Social scientists would say the IR was inevitable given the political institutions of Britain at the time. Military people might say similar from naval strength; the geopolitically inclined might argue it from geography/politics. Technologists lean on utility and feasibility of coal.
I think all of these arguments have merit. The IR couldn’t have happened in a desert country or one defeated by foreign conquerors or one with ancient Egyptian political institutions.
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Social scientists would say the IR was inevitable given the political institutions of Britain at the time. Military people might say similar from naval strength; the geopolitically inclined might argue it from geography/politics. Technologists lean on utility and feasibility of coal.
I think all of these arguments have merit. The IR couldn’t have happened in a desert country or one defeated by foreign conquerors or one with ancient Egyptian political institutions.