British Empire on the world map. British colonial empire

Historically, capitalist relations in England originated earlier than in other countries. Industry expanded and needed sources of raw materials, money and marketing. The English bourgeoisie began an active struggle to seize spheres of influence, to seize colonies.

English colonial policy in the 17th and 18th centuries. did not yet have such a scope as it acquired in the next century. Its goal was to secure profit for the relatively few sections of the merchant bourgeoisie and the aristocratic elite of English society. Profit was achieved through an unequal exchange of goods between European businessmen and local residents of the colonies, the export of spices and precious woods from Asia and Africa and selling them in Europe at high prices, as well as through direct robbery.

In England, special associations of the largest merchants and industrialists were created. Their activities paved the way for the military-political establishment of England in various parts of the globe.

With the help of such monopoly private enterprises, the British state penetrated into Asia, America, and Africa.

England took possession of numerous islands in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, secured for itself important strongholds on the sea coast.

Thus, a huge chain of military and naval bases and strongholds was created, with which the British Empire subsequently encircled almost the entire world. Thus, springboards were prepared for a wide economic and military-political penetration into the depths of the Afro-Asian and American countries and the enslavement of the inhabitants of the peoples. The Industrial Revolution and the sharp expansion of the output of factory products associated with it caused a change in the views of the British ruling circles on the goals of colonial policy. The countries of the East began to acquire ever greater importance not only as sources of money in the form of booty and taxes, but mainly as profitable markets for British goods. "The colonies began to serve as a source of cheap raw materials ..."

In the second quarter of the 19th century, colonial expansion began to acquire special significance for England.

The military and political activity of the British Empire in the south of the mainland was manifested in parallel with the expansionist activities of the British in other areas.

As a result of the aggressive actions of the colonialists, mainly the British, already in the first half of the 19th century the prerequisites were laid for the division of African lands among the capitalist powers and the enslavement of almost all the peoples living there.

By the end of the 19th century England had become a major colonial power. “From 1884-1900. England acquired 3,700,000 square miles of new colonial territory. Her possessions were on all continents. The British ruling circles subjugated a number of countries and peoples of Asia and Africa, primarily India, imposed enslaving treaties and agreements on China, Iran and other states, created a system of military-strategic bases and communication lines on the islands and coasts of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, as well as Mediterranean Sea.

In the last third of the 19th century, in the advanced countries of Europe and in the USA, capitalism entered its last stage, the imperialist stage. During this period, the colonial policy of the British bourgeoisie became especially active. Colonial possessions at this stage in the development of capitalism were of interest to the metropolises not only as sources of raw materials and markets for goods, but also as areas for capital investment and the exploitation of cheap labor. "The era of industrial capital has given way to an era of finance capital".

Along with the ever-increasing significance of the economic exploitation of colonial and semi-colonial possessions, dependent territories scattered in different parts of the globe continued to play the role of important military-political bridgeheads, as well as a source of replenishment for the so-called colored troops.

At the end of the 19th century, the British bourgeoisie developed a storm of activity to expand its colonial empire, to spread and strengthen its influence in the East.

In the 1970s and 1980s, England's colonial expansion assumed especially large proportions in Africa and the Middle East.

The colonial policy of England during the period of imperialism

The British Empire entered the First World War in its entirety. This war also served as the beginning of the crisis of the British Empire. The previously growing centrifugal forces broke out. During the First World War, there were uprisings in the Union of South Africa and Ireland, contradictions in Canada and Australia, and a national liberation movement developed widely in India. Britain's position in the capitalist world was weakening, and at the same time the balance of power between England and the dominions changed in favor of the latter. Thus, the foundations of a unified foreign and military policy were undermined.

The new balance of power within the British Empire, which had developed after the First World War, was reflected in the new statute of the dominions. The question of drafting such a statute arose already at the first post-war conferences. The Balfour report confirmed the right of each dominion established in 1923 to independent foreign relations, to participate in international conferences, and stipulated that the dominions, concluding agreements with foreign states, should take into account the possible consequences for other parts of the empire.

The term "British Commonwealth of Nations" was first used in 1926 in relation to England and the self-governing dominions. The term "empire" itself was abolished and replaced by the word "commonwealth". The use of the term "commonwealth" made the political situation less difficult.

Before the Second World War, the British Empire meant the union of England with the dominions and colonies, and the Commonwealth meant England with the dominions. According to the Statute of Westminster, the dominions became almost full-fledged subjects of international relations with the rights of independent diplomatic representation, the conclusion of agreements with foreign states, with their own armed forces, with the right to declare or not declare war. The colonies still remained disenfranchised objects of English politics. The dominions took part in the redivision of the German colonies after the First World War. Thus, "the first world war of 1914-1918 led to the acquisition of another one and a half million square miles"

At the same time, the contradictions between Britain and the dominions manifested themselves with increasing force on the basis of the development of independent local-imperialist aspirations of the dominions, on the basis of the general crisis of the policy of imperialism in the period between the two wars. England took steps to strengthen the unity of the empire.

In economic terms, this goal was served by the system of imperial preferences established at the Ottawa Conference in 1932, and the creation of the sterling zone in the 1930s, which contributed to the development of intra-imperial ties, the growth of trade and investment.

At the first stage of the general crisis of capitalism in the empire, centrifugal forces were already making themselves felt. Ireland was freed from British domination and abandoned the military obligations imposed on it. The Indian subcontinent was shaking under the powerful blows of the national liberation movement. “Mass political actions of industrial workers and the peasant population were noted in many parts of India in 1918-22. The Anglo-Indian government responded to these speeches with cruel repressions. The “British Middle Eastern Empire” created as a result of the First World War began to crack. “In 1919, as a result of the Anglo-Afghan war, Afghanistan achieved the elimination of the unequal treaties imposed by England, becoming a sovereign state. Turkey's political independence was secured by the abolition of all legal and economic privileges granted by a foreign Turkish sultan. England had to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan, Turkey, Iran.”

These revolutionary, destructive processes for the British Empire were fully developed during and as a result of the Second World War, at a new stage in the general crisis of capitalism. At the first stage of the general crisis of capitalism, the British Empire greatly expanded due to the German colonies and parts of the collapsed Ottoman Empire. “By the end of the First World War, the British Empire was at the height of its power. A dangerous enemy - Germany - was defeated, and its colonial possessions were divided among the powers of the Entente. Under this section, England received South-West Africa, part of Cameroon and Togo, Tanganyika and a number of islands in Oceania under the guise of a League of Nations mandate. Thus, "on the eve of the Second World War, the British Empire with protectorates and dependent territories occupied an area equal to a quarter of the entire surface of the globe, with a population of ¼ of the world's population."



The British colonial empire began to take shape in the 17th-18th centuries. In the struggle with Spain, Holland, France, England sought commercial and maritime hegemony. As a result of the capture and plunder of the colonies, huge capitals ended up in the hands of the English bourgeoisie, which contributed to the rapid development of English industrial production. The Whigs, who defended the interests of financiers, merchants and industrialists, insisted especially energetically on the conduct of an aggressive foreign policy. The Tories took a more moderate position on the question of the colonial conquests of England.

In the XVIII century. England conquered vast territories in Canada, Australia, South Africa, and India. By the middle of the XIX century. England became the largest colonial and commercial and industrial power.

Ireland occupies a special place in the British colonial empire. This is the first English colony, which the English feudal lords tried to conquer back in the 12th century, and then in the 16th-17th centuries. In 1800, Ireland was united with Great Britain in an alliance that destroyed the remnants of Irish autonomy. Ireland had its representation in the English Parliament. However, the people of Ireland fought for complete independence, and its deputies in parliament defended the idea of ​​home rule (autonomy). This idea in the 80s of the XIX century. was also perceived by the liberals, who needed the support of the Irish in the fight against the conservatives. In 1886, the Liberal government introduced a bill to Parliament to grant limited self-government to Ireland. However, this law was rejected by the House of Commons. A new law giving Ireland autonomy passed in the House of Commons in 1893, but was rejected by the House of Lords. It was only in 1914 that Parliament was forced to pass a law on home rule, according to which the autonomy of Ireland acquired the usual status of a dominion. The introduction of this act was delayed until the end of the war.

All other British colonies were governed according to their legal status. Back in the 18th century the division of the colonies into conquered and resettlement was established. The conquered colonies, dominated by the native population, did not have political autonomy and were governed by a governor-general appointed by the mother country. Representative bodies from local residents played the role of an advisory body under the governor.

In those colonies dominated by white settlers, the British government made concessions. The ruling classes of England feared a repetition of the events that led to the end of the 18th century. to the loss of a large part of their North American possessions. Meeting the demands of white settlers, mostly from England, they were forced to grant self-government to some colonies of the settler type.

Relations with Canada have especially changed. In the 50-60s of the XIX century. economic ties between England and this North American colony were already so strong that the British government met the demands of its inhabitants for the expansion of self-government. In 1867 the government of Canada was reorganized on new grounds. The four provinces of Canada formed a confederation called the Dominion of Canada. From now on, the governors appointed by the English king ruled Canada only through the federal council of ministers responsible to the legislative bodies - the Senate and the House of Representatives of the dominion.

Not only in Canada, but also in other colonies inhabited by immigrants from the metropolis, in the 50-60s of the XIX century. representative institutions were formed. In 1854, the Cape Land received self-government from the South African possessions, and in 1856 - Natal.

In Australia, the first representative institutions were introduced in the 40s of the XIX century. In 1855, the constitutions of individual colonies were developed here, and then approved, providing for the introduction of a bicameral parliament and the limitation of governor's power. In 1900, separate self-governing colonies of Great Britain on the Australian continent were united into the Commonwealth of Australia. The 1900 constitution declared Australia to be a federal state. Legislative power was exercised by Parliament, which consisted of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Executive power was vested in the governor-general.

New Zealand received a constitution in 1852.

India was the largest English colony. conquered in the 18th century. East India Trading Company, this country was subjected to ruthless robbery. In 1813, the English Parliament abolished the East India Company's monopoly on trade with India, and many English companies gained access to its markets. The colonization of India was accompanied by high taxation, the seizure of communal lands and natural resources of the country by English landlords and capitalists. Indian industry and agriculture went into decline.

In 1857-1859. in India there was a powerful liberation uprising. It began among the Indian soldiers (sepoys) recruited into the troops of the East India Company. The main driving force of the uprising was the peasants and artisans, but the princes were at the head, dissatisfied with the loss of their possessions. The uprising was brutally suppressed.

The national industry of India, although slowly, developed, and with it the national bourgeoisie also strengthened. In 1885, a political bourgeois party, the Indian National Congress, was created. The main requirement of the Congress program was the admission of Indians to the government of the country. In 1892, by the Indian Councils Act, representatives of the Indian bourgeoisie were admitted to legislative advisory councils under the Governor-General of India and provincial governors. Access to the executive bodies was opened to Indians in 1906. Two Indians were introduced to the Council of Indian Affairs (in London), one Indian was appointed to the executive council under the Governor General, and Indians were given access to the executive councils of the provinces. In 1909, the Indian Legislative Councils Act was passed, according to which the number of members of the legislative council under the governor-general and the councils under the governors of the provinces was significantly increased, so that wider circles of the Indian bourgeoisie could take part in them. So, by the end of the XIX century. a number of English colonies turned into dominions, self-governing colonies. As they developed, the dominions more and more claimed the role of an equal partner in relations with the mother country. To regulate these relations, since 1887 "colonial conferences" began to be held regularly, in 1907 they were called imperial.

Chapter 16. UNITED STATES OF NORTH AMERICA

It is in history that answers to many questions of our time can be found. Do you know about the largest empire that ever existed on the planet? TravelAsk will tell about two world giants of the past.

The largest empire by area

The British Empire is the largest state that has ever existed in the history of mankind. Of course, here we are talking not only about the continent, but also colonies on all inhabited continents. Just think: that was even less than a hundred years ago. At different times, the area of ​​Britain was different, but the maximum is 42.75 million square meters. km (of which 8.1 million sq. km are territories in Antarctica). This is two and a half times more than today's territory of Russia. This is 22% sushi. The heyday of the British Empire came in 1918.

The total population of Britain at its peak was about 480 million people (about one-fourth of humanity). That is why English is so widespread. This is a direct legacy of the British Empire.

How the state was born

The British Empire grew over a long period of about 200 years. The 20th century was the culmination of its growth: at that time, the state possessed various territories on all continents. For this, it is called the empire, "over which the sun never sets."

And it all started in the 18th century quite peacefully: with trade and diplomacy, occasionally with colonial conquests.

The empire helped spread British technology, trade, the English language and its form of government around the world. Of course, the basis of power was the navy, which was used everywhere. He ensured freedom of navigation, fought slavery and piracy (slavery was abolished in Britain at the beginning of the 19th century). This made the world a safer place. It turns out that instead of seeking power over vast inland territories for the sake of possessing resources, the empire relied on trade and control over strategically important points. It was this strategy that made the British Empire the most powerful.

The British Empire was very diverse, including territories on all continents, which created a great diversity of cultures. The state included a very diverse population, thanks to which it was able to manage various regions either directly or through local rulers, these are excellent skills for the government. Just think: British power extended to India, Egypt, Canada, New Zealand and many other countries.

When the decolonization of the United Kingdom began, the British tried to introduce parliamentary democracy and the rule of law in the former colonies, but this was far from successful everywhere. The influence of Great Britain on its former territories is still noticeable today: most of the colonies decided that the Commonwealth of Nations replaced the Empire in psychological terms. Members of the Commonwealth are all former dominions and colonies of the state. Today it includes 17 countries, including the Bahamas and others. That is, they in fact recognize the monarch of Great Britain as their monarch, but on the spot his power is represented by the governor general. But it is worth saying that the title of monarch does not imply any political power over the Commonwealth Realms.

Mongol Empire

The second largest (but not powerful) is the Mongol Empire. It was formed as a result of the conquests of Genghis Khan. Its area is 38 million square meters. km: this is slightly less than the area of ​​​​Britain (and if you consider that Britain owned 8 million square kilometers in Antarctica, then the figure looks even more impressive). The territory of the state stretched from the Danube to the Sea of ​​Japan and from Novgorod to Cambodia. This is the largest continental state in the history of mankind.

The state did not last long: from 1206 to 1368. But this empire influenced the modern world in many ways: it is believed that 8% of the world's population are descendants of Genghis Khan. And this is quite likely: only the eldest son of Temujin had 40 sons.

During its heyday, the Mongol Empire included vast territories of Central Asia, Southern Siberia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, China and Tibet. It was the largest land empire in the world.

Its rise is astonishing: a group of Mongol tribes, no more than a million in number, managed to conquer empires that were literally hundreds of times larger. How did they achieve this? Thoughtful tactics of action, high mobility, the use of technical and other achievements of the captured peoples, as well as the correct organization of logistics and supplies.

But here, of course, there could be no talk of any diplomacy. The Mongols completely cut out the cities that did not want to obey them. More than one city was swept off the face of the earth. Moreover, Temujin and his descendants destroyed the great and ancient states: the state of Khorezmshahs, the Chinese Empire, the Baghdad Caliphate, Volga Bulgaria. Modern historians say that up to 50% of the total population died in the occupied territories. Thus, the population of Chinese dynasties was 120 million people, after the invasion of the Mongols, it decreased to 60 million.

The consequences of the invasions of the great khan

The commander Temujin united all the Mongol tribes by 1206 and was proclaimed the great khan over all the tribes, receiving the title "Genghis Khan". He captured northern China, devastated Central Asia, conquered all of Central Asia and Iran, ruining the entire region.

The descendants of Genghis Khan ruled an empire that captured most of Eurasia, including almost the entire Middle East, parts of Eastern Europe, China and Russia. Despite all the power, the real threat to the dominance of the Mongol Empire was the enmity between its rulers. The empire split into four khanates. The largest fragments of Great Mongolia were the Yuan Empire, the Ulus of Jochi (Golden Horde), the state of the Khulaguids and the Chagatai ulus. They, in turn, also collapsed or were subdued. In the last quarter of the 14th century, the Mongol Empire ceased to exist.

However, despite such a short reign, the Mongol Empire influenced the unification of many regions. So, for example, the eastern and western parts of Russia and the western regions of China remain united to this day, although in different forms of government. Russia also gained strength: during the Tatar-Mongol yoke, Moscow was granted the status of a tax collector for the Mongols. That is, Russian residents collected tribute and taxes for the Mongols, while the Mongols themselves rarely visited Russian lands. In the end, the Russian people received military power, which allowed Ivan III to overthrow the Mongols under the rule of the Moscow principality.

The colonial policy of England dates back to the era of feudalism. But only the bourgeois revolution of the 17th century marked the beginning of a broad colonial expansion. As early as the middle of the 17th century, as a result of Cromwell's aggressive wars, England captured a number of islands in the West Indies, strengthened and expanded its possessions in North America, and carried out the final annexation of Ireland. the revolution created the preconditions for the economic and political superiority of Great Britain among the colonial countries: Spain, Portugal, France and the Netherlands. Having gained the upper hand over their European rivals, the English bourgeoisie in the 17th - 19th centuries. far ahead of them in colonial conquests.

By the middle of the 19th century, Great Britain had captured vast territories in all parts of the world. She owned: Ireland in Europe; Canada, Newfoundland, British Guiana and the West Indies in America; Ceylon, Malaya, part of Burma and India in Asia; the Cape, Natal, British Gambia and Sierra Leone in Africa; the entire Australian continent and New Zealand. In 1875, the possessions of the British Empire amounted to 8.5 million square meters. miles, and the population of the empire is about 20% of the total population of the globe. Gromyko A. Al. Great Britain: the era of reform / Ed. A. Al. Gromyko.-M.: The whole world, 2007.-p. 203.

For most of the 19th century, Great Britain was the world's leading country in terms of economic development. The leadership won during the industrial revolution manifested itself primarily in industrial superiority; in 1870, England accounted for 32% of industrial production (USA - 26%, Germany - 10%, France - 10%, Russia - 4%, etc. countries - 18%).

England firmly held a leading position in trade, where she held the first place, and her share in world trade was about 65%. For quite a long time, she pursued a policy of free trade. Due to their quality and cheapness, English goods did not need protectionist protection, and the government did not prohibit the import of foreign goods.

Using the open robbery of the colonial peoples, unequal trade, practicing the slave trade, various forms of forced labor and other means of colonial exploitation, the English bourgeoisie accumulated huge capitals, which became the source from which they fed the working aristocracy in England itself. The colonial empire played a significant role in the fact that England in the 19th century turned into an industrially developed capitalist country - "the workshop of the whole world."

Great Britain also took first place in the export of capital, and London was the financial center of the world. The English currency played the role of world money, acting as a unit of account in world trade transactions.

In the face of an intensifying struggle for economic leadership in the world between the old industrial countries (England and France) and the young rapidly developing states (USA and Germany), Great Britain could not maintain its predominance for an indefinitely long time after other less developed, but in abundance resource-rich countries began to industrialize. In this sense, the relative decline of Great Britain was inevitable. Konotopov M.V. History of the economy of foreign countries /M.V. Konotopov, S.I. Smetanin.-M.-2001-S. 107.

Reasons for the slowdown in economic development:

The growth of colonial power and the outflow of capital from the country;

Moral and physical aging of production facilities and limited use of electrical energy;

Strengthening the policy of protectionism in the USA, Germany, France and other countries;

archaic education system;

Insufficient entrepreneurial activity of English industrialists and the slow introduction of new technologies.

The loss of world hegemony occurred slowly and almost imperceptibly to contemporaries. Despite the slowdown in economic development, Great Britain remained a highly developed, richest country in the world. Kashnikova T.V. History of the economy / T.V. Kashnikova, E.P., Kostenko E.P. - Rostov n / D. - 2006. - P. 221.

As the empire was created, the system and skills of managing the colonies were developed. The general management of the colonies for a long time passed in the British government from one department to another. And only in 1854 in England a special ministry of the colonies was created, which was entrusted with the following duties:

Management of relations between the metropolis and the colonies;

Maintaining the rights and supremacy of the metropolis and protecting its interests;

Appointment and removal of governors and senior officials of the colonies;

Issuance of orders and instructions for the management of the colonies.

In addition, the Ministry of the Colonies, together with the Ministry of War, distributed the armed forces for the protection of the colonies and controlled the armed forces of the colonies, which had their own armies. Zhidkova O.A. History of the state and law of foreign countries./Ed. prof. P.N. Galanzy, O.A. Zhidkov. - M.: "Legal Literature".-1969.-S.-161. The highest court of appeal for the colonial courts was the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council of Great Britain.

Starting from the XVIII century. there was a general division of all the colonies into "conquered" and "settlement", in relation to which two types of British colonial administration gradually developed. The "conquered" colonies, as a rule, with a "colored" population, did not have political autonomy and were governed on behalf of the crown through the organs of the mother country by the British government. Legislative and executive functions in such colonies were concentrated directly in the hands of the highest government official - the governor (governor-general). The representative bodies created in these colonies actually represented only an insignificant stratum of local residents, but even in this case they played the role of an advisory body to the governors. As a rule, a regime of national, racial discrimination was established in the "conquered" colonies.

Another type of government developed in the colonies, where the majority or a significant part of the population were white settlers from Britain and other European countries (North American colonies, Australia, New Zealand, Cape Land). For a long time, these territories did not differ much from any other colonies in the form of government, but gradually acquired political autonomy.

The creation of representative bodies of self-government began in the resettlement colonies in the middle of the 18th century. However, the colonial parliaments had no real political power, for the supreme legislative, executive and judicial power remained in the hands of the British governors-general. In the middle of the XIX century. in a number of provinces in Canada, the institution of "responsible government" was established. As a result of a vote of no confidence by the local assembly, the appointed Governor's Council, which played the role of the colonial government, could be dissolved. The most important concessions to the resettlement colonies were made in the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries, when, one after another, they achieved further expansion of self-government and, as a result, received the special status of dominions. In 1865, the Colonial Laws Validity Act was passed, according to which the acts of the colonial legislatures were invalidated in two cases:

If they were in any respect contrary to the Acts of the British Parliament extended to that colony;

If they were contrary to any orders and regulations issued on the basis of such an act or having the force of such an act in the colony. At the same time, the laws of the colonial legislatures could not be invalidated if they did not comply with the norms of the English "common law". The legislatures of the colonies received the right to establish courts and issue acts regulating their activities.

After the formation of the dominions, their foreign policy and "defense matters" remained within the competence of the British government. Since the end of the XIX century. one of the forms of relations with the dominions was the so-called colonial (imperial) conferences held under the auspices of the ministry of colonies. At the 1907 conference, at the request of the representatives of the dominions, new organizational forms were developed for holding them. Imperial conferences were henceforth to be held under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister of Great Britain, with the participation of the Prime Ministers of the Dominions.

At the end of XIX - beginning of XX century. simultaneously with the seizure of vast territories in Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Somalia, etc.), British expansion intensified in Asia and the Arab East. The sovereign states that existed here were actually turned into protectorate semi-colonies (Afghanistan, Kuwait, Iran, etc.), their sovereignty was limited by treaties imposed by England and the presence of British troops.

Colonial law in the British dominions consisted of acts of the British Parliament ("statutory law"), "common law", "rights of equity", as well as decrees and orders of the ministry of the colonies and regulations adopted in the colony itself. The widespread introduction of the norms of English law in the colonies began in the second half of the 19th century, when the colonies became trading "partners" of the metropolis and it was necessary to ensure the stability of the exchange of goods, the security of the person and property of British subjects.

Intertwined with traditional institutions, local law of the conquered countries, reflecting both their own and externally imposed social relations, colonial law was a complex and controversial phenomenon. In India, for example, the rule-making practice of the British courts and colonial legislation created extremely complicated systems of Anglo-Hindu and Anglo-Muslim law that applied to local residents. These systems were characterized by an eclectic mixture of English, customary, religious law and judicial interpretation. In the colonial law of Africa, the norms of European law, local customary law, and colonial laws that copied the colonial codes of India were also artificially combined. English law was applicable to English settlers in all parts of the world. At the same time, in the resettlement colonies, "common law" was applied primarily, and English law could not be applied if this was not specifically indicated in an act of the British Parliament. Krasheninnikova N.A. History of the state and law of foreign countries. Part 2: Textbook for universities? Ed. ON THE. Krasheninnikova and prof. O. A. Zhidkova - M.-2001. - S. 19.

Several types of colonial possessions developed in the British Empire. The "white" dominions ("dominion" in English means "possession") - Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand, and the Union of South Africa - enjoyed independence, which was constantly increasing. Not only did they have their own parliaments, governments, armies and finances, but they sometimes owned colonies themselves (for example, Australia and the Union of South Africa). Protectorates usually became colonial countries with relatively developed state power and social relations. There were, as it were, two levels of colonial administration. Supreme power was held by the British governors-general; they, unlike the governors of the dominions, who represented the interests of the British crown rather than ruled on its behalf, were absolute masters of the subordinate countries. The so-called native administration (local rulers, leaders) enjoyed limited independence, was endowed with certain judicial and police powers, the right to collect local taxes, and had its own budgets. The native administration acted as a buffer between the supreme power of the Europeans and the oppressed local population. Such a control system is called indirect, or indirect. It was most widespread in the British possessions, and the English colonial policy began to be called the policy of indirect (indirect) control.

The British also practiced the so-called direct administration in some colonies. Such colonies were called crown, i.e. were directly subordinate to London, with minimal or no rights to self-government. The exception was the crown colonies with a significant stratum of the white population, who had great privileges and even their own colonial parliaments. Sometimes both direct and indirect methods of government were used in one country. For example, India before the Second World War was divided into the so-called British colony of India, which consisted of 16 provinces and was governed from London, and a protectorate, which included over 500 feudal principalities and which operated a system of indirect control. Different forms of government were simultaneously used in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and other countries. Zhidkova O.A. History of the state and law of foreign countries./Ed. prof. P. N. Galanzy, O. A. Zhidkova.-M.: "Legal Literature".-1969.-S.-179.

British Empire.

british empire, represents the union of countries and territories connected by subordination to the British crown and captured in the sphere of influence of British capital. With a population of 449.6 million people. and an area of ​​​​34.650 thousand km 2, B. and. occupies about ¼ of the inhabited earth's surface, on which about ¼ of all mankind lives. B.'s population distribution and. extremely uneven; The British Empire includes territories whose population density is very significant: Great Britain and Northern Ireland (180 people per 1 km 2) and India (70 people per 1 km 2) and those whose density is less than 1 person. per 1 km 2 (Canada). Characteristic for B. and. is also a huge proportion of colonies; the metropolis accounts for only 1/10 of the population and 0.7% of the territory of Byelorussia. (See table on pp. 851 and 852).

The British Empire does not represent a single organized economic entity. The metropolis, however, is for all countries and territories of Great Britain, with the exception of Canada, the main source of new capital and the main owner of capital invested in industry and economy. Investments of the British capitals in B. and. estimated at 2 billion pounds. erased , while the mother country annually invests in the rest of the British Empire, on average, from 70 to 80 million pounds. erased (data for 1922-27). The main field of application of British capital in B. and. are the British dominions and India, and British capital is striving to secure strongholds in the economy: communication lines and monopolies of raw materials, and only secondarily is looking for premises for processing. industry.

The dominance of the mother country is also reinforced by the dependence of the countries and territories of the British Empire on Great Britain as the central market for their food and raw materials; through the UK there is also a significant distribution. parts exported by B. countries and. "exchange goods": cotton, wool, rubber, non-ferrous metals, copra, tea, etc. Ways of communication B. and. are wholly under British control; nodal points in the Mediterranean and Red Seas, connecting the Asian possessions of B. and. with the mother country, are concentrated in the hands of British capital (Gibraltar, Suez, Aden). The British Empire accounts for 34.2% of the world merchant fleet; the overwhelming participation of the British merchant fleet in the maritime transport of B. and. and British control over the world freight market are the most important factors contributing to the unity of B. and., since one should take into account the remoteness of the most important centers of B. and. from each other: distance London-Singapore - 13.200 km (41 days for cargo, ships); Singapore-Vancouver - 11.342 km (35-36 days); Vancouver-London (via the Panama Canal) - 14.174 km (44 days); Brisbane-London - 19.138 km (60 days). Great Britain's control over the means of communication B. and. not limited to maritime transport, it also covers marine cables: direct cables from the UK go to Gibraltar, Malta and Suez, to India (Bombay), from Suez to Colombo - Singapore - Southwest Australia; from London to Newfoundland and Halifax to Canada and the West Indies; from Vancouver to Fiji, Nov. Zealand and Australia, from London to Keptoun (South Africa).

The unity of the British Empire is also facilitated by a single system of monetary circulation (except for India and Canada), as well as a single system of weights and measures, borrowed from England. Though in the customs relation B. and. does not represent a single whole and within its borders there are countries of free trade (metropolis), protectionism in the initial stage (India) and highly developed protectionism (Canada), nevertheless, the system of imperial "preferences", i.e. customs discounts for imperial goods, creates a preferential position for trade between the constituent countries and territories of the British Empire over trade with other countries.

If the war meant the growth of imperial sentiment in the British Empire, then at the present time there is an ebb of these tendencies and an increase in separatism. Trade relations within the British Empire show no desire for anything like a customs union, but in general the idea of ​​a "preference" for imperial goods is beginning to gain acceptance among the Dominions. In Great Britain itself, the Conservatives, in view of the protracted economic crisis after the war, had to give up their protectionist illusions and content themselves with imposing "preferential" duties on goods produced within Britain.

The British Empire, embracing almost a quarter of the world's population, gives a ratio of whites to colored peoples equal to 1 to 6. National and revolutionary movements among the colonial peoples, suppressed for the time being by the huge apparatus of British imperialism, create no few smoldering centers of revolt, ready to flare up under first opportunity. All this, against the background of the deterioration of the material conditions for the existence of the proletariat and the protracted economic. crisis