The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies,

protectorates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom, that had
, the British Empire a population of about 458 million people,
. At the pick of its
power, it was often said that the sun never sets on the British Empire because its span across
the globe ensured that the sun was always shining on at least one of its numerous territories.
During the Age of Discovery in the 15
th
and 16
th
centuries, Spain and Portugal
pioneered European exploration of the globe and in the process established large, overseas
empires. Envious of the great wealth these empires bestowed, England, France and the
Netherlands began to establish colonies and trade networks of their own in the Americas and Asia.
A series of wars in the 17
th
and 18
th
centuries with the Netherlands and France
left England (Britain, following the 1707 Act of Union with Scotland) the dominant colonial power
in North America and India. However, the loss of the Thirteen Colonies in North America in 1783
after a war of independence was a blow to Britain, depriving it of its most populous colonies.
Despite this setback, British attention soon turned towards Africa, Asia and the Pacific. Following
the defeat of Napoleonic France, Britain enjoyed a century of effectively unchallenged dominance,
and expanded its imperial holdings across the globe. Increasing degrees of autonomy were
granted to its white settler colonies, some of which were reclassified as dominions.
The growth of Germany and the United States eroded Britains economic lead by
the end of the 19
th
century. Subsequent military and economic tensions between Britain and
Germany were major causes of , during which Britain relied heavily upon
its Empire. The conflict placed enormous financial strain on Britain, and although the Empire
achieved its largest territorial extent immediately after the war, it was no longer a peerless
industrial or military power. saw Britain & her Empire together.
However, the colonies in South East Asia were occupied by Japan, a fact which damaged British
prestige and accelerated the decline of the Empire.
After the World wars, Britains image was a mixture of
declination & victory. While at its peak the British held the largest formal empire that the world
had ever known, after 1945 the situation changed. Economically unable to control & run such an
enormous territory, within two years of the end of the war the British granted independence to its
most populous & valuable colony, India. During the remainder of the 20
th
century, most of the
territories of the Empire became independent as part of a larger decolonization movement by
European powers, ending with the return of Hong Kong in 1997 to the Peoples Republic of China.
In spite of this, ties remained and after independence, many former colonies joined the
Commonwealth of Nations a free association of independent states. Sixteen Commonwealth
nations share the head of the state: HM Elizabeth II, as the Common wealth realms.
This implies that they aim at keeping alive a cultural influence that stretched all over the globe
shaping it in all manners & ways. For better or worse, with its triumphs, its humiliations, the good
that it brought and the bad that it inflicted, the British Empire had a massive impact on the history
of the world. Its mixture of culture, adventures and domination have made of that cultural Empire
one of the most powerful institutions that dominated the world for over a century. And that
cultural Empire is the legacy inherited by USA after the 2
nd
World War.
II) You can either view http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPomGrg0aPI&feature=related to have a
proper idea of the British contradictions, and the beginning of the Commonwealth; or else as a
summary of the destiny of the Empire, peoples opinions
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1OX0rnnYAM