Why did Britain eventually form Canada, and Australia into such large states? Would many small states not be easier to control?
In the case of Canada,Britain was not the driving force.The provinces themselves pushed for the colonial union-mostly for protection against the USA.The Parliament in the UK ultimately passed the act of federation (BNA Act) on July 1,1867 but it did so with little interest.Canada (in the wide sense) was not of great importance to the UK and basically whatever the people of Canada decided was OK with Britain.(When the Americans made enquiries,at various times,about the possibility of annexing Canada,the Brits. said it was OK with them,if it was OK with the Canadians.)
Why did the British Empire disintegrate in the twentieth century?
Every great empire eventually fell apart by overextending itself. By the end of 19th century, British empire was way too extended than they had resources to manage. Although they tried hard to avoid European entanglements [Splendid isolation] sooner or later they had to face the rise of Germany - a very prosperous region of Europe since the end of the Western Roman Empire. When that powerful region became united in the mid 19th century, both French and English interests were bound to be deeply impacted. By the First World War, it became clear that UK alone could not face the German threat and needed the involvement of the US. Ireland was already breaking away during the WW1 and UK they could not keep the next door colony, it became showing the end of the empire's days. After the end of WW1, UK became quite dependent on US loans and technology.In World War 2, UK and France tried desperately to avoid the war, as they had barely enough resources to salvage their crumbling empires. Eventually they could not avoid the war and became consumed by it. At the end of the war, their most prosperous colony and the largest ever colony for any country in history - India - broke free. Without India, they had little use for a number of their Asian possessions and they were given freedom too. Later, USSR, India and other countries helped freedom movement elsewhere and Africa too broke free - ending the era of colonialism. This map would give you an idea of how big India was relative to other British possessions in 1900. 75% of the empire by population was just India. When that part split apart due to the freedom movement, it was practically the end of British Empire.Larger the empire, faster the end - as they spread their resources too thin. Happened to Romans, happened to Persians, happened to Greeks, happened to Soviet Union, happened to Mongols, happened to Ottoman Turks. Uncontrolled expansion is the sure and easy way an empire to commit suicide. More context and details in my Quora book: A Brief History of the World
For how long did Britain occupy america?
Great Britain first settled a colony in North America in 1584 at Roanoke, Virginia, but the first permanent colony was Jamestown, Virginiua, in 1607. Eventually, the British amassed 13 colonies in North America that would eventually become the United States after they declared independence from Britain on July 4, 1776. That takes care of British holdings that eventually became the United States, but they had plenty of other holdings in the Americas as well. There were many holdings in Canada, such as Newfoundland, and eventually, the British obtained more from the French and ended up in control of Canada. Britain also has controlled various other places in North and South America as well. A lot of British colonies in America are part of the Commonwealth of Nations, and, as the queen is the head of the Commonwealth, in a way the British still occupy (or at least have an influence over) parts of the Americas.