From Suez Purchase to Suez Crisis

The Rise and Fall of the British Empire

Beginning in 1875, Britain spread its institutions, culture, and language throughout a vast territorial empire that extended into North America, the Caribbean, areas of Africa, the entire Indian subcontinent, Australasia, territories in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, and parts of the Middle East. For many Britons, the empire was a source of pride and an essential part of their national identity. Others feared imperialism was a betrayal of their liberal values of freedom.

By 1956, the British Empire had lost India and suffered humiliation at the hands of Egyptian nationalists during the Suez Crisis. Historian Richard Aldous examines how British rule changed the lives of those in the colonies, as well as how the empire changed the British themselves and led to the creation of the multiracial, multicultural society that Britain is today.

Tues., Sept. 12, 6:30 p.m.; CODE 1H0-784; Members $20; Nonmembers $25

An Alphabet of Greek Philosophers

Thinkers from Anaximander to Zeno

Much of how we think and what we think about is constructed on foundations shaped by the ancient Greeks. We’ve all heard of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, who formed an incomparable trinity of askers of questions—often without answers—and theories about humans, the world around us and how we should function in it, and about what might be beyond our world.

But important philosophers thought and questioned and theorized before Socrates, such as Thales, Anaximander and Anaximenes, and equally important ones followed Aristotle, including Epicurus and Zeno. Author and Georgetown University professor Ori Z. Soltes, considers how these brilliant minds addressed the varied layers of reality. He also examines why their philosophical legacies remain exciting, and sometimes painful, in their relevance to us more than two millennia after these men strolled through Athens and other cities in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Wed., July 12, 6:30 p.m.; CODE 1H0-776; Members $20; Nonmembers $25

From Millionaires Row to Embassy Row

Massachusetts Avenue in the Gilded Age

Washington’s movers and shakers once strolled the streets of Dupont Circle, where Massachusetts Avenue was the city’s most fashionable residential address. Heiresses, industrial magnates, newspaper tycoons, and members of the political elite built opulent mansions along the avenue, all to impress Washington society. After the Great Depression, many of these magnificent mansions were converted into embassies, social clubs, and offices.

Carolyn Muraskin, founder of DC Design Tours, offers fascinating stories of the capital’s ruling class and their links to the history of Washington’s premier promenade. Highlighted locations include Dupont Circle; the Walsh-McLean House; the home of Alice Roosevelt Longworth; Anderson House; the Edward H. Everett House; the studios of Alice Pike Barney and Edward Lind Morse; and the Phillips Collection.

Tues., July 18, 7 p.m.; CODE 1NV-040; Member $25; Nonmembers $30

Related tour: Dupont Circle and Embassy Row (see p. 54)

America’s Main Street: Pennsylvania Avenue

America’s most famous avenue, connecting the White House and U.S. Capitol, hasn’t always been a grand thoroughfare. Pennsylvania Avenue and the surrounding neighborhood have been renovated, re-imagined, and revitalized over and over again. From Murder Bay, a center of crime, gambling, and prostitution to the stately boulevard of presidential inaugurations, Carolyn Muraskin unfolds the story of a metamorphosis along America’s Main Street.

Highlights include the White House; the Eisenhower Executive Office Building; Blair House; Federal Triangle; the Willard Hotel; the Old Post Office Tower; the J. Edgar Hoover Building; the U.S. Navy Memorial; the National Archives; and the Temperance Fountain.

Wed., Aug. 16, 7 p.m.; CODE 1NV-044; Members $25; Nonmembers $30

Washington’s Neighborhoods: The Soul of the City

Locals in the capital city often make a distinction between “Washington” and “D.C.” Washington is the federal city—grand government buildings, monuments, memorials, and the icons of America’s capital. But D.C. is where the real soul of the city lives. Each of the District’s diverse neighborhoods has its own unique character, rooted in everything from the well-preserved 18th- and 19th-century architecture of Georgetown to the up-to-the-minute transformation of the Southwest Waterfront. Carolyn Muraskin explores far beyond the Mall to find the real history of the District revealed in neighborhoods that also include LeDroit Park, Dupont Circle, and Mount Pleasant.

Wed., Sept. 6, 12–1:30 p.m.; CODE 1NV-048; Members $25; Nonmembers $30

Read more about programs in this guide on our website. Search by code or date. Expanded program descriptions, presenters’ information, and more at SmithsonianAssociates.org.