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British Empire

             One of the greatest empires that ever existed is that of the British Empire. With colonies all over the world including Africa, India, and even the holy land, all fell under British rule or occupation. British History can include the history of all those colonies that were ruled by and or influenced by the British. Before expanding the scope too far it's important to look at British History where it first began and in its own geographical origin. It was only in 1707 in the Parliamentary Union where the creation of Britain came about. So does that mean that British History is only the events that happened after 1707? How do historians approach this? Which countries are included in "British History" and how is that justified? These are just some of the questions that historians have to address. J. G. Pocock tries to address some of these issues in his article " British History: A Plea for a New Subject." with much of his emphasis on the terminology that is used in describing "British" History. Taking a more recent look at the status of "British" History, Raphael Samuel, tries to assess the history of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales in his article "British Dimensions: Four Nations History." His interpretation (Four-Nations) of "British History" is really an expression of retreat of "empire" which is really "post-colonial" discourse.
             Pocock uses "British history" for lack of a better term. It is used to recognize the plural history of a group of cultures situated along an Anglo Celtic frontier and marked by an increasing English political and cultural domination. He identifies the deficiencies as being with the terminology traditionally used to describe British History. In addition to agreement with Taylor's theory that the term "British" is essentially incorrect he proposes a new word to describe the inhabitants of Scotland; the "Scotch" instead of the term more commonly used "Scots.


Essays Related to British Empire

1. Motives For British Imperialism In Africa

... India Company established themselves as the economic rulers of India. Then, in 1858, Queen Victoria officially made India a part of the British empire Once the British gained formal control of India, its importance began to increase. India became the British center of operations in Asia, and was the staging point for military excursions into Afghanistan, Burma, and other nearby territories. More importantly, though, the ... minerals and spices which provided the locals with sustenance. Finally, they used millions of Indian soldiers to fight their dirty little wars across the globe. With...

  • Word Count: 5643
  • Approx Pages: 23
  • Grade Level: High School

2. Geopolitical significance of the South Africa to the British

... white - settler colonies, soon to be recognized as virtually independent "dominion" ( South Africa )- . South Africa was not the only colony of the British Empire, and British Empire was so vast that there was a saying "Sun never sets on the British Empire". In addition Britain possessed other parts of the African continent at the northwest. However, even if South Africa was one of those colonies that ... since West, especially industrialized Britain, did a lot of commerce and trading, and brought raw materials and produces of the colonies and other trading partners, controlling the rout...

  • Word Count: 2767
  • Approx Pages: 11
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

3. The British Empire

... in the end. This was just my opinion as I wrote this project, but now I give you the true facts about what really happened. The British Empire was known as a worldwide system of dependencies, colonies, dependent political units called protectorates, and other territories. During three centuries these units were under the control ... known. As such its power and influence stretched all over the globe, shaping it in many ways. For better or worse, the British Empire had a great impact on the history of the world. Great Britain made its first experimental efforts to establish overseas settl...

  • Word Count: 1396
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: High School

4. The Rise and Fall of the British Empire

... Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and its former dominions, colonies and other territories that were under the dominion of the British Crown between the end of the 16th and until the late of the 20th century. The British Empire reached its peak at the beginning of 20th century, comprising over 20% of the Earth's land surface and more than 400 million ... General Charles Cornwallis and his army surrendered at Yorktown, Virginia, in October 1781. This defeat not only marked the end of the war, but also the end of the first British Empire. After the death of the emperor Aurangz...

  • Word Count: 1137
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. Great Britain - Justification for an Empire

... of territory in America had nothing to do with Britain, his methods and justifications for this colonization provided an insight about how the British Empire dealt with these same situations. Along with colonization being the religious duty of Christians, many British believed that it was the moral duty of a civilized society. The uncivilized lifestyles lived by many of the people in areas colonized ... enough to offset any horrific actions performed in this modernization. Along with colonization, free labor was another essential element witch contributed to the success of the British Emp...

  • Word Count: 1200
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

6. British In India

... officially took over India from a private trading company, was in fact only the final act in a long, crooked and partly accidental drama. Much of the British empire, in fact, was acquired, according to a celebrated phrase, "in a fit of absence of mind." When the London merchants of what became the East India Company first sent ships to the ... such as smoking cigars, playing polo and taking showers. Most of all, they had laid the foundations for, and forced the British government to get involved in, what was about to become the most ambitious, and the most anguished, empire in modern h...

  • Word Count: 5127
  • Approx Pages: 21
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

7. Decline of the Mughal Empire

... GDP diminished from 80% to less than 15% between the years of 1650 to 1871, the British living standards rose rapidly. The years of economic decline corresponds with the years of decline for the Mughal Empire that was terminated in 1858. Babur founded the Mughal Empire after the battle of Panipat in 1526 and his descendants governed India from 1526 to the early ... of them. Their system was deconstructed due to relentless rebels and Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last emperor, was imprisoned under the British in Burma. After various reasons contributing to the decline of Mughal Empire, it was ...

  • Word Count: 1731
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

8. British Imperialism And The Boer War

... 's independence in 1843, but both did not prove to be economically beneficial. This new discovery, for the first time, made it economically desirable that the Transvaal be drawn into the British Empire. By the end of the century, Southern Africa had become, for the first time, a significant contributor to the world economy. The new wealth of the Transvaal gave the Boers more ... English subjects residing in the Boer republics. Cecil Rhodes, prime minister of Cape Colony, also implemented ideas of British imperialism. He wished to bring all of southern Africa into the British Empire. In D...

  • Word Count: 3503
  • Approx Pages: 14
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

9. Conflict between the Colonies and British Empire

... another and the misunderstanding of both side's views would cause a drift in the relationship between the two. The views of the colonies were that the regulations set forth by the British Empire was unjust and unfair. What boggled the attitudes of the North American colonies was that they are considered to be subjects of the ... not represented or was their consent met. On the part of the English they believe the Stamp Act is fair for if the colonists believe they are subjects of the British Empire then taxation is just. The Stamp Act would raise a lot of questions and actions on the pa...

  • Word Count: 1472
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

10. Fall of the Ottoman Empire

... after World War One, the Europeans took a call to action and demanded that the Arabs revolted against the Ottoman Empire (The Arab Revolt of 1916). In return the British promised to grant the Arabs their own land, however they did not execute their plan and created mandates meaning that ... planned. Maybe it was too much to handle or even too much work, but it can easily be concluded by the gathered information that the British were huge liars. Also, another document that proves their disloyalty is the Balfour Declaration. The Balfour Declaration (1917) is a letter broadcasting Britain...

  • Word Count: 871
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

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