ABSTRACT
The evolution of the British Empire has tended to be viewed from two main lines of thought, both of which reflect conflicting interpretations of, in the first instance, the nature and strategy of the imperial growth, and second the morality and character of the impact of the colonial period on the participants. The initial stages of British imperial expansion into various territories were undertaken by private mercantile concerns that had been provided with a charter or authority to develop and conduct business in the relevant region on behalf of the Crown. The maintenance of 'Britishness' in the face of large-scale cultural difference, although variable in degree and character between imperial territories, was one of the defining aspects of Empire, whatever form that imperial existence represented for the individual. The Empire was a mass of contradictions, a bubbling cauldron of constant change that gave rise to more variations in intentions, practice and possibilities.
