It is generally believed that 1588 defeated the Spanish Armada, marking the beginning of Britain's rise. But defeating Spain's armada does not mean that Britain has replaced Spain's hegemony. It was not until the19th century 300 years later that Britain did this.
The glorious revolution of 1688 overthrew the feudal rule, and in the Bill of Rights promulgated by 1689, the royal power was clearly restricted by law, and the bourgeois constitutional monarchy was established. The establishment of capitalist system has provided unprecedented productivity for Britain, and made its economy, military strength, science and technology and culture develop rapidly.
1763 after the seven-year war, the whole of Canada was seized from France, which marked that Britain became the undisputed maritime hegemon.
/kloc-in the 0 th and 9 th centuries, the industrial revolution took place in Britain, which added another sum to British hegemony. Britain, which can only participate in European affairs through its hostility to France, can use its unique industrial products to control the economic lifeline of Europe and use the world's most powerful navy to deter weak European countries.
/kloc-At the beginning of the 0/9th century, all the colonies of the Spanish Empire became independent, which indirectly led to Britain becoming a real maritime hegemon. At this time, Britain finally became the country with the largest "colonial area" in Europe and even in the world.
18 15 years, after the defeat of Napoleon I, the British Empire completely surpassed all other European countries and became the largest power in Europe. Only the Russian empire can compete with Britain in force, but because of Russia's backward economy and technology, Britain has become the hegemon of Europe.
It is also because Britain has the largest number of colonies in the world, the most advanced science and technology, controls the economic cities on all continents, and becomes the "world empire" leading the development of the earth.
At this time, Britain was the first of the five European countries (Britain, France, Russia, Austria, Prussia) and dominated international affairs for 100 years. This period is called "Britain rules the world", also known as the Victorian era, because this is the era when Queen Victoria ruled Britain.
Because the empire's territory and possessions spread over seven continents and five oceans, including Antarctica, there is a saying that "the sun never sets in Britain", so it is described as the second "empire where the sun never sets" after the Spanish Empire.
Extended data
The decline of the British empire
At the beginning of the 20th century, nationalist sentiment was high, and with the rise of the United States and the Soviet Union, the British imperial system became increasingly difficult to maintain. At the same time, the suzerain is increasingly concerned about the affairs of its own country and neighboring countries, especially after World War II. Britain was finally forced to accept this new situation, transforming the monarchy into a loose Commonwealth, and Britain also lost its position as the world hegemon.
The economic crisis of 1947 forced Clement Attlee's Labor government to give up maintaining Britain's status as a world-class power and accept the rise of the United States. Britain must also deal with the relations with other European countries, but the distorted relationship between Britain and the European continent has not been completely solved so far.
Due to the decline of British national strength, the British-led Commonwealth Group was cancelled after 1966 re-division of United Nations regional groups. Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are divided into Western European and other groups, and the rest of the Commonwealth countries are divided into corresponding regional groups. This symbolic move marks the loss of Britain's superpower status.
1 July 19971day, the last British colony with a population of over one million was handed over to People's Republic of China (PRC). Most historians and Prince Charles of Wales say that the return of Hong Kong marks the end of the British Empire.