The Number of European Colonies by Country (1450-2000)

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Europe’s colonial empires have shaped the world’s political and economic systems for over 500 years.

From Portugal’s early ventures in the 1400s, to Britain’s massive empire in the early 20th century, European nations have competed for control of territory and trade across nearly every continent. In this graphic, we trace the history of European colonies from 1462 to today, showing how the era of colonies rose and fell.

Data & Discussion

The data for this visualization comes from Our World in Data. It tracks the number of overseas colonies under the control of key European powers including the UK, France, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, and others.

These numbers provide a historical record of how European influence expanded through exploration, conquest, and colonization, and later declined through wars, independence movements, and international pressure.

Year
1462	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1463	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1464	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1465	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1466	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1467	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1468	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1469	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1470	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1471	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1472	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1473	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1474	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1475	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1476	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1477	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1478	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1479	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1480	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1481	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
1482	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1483	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1484	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1485	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1486	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1487	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1488	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1489	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1490	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1491	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1492	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1493	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1494	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
1495	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1496	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1497	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1498	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1499	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1500	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1501	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1502	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1503	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1504	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1505	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1506	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1507	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1508	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0
1509	0	0	2	2	0	0	0	0
1510	0	0	2	2	0	0	0	0
1511	0	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
1512	0	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
1513	0	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
1514	0	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
1515	0	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
1516	0	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
1517	0	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
1518	0	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
1519	0	0	4	3	0	0	0	0
1520	0	0	4	3	0	0	0	0
1521	0	0	5	3	0	0	0	0
1522	0	0	5	4	0	0	0	0
1523	0	0	5	4	0	0	0	0
1524	0	0	10	4	0	0	0	0
1525	0	0	11	4	0	0	0	0
1526	0	0	11	4	0	0	0	0
1527	0	0	11	4	0	0	0	0
1528	0	0	12	4	0	0	0	0
1529	0	0	12	4	0	0	0	0
1530	0	0	12	4	0	0	0	0
1531	0	0	12	4	0	0	0	0
1532	0	0	12	4	0	0	0	0
1533	0	0	13	5	0	0	0	0
1534	0	0	13	5	0	0	0	0
1535	0	0	14	5	0	0	0	0
1536	0	0	14	5	0	0	0	0
1537	0	0	15	5	0	0	0	0
1538	0	0	15	5	0	0	0	0
1539	0	0	15	5	0	0	0	0
1540	0	0	15	5	0	0	0	0
1541	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1542	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1543	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1544	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1545	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1546	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1547	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1548	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1549	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1550	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1551	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1552	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1553	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1554	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1555	0	0	16	5	0	0	0	0
1556	0	0	17	5	0	0	0	0
1557	0	0	17	5	0	0	0	0
1558	0	0	17	5	0	0	0	0
1559	0	0	18	5	0	0	0	0
1560	0	0	18	5	0	0	0	0
1561	0	0	18	5	0	0	0	0
1562	0	0	18	5	0	0	0	0
1563	0	0	18	5	0	0	0	0
1564	0	0	18	5	0	0	0	0
1565	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1566	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1567	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1568	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1569	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1570	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1571	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1572	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1573	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1574	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1575	0	0	19	5	0	0	0	0
1576	0	0	19	6	0	0	0	0
1577	0	0	19	6	0	0	0	0
1578	0	0	19	6	0	0	0	0
1579	0	0	19	6	0	0	0	0
1580	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1581	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1582	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1583	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1584	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1585	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1586	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1587	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1588	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1589	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1590	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1591	0	0	20	6	0	0	0	1
1592	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1593	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1594	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1595	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1596	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1597	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1598	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1599	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1600	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1601	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1602	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1603	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1604	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1605	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1606	0	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1607	1	0	21	6	0	0	0	1
1608	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1609	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1610	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1611	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1612	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1613	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1614	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1615	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1616	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1617	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1618	1	1	21	6	0	0	0	1
1619	1	1	21	7	0	0	0	1
1620	1	1	21	7	0	0	0	1
1621	1	1	21	7	0	0	0	1
1622	1	1	21	7	0	0	0	1
1623	2	1	21	7	0	0	0	2
1624	2	1	21	7	0	0	0	2
1625	2	1	22	7	0	0	0	2
1626	2	1	22	7	0	0	0	2
1627	3	1	22	7	0	0	0	2
1628	3	1	22	7	0	0	0	2
1629	3	1	22	7	0	0	0	2
1630	3	1	22	7	0	0	0	2
1631	3	1	22	7	0	0	0	2
1632	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1633	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1634	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1635	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1636	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1637	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1638	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1639	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1640	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1641	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1642	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1643	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1644	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1645	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1646	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1647	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1648	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1649	4	2	22	7	0	0	0	2
1650	4	4	23	7	0	0	0	2
1651	4	4	23	7	0	0	0	2
1652	4	4	23	7	0	0	0	3
1653	4	4	23	7	0	0	0	3
1654	4	4	23	7	0	0	0	3
1655	5	4	23	7	0	0	0	3
1656	5	4	22	7	0	0	0	3
1657	5	4	22	6	0	0	0	3
1658	5	4	22	6	0	0	0	3
1659	5	4	22	6	0	0	0	3
1660	5	4	22	6	0	0	0	3
1661	5	4	22	6	0	0	0	3
1662	5	4	22	6	0	0	0	3
1663	5	4	22	6	0	0	0	3
1664	5	4	22	6	0	0	0	3
1665	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	3
1666	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	3
1667	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1668	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1669	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1670	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1671	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1672	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1673	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1674	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1675	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1676	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1677	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1678	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1679	5	5	22	6	0	0	0	4
1680	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1681	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1682	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1683	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1684	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1685	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1686	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1687	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1688	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1689	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1690	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1691	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1692	5	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1693	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1694	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1695	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1696	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1697	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1698	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1699	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1700	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1701	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1702	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1703	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1704	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1705	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1706	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1707	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1708	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1709	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1710	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1711	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1712	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1713	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1714	6	5	22	7	0	0	0	4
1715	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1716	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1717	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1718	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1719	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1720	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1721	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1722	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1723	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1724	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1725	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1726	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1727	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1728	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1729	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1730	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1731	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1732	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1733	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1734	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1735	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1736	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1737	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1738	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1739	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1740	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1741	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1742	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1743	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1744	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1745	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1746	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1747	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1748	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1749	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1750	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1751	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1752	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1753	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1754	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1755	6	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1756	6	7	22	7	0	0	0	4
1757	6	7	22	7	0	0	0	4
1758	6	7	22	7	0	0	0	4
1759	6	7	22	7	0	0	0	4
1760	6	7	22	7	0	0	0	4
1761	6	7	22	7	0	0	0	4
1762	8	7	22	7	0	0	0	4
1763	9	6	22	7	0	0	0	4
1764	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1765	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1766	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1767	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1768	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1769	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1770	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1771	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1772	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1773	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1774	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1775	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1776	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1777	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1778	9	4	22	8	0	0	0	4
1779	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1780	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1781	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1782	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1783	10	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1784	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1785	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1786	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1787	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1788	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1789	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1790	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1791	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1792	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1793	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1794	9	4	22	7	0	0	0	4
1795	9	3	22	7	0	0	0	4
1796	9	3	22	7	0	0	0	4
1797	10	3	22	7	0	0	0	4
1798	12	3	21	7	0	0	0	4
1799	12	3	21	7	0	0	0	4
1800	12	3	21	7	0	0	0	4
1801	12	3	21	7	0	0	0	4
1802	12	3	21	7	0	0	0	4
1803	12	3	21	7	0	0	0	4
1804	12	3	21	7	0	0	0	4
1805	13	2	21	7	0	0	0	4
1806	13	2	21	7	0	0	0	4
1807	13	2	21	7	0	0	0	3
1808	13	2	21	7	0	0	0	3
1809	13	2	21	7	0	0	0	3
1810	14	2	21	7	0	0	0	3
1811	14	1	21	7	0	0	0	3
1812	14	1	20	7	0	0	0	3
1813	14	1	20	7	0	0	0	3
1814	18	1	20	7	0	0	0	3
1815	18	0	20	7	0	0	0	3
1816	18	0	20	7	0	0	0	2
1817	18	0	20	7	0	0	0	2
1818	17	0	20	7	0	0	0	2
1819	17	0	19	7	0	0	0	2
1820	17	0	18	7	0	0	0	2
1821	17	0	17	7	0	0	0	2
1822	17	0	9	7	0	0	0	2
1823	17	0	9	5	0	0	0	2
1824	17	0	9	4	0	0	0	2
1825	17	0	8	4	0	0	0	2
1826	18	0	7	4	0	0	0	2
1827	19	0	7	4	0	0	0	2
1828	19	0	7	4	0	0	0	2
1829	20	0	6	4	0	0	0	2
1830	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1831	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1832	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1833	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1834	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1835	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1836	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1837	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1838	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1839	20	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1840	21	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1841	21	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1842	21	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1843	21	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1844	21	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1845	21	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1846	21	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1847	21	0	5	4	0	0	0	2
1848	21	1	5	4	0	0	0	2
1849	21	1	5	4	0	0	0	2
1850	21	1	5	4	0	0	0	2
1851	21	1	5	4	0	0	0	2
1852	21	1	5	4	0	0	0	2
1853	21	1	5	4	0	0	0	2
1854	21	2	5	4	0	0	0	2
1855	21	2	5	4	0	0	0	2
1856	21	2	5	4	0	0	0	2
1857	24	2	5	4	0	0	0	2
1858	23	2	6	4	0	0	0	2
1859	23	2	6	4	0	0	0	2
1860	23	2	6	4	0	0	0	2
1861	24	2	6	4	0	0	0	2
1862	24	2	6	4	0	0	0	2
1863	24	2	5	4	0	0	0	2
1864	24	2	5	4	0	0	0	2
1865	24	2	5	4	0	0	0	2
1866	24	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1867	24	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1868	24	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1869	24	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1870	24	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1871	24	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1872	24	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1873	24	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1874	26	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1875	26	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1876	26	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1877	26	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1878	26	2	4	4	0	0	0	2
1879	26	2	4	5	0	0	0	2
1880	26	2	4	5	0	0	0	2
1881	26	4	4	5	0	0	0	2
1882	27	5	4	5	0	0	0	2
1883	27	5	4	5	0	0	0	2
1884	29	7	5	5	0	2	0	2
1885	29	7	5	6	1	7	0	2
1886	30	8	6	6	1	7	0	2
1887	31	10	6	6	1	7	0	2
1888	35	10	6	6	1	8	0	2
1889	35	11	6	6	1	8	0	2
1890	35	11	6	6	1	8	1	2
1891	36	11	6	6	1	9	1	2
1892	39	11	6	6	1	9	1	2
1893	40	12	6	6	1	9	1	2
1894	41	13	6	6	1	9	1	2
1895	43	15	6	6	1	9	1	2
1896	44	15	6	6	1	9	1	2
1897	44	15	6	6	1	9	1	2
1898	45	15	6	6	1	9	1	2
1899	46	15	5	6	1	11	1	2
1900	47	15	2	6	1	12	1	2
1901	47	15	2	6	1	12	1	2
1902	47	15	2	6	1	12	1	2
1903	48	16	2	6	1	12	1	2
1904	48	17	2	6	1	12	1	2
1905	48	17	2	6	1	12	2	2
1906	49	18	2	6	1	12	2	2
1907	49	18	2	6	1	12	2	2
1908	49	18	2	6	1	12	2	2
1909	49	18	2	6	1	12	2	2
1910	50	19	2	6	1	12	2	2
1911	50	19	2	6	1	12	2	2
1912	50	20	2	6	1	12	3	2
1913	50	20	2	6	1	12	3	2
1914	54	21	2	6	1	12	3	2
1915	55	21	2	6	1	8	3	2
1916	56	21	2	6	1	6	3	2
1917	56	21	2	6	1	3	3	2
1918	57	21	2	6	1	2	3	2
1919	57	21	2	6	1	1	3	2
1920	56	21	2	6	1	1	3	2
1921	51	21	2	6	1	1	3	2
1922	51	24	2	6	2	1	3	2
1923	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1924	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1925	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1926	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1927	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1928	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1929	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1930	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1931	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1932	55	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1933	54	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1934	54	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1935	54	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1936	53	26	2	6	3	0	3	2
1937	53	26	2	6	3	0	2	2
1938	53	26	2	6	3	0	2	2
1939	53	26	2	6	3	0	2	2
1940	53	26	2	6	3	0	2	2
1941	54	26	2	6	3	0	2	2
1942	54	26	2	6	3	0	1	2
1943	54	26	2	6	3	0	0	2
1944	54	26	2	6	3	0	0	2
1945	54	26	2	6	3	0	0	2
1946	55	26	2	6	3	0	0	2
1947	54	24	2	6	3	0	0	2
1948	51	24	2	6	3	0	0	2
1949	48	24	2	6	3	0	0	2
1950	47	24	2	6	3	0	0	2
1951	47	24	2	6	3	0	0	2
1952	46	24	2	6	3	0	0	2
1953	45	24	2	6	3	0	0	2
1954	45	23	2	6	3	0	0	2
1955	45	21	2	6	3	0	0	2
1956	45	21	2	6	3	0	0	2
1957	44	19	2	6	3	0	0	2
1958	43	19	2	6	3	0	0	2
1959	44	18	2	6	3	0	0	2
1960	44	18	2	6	3	0	0	2
1961	41	4	2	6	2	0	0	2
1962	39	4	2	6	2	0	0	2
1963	36	3	2	6	0	0	0	1
1964	32	3	2	6	0	0	0	1
1965	30	3	2	6	0	0	0	1
1966	28	3	2	6	0	0	0	1
1967	24	3	2	6	0	0	0	1
1968	23	3	2	6	0	0	0	1
1969	20	3	1	6	0	0	0	1
1970	20	3	1	6	0	0	0	1
1971	18	3	1	6	0	0	0	1
1972	15	3	1	6	0	0	0	1
1973	15	3	1	6	0	0	0	1
1974	14	3	1	6	0	0	0	1
1975	13	3	1	5	0	0	0	0
1976	13	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
1977	12	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
1978	12	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
1979	10	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
1980	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
1981	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1982	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1983	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1984	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1985	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1986	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1987	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1988	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1989	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1990	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1991	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1992	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1993	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1994	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1995	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1996	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1997	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1998	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1999	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2000	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2001	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2002	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2003	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2004	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2005	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2006	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2007	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2008	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2009	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2010	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2011	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2012	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2013	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2014	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2015	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2016	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2017	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2018	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2019	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2021	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2022	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

The Early Days of Colonization

Portugal was the first European nation to establish an overseas colony, beginning in the 1400s along the African coast and Atlantic islands. Spain followed soon after with its vast empire in the Americas.

An important milestone was the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494), which granted Spain and Portugal exclusive rights to explore, claim, and colonize along an agreed meridian. Backed by royal patronage and emerging maritime technology, Portugal built trading outposts from Brazil to the Indian Ocean, while Spain established vast territorial colonies across the Americas through conquest, settlement, and resource extraction.

By the early 1600s, Britain, France, and the Netherlands had joined the race, creating colonies in North America, the Caribbean, and Asia. This competition fueled centuries of maritime exploration and conflict, laying the groundwork for global trade and cultural exchange.

Unfortunately, colonization also brought about exploitation and displacement, characterized by the seizure of land and resources, forced labor, and the disruption of indigenous peoples.

Decolonization and the End of Empire

After World War II, global power shifted. European empires were financially drained and politically weakened, losing the capacity to control their vast overseas territories. Meanwhile, rising nationalist movements across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East pushed for independence.

A clear example is India’s independence from Britain in 1947, which became a catalyst for global decolonization. Britain was exhausted after World War II, and with growing independence movements led by Mahatma Gandhi, the British government was forced to concede sovereignty.

Between 1945 and the late 20th century, the number of European-controlled colonial territories declined dramatically, marking the end of formal empire building. Dozens of former colonies across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East gained independence during this period.

What remains today are a small number of overseas territories—such as islands and enclaves—administered by European states under special constitutional arrangements. These territories generally have significant local autonomy and are no longer considered colonies in the traditional sense, though debates over self-determination persist in some cases.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

If you enjoyed today’s post, check out The State of Global Democracy on Voronoi, the new app from Visual Capitalist.

District attorneys in Harris, El Paso and other counties say some cases, including murders, have been hobbled or lost because witnesses were detained, deported or too scared to come to court.

US distillers face uncertainty after President Trump imposed tariffs on countries around the world.

You can now read every article that has ever appeared in The New Yorker—from as early as February 1925—with the click of a button.

For the publication’s centennial anniversary, its editorial team has spent months painstakingly scanning, digitizing, and organizing every single issue it’s ever published, or more than half a million individual pages. Each issue is artfully arranged in a chronological display under a purpose-built archive section of the website; but the content has also been incorporated into The New Yorker’s search algorithm so that readers can come across it organically.

As the future of magazine journalism remains uncertain, a look back through this carefully archived material demonstrates the importance of preserving print media for the future. 

Digitizing a century-old archive

The process of digitizing The New Yorker’s full catalog actually started back in 2005. That year, explains Nicholas Henriquez, the publication’s director of editorial infrastructure, Random House published The Complete New Yorker, a book that came with DVD-ROMs (now retro tech) containing scanned pages from all the pre-digital issues. Then, in early 2024, Henriquez’s team started to convert those scans into digital text.

To start, this meant consulting with The New Yorker library, where the magazine’s physical archives are stored, to re-scan several hundreds of pages that required another pass for a number of reasons—including damage, a poor initial scan, or a corrupted file. “Some of the older issues, from the first five years or so, were basically untouched,” Henriquez says. “I had to use a letter opener to open the pages to scan some of them.”

After the team had a complete collection of files, they then began the painstaking process of formatting and styling them for the web. There were the predictable challenges of making old magazine articles work online. Each needed a workable headline, description, and image. Bylines in particular were tricky, Henriquez says, as many early writers would use pseudonyms or humorous one-off pen names—or, in some cases, fail to sign their name at all.

“That’s part of the value of having, as The New Yorker does, a team of technologists who are part of the editorial staff: We can build these databases and apps and scripts, and we can also look at something in that database like ‘Ogden de Sade’ and know, okay, that’s Ogden Nash, and it’s funny, and we should figure out a nice way to keep that joke online,” Henriquez says. “There were many instances where our technological approach was informed by this deep understanding of the magazine’s history and its cultural context.”

Unearthing a treasure trove of early journalism

Over the course of this process, Henriquez unearthed stories that he never could have expected. He came across a short, unsigned book review from 1935 of a memoir by a survivor of a Nazi concentration camp, and says he had to “triple-check that we didn’t have bad data somewhere, because that review was published in March of 1935, just two years after Hitler became chancellor. I didn’t realize those stories were out there that early, much less being translated into English and published in America.” 

On a lighter note, he also found a piece about going to the Newark airport at the dawn of commercial aviation in 1933, and a 1947 article that’s one of the first examples of TV criticism ever published by The New Yorker. Along the way, he says, he rediscovered what makes magazine writing special.

“In a newspaper, most stories have the same framing: ‘This happened,’” Henriquez explains. “But a magazine article can do something different: It can be told in a different tense or in a different way—‘This could happen,’ ‘This happened to this person.’” 

Examples of this distinct genre of analysis include a 1969 article, a few months before the moon landing, that lays out how it will happen, step-by-step; or a pre-Sputnik piece about American scientists trying to launch the first satellite; or a 1961 feature on the rollout of desegregation, as witnessed by author Katharine T. Kinkead and a group of Black college students driving around Durham, North Carolina. 

Henriquez says: “These kinds of things, I think, make magazine journalism essential and unique.”

---

The right mastered influencer politics. Now they’re tearing the movement apart.

Click here to go see the bonus panel!

Hovertext:
Of course you don't need AI. You can just crunch the numbers in excel.

Today's News: