The National Archives Learning Curve | British Empire | Living in the British empire

The National Archives > Research and learning > Learning Curve > Exhibitions > British Empire

How should we remember the British empire? Your task is to put together an online exhibition called 'Living in the British empire'. The aim of the exhibition is to present a range of sources (and captions written by you) that give a balanced view of the British empire. You are trying to get across that it is too simple to say that the British empire was 'good' or 'bad'. Living in the empire was much more complicated than that. Your exhibition will show that many different people held different views about the empire, in different places and at different times.

Stage

	Research and evidence - Case Study 1
	You need to start your research by looking closely at the sources in case study 1. They present a very positive view of the British empire. Make a careful note of all the evidence in case study 1 which supports this positive view. The research table will help you record what you find out. You can print it out and write on it, and even enlarge it to A3 on a photocopier to give you plenty of space to work. Or you can download it to your own computer and record what you find out that way.

Stage

	Research and evidence - Case Studies 2-6
	Now look at the other case studies in this gallery. They contain a wider range of views than case study 1. Your teacher may want you to look at all of case studies 2-6 or just some of them (make sure you are clear about this). As you look at case studies 2-6, look for evidence that supports either a positive or negative view of the British empire. Use the research table to record what you find out. You can print it out and write on it or you can download it to your own computer and type in your findings.

Stage

	Online exhibition: Living in the British empire
	When you have finished your research, you can plan an online exhibition. Your exhibition should display between 6-12 sources chosen from the sources you’ve looked at in this gallery. Each source you select will also have a caption, which you will write. Your aim is to select sources that provide a balanced view of the empire. This means balance in terms of:
		A range of viewpoints (not all positive or all negative, although the number of positive and negative sources does not have to be equal – that is your decision).
		A range of areas (try and use at least one source from each of the case studies).
		A range of issues (this could include: the treatment of people living in the British empire; whether native peoples were involved in running their own countries; economic development in the empire; the British giving independence to some countries in the empire; the campaign against slavery; the Indian army; the migration of British people to different parts of the empire; the transporting of Indian and Chinese labourers).
	If you want to save your work and view the exhibition you have created, please log in first. You can create an exhibition without logging in, but your work won't be saved after you close your browser.


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