11- THE BRITISH EMPIRE and THE COMMONWEALTH

This is how it all started....

 

Elizabeth I (1533-1603), daughter of Henry VIII, was queen of England for 45 years. She never got married, and is sometimes called the "Virgin Queen". she was clever, successful and popular. in a war against Spain, she told her soldiers and sailors: "I have the body of a weak woman. But I have the heart and stomach of a king."

During her reign English sailors went to many far-away places. Sir Francis Drake sailed all the way round the world. Sir Walter Raleigh brought potatoes and tobacco from America. It was the beginning of the British Empire.

The Empire: for and against

Why were the British so interested in putting up their flag all over the world? They started with Ireland in the 16th century, and by 1770 they had the biggest empire in history. Why did the British want all these countries? The short answer is money and land. The long answer is more complicated. Each country was different. For example, India was a rich market - it was full of customers for British goods. Jamaica was a good military base against the Spanish. Australia was a big "empty" country for the British people to go and live in.

Of course, Australia wasn´t really empty. There was a population of Aborigines. All the countries in the Empire had people in them when the British arrived. In some places, like India, the British kept military control for a period of time, and then left. In other places, like Australia, they occupied the land itself. They built farms, cities, roads and railways. So they were in competition with the native people. This happened in Canada, the USA, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

The result was that the Inuit, Native Americans, Zulus, Aborigines and Maoris lost their land. Many also lost their lives - in fighting or from illness (the newcomers brought new viruses like smallpox, typhoid and cholera). Today many of these native people still look back to a golden age when their countries belonged to them.

 Look at a video which explains the history of the British empire in a "funny" way....

ANSWER:

1. What did the British trade from the colonies?
2. Did they promote "fair" trade?
3. Which products were very valuable?
4. COMPLETE your study notes in your PORTFOLIO and create your own map of the empire.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the British Empire contained more than one quarter of the world’s population, and covered one quarter of the world’s land surface.

The Empire fell into two distinct parts: Britain and the dominions such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa; and those regions that were wholly or partly governed from London – Africa, India, the West Indies and the Far East.

From the mid-19th century onwards, those areas of the world under British administration began to be coloured red or pink. For many people, even today, these ‘pink bits’ are the most potent symbol of the extent of the British Empire.

A history of the British Empire and the Commonwealth is not an exclusively British history. It is a history of many nations – including Britain. While the British Empire had a substantial impact upon the countries it included, the influence was seldom one way.

More than five and a half million non-British soldiers, including Indians, Canadians, West Indians, Africans and Australians, fought for Britain during the two world wars.

As today’s Commonwealth, their countries are united by history, language and promoting the values of democracy, freedom, peace, the rule of law and opportunity for all. There are 54 countries in today’s Commonwealth, the most recent members are Rwanda (2009), Cameroon and Mozambique

(Source:  http://www.commonwealthonline.org.uk/overview/)

Now, watch and listen to real people giving their own personal impressions as members of the Commonwealth....

To socialize in class:

• How many member countries are there in the Commonwealth nowadays?

• Do all the people in the video hold the same ideas ? Account for your answer with evidence from the video.

• What, in your opinion, is the purpose behind this video clip?