The British Empire: A source for good or evil? January 2014 | Page 3

The British domination

II- The British Colonies
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other
territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas
possessions and trading posts established by England between the late 16th and early
18th centuries. At its height, it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century,
was the foremost global power. By 1922 the British Empire held sway over about 458
million people, one-fifth of the world's population at the time. The empire covered more
than 33,700,000 km2, almost a quarter of the Earth's total land area. As a result, its
political, legal, linguistic and cultural legacy is widespread. At the peak of its power, the
phrase "the empire on which the sun never sets" was often used to describe the British
Empire, because its expanse across the globe meant that the sun was always shining on
at
least
one
of
its
territories.
. The British Empire consisted of various territories all over the world conquered or
colonized by Britain from about 1600. It was expanded by commerce, trade, colonization,
and sometimes conquest. Over all the Empire was built on commerce, not conquest.
There were colonies conquered, but they were done for a reason.
. The 19th century saw the largest expansion of the Empire. The only serious loss of
territory was the loss of the 13 American colonies in the American Revolution of 1776 –
1783, which became the United States of America. The British Empire was at its largest
territorial expansion after the First World War – after 1918, until the 1940’s, consisting of
over
25%
of
the
world's
population
and
30%
of
its
area.
. Since 1949, the British Empire was replaced by the Commonwealth of Nations. Most
colonies are now independent; today’s Commonwealth is composed of former and
remaining territories of the British Empire and a few non former British Empire countries
which once belonged to other powers such as Portugal, France and Belgium. The
Commonwealth is a loose, voluntary organisation dedicated to preserving human rights
and democracy and is held together by a desire for membership and the English language