British Empire

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British Empire
Flag of the United Kingdom of British Empire
Flag of the United Kingdom
All areas of the world that were ever part of the British Empire. Current British
Overseas Territories have their names underlined in red.
All areas of the world that were ever part of the British Empire. Current British
Overseas Territories have their names underlined in red.
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and
other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor
states. It originated with the overseas possessions and trading posts established
by England between the late 16th and early 18th centuries. At its height, it was
the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global
power.[1] By 1913, the British Empire held sway over 412 million people, 23% of the
world population at the time,[2] and by 1920, it covered 35,500,000 km2 (13,700,000
sq mi),[3] 24% of the Earth's total land area.[4] As a result, its political,
legal, linguistic and cultural legacy is widespread. At the peak of its power, the
phrase the empire on which the sun never sets was often used to describe the
British Empire, because its expanse around the globe meant that the sun was always
shining on at least one of its territories.

During the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal and Spain
pioneered European exploration of the globe, and in the process established large
overseas empires. Envious of the great wealth these empires generated,[5] England,
France, and the Netherlands began to establish colonies and trade networks of their
own in the Americas and Asia.[6] A series of wars in the 17th and 18th centuries
with the Netherlands and France left England and then, following union between
England and Scotland in 1707, Great Britain, the dominant colonial power in North
America. It then became the dominant power in the Indian subcontinent after the
East India Company's conquest of Mughal Bengal at the Battle of Plassey in 1757.

The independence of the Thirteen Colonies in North America in 1783 after the
American War of Independence caused Britain to lose some of its oldest and most
populous colonies. British attention soon turned towards Asia, Africa, and the
Pacific. After the defeat of France in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
(17921815), Britain emerged as the principal naval and imperial power of the 19th
century.[7] Unchallenged at sea, British dominance was later described as Pax
Britannica (British Peace), a period of relative peace in Europe and the world
(18151914) during which the British Empire became the global hegemon and adopted
the role of global policeman.[8][9][10][11] In the early 19th century, the
Industrial Revolution began to transform Britain; by the time of the Great
Exhibition in 1851 the country was described as the workshop of the world.[12] The
British Empire expanded to include most of India, large parts of Africa and many
other territories throughout the world. Alongside the formal control that Britain
exerted over its own colonies, its dominance of much of world trade meant that it
effectively controlled the economies of many regions, such as Asia and Latin
America.[13][14]

In Britain, political attitudes favoured free trade and laissez-faire policies and
a gradual widening of the voting franchise. During the 19th Century, Britain's
population increased at a dramatic rate, accompanied by rapid urbanisation, which
caused significant social and economic stresses.[15] To seek new markets and
sources of raw materials, the Conservative Party under Benjamin Disraeli launched a
period of imperialist expansion in Egypt, South Africa, and elsewhere. Canada,
Australia, and New Zealand became self-governing dominions.[16]

By the start of the 20th century, Germany and the United States had begun to
challenge Britain's economic lead. Subsequent military and economic tensions
between Britain and Germany were major causes of the First World War, during which
Britain relied heavily upon its empire. The conflict placed enormous strain on the
military, financial and manpower resources of Britain. Although the British Empire
achieved its largest territorial extent immediately after World War I, Britain was
no longer the world's pre-eminent industrial or military power. In the Second World
War, Britain's colonies in Southeast Asia were occupied by Japan. Despite the final
victory of Britain and its allies, the damage to British prestige helped to
accelerate the decline of the empire. India, Britain's most valuable and populous
possession, achieved independence as part of a larger decolonisation movement in
which Britain granted independence to most territories of the empire. The transfer
of Hong Kong to China in 1997 marked for many the end of the British Empire.[17]
[18][19][20] Fourteen overseas territories remain under British sovereignty.

After independence, many former British colonies joined the Commonwealth of

Nations, a free association of independent states. The United Kingdom is now one of
16 Commonwealth nations, a grouping known informally as the Commonwealth realms,
that share a monarch, Queen Elizabeth II.

Contents [hide]
1 Origins (14971583)
1.1 Plantations of Ireland
2 First British Empire (15831783)
2.1 Americas, Africa and the slave trade
2.2 Rivalry with the Netherlands in Asia
2.3 Global conflicts with France
2.4 Loss of the Thirteen American Colonies
3 Rise of the Second British Empire (17831815)
3.1 Exploration of the Pacific
3.2 War with Napoleonic France
3.3 Abolition of slavery
4 Britain's imperial century (18151914)
4.1 East India Company in Asia
4.2 Rivalry with Russia
4.3 Cape to Cairo
4.4 Changing status of the white colonies
5 World wars (19141945)
5.1 First World War
5.2 Inter-war period
5.3 Second World War
6 Decolonisation and decline (19451997)
6.1 Initial disengagement
6.2 Suez and its aftermath
6.3 Wind of change
6.4 End of empire
7 Economy
8 Demographics
8.1 Population
8.2 Ethnicity
8.3 Religion
9 Legacy
10 See also
11 References
12 Further reading
13 External links