Imperial Eden

Imperial Eden is a collection of poems written mainly by citizens of Victoria, British Columbia, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries about that city. Established in 1843 as a Hudsons Bay Company trading post, Victoria became the capital of the province in 1866. Before the opening of the Panama Canal and the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway, however, its inhabitants were relatively isolated from the rest of North America.
The citys beautiful location and its semi-Mediterranean climate inspired visitors, locals, and poets to describe it as a paradise. But this remote Eden, surrounded by mountains, forest and the sea, was deeply loyal to Great Britain, believing that its far-flung empire was the repository of freedom and many civic and moral virtues. As well, local writers exhibited a militarism usually associated with Prussia.
Eager to defend the British Empire, many of its citizens enthusiastically supported England in the remote South African War (1899-1902) and volunteered for service in the Great War (1914-18). Both wars were seen as a defence of decency and civilization embodied by Britain.This book shows how local poets lauded the beauty, the Britishness of Victoria and the imperial connection, but also how, confronted with the realities of modern warfare, their loyalty to the Empire waned c. 1920.

Professor emeritus in the history department of Brock University, Robert Ratcliffe Taylor was born and raised in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, where he now resides. He has a BA in history and English from the University of British Columbia; an MA in history, also from UBC; and a PhD in History from Stanford University. He has written on the history of German architecture, on the Welland Canal, and on the city of St. Catharines, Ontario. Recently, he has published books and articles on Victoria. He serves as a volunteer docent at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria. He is married to Anne, with whom he has one son, Robert John.