That British Empire joke reminded me of another I learned from Isaac Asimov:

In the good old days of the Empire, a civil servant and his family moved to Khartoum. As the man and his son explored the city, they found a magnificent equestrian statue of "Chinese" Gordon. The father lovingly described Gordon's patriotism, his faith, his bravery, and how he was regarded as a martyr and a hero by all the Empire.

The boy was impressed, and became enamored of the statue. He often went to visit and admire it. Years later, as the family was about to be transferred elsewhere, the father went out to discover his son paying the statue a respectful farewell. He was gratified and moved by his son's reverence for this great hero of the British Empire.

As they left, his son said, "Father, there is something I have always wondered about that statue."

"What is it, son?"

"Who is that man who sits on Gordon?"