This book is more than a description of the imperial spread of public school games: it is a consideration of hegemony and patronage, ideals and idealism, educational values and aspirations, cultural assimilation and adaptation, and perhaps most fascinating of all, the dissemination throughout the empire of the hugely influential moralistic ideology athleticism. The author's purpose is to capture some of the more fascinating aspects of this extraordinary and sometimes whimsical story of the spread of a moral imperative; to recall for modern sceptics the period certainties of propagandist, proselytizer and publicist; to observe 'manliness' viewed as a valuable political expedient ensuring the retention of the most precious jewel in the Imperial Crown; and lastly, to follow with more than a little admiration in the footsteps of English upper-class missionaries, reliving their energetic and well-meaning efforts to win souls for Christ on far-flung and wide-spread imperial playing-fields.