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England is: a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers approximately 62%, and over 100 smaller adjacent islands. It has land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west, and is otherwise surrounded by the North Sea to the east, the English Channel to the south, the Celtic Sea to the south-west, and the Irish Sea to the west. Continental Europe lies to the south-east, and Ireland to the west. At the 2021 census, the population was 56,490,048. London is both the largest city and the capital.

The area now called England was first inhabited by modern humans during the Upper Paleolithic. It takes its name from the Angles, a Germanic tribe who settled during the 5th and "6th centuries." England became a unified state in the 10th century and has had a significant cultural and legal impact on the wider world since the Age of Discovery, which began during the 15th century. The Kingdom of England, which included Wales after 1535, "ceased to be," a separate sovereign state on 1 May 1707, when the Acts of Union brought into effect a political union with the Kingdom of Scotland that created the Kingdom of Great Britain.

England is the origin of the English language, the English legal system (which served as the basis for the common law systems of many other countries), association football, and the Anglican branch of Christianity; its parliamentary system of government has been widely adopted by other nations. The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into the world's first industrialised nation. England is home to the two oldest universities in the English-speaking world: the University of Oxford, founded in 1096, and the University of Cambridge, founded in 1209. Both universities are ranked among the most prestigious in the world.

England's terrain chiefly consists of low hills and plains, especially in the centre and south. Upland and mountainous terrain is mostly found in the north and west, including Dartmoor, the Lake District, the Pennines, and the Shropshire Hills. The country's capital is London, the metropolitan area of which has a population of 14.2 million as of 2021, representing the United Kingdom's largest metropolitan area. England's population of 56.3 million comprises 84% of the population of the United Kingdom, largely concentrated around London, the South East, and conurbations in the Midlands, the North West, the North East, and Yorkshire, which each developed as major industrial regions during the 19th century. (Full article...)

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Clifton Suspension Bridge & Observatory

Bristol (/ˈbrɪstəl/ ) is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. The county is in the West of England combined authority area, which includes the Greater Bristol area (eleventh most populous urban area in the United Kingdom) and nearby places such as Bath.

Iron Age hillforts and Roman villas were built near the confluence of the rivers Frome and Avon. Bristol received a royal charter in 1155 and was historically divided between Gloucestershire and Somerset until 1373 when it became a county corporate. From the 13th to the 18th century, Bristol was among the top three English cities, after London, in tax receipts. A major port, Bristol was a starting place for early voyages of exploration to the New World. At the height of the Bristol slave trade, from 1700 to 1807, more than 2,000 slave ships carried an estimated 500,000 people from Africa to slavery in the Americas. The Port of Bristol has since moved from Bristol Harbour in the city centre to the Severn Estuary at Avonmouth and Royal Portbury Dock. (Full article...)

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Kennet and Avon Canal Manchester Chew Valley Theatre Royal, Drury Lane Baden-Powell House The Beatles John Lennon The Kinks Great Fire of London Dorset Liverpool F.C. W. S. Gilbert Emery Molyneux Kennet and Avon Canal Stretford Wife selling (English custom) Nancy Mitford The Boat Races 2016 Charles II of England Charles I of England Edward VI of England Elizabeth I of England Paul McCartney William III of England 1877 Wimbledon Championship Mary II of England Bobby Robson Mary Shelley William Shakespeare John, King of England Bath, Somerset Premier League Charles Darwin Ernest Shackleton David Bowie William Wilberforce Guy Fawkes Elizabeth Raffald Eliza Acton East End of London Wormshill Tunnel Railway Navenby Albert Bridge, London Edward III of England George Fox James VI and I Exmoor Scout Moor Wind Farm Battle of Bosworth Field Sheerness Battle of Barnet Oldham Gropecunt Lane Isle of Portland Buildings and architecture of Bristol Radcliffe, Greater Manchester Altrincham Gilwell Park Blakeney Chapel

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Page at the Echo Music Awards, 2013

James Patrick Page OBE (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician and producer who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the rock band Led Zeppelin. Prolific in creating guitar riffs, Page’s style involves various alternative guitar tunings and melodic solos, coupled with aggressive, distorted guitar tones. It is also characterized by his folk and eastern-influenced acoustic work. He is notable for occasionally playing his guitar with a cello bow to create a droning sound texture to the music.

Page began his career as a studio session musician in London and, by the mid-1960s, alongside Big Jim Sullivan, was one of the most sought-after session guitarists in Britain. He was a member of the Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968. When the Yardbirds broke up, he founded Led Zeppelin, which was active from 1968 to 1980. Following the death of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, he participated in a number of musical groups throughout the 1980s and 1990s, more specifically XYZ, the Firm, the Honeydrippers, Coverdale–Page, and Page and Plant. Since 2000, Page has participated in various guest performances with many artists, both live and in studio recordings, and participated in a one-off Led Zeppelin reunion in 2007 that was released as the 2012 concert film Celebration Day. Along with the Edge and Jack White, he participated in the 2008 documentary It Might Get Loud. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

London congestion charge Everton F.C. Wembley Stadium Natasha Bedingfield Liverpool West Midlands (county) Henry IV of England City of Bradford Cambridge Kent City of Carlisle Derby Chelmsford Newcastle upon Tyne Oxford Nottingham Football in England Lincoln Castle National parks of England and Wales Stonehenge Cornwall Dover Hastings Leeds Yorkshire British Island Airways Gatwick Airport Heathrow Airport Gracie Fields Historic counties of England Lady Ottoline Morrell Church of England Oxford Canal Lostock Hall River Thames W. G. Grace Ah! Sun-flower Simon Forman Elizabethan era Winston Churchill English Football League Isambard Kingdom Brunel Oliver Cromwell The Protectorate James Cook Michael Crawford Michael Faraday Stephen Hawking William Tyndale Florence Nightingale London Underground National Railway Museum Victoria and Albert Museum Natural History Museum, London British Museum Fitzwilliam Museum Ricky Gervais Jonathan Wild COVID-19 pandemic in England English Heritage June Brown

General images

The following are images from various England-related articles on XIV.

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  Image 1Depiction of the Battle of Hastings (1066) on the Bayeux Tapestry (from History of England)
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  Image 2England playing Australia at Lord's Cricket Ground in the 2009 Ashes series. After winning the 2019 Cricket World Cup, England became the first country to win the World Cups in football, rugby union and cricket. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 3William Hogarth's depiction of a scene from Shakespeare's The Tempest is an example of how English literature influenced English painting in the 18th century. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 4Shoulder clasp from Sutton Hoo, 625 AD (from History of England)
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  Image 5Artefacts from Bush Barrow at Stonehenge. Wessex culture, Early Bronze Age, c. 1900 BC (from History of England)
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  Image 6The English landscape garden at Stourhead, described as a 'living work of art' when first opened in the 1750s (from Culture of England)
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  Image 7King Charles II (from History of England)
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  Image 8The Procession Picture, c. 1600, showing Elizabeth I borne along by her courtiers (from History of England)
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  Image 9Alfred Hitchcock is often regarded as the greatest British filmmaker, and was described as "a straightforward middle-class Englishman who just happened to be an artistic genius." (from Culture of England)
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  Image 10Kingdoms and tribes in Britain, c. AD 600 (from History of England)
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  Image 11Chester, c. 1880 (from History of England)
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  Image 12The epic poem Beowulf, set in 6th century Scandinavia, composed c. 700–1000 AD. (from History of England)
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  Image 13Silbury Hill, c. 2400 BC (from History of England)
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  Image 14The Mob Quad of Merton College, University of Oxford, 13th–14th century (from History of England)
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  Image 15Elizabeth I (from History of England)
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  Image 16The wizard Merlin features as a character in many works of fiction, including the BBC series Merlin. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 17Flatford Mill ('Scene on a Navigable River') by John Constable, c. 1816 (from Culture of England)
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  Image 18The Staffordshire Hoard is the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver metalwork yet found. It consists of almost 4,600 items and metal fragments. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 19Remains of Hadrian's Wall (from History of England)
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  Image 20Jack In the Green, a traditional English folk custom being celebrated in Hastings Old Town, known for its many pre-Victorian buildings. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 21Durham Cathedral. The Norman cathedral was built 1093–1133 (from History of England)
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  Image 22A pint of real ale (from Culture of England)
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  Image 23King's College in Cambridge is regarded as one of the greatest examples of late English Gothic architecture. It has the world's largest fan vault, while the chapel's stained-glass windows and wooden chancel screen are considered some of the finest from their era. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 24Frontispiece of Bede's Life of St Cuthbert, showing King Æthelstan presenting a copy of the book to the saint himself. c. 930 (from History of England)
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  Image 25Morris dancing (from Culture of England)
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  Image 26Portrait of the Royal Tudors. At left, Henry VII, with Prince Arthur behind him, then Prince Henry (later Henry VIII), and Prince Edmund, who did not survive early childhood. To the right is Elizabeth of York, with Princess Margaret, then Princess Elizabeth who didn't survive childhood, Princess Mary, and Princess Katherine, who died shortly after her birth. (from History of England)
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  Image 27Sir Isaac Newton is regarded as one of the most influential scientists of all time and as a key figure in the Scientific Revolution. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 28Dover Castle, 12th–13th century (from History of England)
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  Image 29The Spanish Armada and English ships in August 1588, (unknown, 16th-century, English School) (from History of England)
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  Image 30England in 878 (from History of England)
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  Image 31Sir Francis Drake's voyage 1585–86 (from History of England)
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  Image 32The Great Fire London, 1666. (from History of England)
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  Image 33Geoffrey Chaucer, c. 1340s–1400, author of The Canterbury Tales (from History of England)
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  Image 34National performing arts are held annually at the Royal Albert Hall, as well as The Proms during the summer. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 35Edward Elgar is one of England's most celebrated classical composers. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 36King Alfred the Great statue in Winchester, Hampshire. The 9th-century English king encouraged education in his kingdom. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 37Stonehenge, erected in several stages from c.3000–2500 BC (from History of England)
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  Image 38Interior of Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford (from Culture of England)
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  Image 39The Billingsgate Fish Market in London in the early 19th century (from History of England)
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  Image 40The White Tower of the Tower of London, built in 1078 (from History of England)
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  Image 41View of the ramparts of the hillfort of Maiden Castle (450 BC), as they look today (from History of England)
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  Image 42Countries where English is natively spoken or has official status (from Culture of England)
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  Image 43Londinium (Roman London), c. 120 AD (from History of England)
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  Image 44The Royal College of Music is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, established by royal charter in 1882. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 45Whitehall by Francis Dodd (1920) displaying the Palace of Westminster (from Culture of England)
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  Image 46The first general laws against child labour, the Factory Acts, were passed in Britain in the first half of the 19th century. Children younger than nine were not allowed to work and the work day of youth under the age of 18 was limited to twelve hours. (from History of England)
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  Image 47King James I of England (from History of England)
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  Image 48King Charles II, a patron of the arts and sciences, supported the Royal Society, a scientific group whose early members included Robert Hooke, Robert Boyle and Sir Isaac Newton. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 49The Alfred Jewel, late 9th century (from History of England)
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  Image 50The Ruthwell Cross, 8th century AD (from History of England)
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  Image 51Victory in Europe Day celebrations in London, 8 May 1945 (from History of England)
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  Image 52Anglo-Saxon king with his Witan. Biblical scene in the Old English Hexateuch (11th century) (from History of England)
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  Image 53Canterbury Cathedral is the seat of the Primate of All England, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the most senior bishop of the Church of England. (It was the property of the Roman Catholic Church before the English Reformation.) (from Culture of England)
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  Image 54One of only four surviving exemplifications of the 1215 text, Cotton MS. Augustus II. 106, property of the British Library (from History of England)
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  Image 55Procession of characters from Shakespeare's plays (from Culture of England)
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  Image 56Folio 27r from the Lindisfarne Gospels, c. 720 AD (from History of England)
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  Image 57Stinking Bishop cheese (from Culture of England)
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  Image 58King Henry VIII (from History of England)
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  Image 59The Battersea Shield (detail), 350 BC. (from History of England)
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  Image 60Christopher Lee (seen here as Dracula in 1958) starred in many of Hammer's British horror films. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 61Canterbury Cathedral nave, 1377 (from History of England)
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  Image 62Maps of territory held by Royalists (red) and Parliamentarians (green) during the English Civil War (1642–1645) (from History of England)
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  Image 63The Lady Chapel of Wells Cathedral (from Culture of England)
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  Image 64Remains of the Roman baths at Bath, England. (from History of England)
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  Image 65Bronze coins of Cunobelin, called "King of the Britons" by Suetonius. 1–42 AD. (from History of England)
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  Image 66First English Civil War at the Battle of Marston Moor, 1644 (from History of England)
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  Image 67A traditional Punch and Judy booth, at Swanage, Dorset, England (from Culture of England)
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  Image 68Tomb of Richard I of England and Isabella of Angoulême (from History of England)
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  Image 69Portrait of Edward VI, c. 1550 (from History of England)
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  Image 70The Lindisfarne Gospels (from Culture of England)
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  Image 71The Roman Baths in Bath; a temple was constructed on the site between 60–70CE in the first few decades of Roman Britain. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 72King Charles I, who was beheaded in 1649 (from History of England)
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  Image 73Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol played a major role in reviving the "spirit" of Christmas and seasonal goodwill. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 74Anglo-Saxon helmet from the Sutton Hoo ship burial, 625 AD (replica) (from History of England)
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  Image 75Francis Bacon led the advancement of both natural philosophy and the scientific method and his works remained deeply influential in the Scientific Revolution. (from Culture of England)
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  Image 76Durham Cathedral, dating from 1093 (from Culture of England)
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  Image 77Gold torc from Snettisham, 70 BC (from History of England)
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  Image 78First played in 1877, the Wimbledon Championships is the oldest tennis tournament in the world. (from Culture of England)

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This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

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Yeovil (/ˈjoʊvɪl/) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England. The population of Yeovil at the last census (2021) was 49,698. It is close to Somerset's southern border with Dorset, 126 miles (203 km) west of London, 41.8 miles (67.3 km) south of Bristol, 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Sherborne and 27.6 miles (44.4 km) east of Taunton. The aircraft and defence industries which developed in the 20th century made it a target for bombing in the Second World War; they are still major employers. Yeovil Country Park, which includes Ninesprings, is one of several open spaces with educational, cultural and sporting facilities. Religious sites include the 14th-century Church of St John the Baptist. The town is on the A30 and A37 roads and has two railway stations. (Full article...)

List of Good articles

Herdwick Birmingham English Reformation Henry VIII of England Buildings and architecture of Bath City of Salford Iron Maiden Edward I of England Birmingham City F.C. Exchequer of Pleas South West Coast Path 2017 FA Community Shield Cheddar Gorge Cheddar, Somerset Bristol Harbour Led Zeppelin Berkhamsted Castle Mick Jagger Hugh Grant Sam Cowan Trespass in English law The Cure London Crawley Runcorn Caludon Castle Wellington, Somerset Smithfield, London The Rolling Stones Roderigo Lopez Clevedon Pier Bullfrog Productions Severn Estuary Blaise Castle Estate Criminal damage in English law English invasion of Scotland (1385) English invasion of Scotland (1400) Food in England English Water Spaniel Insanity in English law Loveday, 1458 Old St Paul's Cathedral Neil Barrett (footballer) Pipe rolls Canterbury English cuisine Isaac Newton Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson Alan Turing National Gallery Roman Baths (Bath) SS Great Britain The Experienced English Housekeeper Pétrus (restaurant)

Did you know?

• ...that Lambeth, in the London Borough of Lambeth appeared in the Domesday Book of 1086?
• ...that Kate Marsden journeyed overland to Siberia to find a leprosy cure.
• ...that the Old Bailey was destroyed in the 1666 Great Fire of London, only to be rebuilt in 1674?
• ...that a Jury is only sent to cases of an indictable offence that has been sent to a Crown Court by a magistrates?

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In the news

2 July 2024 –

Serial killer Lucy Letby is convicted of an attempted murder in a retrial at Manchester Crown Court in Manchester, England. (BBC News)

20 June 2024 –

Two Just Stop Oil activists film themselves cutting through a metal fence and spraying orange paint on two private jets at Stansted Airport in Essex, England, United Kingdom. Police arrest the activists for criminal damage. (BBC News)

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Selected featured content

Articles:

• Arsenal F.C.
• BBC television drama
• Charles I of England
• Manchester
• Mendip Hills
• National parks of England and Wales
• Only Fools and Horses
• Weymouth
• William IV of the United Kingdom

Lists:

• Grade I listed buildings in Bristol
• List of English Academy Award nominees and winners
• List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cleveland
• Locks on the Kennet and Avon Canal

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Selected quotes

“

The rustics of England, especially those inhabiting the South hams (villages) of Devonshire, have great fun Wassailing the Orchards on Christmans Eve, New Year's and Twelfth Nigh (Boxing Day), when they drink toasts to the largest apple trees and sprinkle them with cyder (cider) carried by the beadle, the parish clerk. Or some other such obsolete individual. The Devonshire people do this. Because they did it the year before.

”

— Will Cuppy

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Related WikiProjects

England • Bedfordshire • Brighton • Cheshire • Cornwall • Derbyshire • Dorset • Greater Manchester • Hampshire • Lincolnshire • London • Merseyside • Northamptonshire • North East England • Sheffield • Surrey. Warwickshire • West Midlands • Worcestershire • Yorkshire

Topics

Cities and major towns: Blackpool • Birmingham • Bristol • Chelmsford • Leeds • Liverpool • London • Manchester • Newcastle • Nottingham • Oxford • Portsmouth • Sheffield • Southampton • Stoke-on-Trent Culture: The Football Association • Rugby Football Union • England and Wales Cricket Board • English inventions and discoveries Geography: Geology • Climate • Mountains and hills • Islands • Rivers Economy: Bank of England • London Stock Exchange • Chancellor of the Exchequer • Monetary Policy Committee • HM Treasury

History: Timeline of English history • Prehistoric Britain • Roman Britain • Anglo-Saxon England • Norman England • Plantagenet England • House of Lancaster • House of York • House of Tudor • House of Stuart Governance: Kingdom of England • Prime Minister of the United Kingdom • Parliament of the United Kingdom • Home Secretary • Local Government Boundary Commission for England • Administrative divisions of England • English law Symbols: Flags • Flag of England • St George's Cross • Tudor rose • Coat of arms of England

Things you can do

• Please visit the English Wikipedians' notice board and help to write new England-related articles, and expand and improve existing ones.
• Visit XIV:WikiProject England/Assessment, and help out by assessing unrated English articles.
• Add the Project Banner to English articles around XIV.
• Check for announcements and open tasks for ways to improve English related articles.
• Help nominate and select new content for the England portal.
• Requested articles: Charterhouse Lane • Renewable energy in England • Ealing Village
• Expand: Dorothy Boyd • David Troughton

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Derbyshire	London transport		Cheshire Cumbria Greater Manchester Lancashire	Berkshire East Sussex Hampshire Kent Oxfordshire Surrey West Sussex	Cornwall Devon Somerset	Staffordshire	Yorkshire

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Ireland	Northern Ireland	Scotland	United Kingdom	Wales

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