Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Both World Wars first stretched the British Empire to its greatest size, then helped destroy it. The wars drained Britai

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Britain governed its empire through changing policies across India, Africa, and the Middle East. It also gave self-gover

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Both World Wars cost Britain enormous sums of money and disrupted its trade with the empire. These financial pressures m

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Gandhi led a mass movement that forced Britain to defend its rule over India. He used peaceful protest to expose the con

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Imperialist ideals were beliefs that justified British rule over other peoples. Books, newspapers, exhibitions, and art

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Colonised peoples across the British Empire resisted British rule through protest, conflict, and organised political mov

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Decolonisation means the process by which colonies broke free from British rule and became independent nations. Between

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

The 1956 Suez Crisis exposed Britain's shrinking global power. After that humiliation, Britain reshaped its colonial pol

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

After both world wars, Britain had to rebuild its shattered economy. These wars damaged imperial trade networks and forc

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Nationalist leaders across Africa and Asia organised resistance to British rule. Their campaigns forced British colonial

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

When colonies became independent, Britain did not simply walk away. Political, economic, and cultural connections — and

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Colonised peoples across Africa and Asia increasingly resisted British rule after 1945. Armed uprisings like the Mau Mau

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Imperial retreat, 1914–1967

Where 1J.1 explored how Britain built its empire, this subtopic examines how and why that empire unravelled between 1914

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Between 1857 and 1890, Britain seized large territories across Africa. Controlling the Suez Canal gave Britain a vital s

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Britain ran its empire through a mix of direct rule and behind-the-scenes influence. India was the centrepiece, Africa b

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Britain built its empire partly through trade. Private companies received royal charters — official licences — giving th

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Four groups of people — explorers, missionaries, traders, and colonial administrators — each played a distinct role in b

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

British people disagreed sharply about whether empire was good or bad. These disagreements split the two main political

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Britain's empire brought it into repeated conflict with the peoples it tried to rule. The Indian Mutiny of 1857, Boer re

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Between roughly 1890 and 1914, Britain tightened its grip on existing African territories and seized new ones. By 1914,

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Britain governed its empire through different systems in different places. India and Egypt show how policy, local contro

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Between 1857 and 1914, Britain used its empire to dominate global trade. British merchants sold manufactured goods abroa

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Joseph Chamberlain and Cecil Rhodes were two of the most powerful forces behind British imperial expansion. Chamberlain

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

British people debated whether empire was good or bad. Supporters celebrated it through books, music halls, and sport. C

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Britain faced violent resistance from local peoples across its empire. The Sudan campaign and the Boer War were two majo

The British Empire, c1857–1967

The High Water Mark of the British Empire, c1857–1914

Between 1857 and 1914, Britain controlled the largest empire in history, governing roughly a quarter of the world's land

The British Empire, c1857–1967