contributors
| Author | Bade, Scott |
|---|---|
| Primary advisor | Naimark, Norman |
| Primary advisor | Holloway, David |
Subjects
| Subject | Center for International Security and Cooperation |
|---|---|
| Subject | British history |
| Subject | French history |
| Subject | British foreign policy |
| Subject | French foreign policy |
| Subject | Africa |
| Subject | post-colonial |
| Subject | military intervention |
| Genre | Thesis |
Bibliographic information
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- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
Preferred citation
- Preferred Citation
- Bade, Scott. (2013). The British Aren’t Coming: Why the French Intervene in their Former African Colonies and the British Do Not. Stanford Digital Repository. Available at: http://purl.stanford.edu/hw045ys8900
Collection
Stanford University, Center for International Security and Cooperation, Interschool Honors Program in International Security Studies, Theses
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- Contact
- sabade@alumni.stanford.edu
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