One of the most prolific imperialist powers was Great Britain. The British Empire extended across the world. There were British colonies in Africa, India, China and the Americas. “The sun never sets on the British Empire” is a well-known quote that illustrates the extent of the vast empire. This article will analyze the positive, negative aspects and overall influence of the imperialist empire. Influenced by the Industrial Revolution, imperialism gave countries like India access to advanced technologies and innovation, allowing them to become major players in trade. In addition to increased trade, British influence also kept the political and social system of their colonies from internally collapsing. However, British rule still had negative aspects on different peoples. Additionally, each colony ruled by the British craved a sense of nationalism, hence revolts and unrest. To fully understand Britain's influence over its colonies, we must define imperialism itself. Winfried Baumagart explains the social conception of nationalism and the "white man's burden" of not only expanding abroad and establishing power, but also culturally educating the people. This is the definition of imperialism; however, there is more to imperialism than that, as he then explains. The importance of trade, missionary activities, technological advancements, naval developments and exploration are all emphasized as important factors in imperialism. This helps establish a grading criterion for this article. Questions such as advances and how trade changed under British influence can be assessed. The inclusion of all these factors in imperialism opens up a... middle of paper...... prosperous in the era where they established the country's strengths, which these countries still rely on in modern society. Works Cited Baumgart, Winfried. Imperialism: the idea and reality of British and French colonial expansion, 1880-1914. Oxford. Oxford University Press. 1982Keay, John. The Honorable Company: A History of the English East India Company. New York, Scribner Press. 1994Fay, Peter Ward. The Opium War: 1840-1842.Chapel Hill. University of North Carolina Press. 1998 Marshall, Peter. “The British Presence in India in the 18th Century.” BBC News. BBC, February 17, 2011. Web. May 4, 2014. “Economic Reasons for British Imperialism in Africa – British Colonization of Africa.” » Economic reasons for British imperialism in Africa - British colonization of Africa. Np, and Web. May 5, 2014. “Foreign Imperialism in China.” Alpha History. Np and Web.