4. An Anglo-Saxon sense of order ... which explains why it wasn't Europeans in general who ended up dominating the world through as the colonial era progressed -- it was people of Germanic and British extraction.
I would just say the English colonial system was a boon to the world, and the others (including German) less so.
Many of the greatest countries in the world, the places that immigrants all want to move to, are all part of the Anglosphere: Austrailia, New Zealand, Canada, the USA. Even in China, the British colony, Hong Kong, leads the rest of China in many respects. Nigeria, a British Colony in Africa, while still a disorderly place by European standards has managed to contain the largest city in Africa and continue to exist without falling into the utter anarchy and disorder of most the former French colonies in Africa.
Belize is much more civilized than Guatemala and El Salvador, it's neighbors. Even India is rising quickly now and the effects of the British colonial period show.
And of course the English language itself has surpassed all other languages in terms of universality.
The worst were the Belgians, they basically committed genocide in their colonies.
>>>>I would just say the English colonial system was a boon to the world, and the others (including German) less so.
Many of the greatest countries in the world, the places that immigrants all want to move to, are all part of the Anglosphere: Austrailia, New Zealand, Canada, the USA. Even in China, the British colony, Hong Kong, leads the rest of China in many respects. Nigeria, a British Colony in Africa, while still a disorderly place by European standards has managed to contain the largest city in Africa and continue to exist without falling into the utter anarchy and disorder of most the former French colonies in Africa. Belize is much more civilized than Guatemala and El Salvador, it’s neighbors
Good comparisons. I can add some more. The Anglo-Saxon civilizations of America and Canada, are more civilized than the Iberian civilizations of Mexico and Brazil.
You can also compare Jamaica and Haiti. Jamaica functions more efficiently than Haiti, because of its British colonial heritage. Also - Ireland and Portugal, both Catholic nations. But Ireland works more efficiently because of British colonization.
Right — all good points. The English had a huge advantage over the other European powers because they were a small island nation in the harsh environment of the North Atlantic. This meant that had the motivation to trade extensively, and the superior seafaring skills to make it work.