Map of the Day: the Rise and Fall of the British Empire

Submitted by Taps Coogan on the 8th of July 2018 to The Sounding Line.

As part of our ongoing series of historical video-maps, we present: ‘The Rise and Fall of the British Empire,’ from YouTube creator Werton34.

After a handful of failed attempts to establish New World settlements such as the Roanoke Colony in 1585, the Waiapoco Settlement in 1604, and St. Lucia in 1605, the British Empire begins to take hold after 1607 with the successful establishment of the Virginia Colony as well as settlements in Guiana and Suriname. Although Britain loses its South American colonies after its defeat in the Second Anglo-Dutch War, its North American colonies continue to expand. This North American expansion accelerates after its victory against France in the French and Indian War, up until its defeat in the American War of Independence in 1783. British colonization of India begins after its victory in the Battle of Plassey against Bengal and French colonial forces in 1757. Britain’s colonization of Africa begins in earnest in 1795 after defeating the Dutch in the Battle of Muizenberg and claiming the Cape Colony in present day South Africa. Britian’s colonies expand through the 1800s, reaching their territorial maximum in 1920 after Britain’s victory in the First World War. At its height, the British Empire encompassed 23% of the world’s population and 24% of its landmass, making it the largest empire in the history of the world. Following its costly victory in the Second World War Britain was left nearly bankrupt and insolvent, and as the US superseded it as the world’s leading power, its Empire collapsed.