“The skewed perspectives in my A-level curriculum are staggering. Until that changes, harmful ideas about race and migration will live on Astrid Barltrop is the winner of the The Guardian Foundation’s 2026 Emerging Voices award (16-18 category) and a year 13 student in Oxfordshire “Lord Cromer was a successful consul-general of Egypt. To what extent do you agree?” I read this essay prompt in my A-level history class, wondering what “successful” means. Successful in forcing austerity on Egyptians to line the pockets of British financiers? Successful in civilising a country of people he viewed as “ subversive demagogues ” and “ subject races ”? Thankfully my essay could argue that Cromer wasn’t successful if I tried to frame “success” in terms of how he impacted the Egyptian population: he imposed an unfair land tax system and restricted access to education. But even then I had to write it under the implicit assumption that colonial rulers can be successful for a population – it’s just that this one wasn’t. Why doesn’t discussion around Cromer – and the values he embodied – instead centre on the right to rule? Continue reading...
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