Two Animated Historical Timelines Map Modern Empires’ Decline

Here are two animated historical timelines that map geopolitical change over time. This one from the British National Archives, which maps the 20th century, proceeds by period; it gets a few colours wrong here and there, and I’m not sure that occupations are represented consistently. (Also: Mercator? Seriously?) An animation by Pedro Cruz, Visualizing empires’ decline, charts the rise and fall of four European colonial empires during the 19th and 20th centuries; it’s not strictly cartographic, but it is fun to watch — colonies become independent by bursting from their mother countries’ bubbles.

I’m not sure all the dates are right, though. Via Cartophilia and Cartografie.

Posted on Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 9:49 AM
Categories: Historical Maps

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