The History of the British Empire: Power and Control of Resources - Research Paper Example

The End of the British Empire Information] The End of British Empire Introduction (A Brief History) One of the largest empires in the history of the world was the British Empire and for a time was the leading power throughout the globe. This empire was a product of the European times of discovery that started with the sea explorations of the fifteenth century, which activated the age of the European colonial empires.1 In 1921, a population of approximately four hundred and fifty eight million people were under the control of the British Empire, which was about one-fifth of the population of the world and at that time this empire extended to the area of about more than 36 million kilometres (i.e. more than 14 million square miles), which was almost a one-fourth of total acreage of the world.2 This results in the widespread legacy of this world largest empire; in legal and political systems, militarily, economic practice, sports (for example cricket), systems relating to education, and in the worldwide spread of their English language. During the peak period of the British Empire, it was frequently stated that "for the British Empire the sun will never set" as its extent all over the world certified that the sun would shine forever if nothing else one of its subject countries or several colonies. Throughout its five decades succeeding World War II, the majority of the dominions of the Empire got independent. Many moved on to become a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, which is an association of autonomous nations. The Rise of the British Empire In reality, the first world-wide empire was the British Empire. This was an empire that was different within limits, from time to time, from New Zealand and Australia colonies in the East, American in the West, Canada and her territories in the North and a huge part of Africa in the South, together with Rhodesia and Egypt.3 These vast continuous extent of lands, and many other smaller places and islands as well, were to be controlled, shaped, ruled, and in other respects brought under the rule of a state which, earlier to colonial aspirations, was a small and maybe unexciting and uninteresting set of nations. The other one from this is that the British Empire considerably started the world into the modern age, and gave a unifying language all around the globe a is not actually in dispute; however, the fact behind the picture without a doubt is, and the dreadful certainty behind the very-rarely and ever-polished disputed veneer of reputability the British, and therefore the British Empire, sometimes have attempted to maintain.4 This complete episode of the British Empire starts far from Britain, being throughout history an everlasting line of autocrats and wayward leaders. Britain has been, to some extent anyhow, a democratic country having a parliament that has the sovereign power of kings and queens and rulers, and was the 1st to have a well-liked revolution, under the English general and statesman Oliver Cromwell, in Europe.5 He was the 1st Englishman who began the serious raids of capitalism that invests in innovative enterprises (especially high technology) where the potential profits are large, which were a bit similar to adventurers and pirates who sacked the main part of Spain, and desired a slice of the wealth effusing of the New World, of which adventures were in many cases supported by Royal decree. From this place, the British Empire begins. This thought of the empire brought up the ideas of an economic system based on private ownership of capital i.e. capitalism, enforced labour, international trade free of government interference, the criminalisation of the poor, rigid power structure, and severely and almost unchallenged divides between those who had and those who did not have, both at home and abroad. Due to capitalism lots of people got wealthy which cannot be confuted, in addition to this, it also made many more people far poorer, actually, this is the most significant issue that is to deal with.6 At that time, the bequests of the British Empire were far reaching and can be found only evident in places such as India, Africa, Ireland, and very much of the Middle East. With the passage of time, the Empire seems to come into its own and because of this racial discrimination and injustice is initiated. The first country on which the British Crown and its legislative assembly attempted to take over was Ireland, and with this, the British begin the process of English colonisation, of which colonists would then capture the “wasteland” of Ireland and utilize the land more productively.7 At that time, the people of Ireland were treated similar to those of native “Indians” afterwards in America, who spend their lives as uncivilized people who have no permanent home but move about according to the seasons, and, more essentially, who did not use, and in particular, did not “own” the land they wandered. This point is of great significance for the British rulers as they used this concept in different countries like Ireland, Africa and other countries. The mentalities of the British and English were that as no one “owned” the land than it was available for anyone to obtain. The man who is an inhabitant of England was a gentleman, the Irish person, and from this time forth peoples from many other countries, was an uncultured and uncivilised creature.8 This “justification,” combined with other in many cases incorrect arguments and intellectualising, was the cause on which Englishmen attempted to set up colonies that would make them tremendous profits, buy themselves into the most powerful members of a society, win distinction and brilliance, and create their names. These ideas of gentlemanlike and civilisation was being used by the emperors in order to justify the mass expulsion and killing of one ethnic group in an area by another ethnic group in that area, land grabbing, slavery and an incalculable amount of injustices have their evidences in majority, if not all empires, and are considered most cleared in the “social process of adopting (or being forced to adopt) Nazism” of the early twentieth century Germany; when beliefs of inferior and superior excused the cruellest and evil of practises. However, at the end of the nineteenth century the African dominion creates a serious problem for the British Empire, but in the earlier time it was the source of wealth for Europeans and British, mainly because of the traffic in slaves; especially in Black Africans as well as a profitable market for European products, and as another outstation of European Colonialism during the beginning of the 17th century. 9 Later on during the nineteenth century this European colonialism expands towards its huge colonies in Africa and Asia. As a result of this trade various British port like Cardiff, Bristol, Liverpool and many other provides a platform for the expansion of merchandisers, wealth of banks, companies to flourish, and money for many peoples. It can be state that the slave traffic, and the benefits it produced, helps in strengthening the growth of capitalism, and the establishment of a capitalist’s class with an incalculable wealth and power in their hands. This improper relation of power and wealth, caused vast divisions in Britain and throughout the globe, would become the painful realities of lots of people, and in time would be justified away in high-boasted intellectual and technological terms.10 The fall of British Empire The decline of the British Empire begins in the mid of the twentieth century, which was frequently considered as a smokescreen period for the British Empire to keep its economic dominance of huge parts of the world. The truth of the British Empire, both with respect to history and at the present moment, are at this point of the glowing picture of a benignant and generous undertaking, that an uneducated person might conceive they were discussing two entirely dissimilar things. The actuality of the British Empire is power, and control of resources and wealth, constantly stacked unequally and in an unjust manner in favour of small groups of people. The history of the British Empire, at present as well as at that time, is the tale of how to handle power effectively in order to make division of wealth and class in Britain. In addition to this, such divisions were encouraged throughout the globe, in white peoples as “superior” and dark skinned and native as “inferior” peoples of the globe. 11 The agenda behind this division was to make more profit and create wealth for a relative few, inadequate power relations such wealth makes, in Britain and the remaining world. Despite of such discrimination of the British Empire, the twentieth century brought a great challenge to it in the shape of the World War 1 (1914-1918). At the start of the war, the British colonies were ready to send soldiers collectively in order to help the British, on the contrary, as the war continued, and the losses get bigger, the British authorities had to start calling up troops from their colonies. On the other hand, in 1919 as the war ends and the treaty of Versailles were signed, the British Empire was the most prominent and the biggest it had at any time before, including a greater part of Africa, and different parts of Iraq and Palestine. Though the Empire controlled dominion, the war left Britain overstrained and unmanageable and because of such circumstances, Britain could no more control all of its territorial dominion. Therefore it started releasing its colonies and in 1922 it released Egypt, Iraq in 1932, and after an insurrection, Ireland was released in 1937.12 However, the case of India was entirely different. During the twentieth century, tensions kept on increasing till the Amritsar Killing, in which four hundred Indians lost their lives as the British soldiers opened fire into a group of protesting Indians. As a result of this, British rulers constantly suggested changes in the administration, intending to lessen the intensity of the tension. However, anger increases to a great extent, but continued never far below the surface.13 Chamberlain was a British statesman who as Prime Minister pursued a policy of appeasement toward fascist Germany was the origin of the end of the British Empire as World War II caused extensive destruction to Europe from 1939 till 1945.However, some of its dominions, for example, Burma and Hong Kong, were conquered for a limited time only by Japan. As these dominions were still in the British Empire, these went to war in Britain’s support with agreements for independence after the war, and as per agreement, many of these dominions received own government, becoming a member of a “commonwealth” state with Britain. The British Empire lost its huge Asian colony after Gandhis peaceful protests, and as a result Pakistan and India became independent states in 1947; followed by a republic on the island of Ceylon and Burma in 1948 (though Burma did not become a member of the commonwealth). In 1968, the desire of Cecil J. Rhodes to get a British controlling Africa fully come to an end, as Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Tanganyika, Malawi, Swaziland, Zambia, Botswana, and the Gambia all got autonomous.14 The Caribbean dominions followed the same time. Conclusion The British Empire was no doubt one of the world’s largest empires, but it was based on power, and control of resources and wealth, constantly stacked unequally and in an unjust manner in favour of small groups of people. With the passage of time it took control of the one-fifth population of the world. Its dominions include countries of Africa, Asia, Ireland and many others. This empire took advantage of the slaves’ trade and become the powerful and wealthiest of its times. However, during the twentieth century the downfall of this great empire begins with the World War I and ends till 1980’s. The present time, Great Britain still keeps various small territorial dominion that prefer (with the omission of the Falkland Islands) to stay under British rule. References James, Lawrence, and Helen Lownie. The Illustrated Rise & Fall of the British Empire. New York: St. Martins Press, 1999. James, Lawrence. The Rise and Fall of the British Empire. New York: St. Martins Griffin, 1997. Li, You-Sheng. The Ancient Chinese Super State of Primary Societies: Taoist Philosophy for the 21st Century. AuthorHouse, 2010. Louis, William Roger, Nicholas P. Canny, Alaine M. Low, P. J. Marshall, A. N. Porter, Judith M. Brown, and Robin W. Winks. The Oxford History of the British Empire. Oxford [England]: Oxford University Press, 2001. Marshall, P. J. The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire Cambridge Illustrated Histories. Cambridge University Press, 2001. Mcleod, John. Routledge Companion to Post Colonial Studies. Routledge, 2007. Owls-Glass. Rebel brag and British bluster. New York: the New York Public Library, 2008. Spielvogel, Jackson J. Western Civilization Available Titles Aplia Series. Cengage Learning, 2011. Read More