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It can be quite confusing as the borders of these territories could and did change, name changes were frequent, colonies amalgamated and combined with one another - not to mention various treaties and wars! It is very difficult to keep track of all of these changes over the course of the entire history of the empire. There were also different classifications of territories: Companies - initially private companies capitalised from Britain - tried to set up their own colonies as private commercial concerns. They frequently found the administration far more expensive than they expected and so often turned to the British government for help - particularly when wars or rebellions occurred. I have also included a few settler/missionary inspired settlements in this category. Colonies were those areas directly ruled by a governor on behalf of the British government and representing the Crown. The governor was responsible to the Colonial Office in London, although he usually had wide powers of discretion. These were the most common form of imperial control. Protectorates were territories where the local rulers could continue ruling domestically but they had ceded foreign and defence to the British. In fact, even in protectorates, British advisers frequently held influence far beyond foreign and defence fields. Dominions were those colonies that were granted significant freedom to rule themselves. The settler colonies were afforded this freedom. Dominions were fully independent countries after the 1931 Statute of Westminster, although their Head of State continued to be the British sovereign. I have included some other examples of self-governing colonies in this category. Mandates were set up after World War One as German and Turkish colonies were passed to Britain and France to prepare for self government on behalf of the League of Nations. Then, after World War Two, the United Nations issued its own mandates. You can gauge the relative size, population and economic effectiveness of the varying colonies in 1924 by looking at this table.
Colony Protectorate 1858 (from Interior from 1839 India) Separate 1873 from 1937 1839 - 1842 1878 - 1880
Company
Dominion
Andaman and Nicobar Islands Anguilla Antigua Aruba Ascension Ashmore and Cartier Islands Australia Bahamas Bahrain Baker Island Baluchistan Banda Islands Bantam Barbados Barbuda Basutoland Batavia Bay Islands Bechuanaland Benkulen Bengal Berbice Bermuda Bhutan Bombay Bonaire Bonin Islands British Cameroons
1858 1663 1663 1799 - 1815 1815 by Royal Navy. 1922 Civil Administration 1878 1938 to Australia 1901 1964 1835 1934 to USA
1947 1981
1717
1886 1877, 1887 to India 1796 - 1817 1608, 1616 then back to 1621 Dutch 1603 1682 to Dutch 1627 1666 1628 - 1632, 1868 1621 - 1628 1811 - 1816 1742 - 1782, 1638 - 1650 1820 - 1860 1685 1825 to Dutch 1681 1858 1781 - 1782, 1814, 1831 to 1796 - 1802 British Guiana 1609, 1614 1684
1884
1885
1911 1661 1858 1807 - 1815 then back to Dutch 1875 to Japan 1914
1947 1947
1827
1920
1961
Company
British Guiana
British Honduras British Indian Ocean Territory British Kaffraria British New Guinea (Papua Territory) British Somaliland British Togoland British Virgin Islands Brunei
1636
1849 1846 Colony Protectorate Conquered in 1796. 1815 became 3 colonies unified in 1831 1786 1784 1847 joined Cape Colony in 1866 1886, 1906 to Australia 1905 1914
1871 Dominion
Mandate Independence
1966
1981
1883
1666
1786 1824 expanded in 1852 and 1885. Ruled from India until 1937 1854 1867 1763 Quebec colony divided in 1791 renamed Canada East in 1840 1763 Quebec colony divided in 1791 renamed Canada West in 1840 Colony Protectorate 1936 - 1979 jointly with US
Burma
1948
Bushire Canada
1763
Lower Canada
1867
Upper Canada
1867
Company 1889
Dominion
1758 to Nova Scotia in 1820 1795, 1806 1670 from Jamaica until 1959 1796 expanded in 1802 and 1815 1888 1888 1826 1633 1834 1857 1662 1888 1858 1762 - 1763 1807 - 1815 1914 1941 - 1951 1698 - 1700 1704 1814, 1831 to British Guiana 1763 1945
Ceylon Christmas Island Christmas Island (Pacific) Cocos Islands Connecticut Cook Islands Coorg Cuba Curacao Cyprus Cyrenaica Darien, Panama Delaware Demerara-Essequibo Dominica Dutch East Indies Dutch India Egypt Eire/Ireland/Irish Free State Name Ellice Islands Eritrea Falkland Islands Fernando Po Fiji
1878
1960
1664 1781 - 1782, 1796 - 1802 1811 - 1816 1780 - 1784, 1795 - 1818, 1825
1858 1882 1914 1801 (part of UK proper) Colony Protectorate 1916 1892 1941 1841 1833 1855 to Spain 1874 1922 1922 Dominion
Company
1827 1835
1970
Florida French India French Somaliland Gambia Georgia Gibraltar Gilbert Islands Goa Gold Coast 1760 - 1765, 1778-1783, 1793-1816 1942 - 1946 1661 1732
1763
1783 - to Spain
1821 from Sierra Leone, 1888 by itself 1755 1704, confirmed in 1713 1916
1965 1783
1892
1979
1797 - 1813 1631 1830 1821 from Protectorate Sierra Leone, extended 1874 by itself. inland 1663 - 1664, 1758 - 1763, 1779 - 1783, 1800 - 1817 1763 1873 - 1880 to 1871 Cape Colony 1759-1763, 1794, 18101816 1843 1794 1807 1842 territory added in 1860 and 1898 1886 - 1935 Colony Protectorate 1858 1809 1941 to 1945 1941 - 1950 1655 1920 1957
Goree Grenada Griqualand West Guadeloupe Hawaii Heligoland Hirado Hong Kong Howland Island Name India Ionian Islands Iraq Italian Somaliland Jamaica
1974
Jarvis Island Kamaran Island Kenya Kuwait Labuan Lagos Leeward Islands Lord Howe Island Madeira Madras Maine Malacca Malaya Maldive Islands Malta
1889 - 1935 1915 1920 1848, 1890 to North Borneo 1906 1671 1788
1801 - 1814 1858 1691 to Massachusetts 1795 to 1816, 1826 1874, 1896 1887 1800, confirmed in 1814 17621763,17931801,18091814 1919
Colony Protectorate 1691 1810 confirmed in 1814 1708 - 1756, 1763 - 1782, 1798 - 1803
Dominion
1803 to Spain
Nauru Nepal Nevis New Brunswick New Caledonia, (Darien), Panama Newfoundland New Hampshire New Hebrides Name New Jersey New York New South Wales New Zealand Nigeria Niue 1788 - 1814 from New South Wales, 1825 - 1855 from Van Diemen's Land, 1897 1913 from New South Wales 1775 1663 1849 1670 1885 1891 1497, 1583 1623 Company 1664 1628
1914 1816 1663, 1882 joined with St. Christopher 1784 1698 - 1700 1713, 1934 1679 1906 Colony 1738 1664 1770 1769, 1792, 1840 1914 1901 to New Zealand 1887 Protectorate 1855, 1949 to Canada
1919
1854, 1867
Dominion
Norfolk Island
1856 - 1897
North Borneo North Carolina North West Frontier Province North West Territories Northern Nigeria Northern Rhodesia
1881, 1888
Nova Scotia Nyasaland Ocean Island Oman (Muscat and Oman) Orange River Colony (Orange Free State) Palestine Name Palmyra Atoll Penang Pennsylvania Philippines Pitcairn Island Popham Colony Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Islands Providence Island Pulo Condor Island Punjab Qatar Quebec Queensland Roanoke Redonda Reunion Rhode Island Rodriguez Rupert's Land and North West Territories Saint Barthelemy Saint Croix and Saint Thomas 1587 1670, 1774 1636 1908 1629 - 1642 1702 - 1705 1849 1629 - 1632 1824 1585 - 1590? 1875 1900 1646
1846, 1867 to Canada 1889 1800 1964 1979 1970 1907, 1910 to South Africa Protectorate 1826 Dominion 1920 1948 Mandate Independence 1898 to USA 1957 1783
1848 to 1854, 1900 Company 1786 1681 1762 - 1764 1838 1607 to 1608 1745 - 1748, 1758 1776 Colony 1889
1858 1916 1759 1859 1872 to Antigua 1810 - 1815, 1942 - 1945 1663 1809, 1814 to Mauritius
1947 1971
1981
1623
Saint Eustatius
1625
St Helena St Lucia Name Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon St Vincent Saba
1651
1807 - 1815 1663 1793 - 1798 1665 - 1668, 1672 - 1682, 1690 - 1696, 1781, 1801 1802, 1810 1816 1834 1778 to 1783, 1796, 1803 confirmed in 1814 Colony Protectorate 1781, 1801 1802, 1810 1816 1713 - 1763, 1778 - 1783, 1793 - 1816 1762 to 1779, 1783 1801 - 1803, 1810 - 1816 1889, terminated in 1899
1983
1979
Samoa
1914
1962
Sarawak Senegal
1841 1693
Seychelles
1946 1758 - 1779, 1809 - 1817 1794, 1811 from Mauritius, 1888 by itself 1807 1890, 1918 1858 1826 1941 - 1950 1896 inland protectorates
1963
1976
Solomon Islands South Africa South Australia South Carolina South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands South West Africa Southern Nigeria Southern Rhodesia Straits Settlements Name Sudan Suez Canal Zone Surat Surinam Swaziland Tanganyika Tangier Tasmania 1803 1884 1890 1826 Company 1867 Colony 1898 1881 1900, 1914 to Nigeria 1663 1834 1729 1775, 1843, 1908
1978 1934
1783
1960
1888 1858 Protectorate 1922 1858 1799 - 1802, 1804 - 1816 1893, 1902
1923 Dominion
(1965 - 1979 UDI) 1980 1963 Mandate Independence 1956 1956 1947 1667 to Dutch 1919 1968 1961 1684
1661 1825 1762 to 1781, 1793 confirmed in 1814, joined with Trinidad 1888 1898 1845 1801 - 1815, 1858 1920 1877 to 1881, 1900 1906, 1910 to South Africa 1856, 1901 to Australia
Tobago
1962
Tripolitania Tristan da Cunha Trucial Oman Turks and Caicos Islands Uganda Vancouver Island Virginia Victoria Walvis Bay Weihaiwei Western Australia Willoughby Windward Islands Zanzibar Zululand 1829 1651 - 1688 1835 1678 1888 1843 1607
1797 confirmed in 1814, joined with Tobago 1888 1941 - 1950 1816, 1938 from St Helena 1887 1766 1905 1849 1624 1851 1878, 1884 1898 1826 1799 - 1802, 1804 - 1816 1871 - 1960 1890 1887, 1897 to Natal 1879 1890, 1901 to Australia 1855, 1901 to Australia 1922 to South Africa 1894 1866 to British Columbia
1962
1783
1930 to China
1963