“An outstandingly original book which deals both authoritatively and perceptively with an important and hitherto rather neglected aspect of imperial cultures. It is engrossing, deeply informative and beautifully written ... a valuable contribution to scholarship across a range of disciplines.” Dr Nigel Rigby, National Maritime Museum, London

“Only a mature scholar with the range and experience possessed by someone like MacKenzie could have taken this on... [and he]... brings to the task the qualities that mark him out as our foremost historian of the cultures and ideology of empire: enormous span, considerable powers of synthesis and an eye that is ever alert to significant detail. As ever he presents his research with consummate ease and style.” Prof. Saul Dubow, University of Sussex

The Scots in South Africa Ethnicity, identity, gender and race, 1772-1914 With Nigel R Dalziel, Manchester University Press, 2007

Beginning in the era of Dutch rule, Scots have made one of the most distinctive contributions to the history of South Africa. They were active in geographical exploration, science, education, military campaigns, Christian missions, intellectual institutions and the professions, as well as business, commerce and journalism. This book is the first full-length study of their role from the 18th to the 20th centuries. It highlights the interaction of Scots with African peoples, the manner in which missions and schools were credited with producing ‘black Scotsmen’ and the ways in which they pursued many distinctive policies. It also deals with the interweaving of gender, class and race as well as the means by which Scots clung to their ethnicity. This book is a major contribution to both Scottish and South African history and in the process illuminates a significant field of the Scottish diaspora that has received little attention. Empires of Nature and the Nature of Empires Imperialism, Scotland and the Environment Tuckwell Press, East Linton, 1997 First delivered as the Thomas Callander Memorial Lectures at the University of Aberdeen in 1995, this book is a survey of the lively historiography of the environmental history of the British Empire. It suggests fresh modes of analysis and connections with the Scottish experience and to the remarkable dominance of Scots in the relevant agencies of the empire. Few areas of historical study have experienced such an explosive growth as environmental history. This new historiography has been particularly important in offering opportunities for the globalising of human history in relation to its natural context. Within this field, some of the liveliest studies have emerged in relation to the British Empire, examining the environmental effects of the social and economic impact of imperialism in the various continents of the globe. Orientalism. History, theory and the arts  Manchester University Press, 1995 The Orientalism debate, inspired by the work of Edward Said, has been a major source of cross- disciplinary controversy in recent years. John MacKenzie offers a   comprehensive re-evaluation of the vast literature of Orientalism, and brings to the subject highly original historical perspectives. This study is the first major discussion of Orientalism by an historian of imperialism. Setting the analysis within the context of conflicting scholarly interpretations, MacKenzie then carries the discussion to wholly new areas, testing the notion that the Western arts received genuine inspiration from the East by examining the visual arts, architecture, design, music and theatre. This analysis concludes that Western approaches to the Orient have been much more ambiguous and more genuinely interactive than Said allowed. The artistic construction of the East by the West has invariably been achieved through a greater spirit of respect in search of a truly syncretic culture, and the Orient has proved an inspiration to European arts even when caught in the web of imperial power relations. The Empire of Nature Hunting, conservation and British imperialism Manchester University Press, 1988, reprinted 1997 A pioneering work by John MacKenzie assessing the significance of the hunting cult as a major element of the imperial experience in Africa and Asia. Through a study of the game laws and the beginnings of conservation in the 19th and early 20th centuries, he shows that Africans were denied access to game: the development of game reserves and national parks accelerated this process. Indigenous hunters in Africa and Asia were turned into ‘poachers’ and only Europeans were permitted to hunt. In India the hunting of animals became the chief recreation of military officers and civilian officials, a source of display and a symbolic dominance of the environment. Imperial hunting fed the natural history craze of the day and many hunters collected trophies and specimens for private and public collections as well as contributing to hunting literature. John MacKenzie also connects hunting and game conservation to imperial expansion, concepts of masculinity, attitudes towards diet, and the development of Western tourism. Propaganda and Empire The manipulation of British public opinion 1880-1960 Manchester University Press, 1984 It has been said that the British Empire, on which the sun never set, meant little to the man-in-the-street. Strange then, that for three-quarters of a century it was scarcely possible to buy a bar of soap or a tin of biscuits without being reminded of the idea of empire. Packaging, postcards, music hall, theatre, cinema, children’s literature and school books, exhibitions and parades, all conveyed the message that empire was an adventure and an ennobling responsibility  invariably associated with glory and romance. In this illuminating study, which has become a classic text in the field, MacKenzie explores manifestations of the imperial idea, from the trappings of royalty through writers like G.A. Henty to the humble cigarette card and everyday ephemera. He shows that it was so powerful and pervasive that it outlived the passing of the empire itself. “...a masterly work of synthesis that throws much new light on this important topic in a balanced, interdisciplinary, and thought-provoking way.” Journal of Modern History “the work is a treasure of British social-imperial historical material...”  Victorian Studies “an important book that all those interested in British attitudes about the empire will read with pleasure and profit.” Choice magazine The Railway Station A Social History With Jeffrey Richards Oxford University Press, 1986; Faber & Faber, 2009) In a sweeping global survey, unique in scope, The Railway Station  successfully captures the importance and mystique of the station in all its guises. Chapters explore its architectural significance, its role in art, literature and film as well as its social, political and military function.

“An outstanding piece of scholarly research... [that] provides for the first time an historical overview of the crucial and neglected impact of Scots migrants on South African society and state.” Prof. Jonathan Hislop, University of the Witwatersrand, Pretoria