Complaining that far too many historians treat German 19th century imperialism as an essentially marginal affair, Fitzpatrick (international history, Flinders U., Australia) argues that allowing such an omission is to overlook a crucial current of sociopolitical development that was, at the time, "perceived as playing a critical role in the development of a united, economically progressive, and politically liberal Germany," whereas integrating German imperialism into one's historical understanding reveals it as a central aspect of the liberal narrating of the nation state. His study explores how liberals sought to establish liberal imperialism as the hegemonic political discourse of Germany, seeking to both demonstrate continuity within liberal imperialist discourse from 1848 until 1884 and show the availability of a colonial realm as the foundation of German liberal identity. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)