Summary: Publisher Summary 1 Kirk-Greene (emeritus fellow, St. Anthony's College) discusses how Britain's Colonial and Overseas Civil Service grew with her overseas and imperial expansion and could be identified with the great age of imperial power. He tells the story of that Service and of the men and women from Britain (and increasingly from former dependant territories) who ran it, affecting the lives of over 600 million people across the globe. He also provides a history of how awareness grew in successive British governments of the responsibilities of empire. Published to mark the end of Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Services and to commemorate the centenary of the Corona Club in 1999. Distributed by St. Martin's Press. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)   Publisher Summary 2 Published to commemorate the centenary of the Corona Club in 1999 and to mark the end of Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Services, this is the only institutional history of the Colonial Service to appear for over sixty years. Anthony Kirk-Greene has combined an extensive use of archival records and historical documentation with an unparalleled knowledge of secondary sources to produce a detailed, authoritative narrative of this most important era. This work will appeal to all former members of the overseas civil services and will also attract academic historians with an interest in Britain's Colonial Service.