Gareth Knapman
@garethknapman.bsky.social
Historian of C18th & C19th Southeast Asia, South Asia and Australia. Research Fellow at ANU. Main research - provenance reports for repatriation. Quaker.
https://researchportalplus.anu.edu.au/en/persons/gareth-knapman
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4431-6659
https://researchportalplus.anu.edu.au/en/persons/gareth-knapman
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4431-6659
Pinned
Stupid Australian censorship is back. Courtesy of fascists who don’t like to be called fascists. #ozpol #auspol
www.canberratimes.com.au/story/917848...
www.canberratimes.com.au/story/917848...
Police raid Canberra bar over anti-fascism posters
Police taking legal advice on legality of 'satirical' posters.
www.canberratimes.com.au
February 19, 2026 at 12:32 AM
Stupid Australian censorship is back. Courtesy of fascists who don’t like to be called fascists. #ozpol #auspol
www.canberratimes.com.au/story/917848...
www.canberratimes.com.au/story/917848...
Some interesting thoughts on how academic history can develop with #AI #skyhistorians #history
open.substack.com/pub/resobscu...
open.substack.com/pub/resobscu...
What is happening to writing?
"Cognitive debt," Claude Code, and the negative space around AI
open.substack.com
February 18, 2026 at 8:14 PM
Some interesting thoughts on how academic history can develop with #AI #skyhistorians #history
open.substack.com/pub/resobscu...
open.substack.com/pub/resobscu...
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
1/2 Two things that Americans should know about this new US imperialism:
1. Empire is one big forever war. It costs the lives not only of those who have to be beaten into submission but of imperial troops. In the 2nd half of the C19 alone British & colonial …
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
1. Empire is one big forever war. It costs the lives not only of those who have to be beaten into submission but of imperial troops. In the 2nd half of the C19 alone British & colonial …
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Forget Maga. Welcome to Mega: Make Empire Great Again | Mehdi Hasan
Marco Rubio arrived at the Munich security conference with a disturbing message for European governments: empire is great
www.theguardian.com
February 18, 2026 at 8:01 AM
1/2 Two things that Americans should know about this new US imperialism:
1. Empire is one big forever war. It costs the lives not only of those who have to be beaten into submission but of imperial troops. In the 2nd half of the C19 alone British & colonial …
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
1. Empire is one big forever war. It costs the lives not only of those who have to be beaten into submission but of imperial troops. In the 2nd half of the C19 alone British & colonial …
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
I am confident that AOC and I would disagree on some foreign policy issues, but I am also confident she would listen to advisors and so probably just end up doing The Blob stuff, which for all people complain, puts her ahead of three of the last five presidents and exactly even with the other two.
February 18, 2026 at 2:21 AM
I am confident that AOC and I would disagree on some foreign policy issues, but I am also confident she would listen to advisors and so probably just end up doing The Blob stuff, which for all people complain, puts her ahead of three of the last five presidents and exactly even with the other two.
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
Thinking about the impact of LLMs on the way I earn a living - writing - and I wonder what the long-term impact will be.
On the one hand, LLMs do not seem capable of producing *good* writing, in the sense of original, engaging writing (they can manage clarity, though). But they can do *quantity.*
On the one hand, LLMs do not seem capable of producing *good* writing, in the sense of original, engaging writing (they can manage clarity, though). But they can do *quantity.*
February 18, 2026 at 5:43 AM
Thinking about the impact of LLMs on the way I earn a living - writing - and I wonder what the long-term impact will be.
On the one hand, LLMs do not seem capable of producing *good* writing, in the sense of original, engaging writing (they can manage clarity, though). But they can do *quantity.*
On the one hand, LLMs do not seem capable of producing *good* writing, in the sense of original, engaging writing (they can manage clarity, though). But they can do *quantity.*
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
The exception, of course, is in industries reliant on venture capital: there they hand you the money for the first 10% instead of the last.
So it isn't hard to see why the LLM crowd have made this mistake.
So it isn't hard to see why the LLM crowd have made this mistake.
February 18, 2026 at 5:50 AM
The exception, of course, is in industries reliant on venture capital: there they hand you the money for the first 10% instead of the last.
So it isn't hard to see why the LLM crowd have made this mistake.
So it isn't hard to see why the LLM crowd have made this mistake.
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
CFP: Race, Law and Empire
February 16, 2026 at 11:10 AM
CFP: Race, Law and Empire
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
The Truth About Empire paperback can now be pre-ordered from Waterstones online at 25% off.
Leading specialist historians correct misinformation and write truthfully about British colonialism.
Enter FEB26 at the checkout.
#WPreorder
www.waterstones.com/book/the-tru...
Leading specialist historians correct misinformation and write truthfully about British colonialism.
Enter FEB26 at the checkout.
#WPreorder
www.waterstones.com/book/the-tru...
The Truth About Empire by Alan Lester | Waterstones
Buy The Truth About Empire by Alan Lester from Waterstones today! Click and Collect from your local Waterstones or get FREE UK delivery on orders over £25.
www.waterstones.com
February 17, 2026 at 7:52 AM
The Truth About Empire paperback can now be pre-ordered from Waterstones online at 25% off.
Leading specialist historians correct misinformation and write truthfully about British colonialism.
Enter FEB26 at the checkout.
#WPreorder
www.waterstones.com/book/the-tru...
Leading specialist historians correct misinformation and write truthfully about British colonialism.
Enter FEB26 at the checkout.
#WPreorder
www.waterstones.com/book/the-tru...
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
Aukus (noun): pointless wastage of other people's money for reasons you're over-confident you'll never have to explain.
eg. "mum, someone did an aukus in the kitchen again I don't know I was upstairs"
eg. "mum, someone did an aukus in the kitchen again I don't know I was upstairs"
February 18, 2026 at 12:06 AM
Aukus (noun): pointless wastage of other people's money for reasons you're over-confident you'll never have to explain.
eg. "mum, someone did an aukus in the kitchen again I don't know I was upstairs"
eg. "mum, someone did an aukus in the kitchen again I don't know I was upstairs"
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
“Its emissions trading system put a price on carbon and its modernisation fund brought back cash to clean up the energy system.” #auspol #ozpol
“Its emissions trading system put a price on carbon and its modernisation fund brought back cash to clean up the energy system.” #auspol #ozpol
‘The trend is irreversible’: has Romania shattered the link between economic growth and high emissions?
Emissions have plunged 75% since communist times in the birthplace of big oil – but for some the transition has been brutal
www.theguardian.com
February 17, 2026 at 11:35 PM
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
“Its emissions trading system put a price on carbon and its modernisation fund brought back cash to clean up the energy system.” #auspol #ozpol
“Its emissions trading system put a price on carbon and its modernisation fund brought back cash to clean up the energy system.” #auspol #ozpol
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
Romania has decoupled economic growth from pollution faster than anywhere else in EU. Its net greenhouse gas emissions intensity fell 88% between 1990 & 2023, so each euro’s worth of economic activity heats planet 10 times less. Emissions have plunged by 75%. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘The trend is irreversible’: has Romania shattered the link between economic growth and high emissions?
Emissions have plunged 75% since communist times in the birthplace of big oil – but for some the transition has been brutal
www.theguardian.com
February 17, 2026 at 8:53 AM
Romania has decoupled economic growth from pollution faster than anywhere else in EU. Its net greenhouse gas emissions intensity fell 88% between 1990 & 2023, so each euro’s worth of economic activity heats planet 10 times less. Emissions have plunged by 75%. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
Hot off the press and #OpenAccess, see the article 'Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811–1815' by Gareth Knapman: doi.org/10.1080/0308...
Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811–1815
This article examines how sovereignty and treaties functioned as colonial instruments during the British occupation of Java (1811–1815). The British East India Company imposed the language of sover...
doi.org
February 17, 2026 at 11:28 AM
Hot off the press and #OpenAccess, see the article 'Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811–1815' by Gareth Knapman: doi.org/10.1080/0308...
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
We most often tend to think of British treaties providing a veneer of negotiated sovereignty transfer in a late C19 African context. @garethknapman.bsky.social shows here how they provided domestic cover for seizure by force in SE Asia early in the C19 too:
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811–1815
This article examines how sovereignty and treaties functioned as colonial instruments during the British occupation of Java (1811–1815). The British East India Company imposed the language of sover...
www.tandfonline.com
February 17, 2026 at 10:20 AM
We most often tend to think of British treaties providing a veneer of negotiated sovereignty transfer in a late C19 African context. @garethknapman.bsky.social shows here how they provided domestic cover for seizure by force in SE Asia early in the C19 too:
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
40% of WA's prison population being indigenous is a massive failure of policing, racism, lazy politics and a reliance on the carceral state. There are hundreds of cascading consequences we should care about. Liam Alexander Hall's life from now on is not one of them
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02...
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02...
Man who allegedly threw homemade bomb into Invasion Day rally crowd named
The man accused of throwing a bomb at Invasion Day protesters in an alleged terrorism act attack in Perth can be named as Liam Alexander Hall.
www.abc.net.au
February 17, 2026 at 9:02 AM
40% of WA's prison population being indigenous is a massive failure of policing, racism, lazy politics and a reliance on the carceral state. There are hundreds of cascading consequences we should care about. Liam Alexander Hall's life from now on is not one of them
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02...
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02...
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
Deep down inside, you - just like me - wanted this to happen!
Fess up! 🤣
Fess up! 🤣
February 17, 2026 at 5:54 AM
Deep down inside, you - just like me - wanted this to happen!
Fess up! 🤣
Fess up! 🤣
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
Someone left the crypt open again
February 17, 2026 at 3:19 AM
Someone left the crypt open again
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
Available open access, Gareth Knapman's 'Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811-1815', Jnl of Imp & Commonwealth Hist. #Skystorians
Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811–1815
This article examines how sovereignty and treaties functioned as colonial instruments during the British occupation of Java (1811–1815). The British East India Company imposed the language of sover...
www.tandfonline.com
February 16, 2026 at 12:49 PM
Available open access, Gareth Knapman's 'Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811-1815', Jnl of Imp & Commonwealth Hist. #Skystorians
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
My latest article (open access) #history #historian #southeastasia #Imperialism #Colonialism #Decolonisation
#treaties #Raffles #sovereignty
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
#treaties #Raffles #sovereignty
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811–1815
This article examines how sovereignty and treaties functioned as colonial instruments during the British occupation of Java (1811–1815). The British East India Company imposed the language of sover...
www.tandfonline.com
February 13, 2026 at 10:01 PM
My latest article (open access) #history #historian #southeastasia #Imperialism #Colonialism #Decolonisation
#treaties #Raffles #sovereignty
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
#treaties #Raffles #sovereignty
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
reading this (excellent) article generates the reminder that TS Raffles must always be included on the list of Chancers Who Built the British Empire (along w/such 'eminences' as M Thompson, T Warner, R Clive, and CB Rhodes)--harrumph! 😑
February 14, 2026 at 4:45 PM
reading this (excellent) article generates the reminder that TS Raffles must always be included on the list of Chancers Who Built the British Empire (along w/such 'eminences' as M Thompson, T Warner, R Clive, and CB Rhodes)--harrumph! 😑
My latest article (open access) #history #historian #southeastasia #Imperialism #Colonialism #Decolonisation
#treaties #Raffles #sovereignty
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
#treaties #Raffles #sovereignty
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Sovereignty and Treaties as Colonial Instruments: The British Occupation of Java 1811–1815
This article examines how sovereignty and treaties functioned as colonial instruments during the British occupation of Java (1811–1815). The British East India Company imposed the language of sover...
www.tandfonline.com
February 13, 2026 at 10:01 PM
My latest article (open access) #history #historian #southeastasia #Imperialism #Colonialism #Decolonisation
#treaties #Raffles #sovereignty
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
#treaties #Raffles #sovereignty
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
#TonyAbbott is ALP’s best weapon on 7.30. Kiss goodbye to the last urban seats for LNP.
February 13, 2026 at 8:49 AM
#TonyAbbott is ALP’s best weapon on 7.30. Kiss goodbye to the last urban seats for LNP.
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
1901-1933, Germany won 31 Science Nobels; USA only 7.
Then in 1933 the Nazis destroyed the German universities, sending their scientists fleeing, esp. to America.
Germany's never recovered. Since 1945, USA has received 315 Science Nobels, Germany 52.
Now consider what MAGA aims to do to US unis.
Then in 1933 the Nazis destroyed the German universities, sending their scientists fleeing, esp. to America.
Germany's never recovered. Since 1945, USA has received 315 Science Nobels, Germany 52.
Now consider what MAGA aims to do to US unis.
February 12, 2026 at 8:15 AM
1901-1933, Germany won 31 Science Nobels; USA only 7.
Then in 1933 the Nazis destroyed the German universities, sending their scientists fleeing, esp. to America.
Germany's never recovered. Since 1945, USA has received 315 Science Nobels, Germany 52.
Now consider what MAGA aims to do to US unis.
Then in 1933 the Nazis destroyed the German universities, sending their scientists fleeing, esp. to America.
Germany's never recovered. Since 1945, USA has received 315 Science Nobels, Germany 52.
Now consider what MAGA aims to do to US unis.
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
I genuinely cannot believe the degree to which we are pissing away this generational breakthrough, even given the fuckmuppets who are involved www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
FDA declines to review Moderna's mRNA flu shot
Under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Food and Drug Administration has taken an aggressive stance against mRNA technology.
www.nbcnews.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:32 PM
I genuinely cannot believe the degree to which we are pissing away this generational breakthrough, even given the fuckmuppets who are involved www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
Robert M. Hutchins in 1952. How idealistic the world looked. Something like that vision of freedom to lean and think is certainly needed now.
February 10, 2026 at 11:28 AM
Robert M. Hutchins in 1952. How idealistic the world looked. Something like that vision of freedom to lean and think is certainly needed now.
Reposted by Gareth Knapman
We knew from the moment we heard it that “social cohesion” would be one of those Orwellian terms which would be used to cover all manner of state sanctioned abuse and deprivation of civic freedoms.
It fuels the very unrest it pretends to seek to quell.
It fuels the very unrest it pretends to seek to quell.
February 10, 2026 at 12:13 AM
We knew from the moment we heard it that “social cohesion” would be one of those Orwellian terms which would be used to cover all manner of state sanctioned abuse and deprivation of civic freedoms.
It fuels the very unrest it pretends to seek to quell.
It fuels the very unrest it pretends to seek to quell.