*British empire nostalgia played part in Brexit vote, says Nobel laureate.*

The idea is that the cover-ups of repression in colonies enabled the British empire to look good until it fell, and after.

Another pertinent point is why the UK was able to prosper and build such an empire, despite being so small. The reason was, because it was the first country to go through the industrial revolution, in the 1700s. It has no such advantage now.