How The UK & France Have Modern "Colonial Empires"

[@General.Knowledge]

*What do you think, should these count as 'modern colonies' or no?*

[@rpgbb]

Totally colonies

[@Dinodude83]

They’re definitely colonies

[@joaoalbertodosanjosgomes1536]

Yes.

[@thekinghass]

Definitely just not so obvious I think a good analogy is the rarity of slavers in middle age Europe if you asked common people about the existence of slaves they will say it is just privileged thing but the reality is that throughout long time slavers we’re replaced by the poor fun fact the word servants orgion is from slaves and ferdial system is based upon the serves

[@4arcadeRGB]

Overseas Territories could technically fit the description of modern colonies, but in France’s case French Guiana, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Reunion, and Mayotte are fully integrated into France and are all departments of France having the same status as any metropolitan department. If they are considered modern colonies, the likes of Alaska and Hawaii should be too

[@albevanhanoy]

French here, we are taught about our overseas territories from a very young age, they figure on all our official and school maps, and we are taught that all French people, no matter how far away from the continental mainland, share the same rights and freedoms.

[@General.Knowledge]

Very cool!

[@andreraphael6727]

And thanks to your evil neocolonial empire we have the african migrant crisis. Thanks france!

[@MichaelTavares]

Do you believe what you’re taught?

[@OuroborosAlchemist]

As an English, I wish we were taught the same. France really is a proud nation

[@andreraphael6727]

@@OuroborosAlchemist Actually, both France and England are imperial colonialist, and hence fa$cist, nations. The cradles of most of the evil that affects the world today.

[@Fehn-kc2gw]

I am a resident of the island of La Réunion, and it is true that we "chose" to be French after the Second World War. In reality, it is more complex. There was a communist movement that sought autonomy in the 1960s, but it was opposed by the French government. We are torn between our culture and that of France. Our generation, born around the year 2000, has nevertheless been largely influenced by French culture due to the internet. Today, we no longer have a serious decolonial movement, and we consider ourselves French, but with unique characteristics.

[@Libanoni974]

Ôté la Réunion lé la !❤🇷🇪🇨🇵

[@dylan5953]

Beh surtout maintenant la Réunion c'est comme l'Aquitaine ou l'île de France, ça fait entièrement partie du pays, je pense que personne ne fait de différence entre par exemple la Bretagne et la Réunion, entre la Normandie et la Guadeloupe etc...

[@Libanoni974]

@@dylan5953 grave 👍

[@sylvainduret9880]

And the island was discovered by French around 1635 if i remember well, the French were the first citizens here !

[@ahahha]

👋

[@BasedAccountLmao]

I don't like the logic that just because a territory is overseas, it's automatically treated as a "colony", but if there's a continuous land territory, than its fair and square. Some of these overseas territories, like Réunion 🇷🇪, literally had no native population. The current mixed population there is much closer to France than to any other state and has never been independent. In fact, Réunion has been French much more than Savoy 🇨🇭 did. But the thing is that people believe it's a colony and should inevitably be given independence. But the Native American territories in the US aren't considered colonies, because the US is a contiguous state. Even if it's a settler state that completely disregarded the will of all this population. Why isn't the Cherokee Nation a colony, but Réunion is ? Makes zero sense.

[@nicolascavadini3570]

You are posting the more well thoughts comment in this section ! What you say about Mayotte and Comores is true, what you say about the Réunion and Cherokee Nation seems also correct. Your point about "countiguous colonies" not being considered colonies because they are coutiguous is clear (and true imho) !!! Walking away from the West and into eastern empires that survived western colonizations what do you think about russian controlled caucasus or far east? What about Inner Mongolia, the Tarim Bassin or Tibet? I would classify as "contiguous colonies" of Russia and China, most of them having been colonized 2 centuries after western coloization started. What are your thoughts about them ?

[@nickconquest5527]

@@nicolascavadini3570 I agree with both of you. I *suggest* this as the (illogical) reason: The Monroe Doctrine. Slightly extended, it effectively says: 'anything claimed by a European country outside of Europe is actually only a colony and we'll [i.e. USA] kick your ass if you do anything we don't like' (recall: Suez 1956). This definition of a colony means that any contiguous territory is (conveniently) *not* a colony. Prime example: heading West to Oregon. Second example: the United Provinces of the River Plate heading Southwards to Patagonia. Note: today, Argentina is 97% white - more white than the former colonists in Spain! - but they are not, in American eyes, colonists. The word 'colony' gets applied to such a wide range of actual scenarios that it is worse than useless - just to be used for political ends.

[@jamesknight6890]

True, the only reason America doesn’t like European countries having territory outside of Europe is because it likes to keep Europe under its boot and weak, so they call them colonies to delegitimise them. The USA is a colonial empire itself, more than half of its territory was gained through conquests and brutal subjugation of natives, and yet no one considers its territory to be colonies because its all connected and the US calls them “states”, same applies to Russia which is clearly a colonial empire with a tight grip in separatist movements. So basically the American definition of a colony is territory not continuous of the mainland, that’s basically it, it’s very convenient for the yankees to go down this path because it wants less competition and total global dominance, how powerful would Uncle Sam be with the British empire and french empire still intact? No so powerful I think, it’s not for Americans to decide what counts as a colony and it’s time Europeans stood up to them.

[@namename3130]

God this is all so true

[@ahahha]

Foreigners fail and seem unable to understand oversea territories simply have the same status that every other French department. Loin des yeux, près du cœur 🩸

[@awellculturedmanofanime1246]

It can be summarized as the following its either an island they actually discovered and was empty so it belongs to them or the population votes to stay a part of the country

[@cassianoneto1553]

Or an empty island they didn’t discover but they had the world’s biggest navy at one point so they could just tell everyone else to back down

[@geox8485]

Yeah, pretty much.

[@jontaedouglas7244]

You really glossed over war, slavery, rape, and genocide; but ohkay

[@Smokedouttasian]

​@@jontaedouglas7244chill

[@Phoen1xGen]

@@jontaedouglas7244 I don’t know how you can do that to nothing on a solitary island but ok. Those things did happen, but weren’t on these islands they mostly still hold.

[@Lapantouflemagic0]

Small correction about Mayotte : it was not obtained by conquest by france, the local ruler feared he was going to be overthrown by the ruler of the rest of the comoros who was supported by the british, and so ask france to make his island a french protectorate, and that worked.

[@hitchikerspie]

Just for posterity, the Falklands had a referendum in 2013 where 1,513/1,518 voters wanted to remain as a territory of the UK, 3 voted no, and 2 votes were invalid

[@General.Knowledge]

Crazy that 3 of them voted no, is there a specific story as to who they are and why?

[@Vandel96]

@@General.Knowledge There doesnt seem to be a definite answer, but an article in the guardian points to the way the question was worded "Do you wish the Falkland Islands to retain their current political status as an Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom?". One person they spoke to said that a different person voted no because they wanted independence, but didnt wish to be interviewed.

[@archivesoffantasy5560]

@@General.KnowledgeI saw a couple of comments explain it by saying that they rigged a few no votes because 100% in favour also looks rigged. That could be wrong, of course, but just something I saw.

[@ChrisCrossClash]

@@General.Knowledge My bet is they were foreign residents.

[@ChrisCrossClash]

@@jingorooroad2559 You Argentineans are European decent anyway The Spanish and the French held it before Britain, i think Britain beat both in a war and legitimately had been given the island as a victor, so Argentina have no right to claim them.

[@striker8795]

My grandfather was a Frenchman born in the 1930s. When he was 5 years old he understood that his country was powerful, because when he returned to class, there was a map of the world, and this world was divided in two with France on one side and the British Empire on the other.

[@TheMeanmarine13]

key word "was" powerful. Today ehhh not so much. They're a shadow of their once powerful, former selves. It happened to all great powers at 1 point though. At the moment it's us on top. (USA) but who knows how long that will last.

[@cassianoneto1553]

@@TheMeanmarine13 yeah, first it was Portugal and Spain, the France and England. Great powers come and go.

[@adrianzanoli]

​@@TheMeanmarine13 debatable, until very recently France economic power was unmatched in Africa, controlling the economies and resources of multiple nations, especially West Africa despite the US and USSR opposed such behavior. They even supported dictators and staged coups in order to defend their interests like the US and USSR did elsewhere. France military industry is completly Independent from NATO (witch they left for a while) and the US, and their exports where close to the US/USSR one. Since the EU debt crisis, France international "involvment" has progressively reduced.

[@rogink]

Ah but did France have an Empire 'where the sun never sets'? :)

[@striker8795]

Actually yes@@rogink

[@coolnath99]

Spain lost a lot of their colonies to US who still holds them today. Like guam and puerto rico. US actually has very scattered territory all over the world such as ameican samoa, alaska, hawaii. I think this is fairly comparable with france and uk having these far flung territories.

[@rizkyadiyanto7922]

US, canada, australia, new zealand is still a literal colony.

[@coolnath99]

@@rizkyadiyanto7922 how is the us a colony? canada, australia and new zealand share a head of state with uk but they are not colonies. they have their own separate governments independent from the uk.

[@BasedAccountLmao]

​@@coolnath99because the US was formed by European settlers going to Eastern North America and claiming land for themselves, than going West, setting even more and taking over the countries already existing there like the Cherokee Nation. Therefore they're still colonies for the Indigenous population. In fact the Indigenous population there has much more representation, self rule and access to their own lands than the overseas territories of France

[@johnnyearp52]

I agree the USA has territories. Not as many as France or the UK though.

[@michaelreid8857]

@@coolnath99no one said the USA is a colony!

[@alanbrookes275]

The obvious example is the USA Empire although by a number of legal fictions they don't actually claim to have one. As for the UK and French overseas territories the locals grew up and realised that UK/France governance and money was better than 3rd world status and incompetent/corrupt local politicians. India also controls the Andaman and Nicobar Islands without any real claim except they ere once part of British India. Australia and New Zealand have a few also.

[@lynxfresh5214]

This just proves a Franco-British/Anglo-French union (that has been proposed a few times in the past with Canada being inadvertently the closest thing to it currently), would've been simultaneously disastrous and delightful for the world depending on your geopolitical point of view.

[@Rowlph8888]

Well, considering French support for the colonists in North America, effectively destroyed an almost Certain modern world utterly dominated by those 2 cultures, tthat union would indeed have been interesting. Virtually Every Political and legal structure internationally was adapted Either fromthe Anglo all Franco systems,, Just as names of countries on borders internationally was shaped by British or French diplomats and generals.. Just think about it, USA, Would not exist for hundreds of years if they didn't Get independence when they did, As the Brits got steam powered gunboats, within decades of losing the independence war, at the inception of the Industrial Revolution. Also, the aid for the colonists Bankrupted France, Leading to Napoleon, Bankrupting even more., A weak France Militarily and diplomatically in the 19th century, enabled German unification. Without that weakness, there would be no modern Germany, and therefore,no world wars > the Brits mwould have industrialised… The French would have followed & Most probably the modern world Would be entirely British and French

[@johnnyearp52]

You could have had world wars even without Germany.

[@hermes6910]

​@@Rowlph8888 the modern world Would be entirely British and French This would lead to a thousand-year world war between the French and the British. Because we can only fight alongside each other if we have a common adversary.

[@alanmarkfoster1862]

I am from the Cayman Islands and we are still a British colony as most Caymanians wish to remain a British colony The British are generally not a personable people but it seems they know how to maintain law and order

[@laudemar-A.B.6386]

But most Brits don't want people from their colonies in the UK 🤔🤡

[@notsosuavemate]

Some people in Barbados 🇧🇧 as well

[@alanmarkfoster1862]

@antonrkid6118 The Cayman Islands is still a British colony or territory It is not a sovereign country of its own though it has its own parliament

[@Benwut]

I mean, as an Australian, we kept Christmas Island, a British territory, and we also held onto East Papua (Papua New Guinea) for like a decade after decolonisation (think they got independence in like 1975 or something)

[@StevenHughes-hr5hp]

Why did you not offer Papua statehood?

[@john2g1]

General knowledge staying relevant and explaining the historical framework behind the conflicts in Niger and Bukina Faso without diving directly into the conflicts and history. Way to go!

[@oliversherman2414]

I'm from the UK but I've been living in southern Spain for a year and a half now. I've been to Gibraltar many times since moving here and it's a nice reminder of home Most Gibraltarians are proudly British/Gibraltarians and are very willing to stay with the UK. It's nice to have a little bit of home so close to where I live that I can visit at any time

[@CountScarlioni]

It's crazy to think that Gibraltar has been British longer than it was Spanish. The Kings of Castile and Leon captured it from the Moors in 1462, and lost it via the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 (251 years). The British have controlled it for 310 years and counting.

[@oliversherman2414]

@@CountScarlioni yeah I know

[@ganjafi59]

I’ve been to Gibraltar more than 10 times in my life and it’s pretty cool. Massive culture shock from Spain. English school uniforms, red double decker busses and lots of Jewish people. You don’t see that in Spain 😂

[@oliversherman2414]

@@ganjafi59 I've been over a hundred times

[@MicahEngel]

@@ganjafi59you’ll see in the uk now, believe me!

[@josueveguilla9069]

How Denmark and the Netherlands kept part of their Colonial Empires?

[@JimmyM1975]

Fun fact: If Greenland 🇬🇱 got independence then they would be the only country to have more kilometres than people living in a nation. Also Aruba 🇦🇼 would have more people than Greenland 🇬🇱 if they got independence.

[@josueveguilla9069]

@@JimmyM1975 Too true.

[@General.Knowledge]

Yes! But at a much more reduced level I would say. But then again, the original empires were smaller to begin with

[@josueveguilla9069]

@@General.Knowledge I know, right.

[@jamesedwards1284]

The Netherlands held a vote in 2010, some voted for integration, some for independence

[@AppNetEnt]

The difference though, interestingly, between the UK and France is that all of those French territories are integral parts of the republic. Mayotte, French Polynesia and New Caledonia for example are as equal within the Republic as Corsica or Normandy, although they do have different official legal classifications. The UK on the other hand has kept ALL of these territories external, ie, they are possessions rather than integral. An analogy would be the difference between a pencil belonging to me, and my arm which is part of me. We can argue why the UK decided to do this, I assume to deny financial costs or rights of the people to move to the UK. Three territories not mentioned in the video, Guernsey, Jersey and Isle of Man are Crown Dependencies meaning the monarch is head of state, but they are all three separate countries to the UK. France, the Netherlands and Denmark have all fully integrated their territories into their respective sovereign states so you can’t describe them as second order possessions, although they all have a degree of local rule. The UK is the exact opposite.

[@dirkdouglas6373]

France doesn't just have a "large" EEZ, it's in fact literally the second largest of the world after USA. would have been interesting to mention it

[@OrkhonMapping]

France has the largest EEZ. USA has the second largest EEZ after France.

[@Vanessa_Thiriet]

As French, I find that it has absolutely no interest! it doesn't bring anything. I don't even understand why some people put this forward.

[@jeywan_off]

0:03 sec of video and already a mistake because you did not include Corsica in France...

[@borbune2168]

The Netherlands, The USA, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa also all still have some overseas territories

[@lioneldemun6033]

Also : - Algeria : defacto control of the Polisario zone of Western Sahara - Israel : de facto control of the Palestinian territories - Turkey : de facto control of northern Cyprus - Armenia : de facto control of Nagorno Karabakh - Russia : de facto control of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transdniestria

[@niltaehigordefreitasleite220]

Brasil

[@Idk-ys7rt]

The decolonisation of the UK and France is very interesting! Great video again General Knowledge!

[@Adamm17004]

bro the video was out for 3 minutes, you hadnt even watched it

[@Idk-ys7rt]

@@Adamm17004 Yes, I hadn't watched the video yet but I saw the topic and it interested me.

[@General.Knowledge]

Thanks!

[@OscarPlymouth]

@@Adamm17004 The videos are released to Patrons earlier in the week. I watched it a few days ago, but there was so much information I wanted to watch it again.

[@Idk-ys7rt]

@@General.Knowledge Thank you General Knowledge for all the high-quality videos you upload on a consistent basis. Thank you for making this content that we can all enjoy! I always love to watch your videos and learn about the histories of what you cover that I might not otherwise know.

[@dantetre]

11:50 Saint Martin's Dutch side is not part of the EU. Also being EU member doesn't mean there is no border control! EU membership and Schengen area membership is not interchangeable! Because the French part is in the EU but not part of Schengen!

[@lioneldemun6033]

A 🐱 wouldn't find her kittens ( as the French say) in the jungle of EU regulations

[@bashengatheblackmanta7003]

I'm from the island of st Martin, it's the olympe french territory where majority of the population speak English, this is due to the fact that it's the common language use for both French and Dutch side of the island

[@MasterChief37]

Nice to see you’re ignoring the US who have the following colonies Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Marianas, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands. In numbers the amount of people living under US rule vastly outnumbers the number of people living under French and British rule.

[@jensschroder8214]

All areas that previously used the French Franc now use the Euro. You forgot Jersey and the small Channel Islands off the French coast. These are not part of England but are subordinate to the British Crown. And the Isle of Man too

[@General.Knowledge]

True! They have a very interesting status

[@alanbrookes275]

The Channel Islands are the remnant of the Duchy of Normandie held by the Dukes who were also Kings of England from William I to John. King Charles III is still their legal liege Lord as he is of Man as well, as Man paid homage to the King of Scotland.

[@robertfoulkes1832]

​@@General.Knowledgesuch a shame that on the maps you use near the start of the video, you show the Channel Islands as part of France (which they never have been!!) rather than UK possessions.

[@MauriceIbler]

They have never been colonies, neither they are overseas territories.

[@robertfoulkes1832]

@@MauriceIbler IoM, Jersey & Guernsey are not part of the UK, but they are Crown Dependencies and people born there have British nationality. NEVER colonies? Well they were colonised by Vikings, (Norsemen in the case of the CIs), albeit many centuries ago.

[@allanlank]

The Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary organization where member states are equals. The UK has as much influence there as Canada and Nigeria.

[@karakiri283]

Fun fact : France still have 3 Kings. The 3 Kings of Wallis and Futuna.

[@lioneldemun6033]

And 2 princes : the President, who is also Prince of Andorra, and the Prince of Monaco ( the Principality of MC has very close links to France)

[@GordonFreeman-sl6pi]

@@lioneldemun6033 The Prince of Andorra is any French President. They become Prince of Andorra when elected President of France automatically. Then the title switches to the next President. It is shared with the King of Spain in some sort of alternating governance.

[@lioneldemun6033]

@@GordonFreeman-sl6pi no not the King of Spain but the Roman Catholic Bishop of Seo de Urgel ( Catalonia )

[@GordonFreeman-sl6pi]

@@lioneldemun6033 Thank you for the correction !

[@ThrE3-GeS]

The Netherlands also hase some terretories left from the colonial empire, the former called dutch antilles now dutch caribbean, aruba, curaçau, bonair and sint marteen, saba, sint eustatius. Portugal also has some colonial left overs, the azores and madeira island (where i’m from originally) and the selvage islands many thousand miles away from the mainland, eventhough madeira is geographically considered to belong to africa and the azores partly at least to north america. funny to point out is that madeira and the azores were one the first terretories acquierd by the portuguese and now they are the two last remaining ones ^^ Spain also has some colonial leftovers, canary islands, Melilla and Ceuta. And one can argue that the U. S. has also some colonial leftovers, i mean all the oversea terretories they acquierd thru wars were former colonies either from the spanish or german empire. I love your videos man exactly my taste.

[@sordman2]

Crazy to think that there are more people living in the US Commonwealth of Puerto Rico than all of these colonies combined

[@mosthaunted2]

There is no US Commonwealth, only US Territories.

[@mrsupremegascon]

There is no colonies either.

[@SirZanZa]

@@mrsupremegascon Puerto Rico, Guam, US Virgin islands, American Samoa, Federated States of Micronesia, The Northern Mariana Islands and Palau are all US Colonies.......

[@anthonymanderson7671]

​@SirZanZa they aren't colonies don't be ignorant.

[@stevejohnson3357]

There was also talk of the Turks and Caicos joining Canada and it still comes up usually in winter.

[@General.Knowledge]

Why in the winter?

[@stevejohnson3357]

@@General.Knowledge It would be the only warm place in the country. That was a bad joke but in the real world, Canadians own many of the hotels and most of the banks.

[@Gameflyer001]

​@@General.Knowledgesomewhere for Canadian snowbirds (nickname for retired Canadians) to go to outside of Florida or Arizona or California.

[@kightsun]

The Bahamas originally voted to join Canada but Great Britain thought united, the white Canadians would just railroad the black Bahamians.

[@matthiasarran270]

Speaking of islands, could you do a video of privately owned islands and their history?

[@alface935]

That is a Great Idea for a Video!

[@Dangic23]

Puerto Rico is the oldest colony in the Planet. Colony since 1493. Have never had a single day of full autonomy since.

[@camembertdalembert6323]

a lot of these overseas territories aren't colonies, they have the exact same status as mainland France. People born there are fully french citizen, they follow the same laws, they can vote, have the same rights, etc.

[@MarkDDG]

Maybe you can make a video like this one about the overseas islands/territories/realms of the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Denmark and Norway? Like Curaçao (NL), Azores (P), Canary Islands (ES), the Faroe Islands (DK) and Bouvet Island (N) + all the other ones.

[@lynxfresh5214]

Yeah I notice Denmark and especially the Netherlands get overshadowed by other countries in terms of nations that were naval powers in the past. Also last time I checked I think Portugal is planning to fully incorporate it's North Atlantic islands (like the Azores) into it's nation proper.

[@danielforrester5265]

Spain also has two cities in north Africa, Ceuta and Melilla making it the only European nation with recognised territoty in mainland Africa

[@General.Knowledge]

Sure! I can also do one on all the external territories of the EU

[@rafaxd8178]

@@KeepTheRest the Faroe islands and Greenland are not the same as Denmark. They are not integrated and the relation within them is similar than the one that exists between Aruba and the Netherlands. Also, they got Iceland and it become independent.

[@rizkyadiyanto7922]

​@@danielforrester5265by that logic egypt also has colony in sinai peninsula and turkey has istanbul as colony.

[@belenamarapura7933]

Start by not forgeting the Europan territory of France : Corsica Island

[@samuelssmith9877]

Yo man I’ve definitely noticed the quality of video animations have been getting better, there was nothing wrong with the other videos but this was edited very nicely, well done man.

[@General.Knowledge]

Thanks! :)

[@jhpratt]

Saint Martin having free travel between the two sides has absolutely nothing to do with France & The Netherlands being in the EU.

[@kolerick]

Actually, Madagascar claim many of the Island that France still hold around them... despite those island being "deserted" originally... their point is to claim the EEZ that go with them to claim the supposedly rich in oil location... (also to claim the fishing rights) meanwhile, under "French rule" those EEZ are protected from excessive exploitation, so, there is that

[@backintimealwyn5736]

France has a ban on exploitation on every single one of those territories they are natural reserves. I think it's for the best. Madagascar has no reason to claim them either, they are all imported population from india and west africa . Colonizers too.

[@Quark0611]

Why no mention of the Dutch? I mean, apart from Sint Maarten, they also have control over the other former Dutch Antilles! And 3 of them are Dutch municipalities, the others are constituous countries! And... as "young" as the USA may be, even they have colonies! Virgin Islands and American Samoa!

[@heybenjii5544]

So does Denmark, Norway, Chile, Argentina, even India...

[@lioneldemun6033]

​@@heybenjii5544China too (Hongkong, Macau, most of Paracel and Spratly islands ) Taiwan too ( Matsu, Chinmen, Pescadores, Prats islands)

[@pseud026]

I mean, basically everything west of Louisiana arguably is a colony tbf Then you have Puerto Rico which is an outright colony, period.

[@backintimealwyn5736]

no ressources to pillage in dutch territories... no need for propaganda. They also do anti dennmark propaganda regarding Greenland => tons of ressources and a small native population that still relies on manity hunting is easier to buy up and corrupt than a european nation that forbids prospection and exploitation.

[@lioneldemun6033]

​@@heybenjii5544even China : Hong Kong, Macau, and parts of Paracel and Spratly islands

[@TheEulerID]

What about all those US unincorporated territories territories, like Guam, Puerto Rica, American Samoa, Wake Island and so on. How are they different to the French and British equivalents?

[@CB-fz3li]

Completely different, apparently

[@rafaxd8178]

I would add the other countries that have a remain of their colonial empire in the form of overseas territories: the USA, Nehterlands, Denmark and Norway. Maybe Japan and Russia too

[@whitegoose2017]

Russia doesn't just have a colonial empire. It is a colonial empire. It's just through land. Russians have gone through centuries of painstaking Russification on the natives, promotion of the Russian language and culture. They've even used the age-tested strategies of deportation and displacement. Crimea for example is a Russian colony.

[@pepsi1893]

USA has Guam 🇬🇺, Puerto Rico 🇵🇷, Virgin Islands 🇻🇮, Northern Mariana Islands 🇲🇵 and Minor Outlying Islands 🇺🇸 Netherlands has Curaçao 🇨🇼, Aruba 🇦🇼, Sint Maarten 🇸🇽 and the Caribbean Netherlands 🇧🇶 Denmark has Greenland 🇬🇱 and Faroe Islands 🇫🇴 Norway has Bouvet Island 🇧🇻 and Svalbard 🇸🇯

[@whitegoose2017]

@@pepsi1893 Norway settled uninhabited territories

[@edwardsimpson119]

Wow, General Knowledge has really leveled up their illustration skills! 😯😯😯😄

[@piloul3538]

others countries with remaining colonial territories: USA (un/incorporated and un/recognized territories), Canada (federal and provincial territories), Chile (Easter, Juan Fernández, Antarctica), Argentina (Antarctica), Netherlands (briefly shown here), Norway (Svalbard, Mayen, Bouvet, Antarctica), Denmark (Feroe, Greenland), Spain (Ceuta, Melilla, Plazas de soberania, Canarias), Portugal (Açores, Madeira), Marocco (Western Sahara), New Zealand (Cook, Niue, Tokelu, Antarctica), Australia (Ashmore & Cartier, Christmas, Coco, Heard & McDonald, Antarctica)... some would add Russian, Chinese and Indian subdivisions to the list.

[@lioneldemun6033]

Other countries also own islands that are located far away from their own territory : the US, Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, Chile, Denmark, Norway,the NL, Spain, Portugal, Mauritius, Seychelles, Yemen, India, Japan,Russia, NZ, AUS

[@ViktorFromDK]

In Denmark we still keep both Greenland and the Faroe Islands which where colonies of us.

[@VladTevez]

18:55 Allowed because the British want them and because ECHELON surveillance system is installed within the bases

[@stephenmcnally8583]

Some of the best content on the internet

[@OnboardG1]

Those little islands in the Atlantic, Indian Ocean and pacific are astonishingly useful for scientific discovery. The British and French scientific organisations have large numbers of research stations all over the world. I think the French have the Bette deal than us though. I was chatting to one of their scientists and they all argue over who is going to Réunion or New Caledonia or Guadeloupe. Meanwhile we’re like “I guess Stanley is alright at this time of year…”.

[@nunocbnunocb5875]

Hawai, disguised as a "State", but a simple colony, just like Puerto Rico or Guam.

[@labechamel75]

All of these french overseas territories voted to stay with France during multiple referendum. They are as french as we are in Metropolitan France and definitely not colonies. Vive la France 🇫🇷

[@HunterFreeman-z1d]

Ive heard france also pretty much controls the economy of multiple African nations that aren't politically apart of France in any way

[@vimala6819]

There's a military base of UK in Guyana which the guyanese haven't claimed as it was handed over to them during their independence it's a very small island

[@johndoe-cd9vt]

An island where the European Space Agency launches rockets to space

[@NicolasViard-kc9dm]

​@@johndoe-cd9vtNo. Its located in the city of Kourou, in French Guyana. On South-America continent.

[@pdruiz2005]

At 13:04. Fun fact: the British had captured Guadeloupe and Martinique by 1763, during the Seven Years' War. King Louis XV of France was distraught when this had happened--these islands minted so much money from slave sugar plantations that they paid for themselves AND the defense of the vast territories of New France. So the King had to make a choice during the Treaty of Paris: keep gigantic but unprofitable Canada or get these very rich sugar islands back. King Louis XV chose the islands and that's how the British got Canada in exchange.

[@davidhouseman4328]

Yes, people often don't get how important some of the isles were. Pressure on Jamaica and others helped push Britain to give up on the US because they were massive income sources.

[@ChrisCrossClash]

The Seven Years war really was one of the most Disastrous wars in Frances history, the amount of territory they lost to Britain in North America was shocking.

[@allanlank]

After the independence of the Bahamas, the Turks and Caicos not only considered independence with the Bahamas but also the possibility of joining Canada.

[@carlos-ju7ce]

Yet when I purchase travel insurance (I'm a Portuguese South African residing in the UK) to the EU, I get asked where I'm travelling to. If that trip includes Spain, as it did on my recent motorcycle trip to Portugal, I get to pay a surcharge, which I don't if I'm going through France. The only reason I can discern is, is because of Ceuta or Mellila, in northern Africa, which frankly I've no interest whatsoever in touring. Another fun fact...I was born in Mozambique before it's independence from Portugal. At the time, Mozambique was, like other Portuguese overseas territories De Jure part of Portugal. Like The Azores or Madeira. Similar status to the French overseas territories today. This means, if I were nuts enough, I could run for President in Portugal as I was born in Portugal. It took a few decades for this to be recognised as we were stripped of our rights when Portugal slung all it's territories over the fence, into independence and they just slipped it quietly into my EU Citizen's ID Card, without any fanfare

[@erik3371]

Does Portugal have a rule about being born in it's territory to run for office? I have never heard a European country have something like that. I tried to Google but found no source saying anything about this. Do you have anything i can refer to? Thanks!

[@kingkiron2934]

UK still has islands and Canada/Australia/ New Zealand (not sure how that works) and France has French Guiana and holds incredible sway over their former African colonies. Id argue France still rules Africa but off the books.WW2 made it impossible to hold on to vast colonial possessions, both France and Britains Empires came tumbling down after that war. If WW2 never happend I think they would still have their vast continental possessions but metropolitan London and Paris would probably be a exhausted managing so much land and people so far away.

[@OscarPlymouth]

Canada, Australia and NZ have been self-governing 'Dominions' then independent countries for more than 120 years.

[@kingkiron2934]

@@OscarPlymouth a Dominion of what? If you are the Dominion of a foreign entity then you by definition are not independent. The Head of State of Canada is King Charles, who is also the Head of State of UK. Canada is de facto independent because Britain can't control them but legally Canada is the personal property of a King. Canada is De Jure not an independent country it is a Kingdom, of the UK I think that's what confuses me their is no Canadian King unless you mean the British King so it's a Kingdom of a Kingdom I guess that's why I said "not sure how that works".

[@AlbertTheGamer-gk7sn]

Which is why Germany should win WWI, so WWII wouldn't happen, skipping both decolonization and the communist pandemic that we are still in that could cause WWIII.

[@martinhughes2549]

​@kingkiron2934 Since the Statute of Westminster in 1931 the UK, Canada,NZ,Australia South Africa,Irish free State, where considered equal and not subordinate to the UK. They shared a Monarch. However all became sovereign. In 1949 Ireland became a Republic in 1961 South Africa became a Republic. There where a handful of provisions in the Canadian constitution still subject t9 the UK Parliament,which where repatriated to Canada in 1982. In WW2 the Dominion govt of Ireland stayed neutral.

[@laudemar-A.B.6386]

​@@OscarPlymouthThey are still colonies, they still have ties with European masters 🤔🤷🤡

[@robertthomson1587]

Very interesting. I went to St Helena a couple of months ago. Fascinating place.

[@lioneldemun6033]

There is a French enclave in St. Helena : the property where Napoleon spent in exile his last years

[@robertthomson1587]

Yes, I visited it.

[@awxken6556]

bro ur portuguese i didnt even know makes me love the content even more

[@user-KABYLIAN_REPUBLIC]

France & UK are devinding the world between them

[@alexpotts6520]

Most of these, I would say arent colonies in the way we would think of them normally, they are voluntarily overseas territories with populations who appreciate thr benefits of being part of a larger sovereign state. The Chagos Islands (aka the British Indian Ocean Territory) are a notable exception, since the native population was forcibly exiled, and the Chagos Islanders now living in Britain are generally opposed to British ownership of the territory.

[@MareSerenitis]

And for a bit of additional spite, there was some moves in the past about declaring the entire Chagos Archipelago a nature reserve. Why would this be spiteful? Because no-one can legally settle in a nature reserve, so if this were ever to be done the islanders would never be able to return.

[@markaxworthy2508]

South Georgia was never a Spanish claim, so the Argentines cannot claim it as part of their Hispanic heritage. Indeed, Argentina only claimed South Georgia in the late 1930s on the grounds that the British administered them from the Falklands.

[@gioboldo]

I loved this video, very Interesting, but what about talking of the geopolitical situation in antartica. How the claims of countries in this continent works?

[@SereglothIV]

I was surprised when I found out that the longest land border of France is with Brasil.

[@sylvainduret9880]

Vive la France , rule Britannia !

[@svart7716]

Living in dreams..

[@xjdfghashzkj]

The Belep and WHAT islands?

[@atenachos6282]

Oh, you know 😏

[@kightsun]

The story behind Mexico fogetting people on Clipperton and the insane drama they went through is a big reason France was given the island instead.

[@erik3371]

What's the source of that Nordic map at 12:41 in french? What can I google?

[@mariajoaoferrazdeabreu150]

Congrats. Interesting theme.

[@SantaFe19484]

Nice video!

[@emil3f]

Spain still has a tiny part of its empire, the Plazas Menores de Soberanía

[@ferretyluv]

And there’s Ceuta and Melilla.

[@emil3f]

@@ferretyluv Ceuta and Melilla are the Plazas Mayores de Soberanía, they are now integral parts of Spain, so they cannot be considered as overseas territories. Meanwhile, Perejil, Vélez de la Gomera, Alhucemas and Chafarinas still have the same status as an overseas department

[@General.Knowledge]

Yes!

[@ferretyluv]

@@emil3f There’s an island called parsley?!

[@emil3f]

@@ferretyluv Yes XD

[@nelliecharles5153]

Thanks for all the history and geography

[@Drasai]

The most obvious example of a country that has kept its colonial empire is Russia, which has maintained unchallenged control of its Siberian conquests and the nations within it. Of the 24 Republics that constitute the Russian Federation, nine or ten are semi-autonomous nations in Siberia, each with its own ethnicity, language, culture, and national anthem. There are also many other minority ethnicities that do not have autonomous republics. The vast majority of Russia’s land territory consists of its trans-Ural colonial conquests, despite the fact that the greater bulk of the population lives in Europe.

[@the_troller3409]

6:52 Which island ????

[@markgarin6355]

Interesting.... using Euro currency, do they have their own minted coins (as everyone virtually have unique coins, but common designed bills)?

[@mrsupremegascon]

Depends some yes, some no

[@markgarin6355]

@@mrsupremegascon well, so which ones might and which ones might not?

[@General.Knowledge]

I would guess the majority get their currency shipped over from France?

[@MrPictor]

France only mints one set of euro coins (near Bordeaux). The same coins are used everwhere, apart from the Pacific territories, which uses their own currency, the Pacific Franc.

[@markgarin6355]

@@MrPictor yup ..France does their coins, or someone does it for them with their country designation. I was asking what they...whoever those 'they' people are for the colonies/areas using Euro....that are outside the EU.

[@Clinton221087]

I'm pretty sure the first time the Euro was used was on Réunion. If I'm not mistaken someone bought a packet of lychees.

[@mostakahmedsimon1304]

What a surprising coincidence! Today I have just finished my research on this very topic that there are two countries having territories in all 7 continents. I've also concluded that United Kingdom and France have cosmopolitan range. And now I've come across such a video on your channel.

[@TheDanzau]

what is a "cosmopolitan range"?

[@mostakahmedsimon1304]

@@TheDanzau 'Cosmopolitan range' stands for something situated in all 7 continents beyond its place of origin. Only the UK and France have this very range.

[@rizkyadiyanto7922]

​@@mostakahmedsimon1304did you just make that term up out of your ass? their colonialial power isnt "cosmic scale".

[@adrianbalboa5353]

Mexico has a strong claim on the uninhabited Clipperton Island as the rulling from the Italian King is not valid.

[@LennethValombre]

Could have speak about french possesion in Jerusalem as well, as it is not wide known, even tho they are batiments sized possesion =)

[@WatanabeNoTsuna.]

Tens de fazer um vídeo sobre o Tratado de Tordesilhas! 😉 👍

[@taylorruckner5976]

Jersey and Guernsey are part of France in the intro!

[@scoutmehgaming17]

Well do note they are not considered BOTs(British overseas territories) but crown dependencies which count as different than BOTs

[@ommsterlitz1805]

Finally ! They will be able to speak Franco-Norman once again 😅

[@thostaylor]

@@ommsterlitz1805 They still do to some extent. I take it you've never been there. I admit I haven't been there for 30 years, but I doubt it has changed.

[@ommsterlitz1805]

@@thostaylor english government suppressed the language and destroyed it in the early 20th century

[@CAM8689]

@@scoutmehgaming17 still british citizens

[@BoostWorx]

Extremely interesting video 👏👏👏 well done i really enjoyed it just a shame i haven't found this channel earlier. Subbed

[@joaoalbertodosanjosgomes1536]

A video about the new colonies. There are colonies and today there are the new colonies too.

[@AmoraTheBrewer]

Reminds me if a fact. Unless you are in eastern China, N. Korea, northern Japan and far east Russia (maybe afew other countries in that part of the world) you are no more than 7000Km from France

[@siva5941]

Here in india even small former territories of french have influence on them even now Economically and culturally

[@YoursTrulyJaden]

but which one is larger? (including their mainlands)

[@bluesupremacist3085]

France by far

[@muhammedjaseemshajeef6781]

I cant see antartic territories in your outro

[@lioneldemun6033]

Antarctic territories are Res Nullius = belong no country like the high seas. Sure there are old claims from the UK, France, Aus, NZ, Norway, Argentina and Chile but they are meaningless.

[@michaelrae9599]

Great topic

[@mappingshaman5280]

If you ask me we should hold referenda in all the british overseas territories with an option to either vote to join the uk fully, independence (or gibraltar, diego garcia and falklands join their neighbours) or status quo. If i were to guess gibraltar and the falklands would join as a direct part of the uk, Diego garcia, montserrat and pitcairn island would be status quo, akotiri would join cyprus and bermuda and st helena would vote for independence

[@SirZanZa]

Dhekelia and Akrotiri are Sovereign base areas not countries, they are literally 100% British military personnel. they would never vote to re-join Cyprus

[@Ludvigvanamadeus]

Both the Falklands and Gibraltar had such votes, the results were over 99% for staying a British territory in both cases (with only 3 Falklanders voting against it and with Gibraltar having actually multiple such referenda over the last decades)

[@jalpaca]

In your first map of France, you forgot Corsica. Similarly, you added the Isle of Man as part of the UK, whereas I don't think it really is.

[@neiloflongbeck5705]

Ut and the Channel Islands are Crown Dependencies making them lands held by the monarch and independent if the UK. The UK 8s, however, responsible for them.

[@BasedAccountLmao]

If the crown dependencies aren't "a part of the UK", couldn't we say the same about overseas territories?

[@adamcashin4021]

@@BasedAccountLmao You could, there not 'part of a the UK' in a different way. Beyond the difference between crown dependency and overseas territory (which is perhaps negligible) the biggest difference is that the overseas territories are on the list of the UN non self-governing territories and are subject to UN resolution 1514, the crown dependencies are not. The principal of the resolution is that the people of said territories had the explicit right to self-determination. In principal this means that should a free referendum be held within these territories that voted for independence occur then the UN would recognize the independent nation regardless of whether the UK recognized it. This differs from say Kosovo, whose referendum would only have been recognized by the UN had Serbia agreed. France though has few overseas territories still on the UN list. Unlike Britain, France sought to formally annex territories that did not want independence. Changing their status as they simply became part of France proper. Of the remaining 17 non self governing territories, 10 are British.

[@neiloflongbeck5705]

@@BasedAccountLmao the British Overseas Territories are also not part if the UK. But the UK us responsible for their defence.

[@BasedAccountLmao]

@@adamcashin4021 personally, I think the UN list is incredibly unfair. For example Hawaii was annexed by the US to avoid being put on that list. But as a result, the native Hawaiians actually have a much worse life than Polynesians in French Polynesia. Hawaiians became a minority because of US colonialism and immigration, their Hawaiian language is almost extinct, their lands have been stolen by big corporations, and a lot of them are simply homeless! But all of this suddenly becomes okay because the US annexed them? Annexation can often be much worse for the Indigenous population lol. In fact territories not outright formally annexing and rather letting them have a special status usually do it specifically to respect the specific needs of the locals.

[@johnnyearp52]

What about Macau? I thought Portugal held onto it until 1999?

[@OscarPlymouth]

Some super cool flags for those islands were shown. However, I miss seeing the General figure in stereotypical clothes for different countries. That was always a fun part of the videos. 😁

[@jugadug]

Well for Spain and Portugal the cannery islands were uninhabited completely so the say so new land and settled by Spaniards mainly and they got the territories on Africa due to to my understanding a very complicated and complex set of agreements following the reconqista again settled mostly by Spaniards same as well for Portugal new land were the Azores so those make sense for both

[@antoniof9756]

The Canary Islands had people living there before its (re)discovery by the portuguese in 1336. Later on (1345), its possession was atributed to Castille (Spain) by the Pope, in order to avoid war between both nations.

[@jugadug]

@@antoniof9756 well they had said nobody was there free unclaimed/unsettled land

[@antoniof9756]

@@jugadug Several military expeditions were sent to subjugate the people living there, so they weren't empty... the ones that were empty were Madeira, Açores and Cabo Verde (Cape Verde).

[@LarzGustafsson]

Interesting. Thank you!

[@Lucerd127]

It felt weird being the first time in French Quyane in South America. It is official Europe, and it feels like it.

[@andrewrobinson2565]

Thatcher: "... freedom dies...". Rees-Mogg: "... devoid of a moral compass...". Pots and kettles - thank you !

[@pierrebegley2746]

One sliiight discrepancy with this video is that you forgot to colour in the Channel Islands (Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark and Herm) which are classed as Crown Dependencies alongside the Isle of Man which has been coloured. Also. Some might also debate that the Western and Central African States are still under the influence of France. But that's a bit of a touchy subject. Especially in the past month.

[@FredericGaillot]

fun fact: in St Helena, 0,14 sq km2 belong to France since 1857, and they are the different places where Napoleon and its closest troops stationed while he was in exile

[@lordjazoijua94]

Napoleon didn't have any troops with him during his second exile except for a few aides de camp.

[@MajorDenisBloodnok]

Yes, France owns the Longwood House where Napoléon lived and died, the Geranium Valley where was his tomb (these places were bought by Napoléon III with the agreement of Queen Victoria). France also owns the remains of the Briars, the property where Napoléon lived during his first months on Saint-Helena which, at the time, belonged to the Balcombes. Napoléon befriended with the Balcombe family, especially with the young Betsy. It one of Betsy's descendants who gave (in the fifties if I remember correctly) the property to France in souvenir of this friendship. But only British troops were allowed on Saint-Helena.

[@ChrisCrossClash]

@@MajorDenisBloodnok Britain still owns it all though, No Frenchmen at all are on S.t Helena.

[@MajorDenisBloodnok]

@@ChrisCrossClash Michel Dancoisne Martineau, director of the French Domains of Saint-Helena since 1990 (after his adopted father Gilbert Martineau. The three properties described before are owned by France), Honorary Consul of France, also known as the Frenchman by the islanders... As far as I know, M. Dancoisne Martineau still lives on St Helena and wrote a very good book in which he explained how, as a young Frenchman, he happened to live on the island.

[@ChrisCrossClash]

@@MajorDenisBloodnok Well it's still owned by Britain, you French are trying to wiggle your way onto anymore land. 😂😂

[@raymondyang2475]

Give perspectives about South China Sea and East China Sea about Europe colonise there.

[@nicocorbo4153]

very informative video. really thorough yet remained interesting. well done

[@valorian931]

What is a eez?