In the case of Britain, it was the following (and more): - be colonised by the Romans 2000 years ago - spend the next 1000 years rediscovering and (eventually

In the case of Britain, it was the following (and more): - be colonised by the Romans 2000 years ago - spend the next 1000 years rediscovering and (eventually) surpassing the Romans' achievements - invest heavily in education (when the Incas were building their monuments, most of Oxford University had already been constructed) and subsequently have 1000 years of cumulative effect of those investments - be highly connected to Western Europe, with all the continual advancements shared between countries all trying to outdo each other - be an island nation, with a seafaring tradition that was accelerated by all of the above to the point of being the best in the world