Starter quiz
- What is an empire?
- a country or territory ruled by another country
- a collection of territories or countries ruled by a single person or government ✓
- a group of countries who make agreements to work together
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- Write the missing word. Charles ______ developed the theory of evolution.
- 'Darwin' ✓
- Write the missing word. A ______} is a country or territory ruled by another country.
- 'colony' ✓
- Who gained control over Bengal, in India, between 1757 and 1764?
- The King of Britain
- The British Parliament
- The British East India Company ✓
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- Which statement is most accurate?
- Only European countries developed empires.
- Only Asian countries developed empires.
- Only African countries developed empires.
- Empires have been developed by a wide range of countries. ✓
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- Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
- 1⇔English colony founded at Jamestown
- 2⇔The East India Company gains control over Bengal
- 3⇔Egypt, Kenya and Sudan all become part of the British Empire
- 4⇔Soldiers from across the empire help Britain to fight in the World Wars
Exit quiz
- Match each of the key words to its correct defintion.
- colonies⇔territories ruled over by another country ✓
- empire⇔collection of territories ruled by a single person or government ✓
- imperialism⇔refers to a country's expansion of the territory under its control ✓
- Write the missing word. People often claimed that 'the ______ never sets on the British Empire.'
- 'sun' ✓
- Which type of British colony offered more political power to the people who lived in it?
- Crown Colony
- Self-governing colony ✓
- Neither
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- What did Social Darwinists falsely argue skull measurements could show?
- Africans were superior to other racial groups
- Asians were superior to other racial groups
- Europeans were superior to other racial groups ✓
- All races were equal
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- Which religion did many people in Britain claim made their country superior to others?
- Christianity ✓
- Hinduism
- Judaism
- Sikhism
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- Which statement is most accurate?
- Social Darwinism increased Britain's belief that its imperialism was justified. ✓
- Social Darwinism decreased Britain's belief that its imperialism was justified.
- Social Darwinism was not relevant to Britain's ideas about imperialism.
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Worksheet
Presentation
Video
Lesson Details
Key learning points
- The British Empire was very large and ruled over a diverse mix of people.
- Charles Darwin developed the theory of natural selection and evolution.
- Social Darwinism adapted Darwin's theories to claim that some groups of humans were superior to others.
- Social Darwinism was used to justify imperialism.
- Many ideas were used to justify British imperialism, such as the desire to spread Christianity.
Common misconception
Ideas of racial superiority were the only justification for British imperialism.
Cultural and religious beliefs such as a belief in the superiority of Christianity helped to justify an encourage British imperialism throughout the 19th century.
Keywords
Empire - an empire is a collection of territories or countries ruled by a single person or government
Colonies - colonies are countries and territories ruled over by another country
Evolution - evolution is the process of gradual change which occurs over long periods of time
Social darwinism - Social Darwinism was the false claim that Charles Darwin's ideas apply to human societies, making some groups of people superior to others
Imperialism - imperialism refers to the control of one country over another and the expansion of a country's empire by gaining new colonies