1857 War, nineteenth-century empire and conservative empire

King’s close association with Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington – hero of the Napoleonic Wars and twice prime minister – has long been a source of fascination and celebration for the college. In the mid-nineteenth century, this also served an important practical function by providing connections to the British military establishment that have endured far beyond Wellington’s personal patronage. A Department of Military Science was first formed in 1848 amid fears of revolution and war across Europe. It provided general education and technical training for those who aspired to become officers in the British and East India Company armies. The course consisted of three parts: 1. divinity; 2. history, languages, mathematics, and natural philosophy; 3. military strategy, tactics, fortifications, and surveying. After 1859, military studies and science were merged into teaching under the Faculty of Arts and Faculty of Engineering. There was less vocational teaching, but King’s still contributed significant research that underpinned Britain’s expanding military and imperial strength in the period before 1914. In 1927, the War Office supported the foundation of a Military Studies Department at King’s, which became the Department of War Studies in 1943, operating until 1948. Now with a more global focus, King’s became a research and teaching centre that drew students, researchers, and state interest from across the globe. The current War Studies Department was set up in 1962, during the height of the Cold War, under the leadership of Sir Michael Howard. King’s now world-renowned War Studies degree was established in 1992. Since then, the Department has continued to grow and develop in response to evolving global security challenges, from the ‘War on Terror’ to the more recent war in Ukraine.

Throughout this period, King’s fellows, research students, and archivists expanded the academic analysis of military science and history, created the Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives, and established the study of war as a core specialism within the university. Relationships with the armed forces and other key agents of Britain’s expanding global power shaped the college’s early development and institutional identity. In the 21st century, this tradition has continued through collaborations with the Ministry of Defence, Security Services, and armed forces. This research strand explores the intellectual and practical implications of these relationships. Much has been written on the idea of Britain’s nineteenth century liberal empire, but far less attention has been given to more conservative understandings of empire and imperial power, often premised on an assumption of military superiority. Understanding better how King’s contributed to these is crucial to gaining a more nuanced appreciation of the ways in which the college was invested in British imperialism. The long afterlives of those connections have shaped the college’s development to the present day.