British Empire: A History from Beginning to End

The British Empire comprised a bewildering collection of colonies, dominions, protectorates, and mandated possessions that spanned the planet. This was the largest empire in world history, at its peak ruling over more than 400 million people and covering almost one-quarter of the total land mass of the Earth. No wonder it became known as “the empire on which the sun never set.” How did this happen? How did England, a relatively small country, first come to dominate the neighboring countries of Wales, Scotland, and Ireland and then go on to build this mighty, global empire?

Through its empire, Britain came to dominate world trade and to control the economies of whole regions. Then, following the end of World War II, the British Empire began to decline with astonishing speed. The formal handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997 marked the end of the empire, with only a scattering of islands and remote outposts remaining. This is the story of the rise and fall of the British Empire.