This course traces the social, political, and cultural development of Britain from the early 19th century to the present. Topics include working-class life during the Industrial Revolution, political reform and the widening of the franchise, the expansion and contraction of the British Empire, the impact of the two world wars, and the emergence of postwar affluence and "permissiveness." The course concludes with discussion of Thatcherite conservatism and the rise of Tony Blair's "New" Labour Party.