History and Culture of the English-Speaking World: British Empire Notes
Introduction
Class Structure
Covers the history and culture of the English-speaking world.
Moves beyond just Britain to include the Americas and the Thirteen Colonies.
British Empire: The Endpoint
Extent
By 1920, it was the largest empire in world history.
Comprised 415 million people, covering 24% of the total land area.
Known as "the empire on which the sun never sets."
Legacy
Left a vast legacy, including linguistic, legal, and cultural influences.
English language maintains dominance worldwide.
Evolution
Evolved gradually from the late 15th century to around 1920.
Expanded from England and Wales to cover six continents.
Successor
Arguably, the American Empire has taken over from the British Empire.
Referenced Daniel Immerwahr's "How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States."
Complexity
The narrative spans 3.5 centuries, six continents, and two empires, making it complex.
Terms like "Empire," "imperialism," and the perceived solidity of the "British Empire" add to the complexity.
Definition of Empire
Traditionally, a union of kingdoms.
Practically, an aggregate of diverse territories (ethnic, cultural, religious, political) where the metropole (dominant territory) controls the periphery (other territories).
Differentiated from a nation-state (one-on-one fiction) and a federation (voluntary and equal autonomy).
Variations of Empire
British, Spanish, German, Austrian, Roman, Mongolian, and Chinese empires differed significantly.
The term "empire" is now often pejorative but has historically been a common way of organizing states.
Empires can range from brutal to relatively benign and include contiguous territories, far-flung possessions, or a mix.
Imperialism
Assembly and governance of an empire through acquisitive expansion, conquest, and hierarchical systems.
Colonialism
A specific form of imperialism focused on settlement, resource extraction, and imposing the colonizer’s culture.
Policy vs. Reality
Imperialism can be a policy even without an actual empire.
Caveats
The British Empire constantly evolved, ceding and gaining territories through war and diplomacy.
Began as a trade project, though this is debated.
Was not self-identified or widely recognized as an empire until the mid-18th and especially the 19th century.
Featured informal empire, such as protectorates in Asia, Latin America, North Africa, and the Middle East, without formal control.
Hegemony
The idea of uncontested hegemony wasn't present until the late 18th/19th century, and even then, it wasn't universally accepted.
Endpoint Perception
Focusing on the endpoint can suggest inevitability or a clear plan, which wasn't always the case.
The Happenstance of Empire
Starting Point
Britain started from a position of weakness.
Geographically and culturally/religiously isolated, less secure and economically powerful than neighbors.
Needed to expand to maintain its position among France, Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands.
Late Entry
Britain was late to the game of Empire and trying to catch up.
Policies
Employed mercantilist and enterprise-focused policies.
Focused on wealth accumulation through trade and private property, in collaboration with the state.
Trade Focus
Particularly interested in trade (especially slave trade), less so in territorial expansion.
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution heightened demand for resources and materials.
Geographic Advantages
Island nation with a strategic position off the Atlantic.
Maritime Advantages
Longer tradition of overseas possessions: Channel Islands through Duchy of Normandy; Lordship of Ireland through the Norman Invasion of Ireland.
Naval dominance due to dependence on seafaring for security and trade.
Political Factors
Internal stability and strategic governance: Britain was relatively stable internally (especially after the 17th century) and developed political institutions for long-term planning.
Cultural Factors
National culture: rapidly developed a national identity and a supranational identity accommodating other cultural groups.
Gradually developed a civilizing mission, secondary to trade.
Retrospective Construction
Reasons and motivations developed alongside the empire.
Phases may be delineated but are retrospective constructions.
Happenstance is more important than it appears.
Key Phases
First British Empire (1583–1783)
English Overseas Possessions (1583–1707)
Atlantic Phase (1707–1783)
Second British Empire (1783–1918)
Pacific Phase: The Scramble for Asia (1783–1815)
Imperial Century: The Scramble for Africa (1815–1918)
Dissolution of the Empire (1918–1997)
Dominions into Commonwealth (1918–1945)
Decolonisation (1945–1997)
What Remains (1997–now)
The First British Empire (1583–1783)
Beginning Conditions
Started from a position of weakness, isolation, and endangerment.
England was behind Spain and Portugal, who had claimed and divided South America through Tordesillas (1494).
Early Exploration
1497: Henry VII commissioned John Cabot (Giovanni Caboto) to chart the coast of North America.
Cabot undertook three voyages, with the second apparently successful.
Landing place and details are unclear, possibly Newfoundland, believed to be Asia.
Internal Politics
Attention was diverted by internal politics during the reigns of Henry VII, VIII, and Mary I.
Henry VIII
Severed England from the Continent and declared it an empire.
Quoted text emphasizing England as an empire governed by a supreme head and king, with all subjects bound to obey.
Elizabeth I
Pursued a course against the Spanish Empire from 1578.
England was embattled due to the Reformation and sought to lay hold of the Atlantic slave trade.
Licensed privateers through letters of marque and granted letters patent to explorers.
Aimed to extract riches and claim bases for privateering against Spain.
Early Colonies
Humphrey Gilbert claimed Newfoundland in 1583, but no colony was established.
Walter Raleigh founded Roanoke in 1584 (current NC), which failed.
Jamestown was founded in current VA by John Smith in 1607.
Early struggles: Starving Time (1609–1610), Anglo-Powhatan War (1610–14, 1622–32, 1644–46), Indian Massacre (1622).
Supported by the Virginia Company (joint stock company); in 1624, it was taken over by the Crown, forming the Colony of Virginia.
The English Overseas Possessions (1583–1707)
Significance of Jamestown
Jamestown marked the start of the First British Empire.
Characterization
Until 1707, possessions were properly English.
Challenges
Hampered by the Civil War and internal ructions.
Composition by 1707
Settlements in North America, Bermuda, West Indies (Caribbean, especially Barbados), and Ireland.
Factories (trading posts) in the East Indies (Malaya) and the Indian subcontinent.
Possessions in Africa (Tangier) and India (Bombay) through royal marriages and dowries.
Ireland
England consolidated power in Ireland, reversing the reduction of British presence to the Pale (Dublin and environs).
Seen in hindsight as a dry run for colonial policies, unlike Scotland and Wales.
Features of internal colonialism (economic extraction, suppression of Gaelic culture), but more equal, especially for Scotland.
Colonial policies were deployed in Ireland.
Land seizure and settlement from Great Britain: the plantations of Ireland (place and practice).
Rationale
Name: Laudabiliter: papal license asserting the right to implant faith in Ireland.
Suppression
Suppression of Gaelic identity, culture, language, clothing, customs, local elite and Catholicism.
Focus on Munster and Ulster
Focus on Munster (from 1583) and Ulster (from 1606).
Through joint stock partnerships, backed by military intervention, leading to bloody rebellions.
Lasting impact: Protestants in Ulster, Anglo-Irish Ascendancy, and Northern Ireland.
Flight of the Earls
Flight of the Earls [from Ulster], 1607: regarded as the collapse of Gaelic authority.
Particularly encouraged by the West Country Men.
Ireland fits in a larger urging for a more assertive England: attacks on the Spanish Empire and overseas expansion of England.
Prominent members: Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Francis Drake, Sir Richard Grenville.
From Mary I to James I (1556–1625), the policy of colonial suppression was continued by Cromwell.
Americas
See next lecture.
Enticing, but not a great destination.
West Indies
Lucrative and much more important: sugarcane.
Settlements in St Kitts (1624), Nevis (1628), Barbados (1627), Bahamas (1666).
Annexation of Jamaica from Spain (1655).
Africa
Slave trade: after privateering, conducting own trade through the Royal African Company (1672).
Asia
East India Company (1600): spice and textiles trade.
Enormously competitive and contentious: four Anglo-Dutch Wars, Nine Years’ War (France v the rest), two Anglo-Spanish Wars, War of the Spanish Succession.
Great Game avant la lettre.
The Atlantic Phase (1707–83)
Union of England and Scotland
1707: political, monetary, and trade union between England and Scotland.
Had shared a monarch since 1603; now one monarch (Queen Anne).
Enhanced power for Britain: more people, more economic heft, greater internal stability.
Significant participation of Scottish people in the Empire.
From this point, properly a British Empire.
Rise of Britain
Period marked by the gradual rise of Britain to the world’s dominant power, amidst struggles between great empires.
Britain outpaced competitors in trade, naval power, and territories.
Other empires declined due to internal instability.
Atlantic Focus
Particular interest in the Atlantic space (i.e., the Americas).
Britain acquired territories from the Spanish and the French.
1763: Treaty of Paris: France ceded New France: creation of Canada.
Indigenous Peoples
Relations with Indigenous peoples evolved from uneasy stand-offs to wars (often allied with the French) and brutal suppression; they were regarded as uncivilized and backward.
Presence in Asia
Increasing presence and power in Asia.
Britain acquired territories from the Dutch and the French.
1757: Battle of Plassey left Britain as the key power in India and Bengal.
Treatment of Indigenous people of Asia
Treated better than in the Americas due to urban spaces and developed institutions, which were nevertheless co-opted.
Conclusion
1783: Conclusion of the First British Empire.
Loss of the Thirteen Colonies in 1776; formalized in the 1783 Peace of Paris.
Canada remained.
Humiliating defeat, but not much impact on British economy or standing.
The Thirteen Colonies were regarded as somewhat unique (education, organization, inhabitants).
Economically not particularly lucrative.
The Second British Empire (1783–1918)
New Zealand and Australia
1769: New Zealand discovered by James Cook.
1770: Australia claimed by Cook (discovered by the Dutch in 1606, but no colonization).
Named New Holland; New South Wales to be the focus of colonization through transportation (from 1788 until 1840; larger Australia until 1868).
Developed wool and gold industries.
Policy of terra nullius against indigenous inhabitants: regarded as absolutely uncivilized.
Canada
Continued colonization of Canadian coasts (North Pacific).
India
Dramatic conquest of India through a series of wars at the behest of the East India Company.
Slave Trade
Had been the impetus for the creation of the empire.
Widely felt to be deeply immoral—and the Industrial Revolution rendered slaves much less interesting.
1807: abolition of the slave trade.
1833: slavery abolished (but no compensation for slaves, and a few years of apprenticeship).
1844: manumission expands to territories of the East India Company.
Pressured other governments to follow suit.
The Pacific Phase (1783–1815)
French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
Titanomachy between two states, empires, political models.
Britain felt existentially threatened by Napoleonic Europe (analogous to the threat of the Spanish Empire).
Spilled over into colonies.
1805: Battle of Trafalgar: crushing defeat for French-Spanish Navies.
1815: Battle of Waterloo.
Continued expansion of colonial possessions through peace treaties in Europe and the Indian Ocean.
Confirmation of British naval supremacy and preeminence in international politics.
The Imperial Century (1815–1918)
Pax Britannica
Britain rules the waves.
Pax Britannica: peace between the great powers through the hegemony of the British Empire.
Treaties and patrols by the Royal Navy ensured trade routes and territories were protected.
Threats
Sole threats: Russia in Central Asia, hence the Crimea War (1853–56); France with some naval power; Germany at the end of the century.
Great Game: predominantly between the Russian and British Empires through proxy wars and negotiations, with Afghanistan a particular focus.
Informal Empire
Exercised control even over those territories that it did not formally rule through treaties, threats of sanctions, etc.
Controlled all major trade routes and access to nominally independent countries like China or countries in Oceania, Africa, and most of Latin America (Argentina, Chile, etc.).
Where control was threatened, war ensued: e.g., the Opium Wars (1839–42; 1856–60) and the Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901).
Splendid Isolation
The British Empire had such power that it could avoid any international entanglements, particularly with regard to European affairs.
It left the Concert of Europe formed in 1814–15.
The British Raj
The greatest and most valuable possession; “the Jewel in the Crown.”
Fabulous wealth, territory, prestige.
The East India Company was increasingly taken over by the Crown.
1857: Indian or Sepoy Mutiny or Great Rebellion: against British rule; aimed at the Company.
Triggered by fears of forcible conversion of the troops and populace, taxes, lack of material progress, harsh treatment of local rulers, and discrimination of sepoy officers.
Spark: the new Enfield Rifle insulted Hindus and Muslims.
Phenomenally violent on both sides (6k British; 800k Indians).
Dissolution of the Company.
From 1858, Britain formally becomes an Empire.
Victoria crowned Empress of India in 1877, following the death of the last Mughal emperor.
Promises full citizens’ rights, but these did not materialize, fueling Indian nationalism.
Reformed governance, but did not go very far.
Famines, especially 1876–8.
Africa
Focus on South Africa as crucial to safeguarding routes to India and Asia (before the Suez Canal; finished in 1869 under British control).
Cape Colony: from Dutch to British in 1806, with immigration from Britain, especially from 1820.
In response, Dutch/Afrikaans-speaking Boers moved away to evade British rule and created Boer Republics: annexed after the Boer Wars (1880–81; 1899–1902).
Signs of trouble: international (and national) sympathy for Boers, and British experience significant trouble in putting down the Boers.
Vast expansion of territories as a result of the Scramble for Africa (regulated in the 1884 Berlin Conference).
From 10% European occupation in 1870 to 90% in 1914.
Dissolution of the Empire
Decline
The Empire limped on until after World War I but was gradually reduced in power and scope.
White colonies were increasingly granted autonomy in governance through Responsible Government (local Westminster-based systems), but international relations remained British.
Dominion status: Canada (1867, federates), NZ (1852), Australia (1852, federates), debates over Ireland.
World War I: greatly reduced British power and placed a great imposition on colonies/dominions.
In effect, Britain marshaled its Empire to fight Germany.
The Treaty of Versailles added German possessions to Empire (including Palestine), but this was the last great gasp.
Independence Movements
Mounting independence movements and the inability to project power to protect interests and trade routes: the USA was muscling in.
The Empire had largely operated through indirect rule—now it turned against British.
Internal Anxieties
Within Britain: gathering anxieties over the collapse of the Empire and dangers to its security and maintenance.
Symptoms of Collapse
1919: Irish independence and War of Independence (ended in 1921–2; effectively a dominion-like status until 1937).
Why not Northern Ireland (Ulster)? Goes back to Pale + Plantations.
1922: Washington Naval Treaty: the Royal Navy could not exceed the USA in number.
1926: Balfour Declaration: Dominions identified as equals within a Commonwealth with Britain.
Independence for Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the Irish Free State.
1936: Anglo-Egyptian Treaty: greatly reduced British presence, but Suez retained.
Dominions into Commonwealth (1918–1945)
World War II
New war, same as the old war.
Britain again drew on the remaining rump and was joined by old dominions (not Ireland); later by the USA from 1941.
Weakened the Empire further still: reduced power; economic issues; undermined control of colonies.
Britain was bankrupt, averted only by loan from the USA.
Geopolitical Shift
New geopolitical set-up: the two new Great Powers were the USA and USSR, with the UK an appendix of the USA through the special relationship (1946 term by Churchill).
Suez Crisis
Humiliation of the Suez Crisis of 1956: fully put paid to the Empire.
Anthony Eden invaded Egypt to retake the canal from Nasser’s Egypt; a furious reaction from the USA.
Confirmed the fall of the British Empire.
Decolonisation (1945–1997)
Struggle to Sustain
The Empire struggled to sustain itself.
Until 1960, (Tory) attempts to preserve at least the prestige of Empire through colonies; after, gradual relinquishing of great power status, and acceptance of decolonization.
Policy Development
Development of policies to ensure orderly and peaceful transition.
"Wind of Change" Speech
Quote from the "Wind of Change" speech by Harold Macmillan in 1960, recognizing the rise of national consciousness in Africa and the need to accept it as a political fact.
First Decolonisation
The Raj and adjacent territories.
Labour government under Attlee (elected in 1945) moved to implement Indian independence.
Split between Muslim and Hindu groups: the Muslim League wanted a separate Islamic state; Congress (Gandhi) wanted a secular unified state.
1947: Partition of India: India and Pakistan; 12–20 million displaced, leading to massive violence (200k–2 million dead).
1948: Burma split off; independent.
1949: British Ceylon (now Sri Lanka).
1957: Malaya (now Malaysia).
Mandate for Palestine
Also included the Mandate for Palestine.
Analogous to India: Hindus and Muslims; here: Muslims and Jews.
After the Holocaust, a great number of Jewish refugees sought to move to Palestine, adding to the issue.
Britain resolved to withdraw; left to UN.
Palestine partitioned into Jewish and Palestinian Territories: war and Israeli independence without a two-state solution (1948).
Second Decolonisation
Africa, including the Middle East, and the Caribbean.
1950s: Sudan and the Gold Coast (now Ghana).
1960s: wholesale decolonization, no independence before majority rule to prevent the creation of white dictatorships.
Last colonies: 1970s.
Falklands War (1982) to recapture the Falklands from Argentina on the grounds that it was not a colonial possession.
Victory reasserted a new kind of British dominance—not as an Empire but as a significant power.
1997: end of the Empire with the handover of Hong Kong to China under special protections.
What Remains (1997–now)
The Commonwealth
From the Empire, the Commonwealth.
Based on imperial possessions but is voluntary as an association.
UK + 14 other countries, with Charles as Head of State: 2.2 billion people.
Lasting impact through language, spreading of innovation and education, the Westminster system of governance, and vast migration flows.
Two Schools of Thought
Empire was largely a force for evil, dictatorial and worsened many emergencies and crises (famines, massacres of indigenous peoples, invention of the concentration camp in South Africa during the Boer Wars).
Referenced Caroline Elkins' "Legacy of Violence: A History of the British Empire."
Empire was largely a force for good, enacting economic and institutional development and modernization.
Referenced Niall Ferguson's "Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World."
British Recovery
In Britain, the recovery from Empire has been slow and difficult: often a positive view of Empire, with nostalgia for what once was, and a tendency towards self-overestimation in international affairs (see: Brexit).
Introduction
The class covers the history and culture of the English-speaking world, extending beyond Britain to include the Americas and the Thirteen Colonies.
British Empire: The Endpoint
By 1920, the British Empire was the largest in world history, comprising 415 million people and covering 24% of the total land area, famously known as "the empire on which the sun never sets." Its legacy includes linguistic, legal, and cultural influences, with the English language maintaining worldwide dominance. The empire evolved gradually from the late 15th century to around 1920, expanding from England and Wales to cover six continents. Some argue that the American Empire has succeeded the British Empire, as referenced in Daniel Immerwahr's "How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States." The narrative, spanning 3.5 centuries and six continents, is complex, with terms like "Empire," "imperialism," and the perceived solidity of the "British Empire" adding to this complexity. An empire is traditionally a union of kingdoms but practically an aggregate of diverse territories controlled by a dominant metropole, differing from a nation-state and a federation. Empires varied significantly, and the term "empire" is now often pejorative but historically was a common way of organizing states. Imperialism involves the assembly and governance of an empire through expansion and hierarchical systems, while colonialism is a specific form focused on settlement and resource extraction. Imperialism can be a policy even without an actual empire. The British Empire constantly evolved, ceding and gaining territories, starting as a trade project and not widely recognized as an empire until the mid-18th century. It featured informal empire through protectorates without formal control. The idea of uncontested hegemony wasn't present until the late 18th/19th century. Focusing on the endpoint can suggest inevitability, which wasn't always the case.
The Happenstance of Empire
Britain started from a position of weakness, geographically and culturally isolated, needing to expand to maintain its position among other European powers. It was a latecomer to empire, employing mercantilist and enterprise-focused policies, particularly interested in trade, especially the slave trade, and less so in territorial expansion. The Industrial Revolution heightened the demand for resources, and Britain's geographic and maritime advantages, along with internal stability and strategic governance, aided its rise. A national culture and civilizing mission developed alongside the empire, and reasons and motivations were constructed retrospectively, making happenstance more important than it appears.
Key Phases
The British Empire can be divided into phases: the First British Empire (1583–1783) including English Overseas Possessions (1583–1707) and the Atlantic Phase (1707–1783), the Second British Empire (1783–1918) including the Pacific Phase: The Scramble for Asia (1783–1815) and the Imperial Century: The Scramble for Africa (1815–1918), the Dissolution of the Empire (1918–1997) including Dominions into Commonwealth (1918–1945) and Decolonisation (1945–1997), and What Remains (1997–now).
The First British Empire (1583–1783)
Beginning from a position of weakness and isolation, England was behind Spain and Portugal in claiming territories. Early exploration included John Cabot's voyages in 1497, but internal politics diverted attention. Henry VIII severed England from the Continent, declaring it an empire, and Elizabeth I pursued a course against the Spanish Empire, licensing privateers and granting letters patent to explorers. Early colonies included Newfoundland (claimed but not established), Roanoke (failed), and Jamestown (founded in 1607), supported by the Virginia Company and later taken over by the Crown.
The English Overseas Possessions (1583–1707)
Jamestown marked the start of the First British Empire, characterized by English possessions until 1707. These possessions faced challenges from the Civil War and internal issues, comprising settlements in North America, Bermuda, the West Indies, and Ireland, along with trading posts in the East Indies and possessions in Africa and India. England consolidated power in Ireland, seen as a dry run for colonial policies, with land seizure and suppression of Gaelic culture. The focus was on Munster and Ulster, leading to lasting impacts such as Protestants in Ulster and the Anglo-Irish Ascendancy. Prominent figures like Sir Walter Raleigh urged for a more assertive England. In the Americas, the West Indies were lucrative due to sugarcane, while in Africa, the slave trade was conducted through the Royal African Company. Asia saw the East India Company trading spices and textiles amidst intense competition.
The Atlantic Phase (1707–83)
The Union of England and Scotland in 1707 marked a political, monetary, and trade union, enhancing Britain's power and leading to the rise of the British Empire. This period saw Britain outpace competitors in trade and naval power, acquiring territories from the Spanish and French, including New France in 1763. Relations with Indigenous peoples evolved from uneasy stand-offs to wars and brutal suppression. Britain increased its presence in Asia, gaining territories and becoming a key power in India after the Battle of Plassey in 1757. The First British Empire concluded in 1783 with the loss of the Thirteen Colonies, though Canada remained. The loss had little impact on the British economy, and the Thirteen Colonies were regarded as unique and not particularly lucrative.
The Second British Empire (1783–1918)
In 1769, New Zealand was discovered by James Cook, and in 1770, Australia was claimed, leading to the colonization of New South Wales through transportation and the development of wool and gold industries. Canada continued to be colonized, and India underwent dramatic conquest through wars led by the East India Company. The slave trade, which had been the impetus for the empire's creation, was abolished in 1807, and slavery was abolished in 1833, with pressure put on other governments to follow suit.
The Pacific Phase (1783–1815)
The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars saw a titanomachy between Britain and Napoleonic Europe, with Britain feeling existentially threatened. The conflict spilled over into colonies, leading to the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 and the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. Colonial possessions expanded through peace treaties, confirming British naval supremacy and preeminence in international politics.
The Imperial Century (1815–1918)
The Pax Britannica saw Britain ruling the waves, ensuring trade routes and territories were protected through treaties and naval patrols. Threats came from Russia in Central Asia, France, and Germany. The British exercised control over territories through informal empire, controlling major trade routes and access to independent countries. The British Raj, the greatest possession, brought wealth and prestige, with the East India Company increasingly taken over by the Crown. The Indian Mutiny of 1857 led to the dissolution of the Company, and in 1858, Britain formally became an Empire, with Victoria crowned Empress of India in 1877. The focus shifted to South Africa to safeguard routes to India and Asia, leading to the Boer Wars and the expansion of territories during the Scramble for Africa.
Dissolution of the Empire
The Empire gradually declined after World War I, with white colonies granted autonomy and Dominion status. World War I greatly reduced British power, and mounting independence movements challenged British interests. Internal anxieties grew over the collapse of the Empire, leading to Irish independence in 1919 and the Washington Naval Treaty in 1922. The Balfour Declaration in 1926 identified Dominions as equals, and independence was granted to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and the Irish Free State. The Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 reduced British presence, but the Suez was retained.
Dominions into Commonwealth (1918–1945)
World War II further weakened the Empire, with Britain drawing on its remaining resources and joined by old dominions and the USA. The war led to economic issues and undermined control of colonies, leaving Britain bankrupt. The geopolitical landscape shifted, with the USA and USSR emerging as the new Great Powers. The Suez Crisis of 1956 fully signaled the fall of the British Empire.
Decolonisation (1945–1997)
The Empire struggled to sustain itself, with attempts to preserve prestige through colonies until 1960, followed by a gradual relinquishing of great power status. Policies were developed to ensure orderly transition, and Harold Macmillan's
Introduction
The class covers the history and culture of the English-speaking world, extending beyond Britain to include the Americas and the Thirteen Colonies.
British Empire: The Endpoint
By 1920, the British Empire was the largest in world history, comprising 415 million people and covering 24% of the total land area, famously known as "the empire on which the sun never sets." Its legacy includes linguistic, legal, and cultural influences, with the English language maintaining worldwide dominance. The empire evolved gradually from the late 15th century to around 1920, expanding from England and Wales to cover six continents. Some argue that the American Empire has succeeded the British Empire, as referenced in Daniel Immerwahr's "How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States." The narrative, spanning 3.5 centuries and six continents, is complex, with terms like "Empire," "imperialism," and the perceived solidity of the "British Empire" adding to this complexity. An empire is traditionally a union of kingdoms but practically an aggregate of diverse territories controlled by a dominant metropole, differing from a nation-state and a federation. Empires varied significantly, and the term "empire" is now often pejorative but historically was a common way of organizing states. Imperialism involves the assembly and governance of an empire through expansion and hierarchical systems, while colonialism is a specific form focused on settlement and resource extraction. Imperialism can be a policy even without an actual empire. The British Empire constantly evolved, ceding and gaining territories, starting as a trade project and not widely recognized as an empire until the mid-18th century. It featured informal empire through protectorates without formal control. The idea of uncontested hegemony wasn't present until the late 18th/19th century. Focusing on the endpoint can suggest inevitability, which wasn't always the case.
The Happenstance of Empire
Britain started from a position of weakness, geographically and culturally isolated, needing to expand to maintain its position among other European powers. It was a latecomer to empire, employing mercantilist and enterprise-focused policies, particularly interested in trade, especially the slave trade, and less so in territorial expansion. The Industrial Revolution heightened the demand for resources, and Britain's geographic and maritime advantages, along with internal stability and strategic governance, aided its rise. A national culture and civilizing mission developed alongside the empire, and reasons and motivations were constructed retrospectively, making happenstance more important than it appears.
Key Phases
The British Empire can be divided into phases: the First British Empire (1583–1783) including English Overseas Possessions (1583–1707) and the Atlantic Phase (1707–1783), the Second British Empire (1783–1918) including the Pacific Phase: The Scramble for Asia (1783–1815) and the Imperial Century: The Scramble for Africa (1815–1918), the Dissolution of the Empire (1918–1997) including Dominions into Commonwealth (1918–1945) and Decolonisation (1945–1997), and What Remains (1997–now).
The First British Empire (1583–1783)
Beginning from a position of weakness and isolation, England was behind Spain and Portugal in claiming territories. Early exploration included John Cabot's voyages in 1497, but internal politics diverted attention. Henry VIII severed England from the Continent, declaring it an empire, and Elizabeth I pursued a course against the Spanish Empire, licensing privateers and granting letters patent to explorers. Early colonies included Newfoundland (claimed but not established), Roanoke (failed), and Jamestown (founded in 1607), supported by the Virginia Company and later taken over by the Crown.
The English Overseas Possessions (1583–1707)
Jamestown marked the start of the First British Empire, characterized by English possessions until 1707. These possessions faced challenges from the Civil War and internal issues, comprising settlements in North America, Bermuda, the West Indies, and Ireland, along with trading posts in the East Indies and possessions in Africa and India. England consolidated power in Ireland, seen as a dry run for colonial policies, with land seizure and suppression of Gaelic culture. The focus was on Munster and Ulster, leading to lasting impacts such as Protestants in Ulster and the Anglo-Irish Ascendancy. Prominent figures like Sir Walter Raleigh urged for a more assertive England. In the Americas, the West Indies were lucrative due to sugarcane, while in Africa, the slave trade was conducted through the Royal African Company. Asia saw the East India Company trading spices and textiles amidst intense competition.
The Atlantic Phase (1707–83)
The Union of England and Scotland in 1707 marked a political, monetary, and trade union, enhancing Britain's power and leading to the rise of the British Empire. This period saw Britain outpace competitors in trade and naval power, acquiring territories from the Spanish and French, including New France in 1763. Relations with Indigenous peoples evolved from uneasy stand-offs to wars and brutal suppression. Britain increased its presence in Asia, gaining territories and becoming a key power in India after the Battle of Plassey in 1757. The First British Empire concluded in 1783 with the loss of the Thirteen Colonies, though Canada remained. The loss had little impact on the British economy, and the Thirteen Colonies were regarded as unique and not particularly lucrative.
The Second British Empire (1783–1918)
In 1769, New Zealand was discovered by James Cook, and in 1770, Australia was claimed, leading to the colonization of New South Wales through transportation and the development of wool and gold industries. Canada continued to be colonized, and India underwent dramatic conquest through wars led by the East India Company. The slave trade, which had been the impetus for the empire's creation, was abolished in 1807, and slavery was abolished in 1833, with pressure put on other governments to follow suit.
The Pacific Phase (1783–1815)
The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars saw a titanomachy between Britain and Napoleonic Europe, with Britain feeling existentially threatened. The conflict spilled over into colonies, leading to the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 and the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. Colonial possessions expanded through peace treaties, confirming British naval supremacy and preeminence in international politics.
The Imperial Century (1815–1918)
The Pax Britannica saw Britain ruling the waves, ensuring trade routes and territories were protected through treaties and naval patrols. Threats came from Russia in Central Asia, France, and Germany. The British exercised control over territories through informal empire, controlling major trade routes and access to independent countries. The British Raj, the greatest possession, brought wealth and prestige, with the East India Company increasingly taken over by the Crown. The Indian Mutiny of 1857 led to the dissolution of the Company, and in 1858, Britain formally became an Empire, with Victoria crowned Empress of India in 1877. The focus shifted to South Africa to safeguard routes to India and Asia, leading to the Boer Wars and the expansion of territories during the Scramble for Africa.
Dissolution of the Empire
The Empire gradually declined after World War I, with white colonies granted autonomy and Dominion status. World War I greatly reduced British power, and mounting independence movements challenged British interests. Internal anxieties grew over the collapse of the Empire, leading to Irish independence in 1919 and the Washington Naval Treaty in 1922. The Balfour Declaration in 1926 identified Dominions as equals, and independence was granted to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and the Irish Free State. The Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 reduced British presence, but the Suez was retained.
Dominions into Commonwealth (1918–1945)
World War II further weakened the Empire, with Britain drawing on its remaining resources and joined by old dominions and the USA. The war led to economic issues and undermined control of colonies, leaving Britain bankrupt. The geopolitical landscape shifted, with the USA and USSR emerging as the new Great Powers. The Suez Crisis of 1956 fully signaled the fall of the British Empire.
Decolonisation (1945–1997)
The Empire struggled to sustain itself, with attempts to preserve prestige through colonies until 1960, followed by a gradual relinquishing of great power status. Policies were developed to ensure orderly transition, and Harold Macmillan's