THE BRITISH EMPIRE

 King George the V was not only the ruler of Great but also an Emperor
of India and many other lands in overseas. These colonies formed the
British Empire, the largest in the whole world. In total they had 56
colonies. The map below shows the British empire

Great Britain statistics for 1914

40.8 million
Population of britain
Population of the colonies 390 million
Number of British colonies 56
Size of British colonies 27 million sq. km.
Britain’s army 700,000 soldiers
Britain’s navy 388 ships
Coal output each year 292 million tonnes
Steel output each year 11 million tonnes

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PROBLEMS/CHALLENGES THAT GREAT BRITAIN FACED.
 Unemployment was rising. This was due to her huge population.
 Workers in powerful trade unions were organizing strikes. This was in
protest for working conditions and low wages.
 Strikes and demonstrations were becoming common.
 The Ireland issue was the biggest problem. Ireland was part of Great
Britain and was governed from London. But most Irish people wanted
to change this. They wanted to break away from Britain and have
Home Rule [Independence]. Protestants living in the North however,
wanted to stay British. By 1914, both protestants and Home Rulers
were armed and ready to fight.

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