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DevinThe British Empire entered existence in 1583 with the conquest of Newfoundland and ended in 1997 with the handover of Hong Kong to China. The British Empire existed for 414 years.
There's no official "beginning and end" dates for the British Empire, but it is easy to see the important dates and make your own decision. By the late 1500's England was building ports and trade routes, especially in India and later the Americas. In 1636, Connecticut became a Colony. Throughout the rest of the century England built up their Empire in North America. In the early 1700's Britain started settling parts of Africa. In 1858 India became part of the British Empire. Throughout the mid and late 1800's the UK took claims in Africa. After WWI the British Empire reached its peak, at almost 25% of the world's land mass and 1/6 the world's population. In 1947 India became a dominion and in 1950 was totally free from the UK. Most of the other Colonies in Asia gained independence throughout the late 1940's. In 1966 the last British colony in South America became independent. From 1960-68 the UK lost most of their territories in Africa, with the last bit becoming officially independent in 1980. In 1981 Belize became independent, which was the last continental land mass owned by the UK on the Americas. Many considered the Empire to have ended in 1997, with the transferring of Hong Kong to China. But, today the UK still maintains territories in the Caribbean, Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans, as well as part of Antarctica. The UK also still owns Gibraltar, a small peninsula off of Spain. So, some consider the Empire to still exist today, some consider it to have ended in the 1980's, and some believe it ended in 1997.
British Imperialism started somewhere between the 16th and 18th century and at one point had sway over 458 million people, one-fifth of the Earth's population.
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What country did the British Empire rule for nearly 100 years?
India (=
Where did the british empire control an entire continent?
north America The British Empire controlled an entire continent in Australia. The British Empire was the largest empire in history.
How did the British empire lose land?
Why did The British Empire lose their land?
Was the Caribbean part of the British empire?
Yes. It joined the British Empire in 1625 ;P
Are most of the countries that are in the Commonwealth were part of the British Empire?
They were all part of the British Empire
