The British Empire was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. The Acts of Union were a pair of Parliamentary Acts passed during 1706 and 1707 by the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland to put into This article provides a list of the largest Empires in world history. A great power is a Nation or State that has the ability to exert its influence on a global scale It was a product of the European age of discovery, which began with the maritime explorations of the 15th century, that sparked the era of the European colonial empires. The Age of Discovery or Age of Exploration was a period from the early 15th century and continuing into the early 17th century during which Europeans explored By 1921, the British Empire held sway over a population of about 458 million people, approximately one-quarter of the world's population. [1] It covered about 36. 7 million km² (14. 2 million square miles),[2] about a quarter of Earth's total land area. As a result, its legacy is widespread, in legal and governmental systems, economic practice, militarily, educational systems, sports, and in the global spread of the English language. Common law refers to law and the corresponding legal system developed through decisions of courts and similar tribunals rather than through legislative statutes or executive The Westminster system is a democratic Parliamentary system of Government modelled after the British government (the Parliament of the United The Armed forces of the United Kingdom, commonly known as the British Armed Forces or Her Majesty's Armed Forces, and sometimes legally the Armed Forces Education encompasses both the Teaching and Learning of Knowledge, proper conduct, and technical competency English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States At the peak of its power, it was often said that "the sun never sets on the British Empire" because its span across the globe ensured that the sun was always shining on at least one of its numerous colonies or subject nations. This article is about the history the use of this phrase For more general information see Empire, Imperialism and articles on the various historical entities This article is about a type of political territory For other uses see Colony (disambiguation. [3]
During the five decades following World War II, most of the territories of the Empire became independent. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Many went on to join the Commonwealth of Nations, a free association of independent states.
Origins (1497–1583)
The foundations of the British Empire were laid at a time before the Kingdom of Great Britain existed as a single sovereign state, when England and Scotland were separate kingdoms. The Kingdom of Great Britain, also known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain, was a State in northwest Europe, in existence from 1707 to 1800 The Kingdom of England was a State (927-1707 located in Western Europe dating from the ninth or tenth century to the early eighteenth century when it was legally The Kingdom of Scotland ( Gaelic: Rìoghachd na h-Alba, Scots: Kinrick o Scotland) was a State in northwest Europe In 1496 King Henry VII of England, following the successes of Portugal and Spain in overseas exploration, commissioned John Cabot to lead a voyage to discover a route to Asia via the North Atlantic. The Portuguese Empire was the earliest and longest lived of the modern European colonial empires spanning almost six centuries from the capture of Ceuta The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries Giovanni Caboto ( c 1450 - c 1498 known in English as John Cabot, was an Italian Navigator and explorer commonly credited as the Cabot sailed in 1497, and though he successfully made landfall on the coast of Canada (mistakenly believing, like Christopher Columbus five years earlier, that he had reached Asia[4]), no attempt at establishing a colony was made, and the voyage was unprofitable. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Christopher Columbus (1451 &ndash May 20 1506 was an Italian Navigator, colonizer This article is about a type of political territory For other uses see Colony (disambiguation. Cabot led another voyage to the Americas the following year but nothing was heard from his ships again. In 1551, the Company of Merchant Adventurers, later renamed the Muscovy Company, was founded by Richard Chancellor and others, to open trade with Russia and probe the Northeast Passage to China. The Muscovy Company (also called Russian Company or Muscovy Trading Company, Russian: Московская компания) was a Richard Chancellor (d 1556 was an English Explorer and Navigator; the first to penetrate to the White Sea and establish relations with Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The Northern Sea Route (Се́верный морско́й путь Severniy morskoy put’) is a Shipping lane from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National
Enmity and rivalry between Roman Catholic Spain and Protestant England during the Anglo-Spanish Wars led to the English Crown sanctioning English privateers such as John Hawkins and Sir Francis Drake to engage in piratical attacks on Spanish ports in the Americas and shipping that was returning across the Atlantic, laden with treasure from the New World. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The Anglo–Spanish War (1585–1604 was an intermittent conflict between the kingdoms of Spain and England, which was never formally declared A privateer was a private Warship authorized by a country's Government by Letters of marque to attack foreign shipping Admiral Sir John Hawkins (also spelled as John Hawkyns) ( Plymouth 1532 &ndash November 12 1595) was an English shipbuilder Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral, (c 1540 &ndash 27 January 1595 was an English Privateer, navigator, Slaver, and politician The New World is one of the names used for the non-Eurasian/non-African parts of the Earth specifically the Americas and Australia. At the same time, influential writers such as Richard Hakluyt and John Dee (who was the first to use the term "British Empire"[5]) were beginning to press for the establishment of England's own empire, to rival those of Spain and Portugal. Richard Hakluyt (, or) (c 1552 or 1553 – 23 November 1616 was an English writer John Dee (13 July 1527 – 1608 or 1609 was a noted English mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, occultist By this time, Spain was firmly entrenched in the Americas, Portugal had established a string of trading posts and forts from the coasts of Africa and Brazil to China, and France had begun to settle the Saint Lawrence River, later to become New France. Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Saint Lawrence River (in French: fleuve Saint-Laurent; Kahnawáˀkye in Tuscarora, Kaniatarowanenneh meaning big waterway The Viceroyalty of New France (Nouvelle-France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period extending from the exploration of the
Plantations of Ireland
Though a relative latecomer to overseas colonisation in comparison to Spain and Portugal, England had been engaged in a form of domestic colonisation[6] in Ireland that had begun during Norman times and accelerated with the Tudor re-conquest of Ireland and Cromwellian conquest. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world The Norman invasion of Ireland was a Norman military expedition to Ireland that took place on 1 May 1169 at the behest of Dermot MacMurrough The Cromwellian conquest of Ireland (1649-53 refers to the re-conquest of Ireland by the forces of the English Parliament, led by Oliver Cromwell [7] The Plantations of Ireland, run by English colonists, were a precursor to the overseas Empire,[8][9] and several people involved in these projects also had a hand in the early colonisation of North America, particularly a group known as the "West Country men",[10] which included Sir Humphrey Gilbert, Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Francis Drake, Sir John Hawkins, Sir Richard Grenville and Sir Ralph Lane. Plantations in 16th and 17th century Ireland were established throughout the country by the confiscation of lands occupied by Gaelic clans and Hiberno-Norman dynasties Sir Humphrey Gilbert (c 1539 &ndash 9 September 1583was an English murderer Adventurer, Explorer, Member of parliament, and soldier from Devon Sir Walter Raleigh or Ralegh (c 1552 – 29 October 1618 was a famed English writer Poet, Soldier, Courtier and Explorer Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral, (c 1540 &ndash 27 January 1595 was an English Privateer, navigator, Slaver, and politician Admiral Sir John Hawkins (also spelled as John Hawkyns) ( Plymouth 1532 &ndash November 12 1595) was an English shipbuilder Sir Richard Grenville ( June 6, 1542 &ndash September 10, 1591) (sp Ralph Lane (1530 - 1603 was an English Explorer of the Elizabethan era. After the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, Irish Catholics were dispossessed of their land, and replaced with a Protestant landowning class from England and Scotland. The Irish people ( Irish: Muintir na hÉireann, na hÉireannaigh, na Gaeil) are a Western European Ethnic group who originate The new Protestant ruling class was known as the Protestant Ascendancy. The Protestant Ascendancy is a convenient phrase used when referring to the political economic and social domination of the former Kingdom of Ireland by a minority of great Catholics and, to a lesser extent, Presbyterians were discriminated against under the Penal Laws. The Penal Laws in Ireland (Na Péindlíthe refers to a series of laws imposed under British rule that sought to discriminate against Roman Catholics and Protestant dissenters in favour
"First British Empire" (1583–1783)
In 1578 Sir Humphrey Gilbert was granted a patent by Queen Elizabeth I for discovery and overseas exploration, and set sail for the West Indies with the intention of first engaging in piracy and on the return voyage, establishing a colony in North America. Sir Humphrey Gilbert (c 1539 &ndash 9 September 1583was an English murderer Adventurer, Explorer, Member of parliament, and soldier from Devon A patent is a set of Exclusive rights granted by a State to an inventor or his assignee for a fixed period of time in exchange for a disclosure of an The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting The expedition failed at the outset due to bad weather. In 1583 Gilbert embarked on a second attempt, on this occasion to the island of Newfoundland where he formally claimed for England the harbour of St. Newfoundland — ˈn(jufənˌlænd (Terre-Neuve Talamh an Éisc — is a large island 15 km off the east coast of John's, though no settlers were left behind to colonise it. Gilbert did not survive the return journey to England, and was succeeded by his half-brother, Walter Raleigh, who was granted his own patent by Elizabeth in 1584, in the same year founding the colony of Roanoke on the coast of present-day North Carolina. Sir Walter Raleigh or Ralegh (c 1552 – 29 October 1618 was a famed English writer Poet, Soldier, Courtier and Explorer North Carolina ( is a state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States The colony did not survive due to lack of supplies.
In 1603, King James VI of Scotland ascended to the English throne and in 1604 negotiated the Treaty of London, ending hostilities with Spain. James VI and I (19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625 was King of Scotland as James VI, and King of England and King of Ireland as James The Treaty of London, signed in 1604, concluded the twenty year Anglo-Spanish War. The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries Now at peace with its main rival, English attention shifted from preying on other nations' colonial infrastructure to the business of establishing its own overseas colonies. [11] Although its beginnings were hit-and-miss, the British Empire began to take shape during the early 17th century, with the English settlement of North America and the smaller islands of the Caribbean, and the establishment of a private company, the English East India Company, to trade with Asia. The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting The Honourable East India Company ( HEIC) referred to most commonly as the East India Company, also historically and colloquially as John Company, or This period, until the loss of the Thirteen Colonies after the United States Declaration of Independence towards the end of the 18th century, has subsequently been referred to as the "First British Empire". The Thirteen Colonies were part of what became known as British America, a name that was used by Great Britain until the Treaty of Paris (1783 recognized the The United States Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4 1776 announcing that the thirteen American colonies then [12]
The Americas
The Caribbean initially provided England's most important and lucrative colonies,[13] but not before several attempts at colonisation failed. Newfoundland — ˈn(jufənˌlænd (Terre-Neuve Talamh an Éisc — is a large island 15 km off the east coast of Nova Scotia (ˌnəʊvəˈskəʊʃə ( Latin for New Scotland; Alba Nuadh Nouvelle-Écosse is a Canadian province located on Canada 's The Thirteen Colonies were part of what became known as British America, a name that was used by Great Britain until the Treaty of Paris (1783 recognized the Ba (officially The Bermuda Islands or The Somers Isles) is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an independent sovereign English -speaking country consisting of two thousand Cays and British Honduras was the former name of what is now the independent nation of Belize and was a British colony on the east coast of Central Jamaica (ˈdʒəˈmeɪkə} is an Island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length and as much as in width situated in the Caribbean Sea. The Lesser Antilles, also known as the Caribbees, are part of the Antilles, which together with the Bahamas and Greater Antilles form the The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting An attempt to establish a colony in Guiana in 1604 lasted only two years, and failed in its main objective to find gold deposits. British Guiana was the name of the British Colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana. Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 [14] Colonies in St Lucia (1605) and Grenada (1609) also rapidly folded, but settlements were successfully established in St. Kitts (1624), Barbados (1627) and Nevis (1628). Saint Lucia (ˌseɪnt ˈluːʃɪə is an Island nation in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Grenada (grɪˈneɪdə is an Island nation that includes the southern Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea. Saint Kitts (also known more formally as Saint Christopher Island ( Saint-Christophe in French) is an Island in the West Indies Barbados ( Portuguese word for bearded-ones, bɑrˈbeɪdoʊz -dɒs situated just east of the Caribbean Sea, is an independent Island nation NEVIS, or New Exhaust Valve & Intake System, is a type of Internal combustion engine developed by Cesare Bortone in cooperation with the University The colonies soon adopted the system of sugar plantations successfully used by the Portuguese in Brazil, which depended on slave labour, and—at first—Dutch ships, to sell the slaves and buy the sugar. Fundamentally a plantation is usually a large Farm or estate, especially in a tropical or semitropical country on which Cotton, Tobacco |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another To ensure that the increasingly healthy profits of this trade remained in English hands, Parliament decreed in 1651 that only English ships would be able to ply their trade in English colonies. This led to hostilities with the United Dutch Provinces—a series of Anglo-Dutch Wars—which would eventually strengthen England's position in the Americas at the expense of the Dutch. "United Netherlands" redirects here For the "Kingdom of the United Netherlands" see United Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Anglo-Dutch Wars ( Dutch: Engels-Nederlandse Oorlogen or Engelse Zeeoorlogen) were fought in the 17th and 18th centuries between England In 1655 England annexed the island of Jamaica from the Spanish, and in 1666 succeeded in colonising the Bahamas. Jamaica (ˈdʒəˈmeɪkə} is an Island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length and as much as in width situated in the Caribbean Sea. The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an independent sovereign English -speaking country consisting of two thousand Cays and
England's first permanent overseas settlement was founded in 1607 in Jamestown, led by Captain John Smith and managed by the Virginia Company, an offshoot of which established a colony on Bermuda, which had been discovered in 1609. Jamestown, located on Jamestown Island in the Virginia Colony, was founded on May 14 1607 Captain Sir John Smith (c January 1580– June 21 1631) Admiral of New England was an English Soldier, Sailor The London Company (also called the Charter of the Virginia Company of London) was an English Joint stock company established by royal charter by Ba (officially The Bermuda Islands or The Somers Isles) is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. The Company's charter was revoked in 1624 and direct control was assumed by the crown, thereby founding the Colony of Virginia. The Colony of Virginia (also known frequently as the Virginia Colony and occasionally as the Dominion and Colony of Virginia) was the English colony The Newfoundland Company was created in 1610 with the aim of creating a permanent settlement on Newfoundland, but was largely unsuccessful. The London and Bristol Company came about in the early 1600’s when English merchants had begun to express an interest in the Newfoundland fishery In 1620, Plymouth was founded as a haven for puritan religious separatists, later known as the Pilgrims. Plymouth Colony (sometimes New Plymouth or The Old Colony) was an English colonial venture in North America from 1620 until 1691 A Puritan of 16th and 17th century England was an associate of any number of religious groups advocating for more "purity" of Worship and Doctrine, Pilgrims, or Pilgrim Fathers (or Pilgrim Mothers) is a name commonly applied to the early settlers of the Plymouth Colony in present-day Plymouth Fleeing from religious persecution would become the motive of many English would-be colonists to risk the arduous trans-Atlantic voyage: Maryland was founded as a haven for Roman Catholics (1634), Rhode Island (1636) as a colony tolerant of all religions and Connecticut (1639) for congregationalists. The term transatlantic refers to something occurring all the way across the Atlantic Ocean. The Province of Maryland was an English colony in North America that existed from 1632 until 1776 when it joined the other twelve of the Thirteen colonies Providence Plantation was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a theologian independent preacher and linguist on land gifted by the Narragansett sachem Canonicus Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently The Province of Carolina was founded in 1663. The Province of Carolina from 1663 to 1712, was a North American British proprietary Colony, controlled by eight English noblemen In 1664, England gained control of the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam (renamed New York) via negotiations following the Second Anglo-Dutch War, in exchange for Suriname. New Amsterdam (Nieuw Amsterdam was a 17th-century Dutch colonial settlement that later became New York City. The City of New York The Anglo-Dutch Wars ( Dutch: Engels-Nederlandse Oorlogen or Engelse Zeeoorlogen) were fought in the 17th and 18th centuries between England Suriname ( Dutch: Suriname; Sranan Tongo: Sranan) officially the Republic of Suriname (traditionally spelled Surinam by . In 1681, the colony of Pennsylvania was founded by William Penn. The Province of Pennsylvania, also known as Pennsylvania Colony, was a North American colony granted to William Penn on March 4, 1681 William Penn ( October 14, 1644 – July 30, 1718) was founder and "Absolute Proprietor" of the Province of Pennsylvania,
In 1695 the Scottish parliament granted a charter to the Company of Scotland, which proceeded in 1698 to establish a settlement on the isthmus of Panama, with a view to building a canal there. The Company of Scotland Trading to Africa and the Indies, also called the Scottish Darien Company, was an overseas trading company created by an act of the Parliament of The Isthmus of Panama, also historically known as the Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Canals are artificial channels for water There are two types of canals water conveyance canals which are used for the conveyance and delivery of water and Waterways Besieged by neighbouring Spanish colonists of New Granada, as well as by malaria, the colony was abandoned two years later. Malaria is a vector -borne Infectious disease caused by Protozoan Parasites It is widespread in tropical and subtropical regions including The Darien scheme was a financial disaster for Scotland as a quarter of Scottish capital was lost in the enterprise. The Darien scheme (colony of New Caledonia was an unsuccessful attempt by the Kingdom of Scotland to establish a Colony on the Isthmus of Panama in the This episode is viewed as a major factor in persuading the Scottish Parliament to accept the terms of the Treaty of Union 1707 as the new Kingdom of Great Britain would take responsibility for some of Scotland's debts. The Acts of Union were a pair of Parliamentary Acts passed during 1706 and 1707 by the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland to put into The Kingdom of Great Britain, also known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain, was a State in northwest Europe, in existence from 1707 to 1800
The American colonies, which provided tobacco, cotton, and rice in the south and naval materiel and furs in the north, were less financially successful than those of the Caribbean, but had large areas of good agricultural land and attracted far larger numbers of English emigrants who were also more favorable of temperate climates. Tobacco is an Agricultural product recognized as an addictive drug processed from the fresh Leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. Cotton is a soft staple Fibre that grows around the seeds of the cotton plant ( Gossypium sp Rice is a Cereal foodstuff which forms an important part of the diet of many people worldwide and as such it is a staple food for many Materiel (from the French "matériel" for equipment or hardware related to the word Material) is a term used in English to refer to the The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal Fur. [15] The American Revolution resulted in de-facto self-government by 1775 for the Thirteen Colonies, which eventually declared their independence in 1776 to create the United States of America. In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" The Thirteen Colonies were part of what became known as British America, a name that was used by Great Britain until the Treaty of Paris (1783 recognized the The United States Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4 1776 announcing that the thirteen American colonies then The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The new nation was forced to defend that declaration against Britain in the American Revolutionary War, with victory on the battlefield resulting in recognition of independence in the Treaty of Paris (1783). In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" The Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, and approved by the Congress of the Confederation on January 14, 1784, formally In the end, this became the first successful colonial war of independence. The historical phenomenon of Colonisation is one that stretches around the globe and across time including such disparate peoples as the Hittites, the Incas and the [16]
From the outset, slavery was a vital economic component of the British Empire in the Americas. As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another Until the abolition of the slave trade in 1807, Britain was responsible for the transportation of 3. 5 million African slaves to the Americas, a third of all slaves transported across the Atlantic. The Atlantic Slave trade, also known as the transatlantic slave trade, was the trade of African people supplied to the Colonies of the New World [17] To facilitate this trade, forts were established on the coast of West Africa, such as James Island, Accra and Bunce Island. West Africa or Western Africa is the Westernmost Region of the African Continent. James Island is an Island in the Gambia River, 30km from the river mouth and near Juffureh in the country of The Gambia. Jamestown (or James Town) is a district in the city of Accra, Ghana. Bunce Island (also spelled "Bence" "Bense" or "Bance" at different periods is the site of an 18th century British slave castle in the Republic of Sierra In the British Caribbean, the percentage of the population comprising blacks rose from 25% in 1650 to around 80% in 1780, and in the Thirteen Colonies from 10% to 40% over the same period (the majority in the south). The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting [18] For the slave traders, the trade was extremely profitable, and became a major economic mainstay for such western British cities as Bristol and Liverpool, which formed the third corner of the so-called triangular trade with Africa and the Americas. Bristol ( ˈbrɪstəl is a city, Unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West England, west of London Liverpool ( is a City and Metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary Triangular trade is a historical term indicating Trade between three ports or regions However, for the transportees, harsh and unhygienic conditions on the slaving ships and poor diets meant that the average mortality rate during the middle passage was one in seven. Middle Passage refers to the forcible passage of African people from Africa to the New World, as part of the Atlantic slave trade. The profits of the slave trade and of West Indian plantations amounted to 5% of the British economy at the time of the Industrial Revolution. The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting This is a history of the economy of the United Kingdom and of the countries that joined to form it in 1707 and 1801 The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the [19]
Asia
At the end of the 16th century, England and the Netherlands began to challenge Portugal's monopoly of trade with Asia, forming private joint-stock companies to finance the voyages—the English (later British) and Dutch East India Companies, chartered in 1600 and 1602 respectively. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. A joint stock company (JSC is a type of business entity it is a type of Corporation or Partnership. The Honourable East India Company ( HEIC) referred to most commonly as the East India Company, also historically and colloquially as John Company, or The Dutch East India Company ( Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie or VOC in old-spelling Dutch, literally "United East Indian The primary aim of these companies was to tap into the lucrative spice trade, and they focused their efforts on the source, the Indonesian archipelago, and an important hub in the trade network, India. Spice trade is a commercial activity of ancient origin which involves the merchandising of Spices and Herbs. An archipelago (ɑrkəˈpɛləgoʊ is a chain or cluster of Islands The word archipelago literally means "chief Sea " from Italian India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The close proximity of London and Amsterdam across the North Sea and intense rivalry between England and the Netherlands inevitably led to conflict between the two companies, with the Dutch gaining the upper hand in the Moluccas (previously a Portuguese stronghold) after the withdrawal of the English in 1622, and the English enjoying more success in India, at Surat, after the establishment of a factory in 1613. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Amsterdam (pronounced) is the capital and largest city of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland in the west The North Sea is a marginal, Epeiric sea of the Atlantic Ocean on the European Continental shelf. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands The Maluku Islands (also known as the Moluccas, Moluccan Islands, the Spice Islands or simply Maluku) are an Archipelago Though England would ultimately eclipse the Netherlands as a colonial power, in the short term the Netherlands's more advanced financial system[20] and the three Anglo-Dutch Wars of the 17th century left it with a stronger position in Asia. The Anglo-Dutch Wars ( Dutch: Engels-Nederlandse Oorlogen or Engelse Zeeoorlogen) were fought in the 17th and 18th centuries between England Hostilities ceased after the Glorious Revolution of 1688 when the Dutch William of Orange ascended the English throne, bringing peace between the Netherlands and England. The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, was the overthrow of King James II of England (VII of Scotland in 1688 by a union William III or William of Orange (14 November 1650 &ndash 8 March 1702 He is informally known in Northern Ireland and Scotland as "King Billy" A deal between the two nations left the spice trade of the Indonesian archipelago to the Netherlands and the textiles industry of India to England, but textiles soon overtook spices in terms of profitability, and by 1720, in terms of sales, the English company had overtaken the Dutch. [20] The English East India Company shifted its focus from Surat—a hub of the spice trade network—to Fort St George (later to become Madras), Bombay (ceded by the Portuguese to Charles II of England in 1661 as dowry for Catherine de Braganza) and Sutanuti (which would merge with two other villages to form Calcutta). Fort St George (or historically White Town is the name of the first British fortress in India, founded in 1639 at the coastal city of Madras (modern Mumbai ( Marathi:,, IPA: formerly Bombay, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the financial Charles II (Charles Stuart 29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685 was the King of England, Scotland, and Ireland. Catherine Henrietta of Braganza (25 November 1638 &ndash 31 December 1705 was a Portuguese Infanta and the Queen consort of Charles II of Sutanuti (সুতানুটি was one of the three villages which were merged to form the city of Kolkata (formerly Calcutta in India.
Company rule in India
During its first century of operation, the focus of the East India Company had been trade, not the building of an empire in India. For usage see British rule in India Company rule in India (sometimes Company Raj, " raj," lit Clive of India redirects here For the film see Clive of India (film. The Battle of Plassey (পলাশীর যুদ্ধ Pôlashir Juddho) was a decisive British East India Company victory over the Nawab of Bengal Indeed, the Company was no match in the region for the powerful Mughal Empire,[21] which had granted the Company trading rights in 1617. The Mughal Empire ( Persian and self-designation گورکانی; مغلیہ سلطنت) was an Islamic imperial power which ruled most Company interests turned from trade to territory during the 18th century as the Mughal Empire declined in power and the British East India Company struggled with its French counterpart, the La Compagnie française des Indes orientales, during the Carnatic Wars in southeastern India in the 1740s and 1750s. The French East India Company ( French: La Compagnie française des Indes orientales or Compagnie française pour le commerce des Indes orientales) was a The Carnatic Wars (also spelled Karnatic Wars) was a series of military contests during the 18th century between the British, the French, the Marathas The Battle of Plassey, which saw the British, led by Robert Clive, defeat the French and their Indian allies, left the Company in control of Bengal and a major military and political power in India. The Battle of Plassey (পলাশীর যুদ্ধ Pôlashir Juddho) was a decisive British East India Company victory over the Nawab of Bengal Clive of India redirects here For the film see Clive of India (film. Etymology and ethnology The exact origin of the word Bangla or Bengal is unknown though it is believed to be derived from the Dravidian-speaking tribe Bang In the following decades it gradually increased the size of the territories under its control, either ruling directly or indirectly via local puppet rulers under the threat of force of the Indian Army, 80% of which was composed of native Indian sepoys. The Indian Army (Bharatiya Thalsena भारतीय थाल्सेना is one of the armed forces of India and has the responsibility for land-based A sepoy (ˈsipɔɪ (from Persian سپاهی Sipâhi meaning "soldier" was a native of India, a soldier allied to a European power usually the
Global struggles with France
Peace between England and the Netherlands in 1688 meant that the two countries entered the Nine Years' War as allies, but the conflict—waged in Europe and overseas between France, Spain and the Anglo-Dutch alliance—left the English a stronger colonial power than the Dutch, who were forced to devote a larger proportion of their military budget on the costly land war in Europe. The Nine Years' War (1688–97 – often called the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg – was a major war of the late 17th [22] The 18th century would see England (after 1707, Britain) rise to be the world's dominant colonial power, and France becoming its main rival on the imperial stage. [23]
The death of Charles II of Spain in 1700 and his bequeathal of Spain and its colonial empire to Philippe of Anjou, a grandson of the King of France, raised the prospect of the unification of France, Spain and their respective colonies, an unacceptable state of affairs for Britain and the other powers of Europe. Charles II ( November 6 1661, Madrid – November 1 1700, Madrid was the last Habsburg King of Spain and the Philip V of Spain ( December 19, 1683 - July 9, 1746) born Philippe de France, Fils de France and duc d'Anjou In 1701, Britain, Portugal and the Netherlands sided with the Holy Roman Empire against Spain and France in the War of the Spanish Succession. The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. In the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714 several European powers combined to stop French succession to the Spanish throne and what would likely have been a resulting The conflict, which France and Spain were to lose, lasted until 1714. At the concluding peace Treaty of Utrecht, Philip renounced his and his descendents' right to the French throne. The Treaty of Utrecht that established the Peace of Utrecht, rather than a single document comprised a series of individual peace treaties signed in the Dutch Spain lost its empire in Europe, and though it kept its empire in the Americas and the Philippines, it was irreversibly weakened as a power. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP The British Empire was territorially enlarged: from France, Britain gained Newfoundland and Acadia, and from Spain, Gibraltar and Minorca. Newfoundland — ˈn(jufənˌlænd (Terre-Neuve Talamh an Éisc — is a large island 15 km off the east coast of The Association for Computer Aided Design In Architecture ( ACADIA) is a Non-profit organization active in the area of Computer-aided architectural design Gibraltar (dʒɨˈbrɒltər is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar Minorca ( Catalan and Spanish: Menorca; from Latin Balearis Minor, later Minorica "minor island" is one of the Gibraltar, which is still a British overseas territory to this day, became a critical naval base and allowed Britain to control the Atlantic entry and exit point to the Mediterranean. Gibraltar (dʒɨˈbrɒltər is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar The British Overseas Territories are fourteen territories that are under the Sovereignty of the United Kingdom, but which do not form part of the United Kingdom Minorca was returned to Spain at the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, after changing hands twice. The Treaty of Amiens temporarily ended the hostilities between France and the United Kingdom during the French Revolutionary Wars. Spain also ceded the rights to the lucrative asiento (permission to sell slaves in Spanish America) to Britain. In the History of Slavery, asiento (or assiento, meaning " Assent " refers to the permission given by the Spanish government
The Seven Years' War, which began in 1756, was the first war waged on a global scale, fought in Europe, India, North America, the Caribbean, the Philippines and coastal Africa. The Seven Years' War (1756&ndash1763 involved all of the major European powers of the period causing 900000 to 1400000 deaths The signing of the Treaty of Paris (1763) had important consequences for Britain and its empire. The Treaty of Paris, often called the Peace of Paris, or the Treaty of 1763, was signed on February 10, 1763, by the kingdoms of Great Britain In North America, France's future as a colonial power there was effectively ended with the ceding of New France to Britain (leaving a sizeable French-speaking population under British control) and Louisiana to Spain. The Viceroyalty of New France (Nouvelle-France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period extending from the exploration of the Louisiana (La celina+mario) was the name of an administrative district of New France. Spain ceded Florida to Britain. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the In India, the Carnatic War had left France still in control of its enclaves but with military restrictions and an obligation to support British client states, effectively leaving the future of India to Britain. The Carnatic Wars (also spelled Karnatic Wars) was a series of military contests during the 18th century between the British, the French, the Marathas French India is a general name for the former French possessions in India. The British victory over France in the Seven Years' War therefore left Britain as the world's dominant colonial power. [24]
Rise of the "Second British Empire" (1783–1815)
Loss of the Thirteen Colonies in America
During the 1760s and 1770s, relations between the Thirteen Colonies and Britain became increasingly strained, primarily because of resentment of the British Parliament's attempts to govern and tax American colonists without their consent,[25] summarised at the time by the slogan "No taxation without representation". The Thirteen Colonies were part of what became known as British America, a name that was used by Great Britain until the Treaty of Paris (1783 recognized the " No taxation without representation " began as a Slogan in the period 1763–1776 that summarized a primary grievance of the British Colonists Disagreement over the American colonist's guaranteed Rights as Englishmen turned to violence and, in 1775, the American Revolutionary War began. The Rights of Englishmen is a term that refers to the rights granted English subjects in the Magna Carta, the English Bill of Rights, and other In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" The following year, the colonists declared the independence of the United States and, with economic and naval assistance from France, would go on to win the war in 1783. The United States Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4 1776 announcing that the thirteen American colonies then
The loss of such a large portion of British America, at the time Britain's most populous overseas possession, is seen by historians as the event defining the transition between the "first" and "second" empires,[26] in which Britain shifted its attention away from the Americas to Asia, the Pacific and later Africa. For American people of British descent see British American. British America consisted of the British Empire in continental North America Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations, published in 1776, had argued that colonies were redundant, and that free trade should replace the old mercantilist policies that had characterised the first period of colonial expansion, dating back to the protectionism of Spain and Portugal. Adam Smith ( baptised 16 June 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish moral philosopher and a pioneer of Political economy. An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations is the Magnum opus of the Scottish economist Adam Smith. Free trade is a system in which the trade of goods and services between or within countries flows unhindered by government-imposed restrictions Mercantilism is the idea that a colony should export more goods than it imports and that a colony should sell at higher prices and buy at lower prices The growth of trade between the newly independent United States and Britain after 1783[27] confirmed Smith's view that political control was not necessary for economic success.
Events in America influenced British policy in Canada, which had seen a large influx of loyalists during the Revolutionary War. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The Constitutional Act of 1791 created the provinces of Upper Canada (mainly English-speaking) and Lower Canada (mainly French-speaking) to defuse tensions between the two communities, and implemented governmental systems similar to those employed in Britain, with the intention of asserting imperial authority and not allowing the sort of popular control of government that was perceived to have led to the American Revolution. The Constitutional Act of 1791 was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain (1791 (31 Geo The Province of Upper Canada (French Province du Haut-Canada) was a British colony located in what is now the southern portion of the Province of Ontario The Province of Lower Canada (French Province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the [28] The future of British North America was briefly threatened during the War of 1812 resulting in large part from British attempts to forcibly control Atlantic trade during the Napoleonic Wars, and in which the United States unsuccessfully took the opportunity to extend its border northwards. British North America consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the British Empire, particularly Great Britain and her North American colonies Origins of the War of 1812 outlines the causes of the War of 1812. The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions This was the last time that Britain and America went to war. The last major territorial dispute between the two countries, the Oregon boundary dispute, was settled peacefully in 1846. The Oregon boundary dispute (or Oregon question) arose as a result of competing British and American claims to the Pacific Northwest of
Australia and New Zealand
Since 1718, transportation to the American colonies had been a penalty for various criminal offences in Britain, with approximately one thousand convicts transported per year across the Atlantic. Transportation or penal transportation refers to the deporting of Convicted Criminals to a Penal colony, for example by France [29] Forced to find an alternative location after the loss of the Thirteen Colonies in 1783, the British government turned to the newly discovered land of New South Wales, later shown to be a single land mass with New Holland, discovered in 1606 by the Dutch but never colonized, and again later altogether renamed Australia. New Holland is a historic name for the Island Continent of Australia. The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics.
In 1770 James Cook had discovered the eastern coast of Australia whilst on a scientific voyage to the South Pacific and named it New South Wales. Captain James Cook FRS RN ( – 14 February 1779) was an English Explorer, Navigator and The First voyage of James Cook was the initial Pacific exploratory voyage of James Cook (he had previously sailed with the merchant navy and Royal Navy In 1778 Joseph Banks, Cook's botanist on the voyage, presented evidence to the government on the suitability of Botany Bay for the establishment of a penal settlement, and in 1787 the first shipment of convicts set sail, arriving in 1788. Sir Joseph Banks 1st Baronet, GCB, PRS (13 February 1743 &ndash 19 June 1820 was an English naturalist, botanist and patron of Botany, plant science(s, phytology, or plant biology is a branch of Biology and is the scientific study of plant Life Botany Bay is a bay in Sydney, New South Wales, a few kilometres south of the Sydney central business district. During the late 18th and 19th centuries large numbers of Convicts were transported to the various Australian penal colonies by the British government Matthew Flinders proved New Holland and New South Wales to be a single land mass by completing a circumnavigation of it in 1803. Captain Matthew Flinders, RN (16 March 1774 – 19 July 1814 was one of the most successful navigators and cartographers of his age In 1826, Australia was formally claimed for the United Kingdom with the establishment of a military base, soon followed by a colony in 1829. The colonies later became self-governing colonies and became profitable exporters of wool and gold. A self-governing colony is a Colony with an elected Legislature, in which Politicians are able to make most decisions without reference to the Wool is the fiber derived from the specialized skin cells called follicles of animals in the Caprinae family principally sheep, but the hair of certain species Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79
Abolition of slavery
Under increasing pressure from the abolitionist movement, the United Kingdom outlawed the slave trade (1807) and soon began enforcing this principle on other nations. Abolitionism was a political movement of the 18th and 19th century which sought to make Slavery illegal particularly in the United States and British West Indies The history of slavery uncovers many different forms of human exploitation across many cultures throughout history By the mid-19th century the United Kingdom had largely eradicated the world slave trade. An act making not just the slave trade but slavery itself illegal was passed in 1833 and became law on August 1, 1834. The Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 (citation 3 & 4 Will IV c 73 was an 1833 Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom abolishing Events 30 BC - Octavian (later known as Augustus enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Year 1834 ( MDCCCXXXIV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common
War with Napoleonic France
Britain was challenged again by France under Napoleon, in a struggle that, unlike previous wars, represented a contest of ideologies between the two nations. In the Battle of Waterloo (Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo Belgium The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions Pax Britannica ( Latin for "the British Peace" modelled after Pax Romana) was the period of relative peace in Europe Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821 was a French military and political leader who had a significant impact on the History of Europe. [30] It was not only Britain's position on the world stage that was threatened: Napoleon threatened to invade Britain itself, like his armies had overrun many countries of continental Europe. The Napoleonic Wars were therefore ones in which Britain invested large amounts of capital and resources to win. The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions French ports were blockaded by the Royal Navy, which won a decisive victory over the French fleet at Trafalgar in 1805. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) The Battle of Trafalgar ( 21 October 1805) was a historic sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the Overseas colonies were attacked and occupied, including those of the Netherlands, which was annexed by Napoleon in 1810. France was finally defeated by a coalition of European armies in 1815. Britain and its empire were again the beneficiaries of peace treaties: France ceded the Ionian Islands (including Corfu) and Malta (which it had occupied in 1797 and 1798 respectively), St Lucia and Mauritius; Spain ceded Trinidad and Tobago; the Netherlands Guyana and the Cape Colony. The United States of the Ionian Islands (Ηνωμένον Κράτος των Ιονίων Νήσων ( Enomenon Kratos ton Ionion Neson) Stati Uniti delle Isole Ionie was a Corfu (Κέρκυρα Kérkyra, ˈkʲe̞ɾkʲiɾa Κέρκυρα or Κόρκυρα Corcyra Corfù is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands Saint Lucia (ˌseɪnt ˈluːʃɪə is an Island nation in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Mauritius (pronounced məˈrɪʃəs L’île Maurice /il mɔ'ʁis/ Mauritian Creole: Maurice) officially the Republic of Mauritius, République Trinidad ( Spanish: " Trinity " is the largest and most populous of the two major islands and Tobago is the smaller of the two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. British Guiana was the name of the British Colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana. The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. Britain returned Guadeloupe and Réunion to France, and Java and Surinam to the Netherlands. Guadeloupe is an island group or Archipelago located in the eastern Caribbean Sea at, with a land area of 1628 square kilometres (629 sq Réunion ( French: Réunion or formally La Réunion; previously Île Bourbon) is an island located in the Indian Ocean, east of Java (Jawa is an Island of Indonesia and the site of its Capital city Jakarta. Suriname ( Dutch: Suriname; Sranan Tongo: Sranan) officially the Republic of Suriname (traditionally spelled Surinam by
The imperial century (1815–1914)
Between 1815 and 1914, a period referred to as Britain's "imperial century" by some historians,[31][32] around 10 million square miles of territory and roughly 400 million people were added to the British Empire. [33] Victory over Napoleon left Britain without any serious international rival, other than Russia in central Asia[34] and, unchallenged at sea, Britain adopted the role of global policeman, a state of affairs later known as the Pax Britannica. Pax Britannica ( Latin for "the British Peace" modelled after Pax Romana) was the period of relative peace in Europe [35] Alongside the formal control it exerted over its own colonies, Britain's dominant position in world trade meant that it effectively controlled the economies of many nominally independent countries, such as in Latin America, China and Siam, which has been characterised by some historians as an "informal empire"[36]. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National The Kingdom of Thailand (ˈtaɪlænd ราชอาณาจักรไทย, râːtɕʰa-ʔaːnaːtɕɑ̀k-tʰɑj
Asia
Until its dissolution in 1858, the East India Company was key in the expansion of the British Empire in Asia. The Company's Army had first joined forces with the Royal Navy during the Seven Years' War, and the two continued to cooperate in arenas outside of India: the eviction of Napoleon from Egypt (1799), the capture of Java from the Netherlands (1811), the acquisition of Singapore (1819) and Malacca (1824) and the defeat of Burma (1826). This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. Java (Jawa is an Island of Indonesia and the site of its Capital city Jakarta. Singapore Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar ( pjìdàunzṵ mjàmmà nàinŋàndɔ̀ is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia. [34]
From its base in India, the Company had also been engaged in an increasingly profitable opium export trade to China since the 1730s. Opium is a Narcotic formed from the Latex (ie sap released by lacerating (or "scoring" the immature seed pods of opium poppies ( This trade, technically illegal since it was outlawed by the Qing dynasty in 1729, helped reverse the trade imbalances resulting from the British imports of tea, which saw large outflows of silver from Britain to China. Not to be confused with Qin Dynasty, the first dynasty of Imperial China Tea refers to the cured agricultural product of the leaves leaf buds and internodes of Camellia sinensis, which have been prepared and cured for the market In 1839, the seizure by the Chinese authorities at Canton of 20,000 chests of opium led Britain to attack China in the First Opium War, and the seizure by Britain of the island of Hong Kong (then a minor outpost) as a base. Guangzhou ( Jyutping: Gwong²zau¹; Yale: Gwóngjàu) is the Capital and a Sub-provincial city The First Opium War or the First Anglo-Chinese War was fought between the British East India Company and the Qing Dynasty in China from 1839 Hong Kong ( officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located on China 's south coast on the Pearl River Delta, and borders
The end of the Company was precipitated by a mutiny of sepoys against their British commanders over the rumoured introduction of rifle cartridges lubricated with animal fat. The Indian Rebellion of 1857 began as a mutiny of Sepoys of British East India Company 's army on the 10th of May 1857 in the town of Meerut, A sepoy (ˈsipɔɪ (from Persian سپاهی Sipâhi meaning "soldier" was a native of India, a soldier allied to a European power usually the Use of the cartridges, which required biting open before use, would have been in violation of the religious beliefs of Hindus and Muslims (had the fat been that of cows or pigs, respectively). However, the Indian Rebellion of 1857 had causes that went beyond the introduction of bullets: at stake was Indian culture and religion, in the face of the steady encroachment of that by the British. The Indian Rebellion of 1857 began as a mutiny of Sepoys of British East India Company 's army on the 10th of May 1857 in the town of Meerut, The rebellion was suppressed by the British, but not before heavy loss of life on both sides. As a result of the war, the British government assumed direct control over India, ushering in the period known as the British Raj. For usage see British rule in India British Raj ( rāj, lit "reign" in Hindustani) primarily refers to the British The East India Company was dissolved the following year, in 1858.
The Cape Colony
The Dutch East India Company had founded the Cape Colony on the southern tip of Africa in 1652 as a way station for its ships travelling to and from its colonies in the East Indies. The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. Britain formally acquired the colony, and its large Afrikaner (or Boer) population in 1806, having occupied it in 1795 after the Netherlands was invaded by France. The term Afrikaner people refers to white Afrikaans -speaking people who have been established in Southern Africa since the 17th century and are mainly of northwestern Boer (ˈbuːr in Dutch ˈbʊɚ/ /boʊɚ or /ˈbɔr/ in English is the Dutch word for Farmer which came to denote the descendants of the proto Afrikaans British immigration began to rise after 1820, and pushed thousands of Boers, resentful of British rule, northwards to found their own – mostly short-lived and independent republics during the Great Trek of the late 1830s and early 1840s. The Great Trek was an eastward and north-eastward migration during the 1830s and 1840s of the Boers ( Dutch / Afrikaans for "farmers" who In the process the Voortrekkers clashed repeatedly with the British, who had their own agenda with regard to colonial expansion in South Africa and with several African polities, including the those of the Sotho and the Zulu nations. Voortrekkers can also refer to a youth organization see Voortrekkers (youth organization. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa The Zulu ( IsiZulu: amaZulu) are the largest South African ethnic group of an estimated 10-11 million people who live mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal Eventually the Boers established two republics which had a longer lifespan: the South African Republic or Transvaal Republic (1852-1877; 1881-1902) and the Orange Free State (1854-1902). This article is about the former country in Africa For the present-day country see South Africa; for the region where both are located see Southern Africa The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa
The Suez Canal
In 1875, the Conservative government of Benjamin Disraeli bought the indebted Egyptian ruler Ismail's 44% shareholding in the Suez Canal for £4 million to secure control of this strategic waterway, a channel for shipping between the United Kingdom and India since its opening six years earlier under Emperor Napoleon III. The Conservative Party (officially the Conservative and Unionist Party) is a Political party in the United Kingdom. Benjamin Disraeli 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, KG, PC, FRS (born Benjamin D'Israeli; 21 December 1804 &ndash 19 April 1881 was This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. Isma'il Pasha, known as Ismail the Magnificent (إسماعيل باشا ( December 31, 1830 &ndash March 2, 1895) was Wāli The Suez Canal is a Canal in Egypt. Opened in 1869 it allows Water transportation between Europe and Asia without circumnavigation Napoléon III, also known as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (full name Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte) (20 April 1808 9 January 1873 was the first President Joint Anglo-French financial control over Egypt ended in outright British occupation in 1882.
Scramble for Africa
In 1875 the two most important European holdings in Africa were French-controlled Algeria and the United Kingdom's Cape Colony. The Scramble for Africa, also known as the Race for Africa, was the proliferation of conflicting European claims to African territory during the New The Rhodes Colossus is an iconic Editorial cartoon of the Scramble for Africa period depicting British colonialist Cecil Rhodes as a giant standing Cecil John Rhodes, PC DCL (5 July 1853 &ndash 26 March 1902 was an English -born Businessman mining Magnate, and Politician Algeria ( ar [[Arabic]] الجزائر, Al Jaza'ir ælʤæˈzæːʔir Amazigh: ⴷⵥⴰⵢⴻⵔ Dzayer) officially the People's The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. By 1914 only Ethiopia and the republic of Liberia remained outside formal European control. NOTE This intro is the result of careful NPOV work Please do not make potentially controversial edits to it without first discussing on the talk page Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the west coast of Africa, bordered by Sierra Leone, Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire The transition from an "informal empire" of control through economic dominance to direct control took the form of a "scramble" for territory by the nations of Europe. The United Kingdom tried not to play a part in this early scramble, being more of a trading empire rather than a colonial empire; however, it soon became clear it had to gain its own African empire to maintain the balance of power.
As French, Belgian and Portuguese activity in the lower Congo River region threatened to undermine orderly penetration of tropical Africa, the Berlin Conference of 1884–85 sought to regulate the competition between the powers by defining "effective occupation" as the criterion for international recognition of territorial claims, a formulation which necessitated routine recourse to armed force against indigenous states and peoples. The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. The Congo River (for a time known as the Zaire River) is the largest River in Western Central Africa. See also Congress of Berlin (1878 and Berlin Conference of 1954 (Cold War [37]
The United Kingdom's 1882 military occupation of Egypt (itself triggered by concern over the Suez Canal) contributed to a preoccupation over securing control of the Nile valley, leading to the conquest of the neighbouring Sudan in 1896–98 and confrontation with a French military expedition at Fashoda (September 1898). This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. The Suez Canal is a Canal in Egypt. Opened in 1869 it allows Water transportation between Europe and Asia without circumnavigation The Nile (النيل, Ancient Egyptian iteru or Ḥ'pī, Coptic piaro or phiaro) is a major north-flowing River Sudan (officially the Republic of Sudan) ( السودان al-Sūdān is a country in northeastern Africa. The Fashoda Incident (1898 was the climax of imperial territorial disputes between the United Kingdom and France in Eastern Africa.
In 1902 the United Kingdom completed its military occupation of the Transvaal and Free State by concluding a treaty with the two Boer Republics following the Second Boer War 1899-1902. The Boer Republics (sometimes also referred to as Boer states were independent self-governed Republics created by the Dutch -speaking (proto Afrikaans) inhabitants See also First Boer War,, South African Wars (1879-1915 The Second Boer War ( Dutch: Tweede Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: The four colonies of Natal, Transvaal, Free State and Cape Province later merged in 1910 to form the Union of South Africa.
British gains in southern and East Africa prompted Cecil Rhodes, pioneer of British expansion from South Africa northward, to urge a "Cape-to-Cairo" British controlled empire linking by rail the strategically important Suez Canal to the mineral-rich South. East Africa is the Easternmost Region of the African Continent. Cecil John Rhodes, PC DCL (5 July 1853 &ndash 26 March 1902 was an English -born Businessman mining Magnate, and Politician Cape Town (Kaapstad Xhosa: Ikapa) is the second most populous city in South Africa, forming part of the metropolitan municipality of the Cairo () which means "the Vanquisher" or "the Triumphant" is the capital and largest city of Egypt. The Suez Canal is a Canal in Egypt. Opened in 1869 it allows Water transportation between Europe and Asia without circumnavigation In 1888 Rhodes with his privately owned British South Africa Company occupied and annexed territories which were called after him: Rhodesia between 1896 and 1980, when it became independent under the name Zimbabwe. The British South Africa Company (BSAC was established by Cecil Rhodes through the amalgamation of the Central Search Association and the Exploring Company Ltd Rhodesia was the name adopted when the formerly British colony of Southern Rhodesia declared itself independent ( Unilateral Declaration of Independence See also Great Zimbabwe National Monument. For information about the March and June 2008 presidential elections see Zimbabwean presidential election Together with British High Commissioner in South Africa between 1897-1905, Alfred Milner, Rhodes pressured the British government for further expansion into Africa. Alfred Milner 1st Viscount Milner, KG, GCB, GCMG, PC (23 March 1854&ndash13 May 1925 was a controversial German-born British German occupied territories in East Africa would hamper Rhodes’ Cape-to-Cairo-ambition until the end of World War I. German East Africa (Deutsch-Ostafrika was a German Colony in East Africa, including what is now Burundi, Rwanda and Tanganyika World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All In 1903, the All Red Line telegraph system communicated with the major parts of the Empire. The All Red Line was an informal name for the system of Electrical telegraphs that linked all the British Empire
Paradoxically, the United Kingdom, the staunch advocate of free trade, emerged in 1914 with not only the largest overseas empire thanks to its long-standing presence in India, but also the greatest gains in the "scramble for Africa", reflecting its advantageous position at its inception. Between 1885 and 1914 the United Kingdom took nearly 30% of Africa's population under its control, compared to 15% for France, 9% for Germany, 7% for Belgium and 1% for Italy: Nigeria alone contributed fifteen million subjects, more than in the whole of French West Africa or the entire German colonial empire. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Nigeria, officially named the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal Constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal French West Africa ( Afrique occidentale française, AOF) was a Federation of eight French colonial territories in Africa:
Home rule in white-settler colonies
The United Kingdom's empire had already begun its transformation into the modern Commonwealth with the extension of Dominion status to the already self-governing colonies of Canada (1867), Australia (1901), New Zealand (1907), Newfoundland (1907), and the newly created Union of South Africa (1910). A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities under sovereign authority within the British Empire and A self-governing colony is a Colony with an elected Legislature, in which Politicians are able to make most decisions without reference to the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British dominion from 1907 (before which the territory had the status of a British colony to 1949 } The Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day state of the Republic of South Africa. Leaders of the new states joined with British statesmen in periodic Colonial (from 1907, Imperial) Conferences, the first of which was held in London in 1887. Imperial Conferences ( Colonial Conferences before 1911 were gatherings of British Empire government leaders in London in 1887, 1897 London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom.
The foreign relations of the Dominions were still conducted through the Foreign Office of the United Kingdom: Canada created a Department of External Affairs in 1909, but diplomatic relations with other governments continued to be channelled through the Governors-General, Dominion High Commissioners in London (first appointed by Canada in 1880 and by Australia in 1910) and British legations abroad. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO, is the British government department responsible for promoting The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located High Commissioner is the title of various high-ranking special executive positions held by a commission of appointment A legation was the term used in Diplomacy to denote a diplomatic representative office lower than an Embassy.
But the Dominions did enjoy a substantial freedom in their adoption of foreign policy where this did not explicitly conflict with British interests: Canada's Liberal government negotiated a bilateral free-trade Reciprocity Agreement with the United States in 1911, but went down to defeat by the Conservative opposition. The Liberal Party of Canada ( Parti libéral du Canada) colloquially known as the Grits (originally " Clear Grits " is a major Canadian political The Canadian American Reciprocity Treaty, also known as the Elgin - Marcy Treaty, was a trade treaty between the colonies of British North America The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada ( PC) ( Parti progressiste-conservateur du Canada) ( 1867 – 2003) was a Canadian
In defence, the Dominions' original treatment as part of a single imperial military and naval structure proved unsustainable as the United Kingdom faced new commitments in Europe and the challenge of an emerging German High Seas Fleet after 1900. The High Seas Fleet (Hochseeflotte was the main battle fleet of the Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial German Navy during World War I. In 1909 it was decided that the Dominions should have their own navies, reversing an 1887 agreement that the then Australasian colonies should contribute to the Royal Navy in return for the permanent stationing of a squadron in the region. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service)
World War I (1914–1918)
Britain's declaration of war in 1914 on Germany and its allies, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, also committed the colonies and Dominions, which provided invaluable military, financial and material support during the war. The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Soon after the outbreak of hostilities, Germany's overseas colonies in Africa were invaded and occupied, though German forces in German East Africa remained undefeated during the war. German East Africa (Deutsch-Ostafrika was a German Colony in East Africa, including what is now Burundi, Rwanda and Tanganyika In the Pacific, Australia and New Zealand occupied German New Guinea and Samoa respectively. German New Guinea ( Ger Deutsch-Neuguinea) was a former German Protectorate from 1884 to 1914 consisting of the northeastern part of Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa, is a country governing the western part of the Samoan Islands Archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean The contributions of Australian and New Zealand troops during the 1915 Battle of Gallipoli against the Ottoman Empire had a great impact on the national conscious at home, and marked a watershed in the transition of Australia and New Zealand from colonies to nations in their own right. The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish The countries continue to commemorate this occasion on ANZAC Day. Canadians viewed the Battle of Vimy Ridge in a similar light. The Battle of Vimy Ridge was a military offensive by the Canadian Corps against elements of the German Sixth Army in World War I. [38] In 1917, the Imperial War Cabinet was set up, with representation from each of the Dominion Prime Ministers, to coordinate imperial policy. The Imperial War Cabinet was created by British Prime Minister David Lloyd George in the spring of 1917 as a means of co-ordinating the British The First World War placed enormous financial strain on Britain and its empire with resources, cash and foreign assets being diverted for the war. In 1914 Britain had £750,000,000[39] invested in the United States; by 1918 much of this had been sold in order to pay for the war effort.
Interwar period (1918–1939)
The aftermath of World War I saw the last major extension of British rule, with the United Kingdom gaining control through League of Nations Mandates in Palestine and Iraq after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in the Middle East, as well as in the former German colonies of Tanganyika, South-West Africa (now Namibia) and New Guinea (the last two actually under South African and Australian rule respectively). World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All A League of Nations mandate refers to a legal status for certain territories transferred from the control of one country to another following World War I. The Palestine Mandate, was a set of protocols or articles that formed a multilateral legal and administrative agreement The British Mandate of Mesopotamia ( الانتداب البريطاني على العراق) was a League of Nations Class A mandate The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Tanganyika is the name of an East African territory lying between the largest of the African great lakes Lake Victoria, Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa on the Atlantic coast New Guinea, located just north of Australia, is the world's second largest island, having become separated from the Australian mainland when the area now known
The 1920s saw a rapid transformation of Dominion status. Although the Dominions had had no formal voice in declaring war in 1914, each was included separately among the signatories of the 1919 peace Treaty of Versailles, which had been negotiated by a British-led united Empire delegation. The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. In 1922 Dominion reluctance to support British military action against Turkey influenced the United Kingdom's decision to seek a compromise settlement. Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches The League of Nations deputed former German colonies to come under the control of the United Kingdom's colonies. For example, New Zealand took over the mandate of Western Samoa, Australia that of Rabaul and South Africa that of German South-West Africa. Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa, is a country governing the western part of the Samoan Islands Archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean Rabaul is a township in East New Britain province Papua New Guinea. German South West Africa ( German: Deutsch-Südwestafrika, DSWA) was a Colony of Germany from 1884 until 1915 when it was taken
Full Dominion independence was formalised in the 1931 Statute of Westminster: each Dominion was henceforth to be equal in status to the United Kingdom itself, free of British legislative interference and autonomous in international relations. The Statute of Westminster 1931 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (22 & 23 Geo The Dominions section created within the Colonial Office in 1907 was upgraded in 1925 to a separate Dominions Office and given its own Secretary of State in 1930. The position of Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs was a British cabinet level position created in 1925 to deal with British relations with the Dominions &mdash Canada, Secretary of State is a commonly used title for a Government Official.
Canada led the way, becoming the first Dominion to conclude an international treaty entirely independently (1923) and obtaining the appointment (1928) of a British High Commissioner in Ottawa, thereby separating the administrative and diplomatic functions of the Governor-General and ending the latter's anomalous role as the representative of the head of state and of the British Government. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page High Commissioner is the title of various high-ranking special executive positions held by a commission of appointment Ottawa (ˈɒtəwə or sometimes /ˈɒtəwɑː/ is the Capital of Canada and the country's fourth largest municipality. Canada's first permanent diplomatic mission to a foreign country opened in Washington, DC, in 1927: Australia followed in 1940. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D
Egypt, formally independent from 1922 but bound to the United Kingdom by treaty until 1936 (and under partial occupation until 1956) similarly severed all constitutional links with the United Kingdom. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. Iraq, which became a British Protectorate in 1922, also gained complete independence ten years later in 1932. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics.
The Irish Free State
Irish home rule was to be provided under the Home Rule Act 1914, but the onset of World War I delayed its implementation indefinitely. The Irish War of Independence (or Tan War, or Anglo-Irish War, Irish: Cogadh na Saoirse) from January 1919 to July 1921 was a guerrilla The Irish Home Rule bills were bills introduced in the British House of Commons during the late 19th and early 20th centuries intended to grant self-government and The Home Rule Act of 1914, also known as the ( Irish) Third Home Rule Act (or Bill) and formally known as the Government of Ireland Act 1914 At Easter 1916 an unsuccessful armed uprising was staged in Dublin by a mixed group of nationalists and socialists. The Easter Rising (Éirí Amach na Cásca was a rebellion staged in Ireland in Easter Week, 1916 From 1919 the Irish Republican Army fought a guerrilla war to secede from the United Kingdom. The Irish Republican Army ( IRA) (Óglaigh na hÉireann was a military organisation descended from the Irish Volunteers, established 25 November 1913 and who Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc This Anglo-Irish War ended in 1921 with a stalemate and the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty. The Irish War of Independence (or Tan War, or Anglo-Irish War, Irish: Cogadh na Saoirse) from January 1919 to July 1921 was a guerrilla The Anglo-Irish Treaty (An Conradh Angla-Éireannach officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a Treaty The treaty confirmed the division of Ireland into two states. Most of the island (26 counties) became independent as the Irish Free State, a dominion within the British Commonwealth. The Irish Free State (Saorstát Éireann (1922&ndash1937 was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by Meanwhile, the four counties in the north of the island with a majority Unionist community, along with two counties that had a Nationalist majority,[40] [41] [42] remained a part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of The Free State evolved into the Republic of Ireland, which withdrew from the Commonwealth when the Republic of Ireland Act was enacted in 1949. Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. The Republic of Ireland Act 1948 is an Act of the Oireachtas whose primary provisions were to declare that the state Ireland, is a Republic and that the President
Ireland's Constitution claimed Northern Ireland as a part of the Republic until 1998. The Constitution of Ireland (Bunreacht na hÉireann came into force on 29 December 1937 after having been passed by a national plebiscite the previous July The Nineteenth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland introduced changes to Articles 2 and 3 of the constitution required by the 1998 Belfast Agreement The issue of whether Northern Ireland should remain in the United Kingdom or join the Republic of Ireland has divided Northern Ireland's people and was a factor in a long and bloody conflict known as the Troubles. The Good Friday Agreement of 1998 brought about a ceasefire between most of the major organisations on both sides. The Agreement, most often referred to as the Belfast Agreement (Comhaontú Bhéal Feirste Belfast Greeance or the Good Friday Agreement (Comhaontú Aoine an
Second World War (1939-1945)
- See also: Allies of World War II
The United Kingdom's declaration of hostilities against Nazi Germany in September 1939 included the Crown Colonies and the British Indian Empire but did not automatically commit the Dominions. The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers For usage see British rule in India British Raj ( rāj, lit "reign" in Hindustani) primarily refers to the British All except Ireland declared a state of hostility with Germany. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world The Irish Free State had negotiated the removal of the Royal Navy from the Treaty Ports the year before, and chose to remain legally neutral throughout the war. The Irish Free State (Saorstát Éireann (1922&ndash1937 was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) After the Irish War of Independence when the Irish Free State won independence in 1922 three deep water Treaty Ports at Lough Swilly, Berehaven Irish neutrality has been a policy of the Irish Free State and its successor Ireland, since independence from the United Kingdom of Great Britain The Emergency (Ré na Práinne was an official Euphemism used by the Irish Government during the 1940s to refer to its position during World War II. Australia entered the war as a British ally; Prime Minister Robert Menzies viewed Britain's declaration of war as automatically including Australia. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Sir Robert Gordon Menzies, KT, AK, CH, QC (20 December 1894 - 15 May 1978 Australian politician was the twelfth person to serve Menzies was, however, concerned about Churchill's mis-handling of Australian forces in the Middle East. Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC, PC (Can ( 30 November 1874 [43] Menzies's successor John Curtin had a 'profound disillusionment with Britain, which led him to have Australia declare war on Japan in her own right. John Joseph Curtin (8 January 1885 &ndash 5 July 1945 Australian politician and 14th Prime Minister of Australia, led Australia when the Australian mainland came under direct As Beaumont further said, relations between Britain and Australia 'soured rapidly' from that point on. "Curtin's call to the USA on 27 December 1941 gave an indication that Australian governments would no longer subordinate their own national interests to British strategic perspectives. Events 537 - The Hagia Sophia is completed 1512 - The Spanish Crown issues the Laws of Burgos, governing the Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. [44]
Sudan was a British co-Dominion with Egypt; Newfoundland was controlled by the Colonial office. Sudan (officially the Republic of Sudan) ( السودان al-Sūdān is a country in northeastern Africa. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. Newfoundland may refer to Newfoundland and Labrador, a Canadian province (known simply as Newfoundland from 1949 to 2001 Eastern part of Canada The Capital of Newfoundland
The war would involve the whole of the Empire. Materiel and manpower would be drawn from all parts of the world. Materiel (from the French "matériel" for equipment or hardware related to the word Material) is a term used in English to refer to the The dominions contributed large numbers of aircrew for the war in the air over Europe; many trained in Canada. The British Eighth Army fighting in North Africa was multi-national. The Eighth Army was one of the best-known formations in World War II, fighting in the North African and Italian campaigns It was a British
Decolonisation and decline (1945–1997)
Though the United Kingdom and its empire emerged victorious from World War II, the effects of the conflict were profound, both at home and abroad. Muhammad Ali Jinnah Urdu: (December 25 1876 – September 11 1948 was a Pakistani politician and leader of the All India Muslim League who founded Pakistan Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi ( Gujarati: મોહનદાસ કરમચંદ ગાંધી moɦən̪d̪äs kəɾəmʧən̪d̪ gän̪d̪ʱi (2 October 1869 – 30 January The term " Indian independence movement " is diffuse incorporating various national and regional campaigns agitations and efforts of both Nonviolent and Militant The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located An empire (from the Latin " Imperium " denoting military Command within the ancient Roman government) is a State that World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Much of Europe, a continent that had dominated the world for four hundred years, was now literally in ruins, and host to the armies of the United States and the Soviet Union, to whom the balance of global power had now shifted. [45] Britain itself was left virtually bankrupt, with insolvency only averted in 1946 after the negotiation of a $3. Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay their Creditors Creditors may file a bankruptcy petition against 5 billion loan from the United States,[46] the last installment of which was repaid in 2006[47].
At the same time, anti-colonial movements were on the rise in the colonies of European nations. The situation was complicated further by the increasing Cold War rivalry of the United States and the Soviet Union, both nations opposed to the European colonialism of old, though American anti-Communism prevailed over anti-imperialism, which led the US to support the continued existence of the British Empire. Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Anti-communism refers to opposition to Communism. Historically the word "communism" has been used to refer to several types of communal social organization and [48]
However, the "wind of change" ultimately meant that the British Empire's days were numbered, and on the whole, Britain adopted a policy of peaceful disengagement from its colonies once stable, non-Communist governments were ready to transition power to, in contrast to France and Portugal[49], which waged costly wars to keep their empires intact. Between 1945 and 1965 the number of people under British rule drastically fell from 700 million to 5 million, 3 million of which were in Hong Kong. Hong Kong ( officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located on China 's south coast on the Pearl River Delta, and borders [48]
The Dominions
After the war, Australia and New Zealand joined with the United States in the ANZUS regional security treaty in 1951 (although the US repudiated its commitments to New Zealand following a 1985 dispute over port access for nuclear vessels). The Australia New Zealand United States Security Treaty ( ANZUS or ANZUS Treaty) is the Military alliance which binds Australia and The United Kingdom's pursuit (from 1961) and attainment (in 1973) of European Community membership weakened the old commercial ties to the Dominions, ending their privileged access to the UK market. The European Community (EC is one of the Three pillars of the European Union (EU created under the Maastricht Treaty (1992
In January 1947, Canada became the first Dominion to create its nationals as citizens in addition to their status as British subjects (which was retained until 1977). Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Canada became legally independent after the passing by the British Parliament of the Canada Act 1982, effecting the patriation of the national constitution. The Canada Act 1982 (1982 c 11 is an Act of Parliament passed by the British Parliament that severed all remaining legislative dependence of Canada Patriation is a non-legal term particularly used in Canada, to describe a process of Constitutional change also known as "bringing home" the constitution
End of British Raj
The British Empire lost its most valuable colony, India, the jewel in the crown, when the British Raj came to an end in August 1947 after a forty-year-long campaign by the Indian National Congress, led by Mahatma Gandhi and Subhash Chandra Bose, first for self-government and later for full sovereignty. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country For usage see British rule in India British Raj ( rāj, lit "reign" in Hindustani) primarily refers to the British Indian National Congress-I (also known as the Congress Party and abbreviated INC) is a major Political party in India. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi ( Gujarati: મોહનદાસ કરમચંદ ગાંધી moɦən̪d̪äs kəɾəmʧən̪d̪ gän̪d̪ʱi (2 October 1869 – 30 January Subhas Chandra Bose (সুভাষ চন্দ্র বসু (born January 23, 1897; presumed to have died August 18, 1945 Another organization, called the Muslim League, led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah, led a successful movement for the creation of a separate Muslim-state called Pakistan (later East Pakistan gained independence and came to be known as Bangladesh). The All India Muslim League ( Urdu: آل انڈیا مسلم لیگ Bengali:?????? ??? founded at Dhaka in 1906 was a political party in British Muhammad Ali Jinnah Urdu: (December 25 1876 – September 11 1948 was a Pakistani politician and leader of the All India Muslim League who founded Pakistan A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and East Pakistan ( Bengali: পূর্ব পাকিস্তান Purbo Pakistan, Urdu: مشرقی پاکستان Mashriqi Pakistan) was ( Bengali: বাংলাদেশ inc-Latn Bangladesh) officially The Partition of India resulted in massive population exchanges and widespread violence and riots costing hundreds of thousands of lives and creating the Dominion of Pakistan (later Islamic Republic of Pakistan) and the Union of India (later Republic of India). The Partition of India was the partition of the British Indian Empire which led to the creation on August 14, 1947 and August 15, Population transfer is the movement of a large group of people from one region to another by state policy or international authority most frequently on the basis of ethnicity or religion The Dominion of Pakistan was a federal entity that was established in 1947 as a result of the Partition of India into two sovereign dominions the Union Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country
Palestine
The United Kingdom's Palestine Mandate ended in 1948. The Palestine Mandate, was a set of protocols or articles that formed a multilateral legal and administrative agreement British forces withdrew as there was open warfare between the territory's Jewish and Arab populations. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding
Southeast Asia and Ceylon
Burma achieved independence (1948) outside the Commonwealth, being the first colony since the United States to sever all ties with the British. Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar ( pjìdàunzṵ mjàmmà nàinŋàndɔ̀ is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia. Ceylon (1948) and Malaya (1957) achieved their independence within the Commonwealth. Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island The Federation of Malaya (Persekutuan Tanah Melayu was a federation of 11 states formed on January 31 1948 from the nine Malay states and the British
Singapore became independent in two stages. Singapore The British did not believe that Singapore would be large enough to defend itself against others alone. Therefore, Singapore was joined with Malaya, Sarawak and North Borneo, Sabah to form the Federation of Malaysia upon independence from the Empire. The Federation of Malaya (Persekutuan Tanah Melayu was a federation of 11 states formed on January 31 1948 from the nine Malay states and the British Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the Island of Borneo. North Borneo was an independent state and British Protectorate under the sovereign British North Borneo Company from 1882-1946 and subsequently a For the biogeographical region see Malesia Malaysia (məˈleɪʒə or /məˈleɪziə/ is a country that consists of thirteen states and This short-lived union was dissolved in 1965 when Singapore left Malaysia and achieved complete independence, although the United Kingdom continued to offer protection through the Five Power Defence Arrangements. For the biogeographical region see Malesia Malaysia (məˈleɪʒə or /məˈleɪziə/ is a country that consists of thirteen states and Five Power Defence Arrangements ( FPDA) are a series of defence relationships established by bilateral agreements between the United Kingdom, Australia,
In 1984, the United Kingdom ended the protectorate status of Brunei, although the British Army continues to maintain a presence in the sultanate at the request of the government of Brunei. Brunei Darussalam, (bruːˈnaɪ in English officially the State of Brunei Abode of Peace (Negara Brunei Darussalam Jawi: برني دارالسلام The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces.
The Suez Crisis
Britain's limitations were very publicly exposed to the world by the Suez Crisis of 1956, in which the United States and the Soviet Union opposed the British, French and Israeli intervention in Egypt. The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, (أزمة السويس - العدوان الثلاثي Crise du canal de Suez מבצע קדש Kadesh The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, (أزمة السويس - العدوان الثلاثي Crise du canal de Suez מבצע קדש Kadesh The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. The British Prime Minister, Anthony Eden, had infuriated his US counterpart, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, by his lack of consultation, and Eisenhower refused to back the invasion. Robert Anthony Eden 1st Earl of Avon, KG, MC, PC (12 June 1897 &ndash 14 January 1977 was a British Conservative Politician Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (October 14 1890 – March 28 1969 was President of the United States from 1953 until 1961 and a five-star general Another of Eisenhower's concerns was the possibility of a wider war with the Soviet Union after Nikita Khrushchev threatened to intervene on the Egyptian side. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (April 17 1894 – September 11 1971 served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 following Eisenhower applied financial leverage by threatening to sell US reserves of the British pound and thereby precipitate a collapse of the British currency. The Pound Sterling ( symbol £; ISO code: GBP) subdivided into 100 pence (singular penny) is the Currency Though the invasion force was militarily successful in its objective of recapturing the Suez Canal, Britain was forced into a very humiliating withdrawal of its forces due to UN intervention and US pressure, and Eden resigned.
The Suez Crisis confirmed Britain's decline on the world stage, and demonstrated that henceforth it could no longer act without at least the acquiescence, if not the full support, of the United States. [50][51] The events at Suez wounded British national pride, leading one MP to describe it as "Britain's Waterloo"[52] and another to suggest that the country had become an "American satellite". A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a Parliament. In the Battle of Waterloo (Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo Belgium Satellite state is a political term that refers to a country which is formally independent but under heavy influence or control by another country [53] Margaret Thatcher later described the mindset she believed had befallen the British political establishment as "Suez syndrome",[54] from which Britain did not recover until the successful recapture of the Falkland Islands from Argentina in 1982. Margaret Hilda Thatcher Baroness Thatcher LG, OM, PC, FRS (born 13 October 1925 For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics.
However, whilst The Suez Crisis caused British power in the Middle East to weaken, it did not collapse[55]. Britain again soon deployed its armed forces to the region, intervening in Oman (1957), Jordan (1958) and Kuwait (1961), though on these occasions with American approval,[56] as the new Prime Minister Harold Macmillan's foreign policy was to remain firmly aligned with the United States[52]. Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman ( Arabic: سلطنة عُمان) is an Arab Country in Southwest Asia on the southeast Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (الأردنّ al-Urdunn) is an Arab country in Southwest Asia spanning the southern The State of Kuwait ( دولة الكويت IPA [dawlatt̪ alkuwajt̪]) is a sovereign Arab Emirate on the coast of the Persian Gulf, enclosed (Maurice Harold Macmillan 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC (10 February 1894 &ndash 29 December 1986 was a British Conservative Politician Britain maintained a presence in the Middle East for another decade, withdrawing from Aden in 1967, and Bahrain in 1971. Aden (ˈeɪdən Arabic: عدن) is a city in Yemen, 170 kilometers east of Bab-el-Mandeb. The Kingdom of Bahrain (in مملكة البحرين,, literally Kingdom of the Two Seas) is an Island country in the Persian Gulf
The Mediterranean
A guerrilla war waged by Greek Cypriot advocates of union with Greece ended (1960) in an independent Cyprus, although the United Kingdom did retain four military bases - Akrotiri, Dhekelia, Episkopi and Ayios Nikolaos. Greek Cypriots ( Greek: Ελληνοκύπριοι Turkish: Kıbrıslı Rumlar are the ethnic Greek population of Cyprus. For the Genus of Grass skipper Butterflies, see Enosis (butterfly. Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία Cyprus (Κύπρος transliterated: Kýpros,; Kıbrıs officially the Republic of Cyprus (Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία Kypriakī́ Dīmokratía Episkopi may refer to Episkopi Cantonment, a British military base in Cyprus Episkopi Heraklion, a town in the Heraklion prefecture Agios Nikolaos or Ayios Nikolaos ( Greek: Άγιος Νικόλαος meaning " Saint Nicholas " is a common place name in Greece and The Mediterranean islands of Malta and Gozo were given independence from the United Kingdom in 1964. Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands Gozo ( Għawdex) is an Island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea, the island is part of the Southern European Malta has been inhabited since around 5200 BC from the Italian island of Sicily.
Africa
The end of Britain's Empire in Africa came rapidly: Ghana's independence (1957) after a ten-year nationalist political campaign was followed by that of Nigeria and Somaliland (1960), Sierra Leone (1961), Uganda (1962), Kenya and Zanzibar (1963), Tanganyika (1964), The Gambia (1965), Lesotho (formerly Basutoland) (1966), Botswana (formerly Bechuanaland) (1967), and Swaziland (1968). The Republic of Ghana is a country in West Africa. It borders Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast to the west Burkina Faso to the north Togo to the Nigeria, officially named the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal Constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. The Republic of Uganda is a Landlocked country in East Africa. The Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the north Somalia to the northeast Tanzania to the south Zanzibar ( is part of the East African republic of Tanzania. It consists of the Zanzibar Archipelago in the Tanganyika is the name of an East African territory lying between the largest of the African great lakes Lake Victoria, Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika Lesotho (lɪˈsuːtuː) officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a Landlocked country and Enclave — entirely surrounded by the Republic of South The Republic of Botswana (Lefatshe la Botswana is a Landlocked nation in Southern Africa. The Kingdom of Swaziland is a country located in Southern Africa centred at approximately 26o49'S 31o38'E
British withdrawal from the southern and eastern parts of Africa was complicated by the region's white settler populations: Kenya had already provided an example in the Mau Mau Uprising of violent conflict exacerbated by white landownership and reluctance to concede majority rule. White minority rule in South Africa remained a source of bitterness within the Commonwealth until the Union of South Africa left the Commonwealth in 1961. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa } The Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day state of the Republic of South Africa.
Although the white-dominated Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland ended in the independence of Malawi (formerly Nyasaland) and Zambia (the former Northern Rhodesia) in 1964, Southern Rhodesia's white minority (a self-governing colony since 1923) declared independence with their UDI rather than submit to the immediate majority rule of black Africans. Constitutional origins It was commonly understood that Southern Rhodesia would be the dominant territory in the federation — economically electorally and militarily The Republic of Malawi (məˈlɑːwi or; formerly Nyasaland) is in southern Africa. The History of Malawi covers the area of present-day Malawi. The region was once part of the Maravi Empire. The Republic of Zambia (ˈzæmbɪə is a Landlocked country in Southern Africa. Northern Rhodesia was a territory in south central Africa initially administered under charter by the British South Africa Company and formed by it in 1911 by Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British Colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa, and known today as Zimbabwe A self-governing colony is a Colony with an elected Legislature, in which Politicians are able to make most decisions without reference to the The Unilateral Declaration of Independence ( UDI) of Rhodesia from the United Kingdom was signed on November 11, 1965 by the administration The term black people usually refers to a racial group of Humans with dark Skin color, but the term has also been used to categorise a number of diverse The support of South Africa's apartheid government, and the Portuguese rule of Angola and Mozambique helped support the Rhodesian regime until 1979, when agreement was reached on majority rule, ending the Rhodesian Bush War and creating the new nation of Zimbabwe. Angola, officially the Republic of Angola (República de Angola Pronounced ʁɛˈpublikɐ dɨ ɐ̃ˈgɔlɐ Repubilika ya Ngola is a country in south-central Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique (Moçambique or República de Moçambique, ʁɛ'publikɐ d musɐ̃'bik is a country in southeastern Africa The Rhodesian Bush War, also known as the Second Chimurenga or the Zimbabwe Liberation Struggle, was a war which lasted from July 1964 to 1979 and See also Great Zimbabwe National Monument. For information about the March and June 2008 presidential elections see Zimbabwean presidential election As a result of the Lancaster House Agreement, the British Empire briefly expanded, as Lord Soames became interim governor in December of 1979. The Lancaster House Agreement ended biracial rule in Zimbabwe Rhodesia following negotiations between representatives of the Patriotic Front (PF consisting of ZAPU Arthur Christopher John Soames Baron Soames, GCMG, GCVO, CH, CBE, PC ( October 12, 1920 &ndash September In February, the empire returned to size as Robert Mugabe won the first premiership of newly independent Zimbabwe. See also Great Zimbabwe National Monument. For information about the March and June 2008 presidential elections see Zimbabwean presidential election
The West Indies / Caribbean
Most of the United Kingdom's West Indies territories opted for eventual separate independence after the failure of the West Indies Federation (1958–62): Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago (1962) were followed into statehood by Barbados (1966) and the smaller islands of the eastern Caribbean (1970s and 1980s), Antigua and Barbuda being the last in November 1981. The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting The West Indies Federation, also known as the Federation of the West Indies, was a short-lived Caribbean Federation that existed from January 3 1958 Jamaica (ˈdʒəˈmeɪkə} is an Island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length and as much as in width situated in the Caribbean Sea. The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (ˈtrɪnɪdæd ən təˈbeɪgoʊ is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying northeast of the South American Barbados ( Portuguese word for bearded-ones, bɑrˈbeɪdoʊz -dɒs situated just east of the Caribbean Sea, is an independent Island nation Antigua and Barbuda ( Spanish for "Ancient" and "Bearded" is an Island nation located on the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea
Guyana achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1966 and became a republic on 23 February 1970. Guyana (ɡaɪˈænə or /ɡiːˈɑːnə/ officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and previously known as British Guiana, is the only Nation state Events 1455 - Traditional date for the publication of the Gutenberg Bible, the first Western Book printed from Movable Year 1970 ( MCMLXX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
The United Kingdom's last colony on the American mainland, British Honduras, became a self-governing colony in 1964 and was renamed Belize on 1 June 1973, achieving full independence in 1981. British Honduras was the former name of what is now the independent nation of Belize and was a British colony on the east coast of Central Belize (bəˈliːz formerly British Honduras, is a country in Central America. Events 193 - Roman Emperor Didius Julianus is Assassinated 987 - Hugh Capet is elected Year 1973 ( MCMLXXIII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the 1973 Gregorian calendar.
Some nations in the West Indies have decided to revert to the United Kingdom after they started on a path to independence. Events 1012 - Martyrdom of Alphege in Greenwich London. 1529 - At the Second Diet of Speyer Year 1982 ( MCMLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar) The island of Anguilla was a part of the island grouping, Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla, which in 1967 was granted full internal autonomy by the United Kingdom. Anguilla (English pronunciation ang-GWILL-ah, æŋˈɡwɪlə is a British overseas territory in the Caribbean, one of the most northerly of the Leeward St Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla was historically an Overseas territory of the United Kingdom located in the Caribbean Sea. Anguillans challenged the move and sought to separate from the group. In 1971 the change was granted by the United Kingdom and Saint Kitts and Nevis continued towards independence in 1973. The Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis (also known as the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis) located in the Leeward Islands, is a federal two-island
In the 1970s the Turks and Caicos Islands were another group of islands placed on the path to political independence from the United Kingdom. The Turks and Caicos Islands ( TCI) (ˈtɜːks ænd ˈkeɪkəs are a British Overseas Territory consisting of two groups of tropical islands in the West Indies Following elections, a change in the local administration put off this policy and the TC's have remained an overseas territory since.
Rockall
As decolonisation and the Cold War were gathering momentum during the 1950s, an uninhabited rock in the Atlantic Ocean, Rockall, became the last territorial acquisition of the United Kingdom. The transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China, often referred to as the Handover "July 1st" redirects here For the Ayumi Hamasaki song see H (song. Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Rockall is a small uninhabited rocky Islet in the north Atlantic Ocean, and one of the sea areas named in the Shipping Forecast broadcast on BBC Concerns that the Soviet Union might use the island to spy on a British missile test[57] prompted the landing of a Royal Navy party to officially claim the rock in the name of the Queen in 1955. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) In 1972 the Island of Rockall Act formally incorporated the island into the United Kingdom. The Island of Rockall Act 1972 (1972 c 2 is a UK Act of Parliament formally annexing Rockall in its entirety to protect it from Irish and
The Falklands War
In 1982, the United Kingdom's resolve to defend her remaining overseas territories was tested when Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands, acting on a long-standing claim that dated back to the Spanish Empire. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries The United Kingdom's ultimately successful military response to retake the islands during the ensuing Falklands War prompted headlines in the US press that "the Empire strikes back", and was viewed by many to have contributed to reversing the downward trend in the UK's status as a world power. The Falklands War (Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del Atlántico Sur also called the Falklands Conflict/Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the A great power is a Nation or State that has the ability to exert its influence on a global scale [58]
Handover of Hong Kong
In 1997, Hong Kong became a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, per the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration. Hong Kong ( officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located on China 's south coast on the Pearl River Delta, and borders A Special Administrative Region ( SAR) is a high autonomous administrative division of the People's Republic of China. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES The Sino-British Joint Declaration, formally known as the Joint Declaration of the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of For many, including Charles, Prince of Wales who was in attendance at the ceremony, the handover of Britain's last major and by far most populous overseas territory marked "the end of Empire". The handover ceremony of Hong Kong in 1997 officially marked the Transfer of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China [59][60]
Legacy
The United Kingdom retains sovereignty over 14 territories outside of the British Isles,[61] collectively named the British overseas territories, which remain under British rule due to lack of support for independence among the local population or because the territory is uninhabited except for transient military or scientific personnel. The British Overseas Territories are fourteen territories that are under the Sovereignty of the United Kingdom, but which do not form part of the United Kingdom British sovereignty of several of the overseas territories is disputed by their geographical neighbours: Gibraltar is claimed by Spain, the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are claimed by Argentina, and the British Indian Ocean Territory is claimed by Mauritius and Seychelles. Gibraltar (dʒɨˈbrɒltər is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands ( SGSSI) is a British overseas territory in the southern Atlantic Ocean. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. Mauritius (pronounced məˈrɪʃəs L’île Maurice /il mɔ'ʁis/ Mauritian Creole: Maurice) officially the Republic of Mauritius, République Seychelles (seɪˈʃɛl or /seɪˈʃɛlz/ in English and seʃɛl in French) officially the Republic of Seychelles (République des Seychelles Creole [62] The British Antarctic Territory is subject to overlapping claims by Argentina and Chile, whilst many nations do not recognise any territorial claims to Antarctica. The British Antarctic Territory is a sector of Antarctica claimed by the United Kingdom. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the [63]
Most former British colonies (and one former Portuguese colony) are members of the Commonwealth of Nations, a non-political, voluntary association of equal members, in which the United Kingdom has no privileged status. The head of the Commonwealth is currently Queen Elizabeth II. For the ship see RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Context States headed by Elizabeth II Fifteen members of the Commonwealth continue to share their head of state with the United Kingdom, as Commonwealth realms. A Commonwealth realm is any one of 16 sovereign states within the Commonwealth of Nations that each have Elizabeth II as their respective Monarch
Many former British colonies share or shared certain characteristics:
- The English language as either the main or secondary language. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States
- A democratic parliamentary system of government modelled on the Westminster system. Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system A parliamentary system, also known as parliamentarianism (and parliamentarism in American English) is a System of government in which The Westminster system is a democratic Parliamentary system of Government modelled after the British government (the Parliament of the United
- A legal system based upon English law. The three major legal systems of the world today consist of civil law, Common law and Religious law. English law is the legal system of England and Wales, and is the basis of Common law legal systems used in most Commonwealth countriesand the The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, one of the United Kingdom's highest courts of appeal, still serves as the highest court of appeal for several former colonies. The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom, established by the Judicial Committee Act 1833
- A military, police and civil service based upon British models. A military is an Organization authorized by its Nation to use force usually including use of Weapons in defending its Country (or by attacking Police are agents or agencies usually of the executive, empowered to enforce the law and to effect public and social order through the legitimatized use of force See also Bureaucrat The term civil service has two distinct meanings Branch of governmental service in which individuals are hired on the basis
- The English and later the imperial systems of measurement. Imperial units or the Imperial system is a collection of units first defined in the British Weights and Measures Act of 1824 The United States, which uses the older English system, Cyprus and Burma are the only former British colonies not to have officially adopted the metric system. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the US customary units, also known in the United States as English units or Imperial units (in reference to the British Empire) (but see English Cyprus (Κύπρος transliterated: Kýpros,; Kıbrıs officially the Republic of Cyprus (Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία Kypriakī́ Dīmokratía Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar ( pjìdàunzṵ mjàmmà nàinŋàndɔ̀ is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia. The metric system is a decimalised system of measurement. It exists in several variations with different choices of base units, though the choice of base units does However, the imperial system is still very much used in many "officially metric" countries, such as Canada, Belize, Sierra Leone, and Ireland.
- Educational institutions such as boarding schools and universities modelled on Oxford and Cambridge. A boarding school is a School where some or all pupils not only study but also live during term time with their fellow students and possibly teachers The University of Oxford (informally "Oxford University" or simply "Oxford" located in the city of Oxford, Oxfordshire, England is the The University of Cambridge (often Cambridge University) located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the
- Driving on the left-hand side of the road, with some exceptions mainly in North America and North Africa. Right-hand traffic and left-hand traffic mean regulations requiring all traffic to keep either to the left or the right side of the Road.
- Popularity of cricket and/or rugby union, as well as related sports. Cricket is a bat-and-ball team Sport that originated in England and is now played in more than 100 countries Overview See also Playing rugby union A rugby union match lasts for 80 minutes (plus stoppage time with a short
Several ongoing conflicts and disputes around the world can trace their origins to borders inherited by countries from the British Empire: the Guatemalan claim to Belize, the Kashmir conflict, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and within Africa, where political boundaries did not reflect homogeneous ethnicities or religions. Belize maintains fourteen embassies to foreign countries one additional consulate and three missions to international organizations The Kashmir conflict refers to the Territorial dispute between The British Empire was also responsible for large migrations of peoples. Millions left the British Isles, with the founding settler populations of the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand coming mainly from Britain and Ireland. Tensions remain between the mainly British-descended populations of Canada, Australia and New Zealand and the indigenous minorities in those countries, and between settler minorities and indigenous majorities in South Africa and Zimbabwe. British settlement of Ireland continues to leave its mark in the form of a divided Catholic and Protestant community. Millions of people also moved between British colonies, for example from India to the Caribbean and Africa, creating the conditions for the expulsion of Indians in Uganda in 1972. On 4 August 1972, Idi Amin, President of Uganda, gave Uganda's 50000 Asians (mostly Gujaratis of Indian origin 90 days The makeup of Britain itself was changed after the Second World War with immigration to the United Kingdom from the colonies to which it was granting independence. Since the formation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 1922 there has been substantial Immigration from other parts of The world. [64]
See also
References
Notes
- ^ Angus Maddison. The history of the United Kingdom — British history — as an unified Sovereign state begins with the legistlative union between the kingdoms of England This is a history of the economy of the United Kingdom and of the countries that joined to form it in 1707 and 1801 The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the Naval history is the area of Military history concerning War at Sea and the subject is also a sub-discipline of the broad field of Maritime history Although in the past the style of British Emperor has been (retroactively applied to a few mythical and historical rulers of Britain or Great Britain, it is sometimes used as This is a list of the various territories that have been under the political control of the United Kingdom and/or its predecessor states Decolonization refers to the undoing of Colonialism, the establishment of governance or authority through the creation of settlements by another country or jurisdiction A Commonwealth realm is any one of 16 sovereign states within the Commonwealth of Nations that each have Elizabeth II as their respective Monarch Commonwealth Day is the annual celebration of the Commonwealth of Nations held on the second Monday in March and marked by a multi-faith service in Westminster Abbey The British Empire and Commonwealth Museum ( is a museum in Bristol, United Kingdom that explores the history of the British Empire and the effect See also Government House Government House is the name given to some of the residences of Governors-General, Governors and Lieutenant-Governors See also The British Empire The British Empire has often been portrayed in fiction. See also Personal union Kingdom of England (927 - 1707 Norway from 1013 to 1014 and again from 1028 to 1035 The Cromwellian conquest of Ireland (1649-53 refers to the re-conquest of Ireland by the forces of the English Parliament, led by Oliver Cromwell The Irish Rebellion of 1798 (Éirí Amach 1798 Turn Oot 1798 or 1798 rebellion as it is known locally was an uprising in 1798 lasting several months against the The Penal Laws in Ireland (Na Péindlíthe refers to a series of laws imposed under British rule that sought to discriminate against Roman Catholics and Protestant dissenters in favour The Protestant work ethic, sometimes called the Puritan work ethic, is a sociological theoretical concept During the late 18th and 19th centuries large numbers of Convicts were transported to the various Australian penal colonies by the British government The White Rajahs refer to a dynasty that founded and ruled the Kingdom of Sarawak from 1841 to 1946 namely the Brookes who came originally from England The start of the European colonization of the Americas is typically dated to 1492 although there was at least one earlier colonization effort British colonization of the Americas (including colonization under the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland before the 1707 Acts of Union created Scottish colonization of the Americas consisted of a number of failed or abandoned Scottish settlements in North America, a colony at Darien, Welsh settlement in the Americas was the result of several individual initiatives to found distinctively Welsh settlements in the New World. In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" Triangular trade is a historical term indicating Trade between three ports or regions The Atlantic Slave trade, also known as the transatlantic slave trade, was the trade of African people supplied to the Colonies of the New World See also Atlantic slave trade, Abolitionism The Slave Trade Act (citation 47 Geo III Sess The term South Asia usually refers to the political entities of the Sub- Himalayan region - namely Republic of India, Pakistan, Imperialism in Asia traces its roots back to the late fifteenth century with a series of voyages that sought a sea passage to India in the hope of The Honourable East India Company ( HEIC) referred to most commonly as the East India Company, also historically and colloquially as John Company, or For usage see British rule in India British Raj ( rāj, lit "reign" in Hindustani) primarily refers to the British The All Red Line was an informal name for the system of Electrical telegraphs that linked all the British Empire The British Imperial lifeline is a term used to describe the route by which Imperial England was connected to her colonies in the far east most notably India This article lists the Wars fought by England prior to the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain via the Act of Union 1707. The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Western culture (sometimes equated with Western Civilization) are terms which are used to refer to Cultures of European origin A global empire involves the extension of a state's sovereignty over territories all around the World. This article provides a list of the largest Empires in world history. Rockall is a small uninhabited rocky Islet in the north Atlantic Ocean, and one of the sea areas named in the Shipping Forecast broadcast on BBC The World Economy: A Millennial Perspective (p. 98, 242). OECD, Paris, 2001.
- ^ Bruce R. Gordon. To Rule the Earth... (See Bibliography for sources used. )
- ^ This phrase had already been used a few centuries before by the king Charles I of Spain, referring to the Spanish Empire. Charles V (24 February 1500 &ndash 21 September 1558 was The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries
- ^ Andrews, Kenneth (1985). Trade, Plunder and Settlement: Maritime Enterprise and the Genesis of the British Empire, 1480-1630. Cambridge Paperback Library, 45.
- ^ Nicholas, Canny (1998). The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 7.
- ^ BBC The curse of Cromwell
- ^ Nicholas Canny, Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire
- ^ Alan, Taylor (2001). American Colonies, The Settling of North America. Penguin, 123.
- ^ Alan, Taylor (2001). American Colonies, The Settling of North America. Penguin, 119.
- ^ Nicholas, Canny (1998). The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 70.
- ^ Anthony, Pagden (1998). The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 34.
- ^ James, Lawrence (2001). The Rise and Fall of the British Empire. Abacus, 17.
- ^ Nicholas, Canny (1998). The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 71.
- ^ Niall, Ferguson (2004). Empire. Penguin, 72-73.
- ^ Dull, Jonathan R. (2003). "Diplomacy of the Revolution, to 1783," p. 352, chap. in A Companion to the American Revolution, ed. Jack P. Greene and J. R. Pole. Maiden, Mass. : Blackwell, pp. 352–361. ISBN 1405116749.
- ^ Niall, Ferguson (2004). Empire. Penguin, 62.
- ^ Anthony, Pagden (1998). The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 228.
- ^ Was slavery the engine of economic growth?
- ^ a b Niall, Ferguson (2004). Empire. Penguin, 19.
- ^ Anthony, Pagden (1998). The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 93.
- ^ Anthony, Pagden (1998). The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 441.
- ^ Anthony, Pagden (2003). Peoples and Empires: A Short History of European Migration, Exploration, and Conquest, from Greece to the Present. Modern Library, 90.
- ^ Anthony, Pagden (2003). Peoples and Empires: A Short History of European Migration, Exploration, and Conquest, from Greece to the Present. Modern Library, 91.
- ^ Niall, Ferguson (2004). Empire. Penguin, 73.
- ^ Anthony, Pagden (1998). The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 92.
- ^ James, Lawrence (2001). The Rise and Fall of the British Empire. Abacus, 119.
- ^ Smith, Simon (1998). British Imperialism 1750-1970. Cambridge University Press, 28.
- ^ Smith, Simon (1998). British Imperialism 1750-1970. Cambridge University Press, 20.
- ^ James, Lawrence (2001). The Rise and Fall of the British Empire. Abacus, 152.
- ^ Hyam, Ronald (2002). Britain's Imperial Century, 1815-1914: A Study of Empire and Expansion. Palgrave Macmillan, 1.
- ^ Smith, Simon (1998). British Imperialism 1750-1970. Cambridge University Press, 71.
- ^ Timothy, Parsons (1999). The British Imperial Century, 1815-1914: A World History Perspective. Rowman & Littlefield, 3.
- ^ a b Porter, Andrew (1998). The Nineteenth Century, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 401.
- ^ Porter, Andrew (1998). The Nineteenth Century, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 323.
- ^ Porter, Andrew (1998). The Nineteenth Century, The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford University Press, 8.
- ^ Wright, Donald R. (2007). "Berlin West Africa Conference". Encarta Online Encyclopedia.
- ^ Lloyd, T (1996). The British Empire 1558-1995. Oxford University Press, 227.
- ^ Lloyd, T (1996). The British Empire 1558-1995. Oxford University Press, 258.
- ^ McLean, Iain (2001). Rational Choice and British Politics: An Analysis of Rhetoric and Manipulation from Peel to Blair. Oxford University Press, 272.
- ^ Morland and Cowling (2004). Political issues for the twenty-first century. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd, 270.
- ^ Hollowell, Jonathan (2002). Britain Since 1945. Blackwell Publishing, 480.
- ^ Joan Beaumont, Australia's war in Asia and the Pacific, in Joan Beaumont (ed. ) Australia's War 1939-45(1996, Ch. 2)
- ^ Beaumont, Ibid.
- ^ Abernethy, David (2000). The Dynamics of Global Dominance, European Overseas Empires 1415-1980. Yale University Press, 146.
- ^ Louis, Roger (1999). The Oxford History of the British Empire, Vol. IV, The Twentieth Century. Oxford University Press, 331.
- ^ BBC NEWS | UK | Magazine | What's a little debt between friends?
- ^ a b Louis, Roger (1999). The Oxford History of the British Empire, Vol. IV, The Twentieth Century. Oxford University Press, 330.
- ^ Abernethy, David (2000). The Dynamics of Global Dominance, European Overseas Empires 1415-1980. Yale University Press, 148.
- ^ Louis, Roger (1999). The Oxford History of the British Empire, Vol. IV, The Twentieth Century. Oxford University Press, 342.
- ^ Smith, Simon (1998). British Imperialism 1750-1970. Cambridge University Press, 105.
- ^ a b Louis, Roger (1999). The Oxford History of the British Empire, Vol. IV, The Twentieth Century. Oxford University Press, 343.
- ^ James, Lawrence (2001). The Rise and Fall of the British Empire. Abacus, 585.
- ^ Margaret, Thatcher (1993). The Downing Street Years. Harper Collins.
- ^ Smith, Simon (1998). British Imperialism 1750-1970. Cambridge University Press, 106.
- ^ James, Lawrence (2001). The Rise and Fall of the British Empire. Abacus, 586.
- ^ Macdonald, Fraser (2006) Journal of Historical Geography 32 (2006) 627-647 [1]PDF (396 KiB)
- ^ Lawrence James, The Rise and Fall of the British Empire (Abacus, 1994), p629
- ^ BBC NEWS | UK | Charles' diary lays thoughts bare
- ^ BBC - History - Britain, the Commonwealth and the End of Empire
- ^ UK Overseas Territories Foreign and Commonwealth Office, retrieved 2007-09-05
- ^ British Indian Ocean Territory. A kibibyte (a contraction of ki lo bi nary byte) is a unit of Information or Computer storage, established by the International Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1590 - Alexander Farnese 's army forces Henry IV of France to raise the siege of Paris. The World Factbook. The World Factbook ( ISSN; also known as the CIA World Factbook) is an annual publication of the Central Intelligence Agency of the CIA.
- ^ Antarctica. The World Factbook. The World Factbook ( ISSN; also known as the CIA World Factbook) is an annual publication of the Central Intelligence Agency of the CIA.
- ^ Nigel, Dalziel (2006). The Penguin Historical Atlas of the British Empire. Penguin, 135.
External links
- Extensive information on the British Empire
- Sizes of various empires and quasi-empires
- The Commonwealth - UK government site
Dictionary
British Empire
-proper noun
- Formerly the United Kingdom together with its dominions, colonies, dependencies, trust territories and protectorates; became the Commonwealth of Nations following the independence of many of its constituent countries
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic