《艾登备忘录》与二战末期英国对藏政策

《艾登备忘录》是英国政府1943年制定的对藏政策。其内容延续了英国一贯主张的“宗主权”理论,并以“西藏自治”来要挟中国政府。古德使团依照此政策在拉萨鼓动西藏自治之后,英国外交部又决定反思其西藏政策,但遭到印度政府和印度事务部的反对。从总体来看,无论《艾登备忘录》的提出,还是英国对藏政策的波动,都是出于英国对华总政策的需要。     

李仲公与《日本帝国主义的满蒙观与我们的驳议》译著出版前后

“九·一八事变”前后,蒋介石推行“攘外必先安内”的反动政策,国家民族危在旦夕。刚辞去国民政府交通部次长而“称病”闲赋苏州的李仲公,向蒋介石提出“联共抗日”主张,并提呈具体“方案”,受到蒋介石的重视并约见商谈,虽然蒋介石从同意其主张到反悔,李仲公却成为国民党内最早提出“联共抗日”主张之人。此时,李仲公译著出版的《日本帝国主义的满蒙观与我们的驳议》一书,成为爱国知识分子拍案而起的抗日先声。     

How not to build a world wireless network: German–British rivalry and visions of global communications in the early twentieth century

Abstract

Edward Snowden’s revelations laid bare an unprecedented scale of state influence on communications technology. But government elites have frequently shaped technological development through their beliefs about potentially nefarious uses of communications. This article argues that beliefs about how other states or groups might use a technology can shape innovation. In particular, German visions about the British use of cables spurred German investment in developing wireless telegraphy. Germans imagined that the British were using cable technology to damage Germany’s reputation, spy on Germany and ‘poison’ neutral countries against the Central Powers. The German government and military at first created a colonial wireless network to bypass British cables. In World War I, however, they sought to establish a world wireless network. In the end, innovation was significantly shaped by how Germans imagined their enemies’ uses of communications technology.     

‘Oxford in the bush’: the founding (and diminishing) ethos of Rhodes University

Over the years, many members of the Rhodes University community have proudly claimed their university to be a kind of transplanted Oxford, while others have viewed this claim as pretentious – hence the derogatory label ‘Oxford in the bush’. This article explores the connections and comparison between the two institutions. In the early twentieth century, both universities strongly identified with the British imperial cause; and for decades Rhodes University regularly celebrated its symbolic association with the historical figure of Cecil Rhodes, who also happens to be one of the most commemorated figures in Oxford. There was also a shared ethos, as both laid stress on a style of education that was character-building, a prerequisite for which was a strong grounding in the classics. There was, too, a cultural affinity between Rhodes and Oxford, exemplified in the strict segregation of the sexes, the importance attached to sporting achievement, and a tendency to engage in frivolous activities. The article goes on to show how over time the Oxford tradition at Rhodes came to be challenged and undermined, especially from the late 1960s onwards.     

从《部门报告》看战前港英政府的社会福利事业

1909至1939年港英政府的《部门报告》是一份久为人所忽视的档案。该报告显示香港政府在社会福利事业上曾用力不少。与西方相比,其策划规模与客观成就并不落后。     

Open Door or Sphere of Influence?: The Diplomacy of the Japanese–French Entente and Fukien Question, 1905–1907

Japanese–French negotiation for their 1907 entente revealed contrasting approaches to the application of the Open Door principle in China, particularly to the Fukien province after the Japanese victory in the Russo-Japanese War. Having learned about France's wish to receive Japanese guarantee for the safety of its colony in Indo-China, Japan strove to define Fukien as its additional sphere of influence once it had secured much needed loans in the Paris financial market. France tried to resist Japan's request to define Fukien as its sphere by adopting a secret note, and attempted to restrain Japan's future expansion into China by enmeshing Japan in the web of political and financial ententes with itself and Britain supporting Open Door. This approach of France was a continuation of French policy toward East Asia since the Boxer Uprising, securing its economic interests by supporting Open Door rather than pursuing territorial competition with other great powers in China. In contrast, the Japanese government strenuously attempted to weaken the general application of Open Door doctrine in China, and could define Fukien as Japan's additional sphere by securing a secret explanatory note for such a purpose.