Reference Sources
When researching a new topic it is often necessary to get an overview, explanations of unfamiliar terms, or brief factual information. The print and electronic resources listed below include selected reference materials (dictionaries, encyclopaedias, handbooks, guides, and standards) for the history of European Imperialism. To find additional reference materials, check UNB WorldCat (the library catalogue) or our Reference Materials database.
Key Resources
- Companion to nineteenth-century Europe, 1789-1914, A This title is part of the Wiley/Blackwell Reference Online e-book collection available through the Wiley Online Library.
Unlimited simultaneous users - Cambridge Histories Online (Cambridge Core) This resource, part of Cambridge Core, contains the online versions of over 270 Cambridge Histories publications in the following 15 areas: American History, British History, Economic History, General History, History of Science, History of the Book, Language and Linguistics, Literary Studies, Music, Philosophy, Political and Social Theory, Regional History, Religious Studies, Theatre Studies and Performing Arts, and Warfare. For a complete listing of titles in each area, please refer to the publisher's site, at: https://www.cambridge.org/core/what-we-publish/collections/cambridge-histories
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Chronology of World History [HIL-REF D11 .M39 1999 vols. 1-4]
This four volume set, which includes 70,000 events compiled by 27 contributing editors, constitutes the most complete and current chronology of world history ever created.
- Companion to nineteenth-century Britain This title is part of the Wiley/Blackwell Reference Online e-book collection available through the Wiley Online Library.
Unlimited simultaneous users - Encyclopedia of European Social History from 1350 to 2000 [HIL-REF HN373 .E63 2001 vols. 1-6]
"Covering the period from the beginning of the Renaissance to the present, this encyclopedia consists of 209 signed articles and nearly 300 biographical entries. The set is thoroughly indexed, amply illustrated, and a joy to read. Graduate students will find it useful as an introduction to historiography while advanced high school students will enjoy the articles on historical topics."--"Outstanding Reference Sources," American Libraries, May 2001. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.
- Historical Dictionary of European Imperialism [HIL-REF D217 .H57 1991]
Christopher Columbus' discovery of the new world launched a process of economic and cultural integration that continues to this day. In the wake of Columbus's voyages, the major powers of Western Europe established imperial systems that shaped global politics and economics for centuries. "The Historical Dictionary of European Imperialism" is designed to provide a ready reference tool for students and scholars of these systems. Its major focus is the Spanish, Portuguese, British, Dutch, French, German, Belgian, and Italian empires during the past 500 years.
- International Historical Statistics: 1750-2000 [HIL-REF HA155 .M575 2003 vols. 1-3]
This three-volume set of international historical statistics allows the full breadth of statistical analysis and comparisons across both time and across the world.
- Modern European imperialism; a bibliography of books and articles, 1815-1972 [HIL-REF D358 .H226 vols. 1-2]
Volume 1 covers the British Empire and general subjects, whereas volume 2 deals with the French and other empires.
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (ODNB) Oxford Dictionary of National Biography is an illustrated/fulltext reference tool providing 55,000 specially-written signed biographies of the men and women who shaped all aspects of the British past from the earliest times to the end of the year 2000. It is the product of research instituted at the University of Oxford and funded by the British Academy and by Oxford University Press. It is the achievement of 10,000 contributors and advisers staff in Oxford. The Oxford DNB aims to provide full, accurate, concise, and readable articles on noteworthy people in all walks of life. No living person is included: the Dictionary's articles are confined to people who died before 31 December 2000.
3 simultaneous users. - Oxford handbook of the history of terrorism
The Oxford Handbook of the History of Terrorism presents a re-evaluation of the major narratives in the history of terrorism, exploring the emergence and the use of terrorism in world history from antiquity up to the twenty-first century. The volume presents terrorism as a historically specific form of political violence that was generated by modern Western culture and then transported around the globe, where it interacted with and was transformed in accordance with local conditions. It offers cogent arguments and well-documented case studies that support a reading of terrorism as a modern phenomenon, as well as sustained analyses of the challenges involved in the application of the theories and practices of modernity and terrorism to non-Western parts of the world, both for historical actors and academic commentators. The volume presents an overview of terrorism's antecedents in the pre-modern world, analyzes the emergence of terrorism in the West, and presents a series of case studies from non-Western parts of the world that together constitute terrorism's global reception history. Essays cover a broad range of topics from tyrannicide in ancient Greek political culture, the radical resistance movement against Roman rule in Judea, the invention of terrorism in Europe, Russia, and the United States, anarchist networks in France, Argentina, and China, imperial terror in Colonial Kenya, anti-colonial violence in India, Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, and the German Autumn, to right-wing, religious and eco-terrorism, as well as terrorism's entanglements with science, technology, media, literature and art.
- Oxford History of the British Empire, The [HIL-REF DA16 .O95 1998 vols. 1-5]
The first two volumes of this five-volume history of the British Empire establish a very high standard of scholarship. Over three dozen scholars examine both major and minor aspects of the modern imperial experience. The chronological focus develops from the 16th century, when Ireland was the starting point of the empire, to the end of the 18th, when the 13 American Colonies were lost. The essays form an interlocking analysis of the origins of empire from an intellectual, military, economic, and technological perspective. There is some overlap; for example, several essays discuss the role of naval power, but each author approaches the topic with a different focus, such as technology in N.A.M. Rogers's essay and politics in John Appleby's. The various chapters, therefore, reinforce the overall picture instead of being redundant. Separate chapters in the first volume analyze the origins and implementation of the British imperial expansion, or contraction, in each region and then continue in the second volume, as do discussions of new subjects, such as the colonization of Australia. The interrelationship between the mother country and the Colonies also receives continued emphasis. Jonathan Israel's chapter, in Volume 1, on the continental perspective of British empire building helps place events in an even broader context. There is a short bibliography after each chapter. Three following volumes will see the empire through to its 20th-century decline. Recommended for all libraries.Frederic Krome, Jacob Rader Marcus Ctr. of the American Jewish Archives, Cincinnati Copyright 1998 Cahners Business Information, Inc. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information
- Oxford Reference Multi-part database of the online versions of Oxford University Press texts. Each topical division contains the searchable version of the latest edition of published dictionaries and encyclopedias. Additionally, information about Oxford University Press is provided. Online texts will be updated after new editions of the print monographs are published. Covers the humanities and social sciences.
5 simultaneous users.
Find Books
To search for books at UNB Libraries, first use the library's online catalogue, UNB WorldCat, which contains materials held at the Harriet Irving, Science and Forestry, Engineering, and Law libraries, as well as the HW Klohn Learning Commons in Saint John.
Key Texts
- James, Lawrence. The Rise and Fall of the British Empire. London: Abacus, 1998.
- [print on reserve at HIL: DA16 .J26 1998]
- Lehning, James R. European Colonialism Since 1700. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013.
- [print on reserve at HIL: JV135 .L44 2013]
- Wesseling, H. L, and Diane Webb. The European Colonial Empires, 1815-1919. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2013. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/unb/detail.action?docID=4045435
- [ebook]
Shelf Browsing
To browse the shelves for books on European Imperialism, start with the following ranges:
D | History (General) |
D351-400 | 19th century. 1801 - 1914/1920 |
DA | Great Britain |
DC | France - Andorra - Monaco |
DD | Germany |
DG | Italy - Malta |
DH | Low Countries - Benelux Countries |
DJ | Netherlands (Holland) |
DL | Northern Europe. Scandinavia |
DP | Spain - Portugal |
DS | Asia |
DT | Africa |
DU | Oceania (South Seas) |
A complete listing of Library of Congress subject headings in world history is available here.
Document Delivery
Books and other materials not available at UNB may be available for loan from another institution through our document delivery service. To search for materials not held by UNB Libraries, search UNB WorldCat, and change the default UNB Libraries to Libraries Worldwide. Once you have identified a title that is not locally held, select the red Request Item button and follow the screens. You can also access the document delivery request form directly.
Find Articles
When searching for journal articles, an indexing and abstracting database is the best place to start. Here a few databases relevant to the history of European Imperialism in the 19th century.
Key Resources
- Historical Abstracts (EBSCO) "Historical Abstracts is an exceptional resource that covers the history of the world (excluding the United States and Canada) from 1450 to the present, including world history, military history, women's history, history of education, and more ... Provides indexing of more than 1,700 academic historical journals in over 40 languages back to 1955."--Database information page.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Google Scholar Google Scholar searches a subset of the Web that Google has classified as "scholarly literature". They do not publish a list of chosen sites, and they do not state how often sites are checked. Some important sources are not covered at all. Thus, Google Scholar alone should not be relied on for comprehensive research.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - JSTOR Archival Collection JSTOR provides access to back issues of a variety of scholarly journals. UNB Libraries currently subscribes to the Arts & Sciences (I through X) collections, along with the Life Sciences and Ireland collections.
Unlimited simultaneous users.
Additional Resources
- Periodicals Archive Online (PAO - ProQuest) "Periodicals Archive Online is a major online periodical archive that makes the backfiles of periodicals in the humanities and social sciences available electronically, providing access to the full text of a growing number of digitized periodicals that have been indexed in its sister database, Periodicals Index Online."--About page.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Academic Search Premier (EBSCO) Academic Search Premier is a multidisciplinary resource that "provides journal coverage for most academic areas of studies."
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Dissertations & Theses (ProQuest PQDT) ProQuest Dissertations and Theses "is the single, authoritative source for information about doctoral dissertations and master's theses. The database represents the work of authors from over 1,000 graduate schools and universities."
All PhD dissertations and Master's theses from depositing universities are available from 1997 onwards, unless the document's author has requested a temporary delay.
It is also possible to search within an interface exclusive to Dissertations & Theses @ University of New Brunswick.
For UNB theses submitted after 2012, please consult UNB’s institutional repository, UNB Scholar, or the library catalogue, UNBWorldCat.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - EThOS (Electronic Theses Online Service : UK Theses) EThOS makes UK theses (e and paper based) available via a 'one-stop-shop' by harvesting e-theses from institutional repositories and digitizing paper theses on-demand from researchers. The British Library, in collaboration with many UK universities and other associations, aims to provide over 250,000 theses produced by the UK higher education system on an open access model to all researchers and others requiring information. Some theses are available for immediate download, while others can be requested from a participating institution which then sends the thesis to the British Library for digitization.
Unlimited simultaneous users.
Links to Relevant Journals
- American Historical Review
- Comparative Studies in Society and History
- French Colonial History
- History Workshop Journal
- Itinerario
- Journal of African History
- Journal of Asian History
- Journal of British Studies
- Journal of Colonialism & Colonial History
- Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History
- Journal of Modern History
- Modern Asian Studies
- Past & Present
Primary Sources
UNB Libraries subscribe to a number of online archives of primary sources related to the history of European Imperialism in the 19th century.
Key Resources
- British and Irish Women's Letters and Diaries British and Irish Women’s Letters and Diaries spans more than 400 years of personal writings, bringing together the voices of women from England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. This database allows researchers to view history in the context of women’s thoughts – their struggles, achievements, passions, pursuits, and desires.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - British Library Newspapers - Part I & IV (Gale) "Sourced from the extensive holdings of the British Library, British Library Newspapers delivers a wide range of irreplaceable local and regional voices to reflect the social, political, and cultural events of the eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth centuries. With more than 160 newspaper titles, the series is comprised of approximately 5.5 million pages of historic content, from articles to advertisements. UNB Libraries provides access to:
Part I: 1800-1900
Ranging from early tabloids like the Illustrated Police News to radical papers like the Chartist Northern Star, publications in Part I span a vast range of national, regional, and local interests.Part IV: 1732-1950 From key early newspaper titles like the Stamford Mercury to what is possibly the oldest magazine in the world still in publication, the Scots Magazine, Part IV offers key local and regional perspectives."
Unlimited simultaneous users. - China: Trade, Politics and Culture, 1793-1980 (Adam Matthew Digital) This project provides a wide variety of original source material detailing China's interaction with the West from Macartney's first Embassy to China in 1793, through to the Nixon/Heath visits to China in 1972-74.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Defining Gender, 1450-1910 (Adam Matthew Digital) Defining Gender is structured in five sections, each containing a substantial body of original source material, together with thematic essays by leading scholars in the field. The thematic essays introduce students to the material, suggest possible approaches, and place the documents within a broad historical, literary and cultural context. The sources all have distinct URLs and can be readily integrated into course packs or projected in the classroom.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Empire Online (Adam Matthew Digital) Empire Online features a wide variety of material including: Exploration journals and logs; Letter books and correspondence; Periodicals; Diaries; Official Government Papers; Missionary papers; Travel writing; Slave papers; Memoirs; Fiction; Children's Adventure Stories; Traditional; folk tales; Exhibition Catalogues and guides; Maps; Marketing Posters; Photographs; and Illustrations, with many in colour. The project is divided into five sections covering varying aspects of the colonial experience. These are: Section I: Cultural Contact, 1492-1969, Section II: Literature and Empire, Section III: The Visible Empire, Section IV: Religion and Empire.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Frontier Life: Borderlands, Settlement & Colonial Encounters (Adam Matthew Digital) "Frontier Life provides over 240,000 Images and 7,895 Documents pertaining to the Frontiers of North America, Africa and Australasia. This collection has a wealth of primary source documents including 68% of the collections dedicated to North America, and 20% of that material specific to Canada. There are more than 1,015 documents from the Glenbow Museum and Hudson Bay’s Archive.
The collection deals with some of the major themes of frontier existence including: Settlement development, Law and order, Violence, Expeditions and exploration, Relations with indigenous peoples, Trade and commerce, Death and disease, Missionaries and religion, Women’s history, Military matters, Mining, Religion, Gold rushes, Settler governance, Contested boundaries, Agriculture and livestock."
Unlimited simultaneous users. - German History in Documents and Images
German History in Documents and Images (GHDI) is a comprehensive collection of primary source materials documenting Germany's political, social, and cultural history from 1500 to the present. It comprises original German texts, all of which are accompanied by new English translations, and a wide range of visual imagery. The materials are presented in ten sections, which have been compiled by leading scholars. All of the materials can be used free of charge for teaching, research, and related purposes; the site is strictly intended for individual, non-commercial use.
- Making of the Modern World: Part I & Part II (Gale) "The Making of the Modern World is an extraordinary series which covers the history of Western trade, encompassing the coal, iron, and steel industries, the railway industry, the cotton industry, banking and finance, and the emergence of the modern corporation." UNB Libraries provides access to: Part I, The Goldsmiths'-Kress Collection, 1450-1850 Offers ways of understanding the expansion of world trade, the Industrial Revolution, and the development of modern capitalism, supporting research in variety of disciplines. Users have access to an abundance of rare books and primary source materials, many of which are the only known copy of the work. Part II, 1851-1914 Takes The Making of the Modern World series to the end of the nineteenth century. Comprised mainly of primary source documents such as monographs, reports, correspondence, speeches, and surveys, this collection broadens Gale’s international coverage of social, economic, and business history, as well as political science, technology, industrialisation, and the birth of the modern corporation."
Purchased multi-user unlimited access - Nineteenth Century Collections Online (NCCO eBooks) Nineteenth Century Collections Online is a digitization and publishing program focusing on primary source collections of the long nineteenth century. The program includes a variety of content types--monographs, newspapers, pamphlets, manuscripts, ephemera, maps, statistics, and more--and unites them in one central, cross-searchable location. 12 collections are now available:
Individual titles in these collections are available for discovery in our eBooks search or in UNBWorldCat:
• Asia and the West: Diplomacy and Cultural Exchange
• British Politics and Society
• British Theatre, Music, and Literature: High and Popular Culture
• Children's Literature and Childhood
• European Literature, 1790-1840: The Corvey Collection
• Mapping the World: Maps and Travel Literature
• Religion, Society, Spirituality, and Reform
• Science, Technology, and Medicine: 1780-1925, Part II
Individual titles in these collections can only be discoverd in the NCCO site:
• Europe and Africa: Commerce, Christianity, Civilization, and Conquest
• Photography: The World through the Lens
• Science, Technology, and Medicine: 1780-1925, Part I
• Women: Transnational Networks
Unlimited simultaneous users. - U.K. Parliamentary Papers (ProQuest) U.K. Parliamentary Papers via ProQuest offers a comprehensive collection of primary sources for the 18th, 19th and 20th century, for Britain, its colonies and the wider world. Included are the following Paper Series:
- Bills and Acts 1695-2018
- Command Papers 1802-2018
- House of Commons Papers 1715-2018
- House of Lords Papers 1714-1909
- Hansard 1803-2005
- Journals 1688-1834
- Debates 1774-1805
- Histories and Proceedings 1660-1743
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Wiley Digital Archives - Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians of London (RCP) covers the history of medicine, medical humanities, medicine and culture, religion, and government, the establishment of public health systems, and the policies governing medical education and practice from 1205 to 1980. It contains monographs, rare books, manuscripts, correspondence, reports, conference papers, medical reports, medical education textbooks, proceedings, lectures, anatomical drawings, public health surveys, photographs, drawings, data and ephemera—all presented as fully searchable digital images that can be analyzed, downloaded, manipulated, and compared with content from other societies and universities in the Wiley Digital Archives program.
- Times Digital Archives (Gale) The Times Digital Archive allows users to search and view online The Times (London) newspaper from 1785-1985.
NOTE: The Times is not published on Sunday, and the The Sunday Times, a distinct newspaper, is not included in this database.
Unlimited simultaneous users.
Additional Resources
- Past Masters (Intelex) InteLex Past Masters is comprised of 100+ full-text humanities and sciences databases that make available cohesive collections of editions, in both original language and in English translation, of seminal figures in the humanities and sciences.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - ARTstor Artstor is a repository of approximately 300 collections composed of over 2.5 million digital images (and growing), related data and provides tools to actively use those images in a restricted usage environment that balances the rights of the content providers and the needs of the users. The images are drawn from different sources, such as museums, archaeological teams, photo archives, slide collections, and art reference publishers.
Scholars can examine wide-ranging material such as Native American art from the Smithsonian, treasures from the Louvre, and panoramic, 360-degree views of the Hagia Sophia in a single, easy-to-use resource. The artistic traditions across many cultures embraces architecture, painting, sculpture, photography, decorative arts, and design as well as many other forms of visual culture.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - HeinOnline - English Reports, Full Reprint (1220-1867) Electronic version of the original bound reprint edition published by Stevens & Sons, 1900-1932. Includes the Index of Cases and the Index Chart. Like the print version, the electronic version includes the Statutes of the Realm (1235-1713). Using the case locator, researchers can search for cases by English Reports citation, nominative citation, case name, or keyword. The Chart Tool can be a convenient way to locate nominative volumes. Advanced search options are also available.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - Halsbury's Laws of England NOTE: At the LexisNexis Quicklaw sign-in screen, click on "Register Later".
Halsbury's Laws is a comprehensive and authoritative encyclopedia of the law of England and Wales, arranged in an alphabetical scheme of over 160 subjects. Within each subject, reference is made to pertinent legislation and case law. Other components of the service include Halsbury's Is it in Force?, Halsbury's SI Citator, and Halsbury's Statutes Citator.
Unlimited simultaneous users. - HeinOnline - World Constitutions Illustrated All the world's current constitutions in their original languages and English translations are gathered into this single database, which also includes full-text historical legal and political treatises and scholarly articles. Bibliographies of and links to a multitude of secondary resources are also provided. Researchers can use the advanced search screen to perform cross-jurisdictional searches, but users focusing on one particular country might want to use the "browse by country" option and then search within that jurisdiction.
Unlimited simultaneous users.
Primary sources are also available in the Library's general collection (in print and online). To find these, use UNB WorldCat to run a search for your topic along with a subject search for "sources". For example, if you would like to find books that include primary sources on Cecil Rhodes, you would search for kw:"Cecil Rhodes" AND su:sources in the UNB WorldCat. Other subject searches that will help you find primary source material include "correspondence", "narratives", "diaries", and "speeches".
Find Internet Sites
While there is a wealth of information freely available on the internet, not all sites are created equal. Careful evaluation is a critical part of doing research on the Internet.
- National Archives: Colonies and dependencies from 1782
- Sources for Colonial Studies in the British Public Records Office
- go to Series C: Sources for Colonial Studies in the Public Records Office
- British History Online: 19th-century sources
- Connected Histories: British History Sources, 1500-1900
- German History in Documents and Images
- Imperialism, Internet History Sourcebooks, Fordham University
- Imperialism section
Cite Your Sources
Accurate, properly formatted footnotes, reading lists, and bibliographies are hallmarks of good academic research. Through citing, you acknowledge the source of any ideas you mention in your writing, document your research, and provide the information your readers need to track down your sources.
Numerous citation styles exist, and each specifies what elements are required (title, author, journal name, etc.) and how the citation should be formatted. The standard citation style for History is Chicago:
- Chicago Manual of Style Endnote/Footnote Format
(You will be asked for a student login.) - Chicago Documentation Examples
- The Chicago manual of style
HIL-REFDSK Z253 .U69 2010 - Guide to Citation and Plagiarism
Digital Workbook
Access the digital workbook here.
1. BEAM method of analysing sources PowerPoint slides
2. How to find and use reference sources
3a. How to find and use secondary sources
3b. How to use Boolean operators
3c. Searching with Wildcards and Truncation Symbols file (from the help menu in EBSCO).
4. How to find and use primary sources
5a. Making the most of Google Scholar
5b. Google@UNB handout
6. How to build a great history research question PowerPoint slides.
More Information More Information
-
- Aggie Sliwka (she/her)
- I am ready to support your research needs in person, via phone, email, and MS Teams.
- History & Special Collections Librarian
- UNB Fredericton
- asliwka@unb.ca
- 506-453-5017
- Meet with me