Hvornår begyndte det britiske imperium at falde?
1945
British Empire
Selv om Storbritannien og imperiet gik sejrrigt ud af Anden Verdenskrig, havde konflikten store konsekvenser både hjemme og i udlandet. En stor del af Europa, et kontinent, der havde domineret verden i flere århundreder, lå i ruiner og var vært for USA's og Sovjetunionens hære, som nu havde den globale magtbalance. Storbritannien var stort set gået fallit, og insolvensen blev først afværget i 1946 efter forhandlinger om et lån på 4,33 mia. dollars fra USA, hvoraf den sidste rate blev tilbagebetalt i 2006. Samtidig var antikoloniale bevægelser i fremmarch i de europæiske nationers kolonier. Situationen blev yderligere kompliceret af USA's og Sovjetunionens stigende rivalisering under den kolde krig. I princippet var begge nationer imod europæisk kolonialisme. I praksis havde den amerikanske antikommunisme imidlertid forrang for antiimperialismen, og derfor støttede USA det britiske imperiums fortsatte eksistens for at holde den kommunistiske ekspansion i skak. "Forandringens vind" betød i sidste ende, at det britiske imperiums dage var talte, og i det store og hele vedtog Storbritannien en politik for fredelig tilbagetrækning fra sine kolonier, så snart der var stabile, ikke-kommunistiske regeringer til rådighed, som man kunne overdrage magten til. Dette var i modsætning til andre europæiske magter som Frankrig og Portugal, der førte dyre og i sidste ende forgæves krige for at bevare deres imperier intakte. Mellem 1945 og 1965 faldt antallet af mennesker under britisk styre uden for Storbritannien selv fra 700 millioner til fem millioner, hvoraf tre millioner befandt sig i Hong Kong.
1945
Though Britain and the empire emerged victorious from the Second World War, the effects of the conflict were profound, both at home and abroad. Much of Europe, a continent that had dominated the world for several centuries, was in ruins, and host to the armies of the United States and the Soviet Union, who now held the balance of global power. Britain was left essentially bankrupt, with insolvency only averted in 1946 after the negotiation of a $US 4.33 billion loan from the United States, the last instalment of which was repaid in 2006. At the same time, anti-colonial movements were on the rise in the colonies of European nations. The situation was complicated further by the increasing Cold War rivalry of the United States and the Soviet Union. In principle, both nations were opposed to European colonialism. In practice, however, American anti-communism prevailed over anti-imperialism, and therefore the United States supported the continued existence of the British Empire to keep Communist expansion in check. The "wind of change" ultimately meant that the British Empire's days were numbered, and on the whole, Britain adopted a policy of peaceful disengagement from its colonies once stable, non-Communist governments were available to transfer power to. This was in contrast to other European powers such as France and Portugal, which waged costly and ultimately unsuccessful wars to keep their empires intact. Between 1945 and 1965, the number of people under British rule outside the UK itself fell from 700 million to five million, three million of whom were in Hong Kong.
British Empire