Great English dates No 9: 1759

As the French threatened colonies across the Atlantic and in India, the British fought back to secure the foundations of the British empire

If any date signals the foundation of the British empire, it is 1759. The seven years war of 1756-63 had begun in skirmishes with the French in America. France was expanding from Canada south down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, threatening to encircle the 13 New England colonies along the east coast. In India, the collapse of the Mogul empire enabled a F...