# Pax Britannica

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Period of relative world peace under British hegemony

For other uses, see [Pax Britannica (disambiguation)](/source/Pax_Britannica_(disambiguation)).

An elaborate map of the [British Empire](/source/British_Empire) in 1886, marked in red, the traditional colour for imperial British dominions on maps

History of British expansion and influence Colonialism British Empire Territorial evolution Scramble for Africa Great Game Militarism Imperial fortresses Military history List of wars Military bases overseas Foreign policy Informal empire Global policeman Economy Concepts Pax Britannica Two Power Standard Anglosphere Commonwealth of Nations v t e

***Pax Britannica*** ([Latin](/source/Latin) for 'British Peace', modelled after *[Pax Romana](/source/Pax_Romana)*) refers to the relative peace between the [great powers](/source/Great_powers) in [the time period](/source/International_relations_(1814%E2%80%931919)) roughly bounded by the [Napoleonic Wars](/source/Napoleonic_Wars) and the [First World War](/source/First_World_War). During this time the [British Empire](/source/British_Empire) became the world [hegemon](/source/Hegemony), developed an additional [informal empire](/source/Informal_empire), and adopted the role of a "[global policeman](/source/Global_policeman)".[1][2]

Between 1815 and 1914, a period sometimes referred to as Britain's "imperial century",[3][4] around 26,000,000 square kilometres (10,000,000 sq mi) of territory and roughly 400 million people were added to the British Empire.[5] Victory over [Napoleonic France](/source/First_French_Empire) left the [United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland](/source/United_Kingdom_of_Great_Britain_and_Ireland) without any serious international rival, other than perhaps the [Russian Empire](/source/Russian_Empire) in Central Asia during the [Great Game](/source/Great_Game).[6] When Russia attempted to expand its influence in the [Balkans](/source/Balkans), the British and the [Second French Empire](/source/Second_French_Empire) defeated it in the [Crimean War](/source/Crimean_War) (1853–1856), thereby protecting the weak and declining [Ottoman Empire](/source/Ottoman_Empire).

The [Royal Navy](/source/Royal_Navy) controlled most of the key maritime trade routes and enjoyed [unchallenged maritime power](/source/Command_of_the_sea). Alongside the formal control exerted over its own colonies, Britain's dominant position in world trade meant that it effectively controlled access to many regions in Asia, South America, Oceania, and Africa. British merchants, shippers, and bankers had such an overwhelming advantage over those of other empires that, in addition to its colonies, Britain developed an informal empire.[7][8][9]

## History

Further information: [History of the foreign relations of the United Kingdom § 1814–1914](/source/History_of_the_foreign_relations_of_the_United_Kingdom#1814–1914), [International relations of the Great Powers (1814–1919)](/source/International_relations_of_the_Great_Powers_(1814%E2%80%931919)), and [Timeline of British diplomatic history § 1815–1860](/source/Timeline_of_British_diplomatic_history#1815–1860)

After losing the [Thirteen Colonies](/source/Thirteen_Colonies), a significant part of [British America](/source/British_America), in the [American Revolution](/source/American_Revolution), Britain turned towards Asia, the Pacific and later Africa with subsequent exploration leading to the rise of the "[Second British Empire](/source/Second_British_Empire)" (1783–1815). The [Industrial Revolution](/source/Industrial_Revolution) began in Great Britain in the late 18th century and new ideas emerged about free markets, such as [Adam Smith](/source/Adam_Smith)'s *[The Wealth of Nations](/source/The_Wealth_of_Nations)* (1776). Free trade became a central principle that Britain practised by the 1840s. It played a key role in Britain's [economic growth](/source/European_Miracle) and [financial dominance](/source/Global_financial_system#Emergence_of_financial_globalization:_1870–1914).[10]

A map of the British Empire in 1910

From the end of the [Napoleonic Wars](/source/Napoleonic_Wars) in 1815 until the [First World War](/source/First_World_War) in 1914, Britain was the global [hegemon](/source/Hegemony). Imposition of a "British Peace" on key maritime trade routes began in 1815 with the annexation of [British Ceylon](/source/British_Ceylon#Kandyan_Wars) (now Sri Lanka).[11] Under the [British Residency of the Persian Gulf](/source/British_Residency_of_the_Persian_Gulf), local Arab rulers agreed to a number of treaties that formalised Britain's protection of the region. Britain imposed an anti-piracy treaty, known as the [General Maritime Treaty of 1820](/source/General_Maritime_Treaty_of_1820), on all Arab rulers in the region. By signing the [Perpetual Maritime Truce](/source/Perpetual_Maritime_Truce) of 1853, Arab rulers gave up their right to wage war at sea in return for British protection against external threats.[12] The global superiority of [British military](/source/British_Armed_Forces) and commerce was aided by a divided and relatively weak continental Europe, and the presence of the [Royal Navy](/source/Royal_Navy) on all of the world's oceans and seas. Even outside its formal empire, Britain controlled trade with many countries such as China, [Siam](/source/Thailand), and Argentina. Following the [Congress of Vienna](/source/Congress_of_Vienna), the British Empire's economic strength continued to develop through naval dominance[13] and diplomatic efforts to maintain a [balance of power](/source/Balance_of_power_(international_relations)) in continental Europe.[14]

In this era the Royal Navy provided services around the world that benefited other nations, such as [suppressing piracy](/source/Piracy#History) and [blocking the slave trade](/source/Blockade_of_Africa). The [Slave Trade Act 1807](/source/Slave_Trade_Act_1807) had banned the trade across the Empire, after which the Royal Navy established the [West Africa Squadron](/source/West_Africa_Squadron) and the government negotiated [international treaties](/source/Abolition_of_slavery_timeline#1800–1849) under which they could enforce the ban.[15][16] Sea power, however, did not project on land. Land wars fought between the major powers include the [Crimean War](/source/Crimean_War), the [Franco-Austrian War](/source/Second_Italian_War_of_Independence), the [Austro-Prussian War](/source/Austro-Prussian_War) and the [Franco-Prussian War](/source/Franco-Prussian_War), as well as numerous conflicts between lesser powers. The Royal Navy prosecuted the [First Opium War](/source/First_Opium_War) (1839–1842) and [Second Opium War](/source/Second_Opium_War) (1856–1860) against [Qing-dynasty](/source/Qing_dynasty) China. The Royal Navy was superior to any other two navies in the world, combined.[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*] Between 1815 and the passage of the German naval laws of 1890 and 1898, only France was a potential naval threat. Apart from the Crimean War, it did not engage in any major warfare from 1815 to 1914.

The most decisive event emerged from the [Anglo-Egyptian War](/source/Anglo-Egyptian_War), which resulted in the [British occupation of Egypt](/source/British_occupation_of_Egypt) for seven decades, even though the Ottoman Empire retained nominal ownership until 1914.[17] The historian [A. J. P. Taylor](/source/A._J._P._Taylor) says that this "was a great event; indeed, the only real event in international relations between the [Battle of Sedan](/source/Battle_of_Sedan) and the defeat of Russia in the [Russo-Japanese war](/source/Russo-Japanese_War)".[18] Taylor emphasises the long-term impact:

The British occupation of Egypt altered the balance of power. It not only gave the British security for their route to India; it made them masters of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East; it made it unnecessary for them to stand in the front line against Russia at the Straits....And thus prepared the way for the Franco-Russian Alliance ten years later.[19] Britain [traded goods and capital](/source/Economic_history_of_the_United_Kingdom#19th_century) extensively with countries around the world, adopting a free trade policy after 1840. The growth of British imperial strength was further underpinned by the [steamship](/source/Steamboat) and the [telegraph](/source/Telegraphy), new technologies invented in the second half of the 19th century, allowing it to control and defend the empire. By 1902, the British Empire was linked together by a network of telegraph cables, the so-called [All Red Line](/source/All_Red_Line).[20]

The *Pax Britannica* was weakened by the breakdown of the continental order which had been established by the [Congress of Vienna](/source/Congress_of_Vienna).[21] Relations between the [great powers of Europe](/source/Great_powers_of_Europe) were strained to a breaking point by issues such as the decline of the Ottoman Empire, which led to the Crimean War, and later the emergence of new [nation states](/source/Nation_state) in the form of the [Kingdom of Italy](/source/Kingdom_of_Italy) and, after the Franco-Prussian War, the [German Empire](/source/German_Empire). Both of these wars involved Europe's largest states and armies. The [industrialisation](/source/Industrialisation) of Germany, the [Empire of Japan](/source/Empire_of_Japan), and the United States contributed to the relative decline of British industrial supremacy in the late 19th century.

The start of the First World War in 1914 marked the end of the *Pax Britannica*. However, the British Empire remained the largest colonial empire until the start of [decolonisation](/source/Decolonization) after the [Second World War](/source/Second_World_War) ended in 1945, and Britain remained one of the leading powers until the [Suez Crisis](/source/Suez_Crisis) in 1956, during which British and French troops were forced to withdraw from Egypt under pressure from the United States and (to a lesser extent) the [Soviet Union](/source/Soviet_Union).

## See also

- [Historiography of the British Empire](/source/Historiography_of_the_British_Empire)

- [Imperial Federation](/source/Imperial_Federation)

- [List of wars involving the United Kingdom § United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801–1922)](/source/List_of_wars_involving_the_United_Kingdom#United_Kingdom_of_Great_Britain_and_Ireland_(1801–1922))

- *[Pax Americana](/source/Pax_Americana)*

- *[Pax Sovietica](/source/Pax_Sovietica)*

- *[Pax Sinica](/source/Pax_Sinica)*

- *[Pax Romana](/source/Pax_Romana)*

- [*Pax Francica*](/source/First_French_Empire)

- *[Pax Hispanica](/source/Pax_Hispanica)*

- *[Pax Mongolica](/source/Pax_Mongolica)*

- [Political history of the world](/source/Political_history_of_the_world)

## References

### Citations

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** [Johnston](#refJohnston2008), pp. 508–10.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** [Porter](#refOHBEv3), p. 332.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** [Hyam](#refHyam2002), p. 1.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** [Smith](#refSmith1998), p. 71.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** [Parsons](#refParsons), p. 3.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-#refOHBEv3|Porter,_p._401_6-0)** [Porter](#refOHBEv3), p. 401.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** [Porter](#refOHBEv3), p. 8.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** [Marshall](#refMarshall), pp. 156–57.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** [Cameron](#refCameron1991), pp. 45–47.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-refDarwin2012_10-0)** [Darwin](#refDarwin2012), p. 391.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-refCrawfurd1830_11-0)** [Crawfurd](#refCrawfurd1830), pp. 191–192: "...for what purpose was it conquered and is it now retained?' We endeavoured to explain, that during the wars, in which we were lately engaged with our European enemies who occupied the coast of the island, they harassed our commerce from its ports, and therefore, in self-defence, there was a necessity for taking possession of it."

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** ["The British in the Gulf: An Overview"](http://www.qdl.qa/en/british-gulf-overview). *Qatar Digital Library*. British Library Qatar Foundation Partnership. 13 August 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2014. The increased stability that this 'Pax Britannica' brought led to increased volumes of trade in the region. Ruling families began to actively seek British protection as a means of securing their rule and safeguarding their territories.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** [Pugh](#refPugh99), p. 83.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-refThackeray2002_14-0)** [Thackeray](#refThackeray2002), p. 57.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-refFalola2007_15-0)** [Falola](#refFalola2007), pp. xxi, xxxiii-xxxiv.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-16)** ["The legal and diplomatic background to the seizure of foreign vessels by the Royal Navy"](https://www.pdavis.nl/Background.htm#WAS).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-17)** M.W. Daly, ed. *The Cambridge History of Egypt Volume 2 Modern Egypt, from 1517 to the end of the twentieth century* (1998) [online](https://archive.org/download/iB_CE/02.pdf)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-18)** He adds, "All the rest were manoeuvres which left the combatants at the close of the day exactly where they had started." A.J.P. Taylor, "International Relations" in F.H. Hinsley, ed., *The New Cambridge Modern History: XI: Material Progress and World-Wide Problems, 1870–98* (1962): 554.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-19)** Taylor, "International Relations" p. 554

1. **[^](#cite_ref-20)** [Dalziel](#refDalziel2006), pp. 88–91.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-21)** [Pugh](#refPugh99), p. 90.

### Sources and further reading

- Albrecht-Carrié, René. *A Diplomatic History of Europe Since the Congress of Vienna* (1958), 736pp; a basic introduction, [online free to borrow](https://archive.org/details/diplomatichistor0000albr_b4c1)

- Bartlett, C. J. *Peace, War and the European Powers, 1814–1914* (1996) brief overview 216pp

- Bury, J. P. T. ed. *The New Cambridge Modern History: Vol. 10: the Zenith of European Power, 1830–70* (1964)

- Cameron, Rondo; Bovykin, V.I., eds. (1991). [*International Banking: 1870–1914*](https://books.google.com/books?id=ItqhNQusviAC). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-19-506271-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-506271-7).

- Darby, H. C. and H. Fullard *The New Cambridge Modern History, Vol. 14: Atlas* (1972)

- Darwin, John (2012). *Unfinished Empire: The Global Expansion of Britain*. London, England: Allen Lane.

- Dalziel, Nigel (2006). [*The Penguin Historical Atlas of the British Empire*](https://books.google.com/books?id=u0wUAQAAIAAJ). Penguin. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-14-101844-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-14-101844-5).

- Falola, Toyin; Warnock, Amanda (2007). [*Encyclopedia of the middle passage*](https://books.google.com/books?id=UjRYKePKrB8C&pg=PR21). Greenwood Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9780313334801](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780313334801).

- Ferguson, Niall. *Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power* (2002),

- Hinsley, F.H., ed. *The New Cambridge Modern History, vol. 11, Material Progress and World-Wide Problems 1870–1898* (1979)

- Hyam, Ronald (2002). [*Britain's Imperial Century, 1815–1914: A Study of Empire and Expansion*](https://books.google.com/books?id=2eMoHQAACAAJ). Palgrave Macmillan. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-7134-3089-9](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7134-3089-9). Retrieved 22 July 2009.

- Johnston, Douglas M.; Reisman, W. Michael (2008). [*The Historical Foundations of World Order*](https://books.google.com/books?id=dVuwCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA508). Leiden, South Holland: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-9047423935](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-9047423935).

- [Kennedy, Paul](/source/Paul_Kennedy). [*The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers Economic Change and Military Conflict From 1500–2000*](/source/The_Rise_and_Fall_of_the_Great_Powers) (1987), stress on economic and military factors

- Kissinger, Henry. *Diplomacy* (1995), 940pp; not a memoir but an interpretive history of international diplomacy since the late 18th century

- Marshall, P. J. (1996). [*The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire*](https://books.google.com/books?id=S2EXN8JTwAEC). Cambridge University Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-521-00254-0](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-521-00254-0). Retrieved 22 July 2009.

- Parsons, Timothy H. (1999). [*The British Imperial Century, 1815–1914: A World History Perspective*](https://books.google.com/books?id=81ZlzUsO8EYC). Rowman & Littlefield. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-8476-8825-9](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-8476-8825-9). Retrieved 22 July 2009.

- Porter, Andrew (1998). [*The Nineteenth Century, The Oxford History of the British Empire Volume III*](https://books.google.com/books?id=oo3F2X8IDeEC). Oxford University Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-19-924678-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-19-924678-5). Retrieved 22 July 2009.

- Pugh, Martin (1999). [*Britain since 1789: A Concise History*](https://books.google.com/books?id=WNFWXxHlFfwC). Macmillan. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-312-22359-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-312-22359-5). Retrieved 20 April 2010.

- Rich, Norman. *Great Power Diplomacy: 1814–1914* (1991), comprehensive survey

- Seaman, L.C.B. *From Vienna to Versailles* (1955) 216pp; brief overview of diplomatic history [online](https://www.questia.com/read/103522402/from-vienna-to-versailles)

- Seton-Watson, R. W. *Britain in Europe, 1789–1914.* (1938); comprehensive history [online](https://archive.org/download/in.ernet.dli.2015.226175/2015.226175.Britain-In.pdf)

- Smith, Simon (1998). [*British Imperialism 1750–1970*](https://archive.org/details/britishimperiali00smit). Cambridge University Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-3-12-580640-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-3-12-580640-5). Retrieved 22 July 2009.

- Thackeray, Frank (2002). [*Events That Changed Great Britain since 1689*](https://books.google.com/books?id=fWbICgEc2LwC). Greenwood Publishing Group. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-313-31686-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-313-31686-4).

- Ward, A.W. and [G. P. Gooch](/source/G._P._Gooch), eds. *The Cambridge History of British Foreign Policy, 1783–1919* (3 vol, 1921–23), old detailed classic; [vol 1, 1783–1815](https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistory00ward); [vol 2, 1815–1866](https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistory02warduoft); [vol 3. 1866–1919](https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistory03warduoft)

**[Primary sources](/source/Primary_source)**

- [Crawfurd, John](/source/John_Crawfurd) (21 August 2006) [First published 1830]. [*Journal of an Embassy from the Governor-general of India to the Courts of Siam and Cochin China*](https://books.google.com/books?id=sAUPAAAAYAAJ). Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). London, England: H. Colburn and R. Bentley. [OCLC](/source/OCLC_(identifier)) [03452414](https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/03452414). Retrieved 2 February 2012.

v t e Power in international relations Types Climate Economic Energy Food Hard Maritime National Politics Realpolitik Sharp Smart Soft Status Small Middle Regional Emerging Great (Least Great) Super (Potential) Geopolitics African American (Pax) Asian Chinese Indian Pacific History List of ancient great powers List of medieval great powers List of modern great powers International relations (1814–1919) Theory American decline Balance of power European Deterrence theory Hegemonic stability theory Internationalism Multilateralism Philosophy of power Polarity Power projection Power transition theory Second Superpower Sphere of influence Superpower collapse Superpower disengagement Studies Composite Index of National Capability Comprehensive National Power Organizations and groups by region Africa African Union Union for the Mediterranean Africa–Asia Arab League Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Americas Association of Caribbean States (ACS) Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Central American Integration System (SICA) Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) Mercosur North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Organization of American States (OAS) Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) Asia Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat (TCS) Europe Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Council of Europe (CoE) European Political Community (EPC) European Union (EU) Nordic Council Visegrád Group (V4) Eurasia Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Community for Democracy and Rights of Nations Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) Eurasian Economic Union (EaEU) Organization of Turkic States North America–Europe Arctic Council North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Africa–Asia–Europe Union for the Mediterranean Africa–South America South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone Oceania–Pacific Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Australia–New Zealand–United States Security Treaty (ANZUS) Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Polynesian Leaders Group (PLG) Non–regional Brazil–Russia–India–China–South Africa (BRICS) Commonwealth of Nations Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) E9 G4 G7 G8 G8+5 G10 G20 G24 G77 India–Brazil–South Africa Dialogue Forum (IBSA) Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) Uniting for Consensus (UfC) Global United Nations (UN)

v t e Victorian era ← Georgian era Edwardian era → Politics and diplomacy British Army British empire By location Ireland London Scotland Pax Britannia Prime ministers The Viscount Melbourne Sir Robert Peel Lord John Russell The Earl of Derby The Earl of Aberdeen The Viscount Palmerston Benjamin Disraeli William Ewart Gladstone The Marquess of Salisbury The Earl of Rosebery Queen Victoria United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Economy, society and knowledge Decorative arts Demographics Economy, industry, and trade Mathematics, science, technology and engineering Society and culture Architecture Houses Cosmetics Cuisine Vegetarianism Erotica Fashion Jewellery Masculinity Morality Religion Painting Theatre Burlesque Victoriana Women Bibliography Category

v t e Periods of regional and relative peace Contemporary Long Peace Pax Americana Pax Atomica Pax Europaea Pax Praetoriana South American Long Peace Historical Pax Assyriaca Pax Austriaca Pax Britannica Pax Dei Pax Helvetica Pax Hispanica Pax Indica Pax Gupta Pax Kushana Pax Italica Pax Khazarica Pax Mafiosa Pax Minoica Pax Mongolica Pax Ottomana Pax Romana Pax Russica Pax Sinica Pax Sovietica Pax Sumerica Pax Syriana Pax Tokugawana

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Pax Britannica](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pax_Britannica) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pax_Britannica?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.