Typology of British colonial possessions

settlement colonies: colonies established by European (primarily British) settlers in North America, Australia and New Zealand, and South Africa;  initially characterized by forms of representative government (e.g. colonial assemblies); ultimately achieved responsible government (which meant they were internally self-governing) and then Dominion status within the British Commonwealth

India: initial British presence established by the East India Company; during the eighteenth century, the Company governed parts of India (e.g. Calcutta) under grants of the Mughal emporer; British government administrators not involved at all until 1784; Crown sovereignty recognized over conquered areas by 1813, though the Company was primarily responsible for governing India until 1858; after 1876 British monarchs held the title of Emporer or Empress of India; throughout company and crown rule, certain native, or princely, states were never conquered, but treaties bound to them to the British Crown

crown colonies: colonies under the direct authority of the Crown and administered by royally appointed governors; minimal, if any, delegation of authority to representative bodies; this method of governing was first applied to colonies conquered from other powers between 1793 and 1814; overwhelmingly non-European population; became the basic system of imperial government in Africa and the Pacific; representative bodies eventually conceded, followed by responsible government and full independence after the Second World War

protectorates: Britain did not legally possess sovereignty over protectorates; indigenous rulers kept sovereignty and placed themselves under the protection of the British crown; most protectorates eventually became Crown colonies

mandates: former provinces of the Ottoman Empire and colonies of Germany awarded to Britain by the League of Nations after the First World War; some were treated as protectorates (e.g. Transjordan and Iraq), others as crown colonies (e.g. Palestine) 

informal empire

[adapted from The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire, 152-3]