British colonies and protectorates
The United Kingdom was the greatest colonial power in history, with colonies and protectorates on each of the inhabited continents. British colonies and protectorates covered almost a quarter of the earth's land area by the end of the 19th century; the development of English for world language number one was triggered by that colonial language was the United Kingdom.
Overview of former and existing areas by continent
It should be noted that it is often not possible to give an exact date of independence , especially for the settlement colonies , which had an autonomous status as Dominions in the British Empire. These different partial autonomies initially only related to administrative areas, such as B. the administration of internal affairs. Economically and financially, the essential ties to the colonial power remained, in some cases to this day.
In the first third of the 20th century, the British colonies gained very extensive rights of self-government, which were enshrined or expanded in the 1931 Statute of Westminster . The parliament in London only retained reservation rights in constitutional matters. In several constitutional reforms that were gradually implemented in the Dominions and Commonwealth Realms from the late 1940s to the 1980s, these last legislative ties were finally broken. In this context, reference should also be made to the development from the British Subject in the Empire to the British and other national citizenships of the Commonwealth of Nations.
Great Britain has good political and economic relations with most of its former colonies and remains closely linked to them in the Commonwealth of Nations . In addition, the English royal house centrally provides the head of state of all Commonwealth Realms. Those areas whose international relations are still maintained by Great Britain today are known as overseas territories .
Africa
country | British possession from | managed as | independent from the UK since | Today's form of government |
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Egypt | Occupied in 1882, protectorate since 1914 | protectorate | 1922 | Presidential Republic |
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan | 1899 | Condominium with Egypt, de facto British colony until 1953 | 1956 | includes the present-day states of Sudan and South Sudan |
Bechuanaland (now Botswana ) | September 30, 1885 | protectorate | September 30, 1966 | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
British East Africa until 1920, then Kenya | July 1, 1895 | Protectorate from 1895 to 1920, then British crown colony | December 12, 1963 | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
British Somaliland | 1884 | colony | 1960 | Part of Somalia |
British Togoland | 1918 | Mandate of the League of Nations until 1946, UN trust territory from 1946 | 1957 | Part of Ghana |
British West Africa |
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Joint administration of the Gambia, Gold Coast, Nigeria and Sierra Leone from 1821 to 1850 and from 1866 to 1888.
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British Cameroon | 1919 (split between the United Kingdom and France ) | Mandate of the League of Nations until 1946, UN trust territory from 1946 | October 1, 1961 (referendum day) | The predominantly Muslim north of the British mandate area voted in a previous referendum in favor of annexation to Nigeria , while the predominantly Christian, southern part opted for annexation to the state of Cameroon . |
Mauritius | Occupied on December 3, 1810, from 1814 crown colony | Crown Colony | March 12, 1968 | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Nyassaland (now Malawi ) | 1891 | protectorate | July 6, 1964 | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia ) | 1911 | from 1911 under the British South Africa Company, since 1924 protectorate | October 24, 1964 | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Zanzibar | 1890 | protectorate | December 10, 1963 | Part of Tanzania |
Senegambia | May 25, 1765 | With the Peace of Paris on September 3, 1783, which ended the American War of Independence , power over the area was redistributed. The French got most of Senegambia and the British got the Gambia Valley. |
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included the present-day states of Gambia and Senegal |
Seychelles | Occupied since 1811, separated from Mauritius on August 31, 1903 | Crown Colony | June 29, 1976 | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
South Africa |
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Crown colonies, May 31, 1910 The four colonies are merged as a Dominion | 1931 Statute of Westminster, 1961 establishment of the Republic and withdrawal from the Commonwealth | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe ) | 1891 | Protectorate from 1891 to 1923, then semi-autonomous crown colony until 1965, from 1953 to 1963 in a federation with Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland | November 11, 1965 Unilateral Declaration of Independence 1970 Republic 1979/80 Crown Colony April 18, 1980 Independence |
Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
South West Africa (now Namibia ) | 1919 | League of Nations mandate under the administration of the South African Union | End of mandate in 1946, occupied by South Africa until 1988, independence March 21, 1990 | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha | from 1659 the British East India Company took possession of the island of St. Helena , from 1833 in British possession | Crown Colony | British overseas territory | |
Tanganyika (merged with Zanzibar to form Tanzania in 1964 ) | 1922 | Mandate of the League of Nations until 1946, UN trust territory from 1946 | December 9, 1961 | Part of Tanzania |
Tangier | 1661 as a dowry from Catherine of Braganza into her marriage to Charles II. | Surrendered to Morocco under the Alawids in 1684 | Part of Morocco | |
Uganda | 1896 | protectorate | October 9, 1962 | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
America
North America
country | British possession from | managed as | independent of Great Britain since | Today's status |
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Bermuda | 1620 | colony | British overseas territory | |
British Columbia | 1848, 1871 annexed to Canada | Crown Colony | see Canada | Canadian Province |
Thirteen colonies consisting of:
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1609 | - Crown Colonies (New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia)
- Charter colonies (Rhode Island, Connecticut) - Owner colonies (Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware) |
1783 | Presidential Federal Republic ( United States of America ) |
Florida , divided into West and East Florida | 1763 | Colonies | Returned to Spain in 1783 | State of the USA |
Canada , 1867 amalgamation of the colonies
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1763 | Colonies until July 1, 1867, then Dominion | 1931 Statute of Westminster 1982 Canada Act / Constitution Act |
Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Newfoundland | 1583 | Crown Colony 1818–1907, 1934–1948, Dominion 1907–1934, annexed to Canada in 1948 | Canadian Province | |
Vancouver Island | 1848, 1866 annexed to British Columbia | Crown Colony | Part of the Canadian province of British Columbia |
Central America
country | British possession from | managed as | independent from the UK since | Today's status |
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British Honduras (now Belize ) | de facto 1798, from 1862 crown colony | Crown Colony | September 21, 1981 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Miskito Coast | 1655 | protectorate | Handed over to Nicaragua and Costa Rica in 1850 | Part of Nicaragua and Costa Rica |
Caribbean
country | British possession from | managed as | independent from the UK since | Today's status |
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Anguilla | Colonized from 1650 | Crown Colony | British overseas territory | |
Antigua and Barbuda | Colonized from 1632 | Crown Colony | November 1, 1981 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Bahamas | 1717 | Crown Colony | July 10, 1973 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Barbados | 1625 | Crown Colony | November 30, 1966 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
British Virgin Islands | 1672 | Crown Colony | British overseas territory | |
Dominica | from 1763 in possession of the United Kingdom, from 1805 finally a colony | Crown Colony | 3rd November 1978 | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Grenada | from 1763 in possession of the United Kingdom, from 1877 finally crown colony | Crown Colony | 7th February 1974 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Jamaica | 1655 | Crown Colony | 1962 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Cayman Islands | Settled from Jamaica from the 17th century | The Cayman Islands have had the status of a British crown colony with internal self-government since 1962. | British overseas territory | |
Leeward Islands | 1671-1816, later from 1833 joint administration of the islands of Antigua, Barbuda, Montserrat, Saint Christopher, Nevis and Anguilla, united in 1958 with Jamaica and the Windward Islands to form the Federation of the West Indies | Crown Colony | see sub-areas | see sub-areas |
Montserrat | Settled from 1632 | Crown Colony | British overseas territory | |
St. Kitts and Nevis | settled in the early 17th century | colony | September 19, 1983 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
St. Lucia | 1814 | colony | February 22, 1979 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
St. Vincent and the Grenadines | 1783 | Crown Colony | October 27, 1979 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Trinidad and Tobago | 1797 | Crown Colony | August 31, 1962 | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Turks and Caicos Islands | From 1776 to 1848 the islands were part of the colony in the Bahamas, from 1848 to 1962 they belonged to Jamaica until its independence, since about 1976 there have been repeated efforts to become independent, since about 1982 these independence efforts have been suspended. | Crown Colony | British overseas territory | |
Windward Islands | Founded in 1833, joint administration of the islands of Barbados, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Saint Lucia and Dominica, merged in 1958 with Jamaica and the Leeward Islands to form the Federation of the West Indies , which was dissolved again in 1962 | Crown Colony | see sub-areas | see sub-areas |
South America
country | British possession from | managed as | independent from the UK since | Today's status |
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British Guiana (now Guyana ) | 1831 | Crown Colony | May 26, 1966 | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Falkland Islands (Malvinas) | 1833 | Crown Colony | British overseas territory. Argentina lays claim to the islands. (see Falklands War ) |
Asia
country | British possession from | managed as | independent from the UK since | Today's status |
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Aden Colony | 1839 | ruled by British India as Aden branch until 1937 , then directly subordinated to the United Kingdom and annexed to the South Arabian Federation as the state of Aden on January 18, 1963 | Dissolution of the Federation: November 30, 1967 |
Part of the Republic of Yemen |
Protectorate of Aden | 1869 | to 1917 British India assumed then immediately the United Kingdom and on 4 April 1962 the Protectorate of South Arabia and the Federation of South Arabia divided | November 30, 1967 | Part of the Republic of Yemen |
Bahrain | de facto 1820, protectorate since 1861 | protectorate | August 14, 1971 | Monarchy (emirate) |
Bengcoolen (Bengkulu) | 1685 | Trade base of the East India Company | Swapped for Malacca (part of Malaysia) in 1825 , since then part of the Dutch East Indies and Indonesia | Indonesian Province on Sumatra ( Bengkulu ) |
Bhutan | 1772 | 1910 | Constitutional monarchy | |
British India (until 1948) | 1858 | Crown Colony (Empire) | India: August 15, 1947
Pakistan: August 14, 1947 Bangladesh: December 17, 1971 |
includes the territories of today's states India , Pakistan and Bangladesh , until 1937 also Burma (today Myanmar) |
British Malaya | from the 18th century | different status of individual parts | 1957 (as successor state to the Malaya Federation ) | see Malaysia , Singapore |
Indian princely states | different, mostly at the end of the 18th century | Protectorates | 1947 Joins either India or Pakistan | Parts of India or Pakistan |
British Indian Ocean Territory | 1814 | territory | British territory | |
Brunei | 1888 | protectorate | Independence from the United Kingdom took place on January 1, 1984, and the British protectorate ended on February 23, 1984. | Islamic Monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Burma (now Myanmar ) | 1885 | Part of British India until 1937, then crown colony | January 4, 1948 | republic |
Ceylon (now Sri Lanka ) | in possession of the United Kingdom from 1796, crown colony from 1803 | Crown Colony | February 4, 1948 | Presidential Socialist Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Hong Kong | Occupied by the British from January 20, 1841, a year later the area was officially ceded by China to the occupiers with the Treaty of Nanking, making Hong Kong a crown colony. | Crown Colony | July 1, 1997 (returned to the People's Republic of China ) | As a special administrative region part of China |
Iraq | 1920 | League of Nations mandate | 1932 | republic |
Qatar | 1868 | protectorate | 1st September 1971 | Monarchy (emirate) |
Kuwait | January 1899 | protectorate | June 19, 1961 | Monarchy (emirate) |
Federated Malay States , Unfederated Malay States from 1946 united to form: Malaya |
1795 | protectorate | February 1, 1948 | to Malaysia Elective Monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Maldives | 1796 | protectorate | July 26, 1965 | Presidential Republic |
North Borneo | May 1882 (under the administration of the British North Borneo Company ) | 1882–1946 Protectorate, 1946–1963 Crown Colony | August 31, 1963, part of Malaysia from September 16, 1963 | Sabah (part of Malaysia) |
Oman | 1891 | 1958 | monarchy | |
Palestine | 1920 | League of Nations mandate | 1948 | today Israel , Jordan and Palestinian Autonomous Areas also as a League of Nations mandate |
Sarawak | Under the reign of the White Rajas ( James Brooke and his descendants) | 1888–1946 protectorate (formally a vassal state of Brunei), then crown colony | Part of Malaysia from 1963 | Part of Malaysia |
Singapore | Spun off from the Straits Settlements in 1946 | Crown Colony | September 1, 1963 | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Straits Settlements | April 1, 1867 (Singapore: 1824) |
Crown Colony | see under Malaysia and Singapore | Penang , Dinding and Malacca to Malaysia and Singapore became independent. |
Transjordan (now Jordan ) | April 24, 1922 | League of Nations mandate | May 22, 1946 | Parliamentary monarchy |
Trucial States (now United Arab Emirates ) | 1835 or 1853 | protectorate | 2nd December 1971 | Federation of Seven Autonomous Emirates |
Weihai | 1898 | Lease area | 1930 | Part of China |
British Concession in Shanghai | 1842 | protectorate | 1945 | Part of China |
British concession in Tientsin | 1860 | protectorate | 1940 | Japanese colony |
British Concession in Hankou | 1861 | protectorate | 1927 | Captured by the Kuomintang in 1927 |
British Concession in Jiujiang | 1861 | protectorate | 1927 | Captured by the Kuomintang in 1927 |
British Concession in Zhenjiang | 1861 | protectorate | 1929 | 1929 to the Kuomintang |
British Concession in Amoy | 1852 | protectorate | 1930 | 1930 to the Kuomintang |
British Concession in Shamian | 1859 | protectorate | 1930 | 1946 back to China |
Europe
country | British possession from | managed as | independent from the UK since | Today's status |
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Akrotiri and Dhekelia | Since 1960 through the Zurich Agreement | Military area | British military bases | |
Gibraltar | Conquered in 1704, formally assigned to the British in the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 and crown colony since 1830 | Crown Colony | British overseas territory , but claimed by Spain | |
Heligoland | 1807 | colony | August 1890 on the basis of the Heligoland-Sansibar Treaty to the German Empire | Part of Germany |
Ionian islands | 1800 | protectorate | In 1864, after a vote in parliament, incorporated into the Greek state | Part of Greece |
Ireland | Invasion by Anglo-Normans in 1169, from 1541 Ireland was directly subordinated to the English crown | Ruled 1171–1541 as Lordship , 1541–1921 as Kingdom of Ireland , 1921–1949 as Dominion | Dominion status from December 6, 1921, independent from April 18, 1949 after leaving the Commonwealth | Most of the island is occupied by the Republic of Ireland , the rest of Northern Ireland , which is part of the United Kingdom. |
Isle of Man | 1765 | Crown possession | Crown possession | |
Channel Islands | 1066 | Crown possession | Crown possession | |
Malta | Occupied by the British from 1800 | colony | September 21, 1964 | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Cyprus | Leased from the Ottoman Empire to the United Kingdom in 1878, annexed in 1914 | from 1925 crown colony | on August 16, 1960 independent of the Zurich Agreement | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Australia and Oceania
country | British possession from | managed as | independent from the UK since | Today's status |
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Australia
divided into |
from 1770 | until January 1, 1901 administered as colonies, then merged to form the Commonwealth of Australia | December 11, 1931 (Westminster Statute) March 3, 1986 (Australia Act 1986) |
Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
British New Guinea (now Papua New Guinea ) |
The south was declared a protectorate of British New Guinea on November 6, 1884 and annexed on September 11, 1888. | protectorate | The property was transferred to Australia after independence in 1902. From 1905 the southern part was called the Territory of Papua and the de facto rule of the Australian administration began. | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
New Guinea Territory | In 1919 taken over by the German Reich as a League of Nations mandate , jointly administered by Australia and Papua (Southeast New Guinea ) | League of Nations mandate | together with Papua New Guinea | Part of Papua New Guinea |
Cook Islands | 1888 by the UK placed under protection and in 1901 annexed by New Zealand. | British Protectorate from 1888 to 1901, then New Zealand Protectorate until 1965, now self-governing | Since August 4, 1965 self-government in free association with New Zealand | Parliamentary democracy, self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand |
Ellice Islands (now Tuvalu ) |
British administered from 1877 and became part of the British Protectorate Gilbert and Ellice Islands in 1892 | Protectorate until 1915, colony from 1915 | October 1, 1978 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Fiji | October 10, 1874 | Crown Colony | October 10, 1970 | republic |
Gilbert Islands (now Kiribati ) |
from 1892 the Gilbert Islands were declared a British protectorate together with the nearby Ellice Islands | Protectorate until 1916, crown colony from 1916 | July 12, 1979 | Presidential Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
Nauru | administered by Australia as a mandate area on behalf of the United Kingdom and New Zealand from December 17, 1920 | Mandate area | January 31, 1968 from Australia | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
New Hebrides Condominium (now Vanuatu ) |
1906 founding of the condominium | Condominium with France | July 30, 1980 | Republic (in the Commonwealth) |
New Zealand | Annexed to the United Kingdom in 1840 ( Treaty of Waitangi ) | Colony, Dominion as of September 26, 1907 | December 11, 1931 (Statute of Westminster) November 25, 1947 full sovereignty, see Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1947 January 1, 1987 ( Constitution Act 1986 ) |
Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Pitcairn Islands | Crown colony since 1838 | Crown Colony | British overseas territory | |
North Solomon Islands | The German Empire took over the northern part of the islands as a protected area in 1885. The remaining islands fell to Great Britain in 1899. After the end of the First World War, the German part was given as a League of Nations mandate under Australian administration and is now part of Papua New Guinea. | protectorate | July 7, 1978 | Parliamentary monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Tonga | on May 18, 1900, Tonga became a British protectorate under a treaty of friendship | protectorate | 4th June 1970 | Constitutional Monarchy (in the Commonwealth) |
Western Samoa | 1919 as a League of Nations mandate to New Zealand | League of Nations mandate, from 1945 UN trust territory | 1962 | Parliamentary Democracy (in the Commonwealth) |
Antarctic
country | British possession from | managed as | independent from the UK since | Today's status |
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Bouvet Island | December 10, 1825 as Liverpool Island | Assigned to Norway in 1928 | Outskirts of Norway | |
Dependencies of the Falkland Islands ( Falkland Islands Dependencies ) | 1843 (South Georgia claimed from 1775, other areas from 1908) | Colony administered from the Falkland Islands without being politically part of it | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands have been a separate overseas territory since 1962. Argentina has been claiming the territories and temporarily occupied South Georgia since 1925 during the Falklands War . | |
The British Antarctic Territory has also been a separate area since 1962. It includes all areas south of 60 ° S and between 20 and 80 ° W. The claim is not recognized under the Antarctic Treaty . Managed from London . |
See also
literature
- Claudia Schnurmann : From an island kingdom to a world power . Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 2001, ISBN 317016192X (Development of the British Empire from the Middle Ages to the 20th Century)
- Edward Allhusen: British Empire Throughout the World 1905 . Old House Books, Moretonhampstead 1993, 2004, ISBN 1873590032 (Reprint of a map of the British Empire from 1905, with a brief description of all colonies)
Web links
- The British Empire (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Michael Hochgeschwender: The American Revolution . CH Beck, Munich 2016, ISBN 978-3-406-65442-8 , pp. 513 .