An interesting article that looks at the question of what England could have done to prevent a revolution of the American colonists in 1776. The author believes that there are lessons that one can draw from this series of particular...

Learn about the art of the Mughal empire in India, in this historical overview and image gallery of Indian art with detailed descriptions, from the collection of the British Museum.

Learn about the art of ancient Rome in this historical overview and image gallery of Roman art with detailed descriptions, from the collection of the British Museum.

Learn about the cost of maintaining a maritime empire in America by considering the wreck of the British sloop Industry, which sank off the coast of Saint Augustine in 1764. The loss of the ship along with her cargo demonstrates that...

European countries began exploring and seeking to dominate the rest of the world during the 15th and 16th centuries, thanks to their ability to control sea routes and to the discovery of the American continent. In the 19th century,...

This infographic maps the empires of history including the British Empire, the Mongol Empire, the Russian Empire, the Spanish Empire, the Umayyad Caliphate, the Portuguese Empire, the Achaemenid Empire (First Persian Empire), the Ottoman...

Fordham University provides this site with a letter from Sir Robert Clive discussing the Battle of Plassey. Primary source document from the Modern History Sourcebook.

An account of Sir Francis Drake's voyage to the South Seas, and then around the Earth, that he began in 1577. The narrative is attributed to Francis Pretty, a member of the crew.

[Free Registration/Login Required] A flipchart presenting twenty questions about specific facts relating to the growth of the British Empire, particularly in the nineteenth century.

The period between 1660 and 1785 was a time of amazing expansion, when Britain became an empire and its society and literature had to adapt to circumstances for which there was no precedent. The topics in this Restoration and Eighteenth...

The American colonies in the British empire were exploited in the name of mercantilism. The following excerpt explains the idea behind mercantilism and how it was put into practice.

This is an online photocopy of the original of the children's book Royal Geographical Readers by Thomas Nelson and Sons (1884), a collection of maps and information for the countries in the British Empire.

A five-part article describing the British antislave trade movement. All major figures in the abolition movement discussed. Archived.

Welcome to Britain, home to one of the biggest empires in history and a rich artistic heritage. We'll start in the 16th through the 18th centuries, years that saw the establishment of Britain and British art as we know it. As you travel...

An extensive site from the Library of Congress that covers all kinds of topics about India. Includes a very detailed history of British India under "Company Rule, 1757-1857," "The British Raj, 1858-1947," and "Sepoy Rebellion, 1857-59."...

A biography of Edward Elgar, one of the premiere British composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The biography shows how Elgar's music reflects the Imperial era in which he wrote. There is a brief clip from the Enigma...

Hadrian (reigned 117-138 C.E.), once a tribune in three different legions of the Roman army and commander of a legion in one of Trajan's wars, was often shown in military uniform. He was clearly keen to project the image of an ever-ready...

The Magdeburg Panel is one of a group of sixteen ivory plaques depicting a cycle of scenes from the Life of Christ. The original set, numbering forty or fifty, decorated a large piece of church furniture in Magdeburg Cathedral.

Perhaps the Loyalists had some concrete reasons to support staying part of the British Empire. Read about who was a Loyalist and why. Particularly interesting is the reason behind so many slaves supporting Britain and what happened to...

Learnng module uses primary resource material to teach about the French Colonial Empire and how French expansion shaped modern-day countries.

This is an introduction to 20th Century and Modern Poetry. It focuses on disillusionment in British attitudes, World War I's influence on the literature, changing role of women in British society, and major writers of the time and their...

A collection of military dispatches and maps related to the British attempt to defeat the Ottomans during World War 1. Includes dispatches from the British commander, General Allenby.

India was the crown jewel of the largest empire in the history of the world. To understand how India arrived at this point, we need to look at india before colonization, specifically the rise and fall of the Mughal Empire in India. Vivid...

The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan was a Second World War program where air force members from the British Commonwealth countries received advanced training in Canada to ready them for the Royal Air Force. The program is...