The Colonial Policy of Lord John Russell’s Administration

Henry Grey, 3rd Earl Grey (1802-1894) served as Great Britain’s Secretary of State for War and the Colonies during the 1846 to 1852 administration of Prime Minister Lord John Russell. Following his time in office, Grey composed the two-volume Colonial Policy (1853) as a means of illuminating the actions and policies of the government he helped lead. Written in the form of letters addressed to Lord John himself, its goal was to give readers curious about colonial policy ‘the means of knowing the real character and scope of those measures, and the grounds upon which they were adopted’. In this second volume, Grey focuses on Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and Africa before offering some concluding observations. Seen in its entirety, this ‘insider’ work remains an important resource for students of colonial policy during this period of the expansion of British rule.