How big was the United Kingdom before? Was the United States their place before?

The largest area in the UK was approximately 34 million square kilometres.

The territory ruled by Britain from the 18th century to the early 20th century spanned seven continents around the world. It was the most powerful country and the largest colonial empire in the world at that time. Its colonial area was 111 times that of the mainland, and the United States was also one of them. colony.

The recognized heyday of the British Empire was in 1922 after the end of World War I. According to the Paris Peace Conference, the German colonies were seized and reached its largest territorial area, covering seven continents and four oceans, including Antarctica. The area reaches approximately 34 million square kilometers;

Covering a quarter of the earth’s land and a quarter of the population, all time zones have territories where the sun never sets. This is also the “sunset never sets” empire. The origin of "Empire".

The United States was originally a settlement of Indians. At the end of the 15th century, Spain, the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom and others immigrated here one after another.

Before the 18th century, Britain established 13 British North American colonies on the Atlantic coast of the United States.

In 1775, the American people’s War of Independence broke out against the colonial rule of the British Empire.

On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress was held in Philadelphia. George Washington, commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, issued the Declaration of Independence, declaring the formal establishment of the United States of America.

The War of Independence ended in 1783, and Britain recognized the independence of 13 colonies.

In 1787, the United States Constitution was adopted and a federal state was established.

Extended information

British territorial changes

When the First World War broke out, Britain showed great strength. Although Germany is also an emerging colonial power and its strength is not inferior to that of other European countries, when King George V issued the mobilization order, the response of the major colonies was a bit surprising.

The British declaration of war against Germany was issued on August 4th. On August 10th, after receiving the order, South Africa immediately supplied Germany's Southwest African colonies. Canada sent 30,000 volunteers to the United Kingdom, the Prime Minister of Australia called London and prepared to send 20,000 troops, and New Zealand recruited 112,000 soldiers;

India was on war alert, and other colonies also responded. The appeal is absolutely amazing, but no matter whether you win or lose in a war, you will always suffer heavy losses.

The United Kingdom is no exception, but thanks to its deep family background, it recovered quickly after the war.

Furthermore, the annexation of German colonies brought the British territory to its peak.

This is the largest empire in human history. Britain's reputation and strength have once again reached their peak.

Until the outbreak of World War II, it was difficult for Britain to recover as quickly as in the past from the losses suffered in this war; the world situation was also changing, and the colonies began to want to get rid of the British shackles.

Years of industrial precipitation have made the colonies no longer as bad as in the past. The wave of national independence continues to rise. The declining empire has found it difficult to control the increasingly powerful land and is no longer willing to accept colonial rule.

So, after World War II, a large number of colonies separated from the United Kingdom, and the British territory began to be rapidly reduced and gradually returned to the mainland, becoming a country with only 244,100 square kilometers of territory today.

Reference material Baidu Encyclopedia-UK

Reference material Baidu Encyclopedia-United States

Reference material Baidu Encyclopedia-British Empire