British Empire quarter world land population 1920s

The British Empire covered a quarter of Earth’s land

At its height in the 1920s, the British Empire covered about a quarter of the world’s land and included about a quarter of its population. It was the largest empire in history.

Columbus’s voyages relied on a wind circuit

Ships could sail west from the Canary Islands with winds from the northeast, then turn north to catch winds blowing east toward Europe. Portuguese sailors called the circuit volta do mar, meaning “turn of the sea.”

A forged letter was used against Labour

Days before Britain’s 1924 general election, a letter falsely presented as coming from Soviet official Grigory Zinoviev was leaked by MI6 and used against the Labour government. It remains unclear whether MI6 knew the letter was forged when it leaked it.

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British Empire quarter world land population 1920s

The British Empire covered a quarter of Earth’s land

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