No country has ever ruled over the entire planet, but the British have come the closest. The British Empire was the largest in history. By 1921, approximately one quarter of the world’s population was part of the British Empire, and its power and influence extended to every continent. At its peak, it covered so much of the surface of the Earth that it was literally true that the sun never set on it. It was always daylight somewhere in the Empire. The Empire expanded over a period of 300 years by trade, settlement, and conquest. Some historians say it began in 1497 when John Cabot, an Italian mariner sponsored by King Henry VII, landed in Newfoundland and made it England s first overseas territory. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558 1603), the English navy became the most powerful in the world after defeating the Spanish navy (the Armada). In 1580, Sir Francis Drake a key participant in that victory was the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe, and English colonization started. North America was first, including Canada and Caribbean islands like Jamaica and Barbados. Although Dutch explorers visited Australia in the 17th century, it was the English who first settled there, starting with penal colonies. This was followed by the colonization of New Zealand.