The British Empire By RIP Avicii 1492 Columbus discovers America 1518 Sir Francis Drake sails to the West Indies Period: 1588 to 1603 Queen Elizabeth I rules England and Ireland 1600 Britain starts to trade with India 1607 Jamestown, Virginia, is the first English settlement in North America 1776 13 colonies in the USA become independent 1788 First prisoners sent to Australia 1795 Cape Town, South Africa is taken from the Dutch 1833 Slavery abolished in all British colonies 1837 Queen Victoria becomes Queen of England 1841 Hong Kong is taken from China 1858 India becomes a British colony 1947 India becomes independent 1997 Hong Kong is given back to china
