Bureaucracy and ‘Trusteeship’ in the Colonial Empire

Abstract

This chapter looks at the idea of trusteeship and bureaucracy in the Colonial Empire. One aspect of bureaucracy which became increasingly central as the 20th century progressed was interdepartmental relations. In the early days, it had not much troubled the Colonial Office what other government departments thought about the Empire. The doctrines of the Colonial Office and its principal contributions to policy-making are explored. Its doctrines were famously embodied in the term trusteeship which in the post-war era was elided into partnership, multiracialism and finally non-racialism. The imperatives of decolonization simply overwhelmed the maintenance of trusteeship.