Great Britain

• Great Britain is comprised of England, Wales and Scotland which is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean; Irish Sea, North Sea and the English Channel.

• England's major cities are London, Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham.

• The chief cities of Scotland are Edinburgh, Glasgow , Aberdeen and Dundee. Scotland contains large areas of wild landscape and the majority of Britain's highest mountains, including Ben Nevis, the highest peak in Britain.

• Much of Wales is hilly or mountainous, the highest peak is Snowdon.

Great Britain and its Colonies

Great Britain

The island of Great Britain is so small, yet it was an

empire after World War I.

Key Vocabulary

• Dominion – control or exercise of control (sovereignty)

• Protectorate – protection and partial control by a superior power

• Monopoly - the exclusive possession or control of the supply or trade in a commodity or service.

How did Great Britain Become Such a Powerful Empire?

1. Mercantilism – economic policy that required nations to colonize weaker nations to obtain natural resources

2. Global Expansion – Trade routes needed to be protected. East India Company – Great Britain had a monopoly on trade with India.

How did Great Britain Become Such a Powerful Empire?

3. Success in Wars • Treaty of Utrecht which helped claim Nova

Scotia, Newfoundland, and create a monopoly on the slave trade in Spanish American

• Treaty of Paris, 1763, The Seven Years’ War – this helped to claim all of French Canada. At this time East India Company pushed France out of India

How did Great Britain Become Such a Powerful Empire?

• Boer War 1899-1902 (Africa) • Opium Wars 1841-1842 (China)

• World War I (1914-1918)

• World War II (1939-1941)

How did Great Britain Become Such a Powerful Empire?

4. Superior Naval Power – Most powerful navy in the world (1760’s through early 1900’s)

– Captain Alfred T. Mahan – he was a United States Navy flag officer, geostrategist, and historian, who has been called "the most important American strategist of the nineteenth century.“

– His ideas were greatly studied by Great Britain during his life (1840-1914)

How did Great Britain Become Such a Powerful Empire?

• Few Restriction on Trade

– East India CompanyDecember 31, 1600 the British government

gave this company permission to control all trade between Britain and India

How did Great Britain Become Such a Powerful Empire?

• 1784 – British Parliament forced the government to shut the East India Company and rule India because of atrocities (bad things) that had occurred.– Land tax (increased by 50%), schools closed– Cash crops - less food was being grown– Raw materials (cash crops were all shipped to

England– People became ill fed, illiterate, landless

• By late 1800’s, dissatisfaction with British brewed feelings of nationalism for Indians

Great Britain and India

• India was considered to be a region of VAST riches.

• Great Britain had a STRONG desire to protect India from other power seekers (keep them to themselves)

Great Britain and India

• In 1600, the British East India Company pursued the spice – rich East Indies.

• Their exploration efforts eventually earned them total control over British trade with India: imports and exports

• Again, in 1784, Great Britain shut the Company due to previously mentioned reasons

How do you think people view the British at the height of the empire?

–They could have been seen as international bullies

–They could viewed as bullies

–They could have simply been viewed as a power that achieved its goal.

What do you think it was like to be a British citizen at this time?

• They may have thought they lived in the best country in the world.

• Possibly, they felt a sense of entitlement to reap rich rewards of “civilizing” less fortunate regions

What do you think it was like being a native inhabitant living in a British colony at this time?

• Maybe oppressed• Anger• Resentment

Britain’s Motivation for Colonization

• Think back to the definition of key vocabulary– Dominion – control or exercise of control

(sovereignty)

– Protectorate – protection and partial control by a superior power

– Mercantilism – economic policy that required nations to colonize weaker nations to obtain natural resources

Western Nations

• Many western nations felt the need to share their religion and became missionaries to societies with different beliefs?

– Would this cause problems?

– Why?

What was the goal of Great Britain?

• Navy posts at many locations–protection reasons

• Simply wanting to remain more powerful than France

How did the policy of colonization affect the British economy?

• It made MANY Brtish citizens wealthy

What do you think is the primary motivation imperialism?

• Economy

• World power

• Defense

• Spread English civilization (religion)

Are there countries today that remind you of the British Empire?

• United States