Reduction of the Navy League Map Illustrating British Naval History . . . Dedicated to the Children of the British Empire
- Title:
- Reduction of the Navy League Map Illustrating British Naval History . . . Dedicated to the Children of the British Empire
- Alternate Title:
- The Navy League Map of the World
- Collection:
- Persuasive Maps: PJ Mode Collection
- Creator:
- The Navy League
- Other Creators:
- W. & A. K. Johnston Ltd., publisher
Crofts, Cecil H.
- Date:
- 1907
- Posted Date:
- 2015-08-25
- ID Number:
- 1144.01
- File Name:
- PJM_1144_01.jpg
- Style/Period:
- 1900 - 1919
- Subject:
- Imperialism
Politics & Government - Measurement:
- 44 x 56 (centimeters, height x width)
- Notes:
- "The archetypal British Empire map," designed "to demonstrate and uphold the reality of imperial Britain's authority" and "the natural providence of Pax Britannia." Bryars 2014, 21.
As the map notes, the Navy League of the British Empire was founded in 1895 as "A strictly non-Party organization to urge upon Government and the Electorate the paramount importance of an adequate Navy as the best guarantee of Peace." It quickly became "one of the foremost naval interest groups," with a membership eventually exceeding 100,000 and "a great deal of influence over naval affairs." (http://www.royalnavalmuseum.org/info_sheets_navy_league.htm, accessed December 23, 2014).
As part of its educational mission, the League produced a large wall map for classroom use. See ID # 2093, "The Third Edition of the Navy League Wall Map of the World is Now Ready". This copy of the map was a reduced-size version, folded into Crofts' inexpensive Handbook. The Preface makes clear the intent of the League: "This little work should be in the hands of every young Briton, and no school should be considered properly equipped which has not the full-sized Navy League Wall Map of the Empire hanging on the walls within easy view of the scholars." (Crofts viii).
The map shows the British Empire in the traditional red, but its focus is on history and economics rather than geography. Across the top is a list of the "Principal Naval Events" in the history of the Empire, beginning with the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588. Along the sides and the bottom is a mass of data about the Empire's "Wealth and Social Condition," trade patterns, warship construction, sources of food and other economic and commercial information. At the very top, a quote from Bacon sums up the point: "The wealth of both Indies seems, in great part, but an accessory to the command of the seas."
For further information on the Collector’s Notes and a Feedback/Contact Link, see https://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/content/about-collection-personal-statement and https://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/content/feedback-and-contact - Source:
- Crofts, Cecil H. 5th ed. 1909. Britain On and Beyond the Sea Being a Handbook to the Navy League Map of the World. Edinburgh: W. & A. K. Johnston, Limited.
- Repository:
- Private Collection of PJ Mode
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- For important information about copyright and use, see http://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/copyright.