The Fall of the British Empire

Over the course of the 20th century, Britain’s colonies gradually gained independence, partly because Britain was no longer the strong and powerful country it once was.

The peak of power

The British Empire was at its peak towards the end of the 1800s.
However, by the start of the 1900s, Germany and the USA had begun to challenge Britain’s dominance on the world stage.

WWI and WWII

The First and Second World Wars that occurred in the first half of the 20th century hit Britain hard and dealt a crippling blow to Britain’s economy.
It was clear that Britain was no longer the world’s strongest power, economically or militarily.
The Second World War in particular shattered the illusion that Britain was invincible, as Japan occupied Britain’s Southeast Asian colonies.

Independence movements

Meanwhile across the empire, many of Britain’s colonies were shaken by growing nationalist movements, and increasing demands for independence.
It seemed as though Britain’s longstanding grip on its empire was finally loosening.

India

Following the Second World War, in 1947, India was granted independence.
Having been Britain’s most populous and valuable colonial asset, this was a big blow for the empire.

Africa

Into the 1950s and 1960s, Britain’s many African territories also began to achieve independence.
The British Empire was disintegrating colony by colony.

1The Medieval World: 450-1450 AD

1.1Anglo-Saxon England

1.1.1Vikings & Anglo-Saxons

1.1.2Reasons for Viking Invasions

1.1.3Alfred the Great

1.1.4England's Revival

1.1.5Anglo-Saxon Towns

1.2The Contest for the English Throne

1.2.1Edward the Confessor's Death

1.2.2The Contenders

1.2.3Battle of Stamford Bridge

1.2.4Battle of Hastings

1.2.5Battle of Hastings Timeline

1.2.6End of Topic Test - Edward's Death to Hastings

1.2.7The Feudal System

1.2.8Castles

1.2.9The Domesday Book

1.2.10End of Topic Test - Feudal System & Domesday Book

1.3Conquering the Holy Land, 10-96-1396 AD

1.3.1Origins of the Crusades

1.3.2Early Disputes Over the Holy Land

1.3.3The First Crusade

1.3.4Course of the Crusades

1.3.5Reasons for the Crusades

1.3.6Military Impact of the Crusades

1.3.7Scientific Impact of the Crusades

1.3.8Domestic Impact of the Crusades

1.3.9Christian Interpretation of the Crusades

1.3.10Muslim Interpretation of the Crusades

1.3.11End of Topic Test - The Crusades

1.3.12End of Topic Test - The Crusades 2

1.4King John

1.4.1King John

1.4.2King John's Power

1.4.3King John & the Church

1.4.4The Battle of Bouvines

1.4.5The Barons' Rebellion

1.4.6End of Topic Test - King John

1.4.7End of Topic Test - The Battle of Bouvines

1.4.8End of Topic Test - The BArons' Rebellion

1.5The Magna Carta & Parliament

1.5.1The Magna Carta

1.5.2Lasting Impact of the Magna Carta

1.5.3The Magna Carta & the Monarchy

1.5.4The Magna Carta & Democracy

1.5.5Contemporary Interpretations of King John

1.5.6Later Interpretations of King John

1.5.7Modern Interpretations of King John

1.5.8End of Topic Test - The Magna Carta

1.5.9End of Topic Test - Lasting Impact of Magna Carta

1.5.10End of Topic Test - Interpretations of King John

1.6The Black Death

1.6.1The Black Death

1.6.2The Impact of the Black Death

2Worldviews

2.1Time & History

2.1.1Measuring Time

2.2The Christian World

2.2.1Constantinople & the World in 1000

2.2.2Who was St Foy?

2.2.3The Significance of St Foy

2.3The Muslim World

2.3.1Location & Building of Baghdad

2.3.2House of Wisdom

2.3.3Development of Knowledge

2.3.4Madrasas

2.3.5Translating Knowledge & Key Scholars

2.3.6Science & Medicine

2.3.7What does Medieval Baghdad Reveal?

3The Empire of Mali

3.1Geography

3.1.1Geography of the Mali Empire

3.1.2Medieval West Africa

3.1.3Foundation of the Malian Empire

3.1.4Sunjata Keita

3.1.5Cities of the Mali Empire

3.2Key Figures

3.2.1Mansa Musa

3.3The Hajj to Mecca

3.3.1The Hajj to Mecca

3.3.2The Impact of the Hajj

3.3.3The Impact in Mali

4The Renaissance & Reformations, 1500-1598 AD

5The British Empire, 1583-1960 AD

5.1The British Empire

5.1.1The British Empire

5.2North America

5.2.1Early Settlement

5.2.2Jamestown, Virginia

5.2.3The Pilgrim Fathers

5.2.4Native Americans

5.2.5Independence

5.3The Caribbean

5.3.1The Slave Trade

5.3.2Impact of the Slave Trade

5.4India

5.4.1The East India Company

5.4.2Expansion of the East India Company

5.4.3Bengal

5.4.4Significance of India

5.5Australia

5.5.1A Penal Colony

5.5.2The Native Population

5.6Africa

5.6.1Cape Colony

5.6.2Egypt

5.6.3West Africa

5.7The Outcomes of the British Empire

5.7.1Impacts of the British Empire

5.7.2The Brutality of Empire

5.7.3The Fall of the British Empire

5.7.4End of Topic Test - The British Empire 1

5.7.5End of Topic Test - The British Empire 2

6The Peasants' Revolt

6.1Causes of the Peasants' Revolt

6.1.1Why Did the Peasants Revolt?

6.1.2Poll Tax

6.1.3Black Death

6.1.4John of Gaunt

6.1.5Other Reasons for the Peasants' Revolt

6.1.6The Trigger for the Peasants' Revolt

6.2Course of the Revolt

6.2.1Rebellion Starts in Essex & Kent

6.2.2March to London

6.2.3Events in London

6.2.4Crushing the Revolt

6.2.5End of the Revolt

6.3Consequences of the Peasants Revolt

6.3.1Immediate Consequences

6.3.2Short Term Consequences

6.3.3Long Term Consequences

6.4Peasants' Revolt's Threat to Monarchy

6.4.1What is Monarchic Power?

6.4.2Was the Revolt a Threat to the King's Power?

6.4.3Was the Revolt a Threat to the Lords?

6.4.4Was the Revolt a Threat to the Feudal System?

7Religion in the Middle Ages

7.1Religion in the Middle Ages

7.1.1How Powerful was the Church?

7.1.2The Church

7.1.3Where did People Worship?

7.1.4What was the Role of the Church in Everyday Life?

7.1.5How did the Church use the Afterlife?

7.1.6What was the Role of Monasteries?

7.1.7How Significant was the Church?

8Slavery, 1619-1833 AD

8.1Slavery

8.1.1Beginnings of the Slave Trade

8.1.2The Triangular Slave Trade

8.1.3Impact of the Slave Trade on Britain

8.1.4Slave Trade & World Impacts

8.1.5Reasons Attitudes to the Slave Trade Changed

8.1.6The Committee for the Abolition

8.1.7The Abolition of Slavery: Key Events

8.1.8Interpretations of the Slave Trade

8.1.9Interpretations of Abolition

8.1.10End of Topic Test - Slavery

9The English Civil War, 1642-1660

9.1Charles I

9.1.1Charles I

9.1.2Charles I & Parliament

9.1.3Charles I's 'Eleven Years' Tyranny'

9.1.4Charles I Calls Parliament

9.2Why Did the Civil War Break Out?

9.2.1Political

9.2.2Religious

9.2.3Catholic Plots

9.2.4Economic

9.3The Civil War

9.3.1Sides in the Civil War

9.3.2Course of the Civil War

9.3.3Cromwell and the Civil War

9.3.4Outcome of the Civil War

9.4The Commonwealth

9.4.1The Commonwealth

9.4.2The Protectorate

9.4.3Politics of the People

9.4.4The Restoration of the Monarchy

9.5Interpretations

9.5.1Traditional Interpretation of the Civil War

9.5.2Marxist & Revisionist Interpretations

9.5.3End of Topic Test - The Civil War

10The Industrial Revolution, 1750-1840

10.1The Industrial Revolution

10.1.1Life in Britain 1750

10.1.2New Inventions

10.1.3What was the Significance of these Inventions?

10.1.4The Factory System

10.1.5Factory Life

10.1.6Coal

10.1.7Steam Trains

10.1.8Canals

10.1.9Towns & Cities

10.1.10Living Conditions in Towns & Cities

11US Independence, 1775-1783

11.1US Independence

11.1.1Conquering America

11.1.2Fighting France

11.1.3Causes of the War of Independence

11.1.4Causes of the War of Independence 2

11.1.5The American War of Independence

11.1.6Outcome of the War

11.1.7End of Topic Test - US Independence

12The French Revolution, 1789-1815

12.1The Revolution

12.1.1The Ancien Regime

12.1.2The Estates-General

12.1.3The Storming of the Bastille

12.1.4Political Reform

12.1.5The Fall of the King

12.1.6The Terror

12.2The Restoration of Order

12.2.1Who was Napoleon Bonaparte?

12.2.2Napoleon’s Rise to Power

12.2.3Napoleon in Power

12.2.4Military Success

12.2.5The Fall of Napoleon

13The British Empire, 1857–1930

13.1The British Empire

13.1.1Empires over Time

13.1.2Expansion into Africa

13.1.3Motives for Expansion into Africa

13.1.4History of Egypt

13.1.5The British Empire & India

13.1.6The Bengal Famine, Indian Mutiny & Indian Economy

13.1.7International Relations with other Powers

13.1.8Scramble for Africa

13.1.9The Berlin Conference & Assessment

13.1.10Native Policy in Colonies

13.1.11Relations & Business with Iran

13.1.12Iran After WW2

13.1.13Impact of WW1

13.1.14Indian & African Support for the British in WW1

13.1.15Palestine & the Middle East

13.1.16Britain & its African & Middle Eastern Colonies

14Suffrage

14.1Suffrage

14.1.1The 1832 Great Reform Act

14.1.2Women & Work in the 19th Century

14.1.3Women’s Education in the 19th Century

14.1.4The Rise of Revolutionaries

14.2The Campaign for Women’s Suffrage

14.2.1The Suffragists (NUWSS)

14.2.2The Suffragettes (WSPU)

14.2.3The Escalation of the Suffragettes (WSPU)

14.2.4The Effect of WW1 on the Suffragettes

14.3Women’s Enfranchisement

14.3.1Women’s Enfranchisement

14.3.2Political Representation

15World War 1, 1914-1918

15.1Causes of WW1

15.1.1A United Germany

15.1.2German Foreign Policy

15.1.3The Triple Alliance

15.1.4The 'Entente'

15.1.5Impact of the Alliances on International Relations

15.1.6German Rearmament

15.1.7British Rearmament

15.2Outbreak & Early War

15.2.1Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

15.2.2The July Crisis

15.2.3The Schlieffen Plan

15.2.4Failure of the Schlieffen Plan

15.2.5The Crisis in the Balkans (1908-1909)

15.2.6The Crisis in the Balkans (1908-1909) - Climax

15.2.7The Balkan Wars (1912-13)

15.2.8Summary of the Lead Up to War

15.3The War of Attrition

15.3.1Stalemate

15.3.2Trench Warfare

15.3.3Battle of Verdun

15.3.4Battle of the Somme

15.3.5Consequences of the Battle of the Somme

15.3.6Battle of Passchendaele

15.3.7New Weapons

15.3.8The War at Sea

15.3.9U-Boats

15.3.10The War in the Air

15.4Forgotten Armies of WWI

15.4.1Forgotten Armies of WWI

15.4.2The Story of Ganga Singh

15.4.3The Story of Algerian Troops

15.4.4The Story of Mike Mountain Horse

15.4.5The Story of Chinese Labourers

15.5The End of the War

15.5.1Reasons for the Entry of the USA

15.5.2The Impact of US Entry on the War

15.5.3The German Spring Offensive

15.5.4The Allied Advance

15.5.5The Final Blockade

15.5.6The Armistice

16The Inter-War Years, 1919-1939

17World War 2, 1939-1945

17.1World War 2

17.1.1Long Term Factors of WW2

17.1.2Hitler & the Nazis

17.1.3Appeasement

17.1.4The Phoney War

17.1.5The Blitzkrieg

17.1.6The Battle of Britain

17.1.7German Invasion of the USSR

17.1.8US Entrance into WW2

17.1.9Allied Victory

17.1.10Churchill

17.1.11Anti-Semitism

17.1.12The Holocaust

17.1.13Outcome of WW2

17.1.14Interpretations of the Causes of WW2

17.1.15Interpretation of US Entrance

17.1.16Interpretation of USSR Entrance

18The Cold War, 1947-1962

18.1The Cold War

18.1.1Introduction to Key Terms of the Cold War

18.1.2Ideological Differences Between the Superpowers

18.1.3The Yalta & Potsdam Conferences - 1945 AD

18.1.4Satellite States

18.1.5The Atomic Bomb

18.1.6NATO

18.1.7Containment

18.1.8The Marshall Plan

18.1.9The Berlin Crisis

18.1.10The Berlin Airlift

18.1.11The Refugee Problem in Berlin

18.1.12The Berlin Wall

18.1.13The Arms Race

18.1.14The Space Race

18.1.15Relations with Cuba

18.1.16The Cuban Missile Crisis

18.1.17Consequences of the Cuban Missile Crisis

19Civil Rights in the USA, 1954-1975

19.1Segregation in the USA

19.1.1Segregation & Discrimination

19.1.2Voting

19.1.3Brown v. Topeka

19.1.4Little Rock High School

19.1.5Rosa Parks

19.1.6Martin Luther King Jr.

19.1.7Opposition to the Civil Rights Movement

19.1.8The Murder of Emmett Till

19.1.9The James Meredith Case

19.1.10Peaceful Protests in the 1960s

19.1.11Freedom Summer & Mississippi Murders

19.1.12Civil & Voting Rights Acts

19.1.13Presidents Kennedy & Johnson

19.1.14The Riots of 1965–67

19.1.15The Kerner Report

19.1.16Martin Luther King's Campaign

19.1.17Assassination of Martin Luther King

19.1.18Consequences of Assassination of MLK

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