What were the different ideas people had about British rules?

Answer 1

The British Empire was built less on the back of military conquest, and more on exploration, colonisation and trade. Frequently, we were opposed by the French, who had their own ambitions in that direction and a long-standing (mutual) dislike of the English.

To this end, we fought over Canada, India came under British rule to protect the tea trade that the French had tried to disrupt (unfortunately French action served only to wreck the political system in India at the time), and the French rushed to the aid of the American colonists in their struggle for Independence.

The peoples we ruled (at the height of the Empire, it was about a quarter of the world population) viewed us in various ways, ranging from co-operation to outright hostility. The longest-lasting effect is the British attitude towards foreigners (there's the British way and the wrong way), and a refusal to speak other languages willingly. They all ended up absorbing various elements of British society, and the principal colonies accepted that cricket was an acceptable way of righting perceived injustices - so enthusiastically learned how to beat their colonial masters at it... which they are still doing today!

However, it did give the British huge resources in the dark days of WW2, and there are many tales of heroism from Empire soldiers, sailors and airmen who held off Hitler for over two years before USA finally joined in.