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The impetus for the British Empire came from the Act of Union with Scotland and England, and the formation of The Kingdom of Great Britain. However, before this English and Scottish colonists had been settling in the New World (America) since the 1500's.

The New World offered many valuable resources, such as sugar, tobacco and cotton. The British Empire was built on it's navy; by controlling the oceans they controlled the trade, and thus vast wealth. This financial dominance lead to continued naval dominance, and concurrently the mass expansion of the empire during the 19th Century.

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15y ago

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