
Again, ask students to note which continents had a British colonial presence that year. Next, ask students to read through the list of territories which were part of the British Empire in 1921. Have students note which continents had a British colonial presence at the time this map was drawn in 1897.
Ask students to look at this late nineteenth century map of the British Empire. You may also wish to use the overview of the British Empire that is available through the EDSITEment-reviewed web resource Internet Public Library. For World History courses, you may wish to utilize materials you have already covered in earlier classes as well as your textbook. Review with students the history of the British Empire. His experiences as a policeman for the Empire would form the basis of his early writing, including the novel Burmese Days as well as the essay "Shooting an Elephant." These experiences would continue to influence his world view and his writing until his death in 1950. He would be stationed in what is today Burma (Myanmar) until 1927 when he would quit the imperial civil service in disgust. With few opportunities available, he would follow his parents' path into service for the British Empire, joining the Indian Imperial Police in 1922. However, he was unable to win a scholarship to continue his studies at the university level. His education brought him to England where he would study at Eton College ("college" in England is roughly equivalent to a US high school). Blair was born in Mohitari, India, in 1903 to parents in the Indian Civil Service.
Burma would gain its independence in January 1948.Įric A. It would remain an Indian province until it was granted the status of an individual British colony in 1937. Burma was subsumed under the administration of British India, becoming a province of that colony in 1886.
After three wars between British forces and the Burmese, beginning with the First Anglo-Burmese War in 1824-26, followed by the Second Anglo-Burmese War of 1852, the country fell under British control after its defeat in the Third Anglo-Burmese War in 1885. Prior to British intervention in the nineteenth century Burma was a sovereign kingdom. The country that is today Burma (Myanmar) was, during the time of Orwell's experiences in the colony, a province of India, itself a British colony. The essay "Shooting an Elephant" is set in a town in southern Burma during the colonial period.