You know, some of the points (even if we take those easily demonstrable as false e.g. conquering Afghanistan) strike me as being a bit like the Texas sharpshooter fallacy.
"You don't maintain complete control over the Mediterranean Sea... unless you are the Romans."
"Insert quip about British naval superiority letting them maintain a vast disconnected empire where Spain's 'failed' here."
Major world empires in history have all left stunning legacies by their very nature. We remember them because they were impressive. Not because they were unexceptional. Of course they did things that were unusual. If they didn't they wouldn't have these vast empires in the first place.
Here's another thread that asks the same question:
EDIT: Fixed link