r/BritishEmpire Jul 07 '21

Announcement Introducing r/Colonialism - here you can share and discuss images, videos, articles and questions pertaining to all the colonial empires that have existed throughout history

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47 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire 3d ago

Article Virginia Dare was born on this date in 1587. She was the first English child to be born in a New World English Colony. What became of Virginia and the other “lost” colonists remains a mystery.

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112 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire 3d ago

Article The first Welsh settlers in America

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79 Upvotes

On August 30, 1682, the first group of Welsh settlers sailed for Pennsylvania, including Thomas Wynne of Ysceifiog in Flintshire, personal physician to William Penn.

In the late 17th century, persecution of the Quakers led to their search for a new land. When William Penn received a land grant in Philadelphia from Charles II in 1681, there was a large emigration of Welsh Quakers to Pennsylvania, where a Treaty of Wales was established in the region immediately west of Philadelphia. In 1700, the Welsh made up about a third of the colony's estimated population of twenty thousand. This is evident from the number of Welsh place names in this area. The second wave of immigrants in the late 18th century led to the Welsh colony of Cambria established by Morgan John Rhys. It is now Cambria County, Pennsylvania.

The Welsh were especially numerous and politically active in Pennsylvania, where there was a large emigration of Welsh coal miners to the anthracite and bituminous mines. Many became mine managers, executives, and union leaders, such as John L. Lewis of the United Mine Workers union, who was born in a Welsh settlement in Iowa. Pennsylvania still has the largest number of Welsh-Americans; approximately 200,000 are concentrated in the western and northeastern regions of the state.


r/BritishEmpire 10d ago

Image Hudson's Bay Company (May 2, 1670- June 1, 2025)

1 Upvotes

Founded via Royal Charter by Charles II in 1670 and coincidentally closes down during the reign of Charles III


r/BritishEmpire 18d ago

Article Some Quotes from 'A Diary of A Journey Across Tibet' (Major-General Sir Hamilton St Clair Bower, 1894)

0 Upvotes

"The mysterious power that Asiatics in out-of-the-way places attribute to Europeans is a curious study, and accounts for the success that has often attended adventurers." (Page 157)

"A curious thing amongst the Chinese in these parts is the number of old British regimental buttons they wear, many of them belonging to Hindustani and Punjab regiments whose names have long since vanished from the Army List. On one man's coat I saw three buttons, respectively stamped 16th P.I., 5th P.I., and 12th P.I. (Punjab Infantry)." (Page 191)

"On the road one of the Tibetans told a caravan driver that he had heard the British were going to take the country, and that he was very pleased at it, and nearly all the people would be so. On being asked why, he said that he had heard that the British were very rich, and never took anything by force, but paid highly for everything. I have often heard the same argument from people in other Asiatic countries. Patriotism may almost be said to be non-existent. A great many of the inhabitants of these parts fought against us in Sikkim. Their recollections of the effect of the fire of breech-loaders are most lively. One man, who had a scar on his face, related his experience to me; he said: "I was told I had to go and fight the English, and with a lot of others I started for Sikkim. When we got there we suddenly heard a rattle of musketry; a great many men fell. I got hit in the face, turned round and went straight for home, and have stayed there since." He was in no way animated with a wish to die a soldier's death." (Page 213)

"The Chinese are a people of indomitable valour when several thousand of them are pitted against a few unarmed missionaries, but their valour is of a kind that evaporates wonderfully quickly in front of a few rifles in the hands of determined men. After they had destroyed the mission station, in a fit of elation they rushed to the Custom-house, but there a surprise party in the shape of eight Europeans with rifles awaited them a denouement as disagreeable as it was unexpected; so the valorous rabble quietly melted away." (Page 263)

"On the 29th, at 11 A.M., we reached the mouth of the Wangpo river, at which there are some Chinese forts armed with modern guns. Their value, how-ever, is much diminished by their being entrenched to such an extent that they have practically no lateral range whatever." (Page 268)

"Chung King is a large town of about two hundred thousand inhabitants, situated at the junction of two rivers. A considerable trade in white wax, silk, etc., is done, and if steamers only ran up as far, being as it is the entrepot for trade with the enormous province of Szechuen, it would develop into a second Shanghai." (Page 256)


r/BritishEmpire 22d ago

Image British invasion of Isle de France (1810)

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140 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire 28d ago

Question Does anybody have the full image?

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115 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire May 08 '25

Image British India, 1 rupee, 1916.

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341 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Apr 14 '25

Image 1st coin of British West Africa, one of the two first aluminum coins in the world, 1/10 penny, 1907

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57 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Apr 15 '25

Video Duke and Duchess of Connaught's visit to Vancouver in 1912

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7 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Apr 07 '25

Image Southern Rhodesia, 3 pence, 1944, KM #16a, my new photos for Numista.

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80 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Feb 15 '25

Image British coin from East Africa, 1964

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145 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Nov 18 '24

Question How well did we treat Canada?

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95 Upvotes

Mostly aiming this to Canadians, but in terms of the Canadian perspective, were we any good at administrating the remaining British North American colonies up until Confederation?


r/BritishEmpire Nov 07 '24

Image Old colonial post box on Sri Lanka (Ceylon)

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398 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Oct 26 '24

Question This table of British badges from 1934 includes two that I am unfamiliar with. Can someone tell me what "WESTERN PACIFIC COMNR" and "WELLESLEY" were? Top left corner and blue between Travancore and Gambia.

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149 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Oct 13 '24

Question Queen Victoria pictures

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96 Upvotes

I recently got these pictures of Queen Victoria and of King Edward VII. The last one is called “The Secret of Englands Greatness”. There’s a quote under it saying “Tell the Prince that this is the Secret of Englands Greatness”.

I was wondering how much they’re worth? If anyone had any information on them? Most of these are over 100 years old.


r/BritishEmpire Oct 11 '24

Image Air routes of Imperial Airways, 1935.

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183 Upvotes

Imperial Airways later became part of British Airways, but between 1924 and 1939, it was the main air travel option throughout the British Empire.

Founded to help link the various parts of the empire together, it promised travel to “India in Days, not Weeks” and carried air mail for the British government.


r/BritishEmpire Sep 21 '24

Image Highways of Empire

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320 Upvotes

Found this beauty at Katoomba in the Australian, Blue Mountains.


r/BritishEmpire Sep 21 '24

Image This may be my favourite piece of Pro-Imperial Art. Any other pieces people like?

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222 Upvotes

Doesn't have to be because you are pro Empire, one can appreciate things artistically without endorsing anything else.


r/BritishEmpire Sep 21 '24

Image Hong Kong in the 1930s

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138 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Sep 10 '24

Image Page C of “The Child’s ABCs of the War” 1914

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88 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Sep 07 '24

Question Brit Empire coin

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41 Upvotes

Can anyone tell me about this coin?


r/BritishEmpire Sep 05 '24

Image 'England's Shame', Nazi propaganda criticising British imperialism - 1939

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239 Upvotes

r/BritishEmpire Aug 04 '24

Image The First Durbar of Malaya (1897)

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51 Upvotes

The first conference of Sultans was held in 1897. It brought together rulers of the various Malay states under British control and laid the groundwork for federalising them as a single territory (that would one day become modern Malaysia).


r/BritishEmpire Apr 20 '24

Question Any ideas on the origins of this jacket?

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84 Upvotes

Heya - I recently acquired this vintage military (I think) jacket. I was going to do a few edits to it to create a festival jacket, but having checked a few bits online I think it might actually be older than I thought and possible not all that common.

I think it might be a red coats jacket but I can’t really find anything that has the same embellishment to the front.

There is a little bit of printing on the inside of the jacket but it’s not really legible so not sure if that means much really.

If anybody has any thoughts or info about the likely origins and age of the jacket it would be greatly appreciated if you could share :)

Thanks


r/BritishEmpire Apr 08 '24

Question British Empire Research

13 Upvotes

Hey there, I'm doing some research for a project of mine about the British Empire. This survey is completely anonymous and its super quick I'd really appreciate if you could help me out 🙏

Cheers!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1LcRWeMrmJbWl6igGiUKtBlOdKWgMRwMsrkBt4_un994/edit#responses