British colonies

The opening of the 17th century found 3 countries – France, Spain and
England – contending for dominion in North America. The British after initial
failures planted firm settlements there. British colonization of America began in
1607 in Jamestown. Within a century and a half the British had 13 flourishing
colonies of the Atlantic coast.
Britain had been trading in India since 17th century, but it did not begin to
seize large sections of land until 1757, after the Battle of Plassey (where the army
of the British East India Company defeated French armies). By the end of the
century the British had established a military dominance of India.
The loss of American colonies
In 1764 there was a serious quarrel over taxation between the British
government and its colonies in America. (There were around 2.5 million colonists).
Some American colonists decided that it was not lawful for the British to tax them
without agreement. In 1773 a group of colonists effectively organized protests
against Parliament's special taxes except that on tea. At the port of Boston a group
of colonists threw a shipload of tea into the sea rather than pay tax on it. This event
became known as "the Boston Tea Party". The British government answered by
closing the port. The colonists decided to prevent British goods from entering
America until the port was opened again. (It was rebellion.) The American War of
Independence had begun. The war in America lasted around 8 years (from 1775
until 1783). As the result Britain lost everything except Canada. The British were
still left with great possessions: Canada, India, the West Indies (which produced
Britain's sugar), the trading posts on the west coast of Africa (which supplied the
slaves for the West Indies and the American plantations).