Colonies

A African Resources: For many years, Africa was a source of slaves, gold, and ivory. Once factories began to boost the demand for raw materials that could be used to mass-produce goods, things began to change. Many European countries began to establish colonies in Africa, India, and all the way to China. These colonies started off as trading-posts where goods could be brought to the sea. B The Sun Never Sets on the British Empire: Great Britain had been the world super-power since defeating the Spanish Armada in 1588. After several wars with the French, and the American colonies, Britain continued to be the most powerful nation in the world. Their empire grew to be so large that people started to say that the sun never set on the British Empire. C The British colonies: Britain owned land all over the world. Britain owned land in Australia, Europe, India, South Africa, Central America, Egypt, Canada, and many other places as well. If you look at a map, you can see that these countries are all over the world. D Direct / Indirect rule: There were two main styles of ruling colonies. The French way, called direct rule, tried to force French culture and language on the people they conquered. All of the ruling people in each colony were French people who had moved from the mother country. In this way, the French directly controlled everything that happened in their colonies. The way used by Britain was called indirect rule. Normally, there would be a British governor who was in charge of the colony, but all of the people below him that helped him run the colony would be local people. Languages, cultural practices, and everything else were kept largely the same.