Territorial evolution of the British Empire

When much of Ireland gained independence in 1922 as the Irish Free State, the other territories of the empire remained under the control of the United Kingdom.

However, this was purely a personal union, with Hanover maintaining its political independence otherwise, and so it is not usually considered to have formed part of the British Empire.

Several countries (dominions) within the British Empire gained independence in stages during the earlier part of the 20th century.

Much of the rest of the empire was dismantled in the twenty years following the end of the Second World War, starting with the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947, and continued until the handover of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China in 1997.

Fourteen of these (known, with the United Kingdom, as the 15 Commonwealth realms) retain the British monarch (currently Charles III) as head of state.

[1] In terms of population, on the eve of World War II, Britain and her colonial possessions totaled 500 million inhabitants.

[9] The governor also often had an Executive Council which had a similar function to the Cabinet in England but was not responsible to the colonial lower house.

This document set out the terms under which the company could trade, defined its boundaries of influence, and described its rights and responsibilities.

Groups of investors formed companies to underwrite and profit from the exploration of Africa, India, Asia, the Caribbean and North America, under the patronage of the state.

[15][16] A protectorate is a territory which is not formally annexed but in which, by treaty, grant or other lawful means, the Crown has power and jurisdiction.

The Balfour Declaration of 1926 clarified the status of the dominions, recognizing them as "autonomous Communities within the British Empire, equal in status, in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by a common allegiance to the Crown, and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations."

The Statute of Westminster 1931 converted this status into legal reality, making them essentially independent members of what was then called the British Commonwealth.

Initially, the Dominions conducted their own trade policy, some limited foreign relations, and had autonomous armed forces, although the British government claimed and exercised the exclusive power to declare wars.

A number of German colonies and protectorates and Ottoman provinces were held as mandates by the United Kingdom (Tanganyika, British Cameroons, Togoland, Palestine and Mesopotamia); and its dominions of Australia (New Guinea, Nauru), New Zealand (Western Samoa), and South Africa (South West Africa).

Of the territories with a permanent population, all have at least some degree of internal self-government, with the United Kingdom retaining responsibility for defence and external relations.