The six colonies individually gained responsible government between 1855 and 1890, managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the British Empire.^[74] The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs.^[75] The colonial parliaments progressively extended voting rights to adult men from 1856, with women’s suffrage on equal terms following between the 1890s and 1900s. Some colonies introduced racial restrictions on voting from 1885.^[76]