
Published online:
24 September 2013
Published in print:
30 May 2013
Online ISBN:
9780191778193
Print ISBN:
9780199605415
Contents
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Origins of empire to the seventeenth century Origins of empire to the seventeenth century
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The eighteenth century The eighteenth century
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The nineteenth century The nineteenth century
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The twentieth century The twentieth century
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Cite
Jackson, Ashley, 'Rise and fall', The British Empire: A Very Short Introduction, Very Short Introductions (Oxford , 2013; online edn, Oxford Academic, 24 Sept. 2013), https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780199605415.003.0005, accessed 15 May 2025.
Abstract
‘Rise and Fall’ charts how the British Empire grew in stages over the course of many centuries: in North America and the West Indies, through phases of expansion in South Asia and Australasia, and then in Africa, the Pacific and South-East Asia before a final flourish in the Middle East. The character of the Empire shifted over time as it expanded in some parts but other parts gained independence. The close of the Second World War saw the acceleration in decolonisation, a process that was largely completed by the 1970s.
Keywords:
Africa, America, British Empire, John Cabot, Charles II, East India Company, Hudson's Bay Company, War of the Spanish Succession, Edward Gibbon Wakefield, Duke of Wellington, West Indies
Subject
Colonialism and Imperialism
Early Modern History (1500 to 1700)
Modern History (1700 to 1945)
British History
Series
Very Short Introductions
Collection:
Very Short Introductions
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