The British Empire was made up of the colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories which were controlled by the United Kingdom.. Queen Victoria's 1837 ascension to the throne ushered in British empire industrialization and global expansion. At its height, it was the largest empire in history, and the world's most powerful superpower for more than a century. The British Empire once infamously covered a quarter of the globe. (Mauritius took the longest to convert – 24 years … In 1905 the Colonial Office issued a Circular Despatch (No14 of 1905) encouraging colonies to apply for arms. Five years later, the United Kingdom officially upheld the formation of the Commonwealth by signing a document called the Statute of Westminster. It was referred to as the ‘empire on which the sun never set’ due to its vast geographical reach. It began with the overseas colonies and trading posts set up by England between the late 16th and early 18th centuries. As such, Queen Elizabeth II was automatically the head of state, represented within the country by a Governor-General. The British Empire is remembered for its extensive, long-lasting and far-reaching imperial activities that ushered in an era of globalisation and connectivity. I have included some other examples of self-governing colonies in this category. Britain controlled the sea lanes of the world and with them access to the trading ports. £2.00. Countries-in-the-British-Empire-by-1914. British Empire - British Empire - Dominance and dominions: The 19th century marked the full flower of the British Empire. Preview and details Files included (3) docx, 21 KB. It was the largest empire in history and despite the vast distances which separated its territories from the Colonial Office in England, it was dominated by the British Navy. Small states are especially vulnerable to things like climate change or developmental challenges. Ireland as a whole has never been a British colony. One way to write about the history of the world is through the history of empires built up by conquest. The British Empire no longer exists. This is for any countries that were ever in the empire. These two areas make up 3% of Cyrprus, and remained in British hands after the island gained independence. The British Empire did have some major victories in the Second World War – in the Battle of Britain, the British managed to turn away the vaunted German air force, and they were a crucial member of the Allied invasion force that landed in Normandy and eventually helped to conquer Germany – but these victories proved costly. In the 15th and 16th century English and Scottish people started establishing colonies overseas and among many reasons, the main were trade and financial benefit. From the 1870s, in search of new markets to trade with, and facing competition from other countries, such as Germany and France, Britain set out to gain control and influence over new overseas territories, particularly in Africa. Note, also, that there is a difference between what is meant by "British Empire" and what is meant by the term, " British Empire was, undoubtedly, the greatest empire world has ever seen. British Empire Flags and Patriotic Decorations. Author: Created by Morma. Das Britische Weltreich (englisch British Empire oder kurz Empire) war das größte Kolonialreich der Geschichte. Yeah agreed about China. The British Empire included many of the colonies that as countries later formed the Commonwealth of Nations (British Commonwealth). Britain was the topmost global power for more than a century. During the Victorian period, it was at its peak. Commonwealth countries are diverse – they are amongst the world’s biggest, smallest, richest and poorest countries. The Empire was overstretched and - combined with growing unrest in various colonies - this led to the swift and decisive fall of many of Britain’s key assets, some diplomatically, some violently. When colonial flags were introduced in 1869 few colonies had arms. Don’t worry, we’d never heard of it either. These are the countries that make up the remains of the British Empire: Akrotiri and Dhekelia. Read more. Together, these countries formed the British Empire. British Empire map and Countries - KS3 History-Empire Unit (no rating) 0 customer reviews. The activities and the agreements that Commonwealth is providing to its member is way off better than the British Empire policies this is the reason to why more and more countries are attracted towards this … The majority of African countries who had been part of the British Empire gained independence within the Commonwealth as Commonwealth Realms. I'll do them alphabetically for what they are now,not what they were when under the empires reign unless someone specifically asks . Most flag badges were based upon the Public Seal which every colony had to have. Much like America is today, the tiny island of Britain was the superpower of the time. British have invaded nine out of ten countries - so look out Luxembourg Britain has invaded all but 22 countries in the world in its long and colourful history, new research has found. Preview. 32 of our members are classified as small states. Basically the non governmental bodies hold the activities and regulations of Commonwealth, while for the British Empire the British in England were the main leading party. Dominions were fully independent countries after the 1931 Statute of Westminster, although their Head of State continued to be the British sovereign. List of countries that have gained independence from the United Kingdom From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This is a list of countries and territories formerly ruled or administered by the United Kingdom or part of the British Empire, with their independence days. There are 54 countries in the Commonwealth, in Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Pacific. Created: Sep 6, 2017 | Updated: Jan 2, 2018. She was awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2016 Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services to consumers and better regulations. Most converted to Commonwealth Republics within a couple of years. The British Empire: The British Empire was a large, global empire controlled by England, and later Great Britain, that spanned from the 15th to the 20th Centuries. You could try this as a group or class activity to see who can get the most correct answers! Whereas only a few years before Britain would have been able to cow a country like Egypt with ease, it now had to slink out of the Suez Canal zone, humiliated and widely reviled. Britain controlled ¼ of the world’s land area and ruled over 400 million diverse peoples. Administration and policy changed during the century from the haphazard arrangements of the 17th and 18th centuries to the sophisticated system characteristic of Joseph Chamberlain’s tenure (1895–1900) in the Colonial Office. British America referred to the group of colonies in North America and the Caribbean belonging to Great Britain. I understand not including Hong Kong as a country, but if you are going with Jetpunk's list of countries, then Hong Kong is part of China, meaning that part of China was definitely in the British Empire. She is the Chair of the Chartered Trading Standards Institute Board and lives in Swadlincote, Derybshire, England. The U.K. was viewed as greater than all other countries in the British Empire, so this was a huge step for equality among European countries, hence the word Commonwealth. The kids will enjoy this fun worksheet asking them to recognise the flags of the countries that were part of the British Empire during the reign of Queen Victoria. This is what British historian Stuart Laycock learned after his son asked him how many countries Britain had invaded. The British Empire was the largest formal empire in history. Loading... Save for later. Nation British Empire; British Empire British Empire: British India (1858-1876) British Empire: Indian Empire (1876-1947) United Kingdom: Colony of Burma (1937-1948) British Empire: Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (1953-1963) 14,000 people live there, half of whom are military personnel. Introduction. The British Empire at its peak controlled 13,700,000 square miles, nearly a quarter of the land area on earth. However since the cost was not a Colonial Office expense, but … Unter der Herrschaft des Vereinigten Königreichs vereinte es Dominions, Kronkolonien, Protektorate, Mandatsgebiete und sonstige abhängige Gebiete, die aus den englischen Überseebesitzungen, Handelsposten und Strafkolonien hervorgegangen waren. Ireland, to take one example, became independent of Britain in 1922 and, quite obviously, is no longer considered to be within the British Empire by anyone. The British Empire comprised of Britain, the 'mother country', and the colonies, countries ruled to some degree by and from Britain. (Creative Commons) Anguilla. From the 1870s, in search of new markets to trade with, and facing competition from other countries, such as Germany and France, Britain set out to gain control and influence over new overseas territories, particularly in Africa. In the 16th century Britain began to establish overseas colonies. 3 resources which look at which countries were in the British Empire. Together, these countries formed the British Empire. Starting with North America and the Caribbean the colonialization spread to Africa and Asia. It has been invaded numerous times, dating back to an 1171 occupation, but during the time of the British empire it went from a kingdom (similar to modern Commonwealth countries, it was under the reigning monarch but not the country itself) to Northern Ireland, while the remainder of Ireland expanded to fill much of the island. With the end of the Victorian Era in 1901, Great Britain was the world's largest ... > CLASS ; COLLEGE ; TESTS ; VOCAB ; LIFE ; TECH ; A List of Countries Colonized by the British in the Victorian Era. 5 of the worst atrocities carried out by the British Empire. Professor Denis Judd is the author of Empire: The British Imperial Experience from 1765 to the Present (IB Tauris, 2011). Advertisement . 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