Britain's Lost Empire

As William and Kate visit Jamaica, the former British colony's plans to become the second Caribbean island to remove the Queen as head of state in short succession have been revealed. After almost 400 years under a British monarch, Barbados officially removed the Queen as head of state last November, having initially gained independence from the UK in 1966. In a message to President Dame Sandra Mason of the newly born republic, the Queen wished "good wishes for your happiness, peace and prosperity in the future". This marks the latest in a long list of countries breaking away from the British empire.

While a source of great pride for some Brits, the phrase "The empire on which the sun never sets" is one which has not been applicable to the United Kingdom for a long time now. However questionable the pride associated with this notion may be, it was once a fairly accurate statement to make. As our infographic shows, over the years, 65 countries have claimed independence so far. The first of which was the United States back on July 4, 1776 (although the Declaration wasn't officially recognized by the British government until 1783).

The most recent was in 1984, when Brunei became an Islamic sultanate. More recently, an attempt at independence in Scotland failed, after a closely fought referendum in 2014 ended with 55% voting to remain a part of the UK. The independence movement is still strong, however, with the Scottish National Party still the largest political force in the country.