Rise+of+British+Empire+-+The+Napoleonic+Wars

 ** The Napoleonic Wars [1799 - 1815] **   

**Britain’s Advancements in the war:** 
 * Britain’s involvement in the wars after 1793 encouraged more growth of its empire
 * In 1794, Britain captured the French sugar-rich islands in the Caribbean
 * Economy boosted due to high production of sugar - this contributed to the legislation in 1807 abolishing the slave trade 1
 * Britain secured its strategic advancement in the Mediterranean and the routes to the East 2

**The British ended any possibility of threat to the British islands by controlling the sea:**  
 * Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt was stopped - which gave control of the Mediterranean to the British
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">At the Battle of Trafalgar, a French fleet was destroyed on its way to land troops in Italy
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">Thus, The French navy was reduced heavily and ensured British naval superiority during the 19th century<span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">---

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(255, 12, 0);">  **Americans were stopped (War of 1812), so the British could concentrate on Europe/Asia:** <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">Americans seized York 3 in Upper Canada
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">British sacked Washington D.C.
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">However, the American forces were unable to make significant advances into Canada, which confirmed the survival of British North America.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(255, 12, 0);">**Britain seized several Dutch** 4 **possessions** <span style="color: rgb(255, 12, 0);">
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">Cape Colony, in South Africa
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">Ceylon 5, off the Indian coast
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">Java, in Indonesia - however it was returned to the Dutch at the end of the war
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">Several parts of Guiana, in South America
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; color: rgb(28, 146, 28);">Most of captured land was kept by the British 6

1: This was due to the fact that production was so high that few new slaves were needed. 2: This was primarily because of the strategies of British Admiral Horatio Nelson 3: Now known as Toronto 4: The Dutch sided with France, thus were against the British 5: Now known as Sri Lanka 6: Agreed upon at the Congress of Vienna in 1815 (peace treaty to end the Napoleonic Wars )
 * Footnotes:**

1 - "Napoleonic Wars." Microsoft® Student 2009 [DVD]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 2008.
 * References**

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