i/ˈɪŋɡlənd/ is a country that is part of the United Kingdom.[6][7][8] It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental Europe. Most of England comprises the central and southern part of the island of Great Britain in the North Atlantic. The country also includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly and the Isle of Wight.The area now called England was first inhabited by modern humans during the Upper Palaeolithic period, but it takes its name from the Angles, one of the Germanic tribes who settled during the 5th and 6th centuries. England became a unified state in AD 927, and since the Age of Discovery, which began during the 15th century, has had a significant cultural and legal impact on the wider world.[9] The English language, the Anglican Church, and English law—the basis for the common law legal systems of many other countries around the world—developed in England, and the country's parliamentary system of government has been widely adopted by other nations.[10] The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into the world's first industrialised nation.[11] England's Royal Society laid the foundations of modern experimental science.[12]
England's terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains, especially in central and southern England. However, there are uplands in the north (for example, the mountainous Lake District, Pennines, and Yorkshire Dales) and in the south west (for example, Dartmoor and the Cotswolds). London, England's capital, is the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures.[note 3] England's population is about 51 million, around 84% of the population of the United Kingdom, and is largely concentrated in 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. Meadowlands and pastures are found beyond the major cities.
The Kingdom of England—which after 1284 included Wales—was a sovereign state until 1 May 1707, when the Acts of Union put into effect the terms agreed in the Treaty of Union the previous year, resulting in a political union with the Kingdom of Scotland to create the new Kingdom of Great Britain.[13][14] In 1801, Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland through another Act of Union to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922, the Irish Free State was established as a separate dominion, but the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 reincorporated into the kingdom six Irish counties to officially create the current United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
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Toponymy
See also: Toponymy of England
The name "England" is derived from the Old English name Engla land, which means "land of the Angles".[15] The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages. The Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea.[16] According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first known use of "England" to refer to the southern part of the island of Great Britain occurs in 897, and its modern spelling was first used in 1538.[17]The earliest attested mention of the name occurs in the 1st century work by Tacitus, Germania, in which the Latin word Anglii is used.[18] The etymology of the tribal name itself is disputed by scholars; it has been suggested that it derives from the shape of the Angeln peninsula, an angular shape.[19] How and why a term derived from the name of a tribe that was less significant than others, such as the Saxons, came to be used for the entire country and its people is not known, but it seems this is related to the custom of calling the Germanic people in Britain Angli Saxones or English Saxons.[20] It may be worth noting that in Scottish Gaelic, another language which developed on the island of Great Britain, it was the dominant Saxon tribe who gave their name to the word for 'England' ("Sasunn").[21]
An alternative name for England is Albion. The name Albion originally referred to the entire island of Great Britain. The earliest record of the name appears in the Aristotelian Corpus, specifically the 4th century BC De Mundo:[22] "Beyond the Pillars of Hercules is the ocean that flows round the earth. In it are two very large islands called Britannia; these are Albion and Ierne".[22] The word Albion (Ἀλβίων) or insula Albionum has two possible origins. It either derives from a cognate of the Latin albus meaning white, a reference to the white cliffs of Dover, the only part of Britain visible from the European Continent,[23] or from the phrase in Massaliote Periplus, the "island of the Albiones".[24] Albion is now applied to England in a more poetic capacity.[25] Another romantic name for England is Loegria, related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr, and made popular by its use in Arthurian legend.
History
Main article: History of England
Prehistory and antiquity
Main article: Prehistoric Britain
The Beaker culture arrived around 2500 BC, introducing drinking and food vessels constructed from clay, as well as vessels used as reduction pots to smelt copper ores.[31] It was during this time that major Neolithic monuments such as Stonehenge and Avebury were constructed. By heating together tin and copper, both of which were in abundance in the area, the Beaker culture people made bronze, and later iron from iron ores. The development of iron smelting allowed the construction of better ploughs, advancing agriculture (for instance, with Celtic fields), as well as the production of more effective weapons.[32]
According to John T. Koch and others, England in the Late Bronze Age was part of a maritime trading-networked culture called the Atlantic Bronze Age that included the whole of the British Isles and much of what we now regard as France together with the Iberian Peninsula. Celtic languages developed in those areas; Tartessian may have been the earliest written Celtic language.[33][34][35]
The Romans invaded Britain in AD 43 during the reign of Emperor Claudius, subsequently conquering much of Britain, and the area was incorporated into the Roman Empire as Britannia province.[36] The best-known of the native tribes who attempted to resist were the Catuvellauni led by Caratacus. Later, an uprising led by Boudica, Queen of the Iceni, ended with Boudica's suicide following her defeat at the Battle of Watling Street.[37] This era saw a Greco-Roman culture prevail with the introduction of Roman law, Roman architecture, sewage systems, many agricultural items, and silk.[38][39][40] In the 3rd century, Emperor Septimius Severus died at Eboracum (modern-day York), where Constantine was subsequently proclaimed emperor.[41]
There is debate about when Christianity was first introduced; it was no later than the 4th century, with probability lying much earlier. According to Bede, missionaries were sent from Rome by Eleutherius at the request of the chieftain Lucius of Britain in AD 180 to settle controverted points of differences as to Eastern and Western ceremonials which were disturbing the church. There are, however, traditions linked to Glastonbury claiming an introduction through Joseph of Arimathea, while others claim through Lucius of Britain.[42] By 410, as the Empire declined, Britain was left exposed by the withdrawal of Roman army units, to defend the frontiers in continental Europe and partake in civil wars.[43]
Middle Ages
Main article: England in the Middle Ages
During the settlement period the lands ruled by the incomers seem to have been fragmented into numerous tribal territories, but by the 7th century, when substantial evidence of the situation again becomes available, these had coalesced into roughly a dozen kingdoms including Northumbria, Mercia, Wessex, East Anglia, Essex, Kent and Sussex. Over the following centuries this process of political consolidation continued.[45] The 7th century saw a struggle for hegemony between Northumbria and Mercia, which in the 8th century gave way to Mercian preeminence.[46] In the early 9th century Mercia was displaced as the foremost kingdom by Wessex. Later in that century escalating attacks by the Danes culminated in the conquest of the north and east of England, overthrowing the kingdoms of Northumbria, Mercia and East Anglia. Wessex under Alfred the Great was left as the only surviving English kingdom, and under his successors it steadily expanded at the expense of the kingdoms of the Danelaw. This brought about the political unification of England, first accomplished under Æthelstan in 927 and definitively established after further conflicts by Eadred in 953. A fresh wave of Scandinavian attacks from the late 10th century ended with the conquest of this united kingdom by Sweyn Forkbeard in 1013 and again by his son Cnut in 1016, turning it into the centre of a short-lived North Sea empire that also included Denmark and Norway. However the native royal dynasty was restored with the accession of Edward the Confessor in 1042.
The House of Plantagenet from Anjou inherited the English throne under Henry II, adding England to the budding Angevin Empire of fiefs the family had inherited in France including Aquitaine.[50] They reigned for three centuries, proving noted monarchs such as Richard I, Edward I, Edward III and Henry V.[50] The period saw changes in trade and legislation, including the signing of the Magna Carta, an English legal charter used to limit the sovereign's powers by law and protect the privileges of freemen. Catholic monasticism flourished, providing philosophers and the universities of Oxford and Cambridge were founded with royal patronage. The Principality of Wales became a Plantagenet fief during the 13th century[51] and the Lordship of Ireland was gifted to the English monarchy by the Pope.
During the 14th century, the Plantagenets and House of Valois both claimed to be legitimate claimants to House of Capet and with it France—the two powers clashed in the Hundred Years' War.[52] The Black Death epidemic hit England, starting in 1348, it eventually killed up to half of England's inhabitants.[53][54] From 1453 to 1487 civil war between two branches of the royal family occurred—the Yorkists and Lancastrians—known as the Wars of the Roses.[55] Eventually it led to the Yorkists losing the throne entirely to a Welsh noble family the Tudors, a branch of the Lancastrians headed by Henry Tudor who invaded with Welsh and Breton mercenaries, gaining victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field where the Yorkist king Richard III was killed.[56]
Early Modern
During the Tudor period, the Renaissance reached England through Italian courtiers, who reintroduced artistic, educational and scholarly debate from classical antiquity.[57] During this time England began to develop naval skills, and exploration to the West intensified.[58][59]
Henry VIII broke from communion with the Catholic Church, over issues relating to divorce, under the Acts of Supremacy in 1534 which proclaimed the monarch head of the Church of England. In contrast with much of European Protestantism, the roots of the split were more political than theological.[note 4] He also legally incorporated his ancestral land Wales into the Kingdom of England with the 1535–1542 acts. There were internal religious conflicts during the reigns of Henry's daughters, Mary I and Elizabeth I. The former brought the country back to Catholicism, while the later broke from it again, more forcefully asserting the supremacy of Anglicanism.
An English fleet under Francis Drake defeated an invading Spanish Armada during the Elizabethan period. Competing with Spain, the first English colony in the Americas was founded in 1585 by explorer Walter Raleigh in Virginia and named Roanoke. The Roanoke colony failed and is known as the lost colony, after it was found abandoned on the return of the late arriving supply ship.[61] With the East India Company, England also competed with the Dutch and French in the East. The political structure of the island was changed in 1603, when the Stuart James VI of Scotland, a kingdom which was a longtime rival, inherited the throne of England as James I—creating a personal union .[62][63] He styled himself King of Great Britain, although this had no basis in English law.[64]
The Great Fire of London in 1666 gutted the City of London but it was rebuilt shortly afterwards.[67] In Parliament two factions had emerged—the Tories and Whigs. The former were royalists while the latter were classical liberals. Though the Tories initially supported Catholic king James II, some of them, along with the Whigs, deposed him in the Revolution of 1688 and invited Dutch prince William III to become monarch. Some English people, especially in the north, were Jacobites and continued to support James and his sons. After the parliaments of England and Scotland agreed,[68] the two countries joined in political union, to create the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707.[62] To accommodate the union, institutions such as the law and national church of each remained separate.[69]
Late Modern and contemporary
During the Industrial Revolution, many workers moved from England's countryside to new and expanding urban industrial areas to work in factories, for instance at Manchester and Birmingham, dubbed "Warehouse City" and "Workshop of the World" respectively.[73][74] England maintained relative stability throughout the French Revolution; William Pitt the Younger was British Prime Minister for the reign of George III. During the Napoleonic Wars, Napoleon planned to invade from the south-east. However this failed to manifest and the Napoleonic forces were defeated by the British at sea by Lord Nelson and on land by the Duke of Wellington. The Napoleonic Wars fostered a concept of Britishness and a united national British people, shared with the Scots and Welsh.[75]
Since the 20th century there has been significant population movement to England, mostly from other parts of the British Isles, but also from the Commonwealth, particularly the Indian subcontinent.[82] Since the 1970s there has been a large move away from manufacturing and an increasing emphasis on the service industry.[83] As part of the United Kingdom, the area joined a common market initiative called the European Economic Community which became the European Union. Since the late 20th century the administration of the United Kingdom has moved towards devolved governance in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.[84] England and Wales continues to exist as a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom.[85] Devolution has stimulated a greater emphasis on a more English-specific identity and patriotism.[86][87] There is no devolved English government, but an attempt to create a similar system on a sub-regional basis was rejected by referendum.[88]
Governance
Politics
Main article: Politics of England
In the United Kingdom general election, 2010 the Conservative Party had won an absolute majority in England's 532 contested seats with 61 seats more than all other parties combined (the Speaker of the House not being counted as a Conservative). However, taking Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales into account this was not enough to secure an overall majority, resulting in a hung parliament.[92] In order to achieve a majority the Conservative party, headed by David Cameron, entered into a coalition agreement with the third largest party, the Liberal Democrats, led by Nick Clegg. Subsequently the Labour Party leader, Gordon Brown was forced to step down as prime minister[93] and leader of the Labour party, now led by Ed Miliband.
Since devolution, in which other countries of the United Kingdom—Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland—each have their own devolved parliament or assemblies for local issues, there has been debate about how to counterbalance this in England. Originally it was planned that various regions of England would be devolved, but following the proposal's rejection by the North East in a referendum, this has not been carried out.[88]
One major issue is the West Lothian question, in which MPs from Scotland and Wales are able to vote on legislation affecting only England, while English MPs have no equivalent right to legislate on devolved matters.[95] This when placed in the context of England being the only country of the United Kingdom not to have free cancer treatment, prescriptions, residential care for the elderly and free top-up university fees,[96] has led to a steady rise in English nationalism.[97] Some have suggested the creation of a devolved English parliament,[98] while others have proposed simply limiting voting on legislation which only affects England to English MPs.[99]
Law
Main article: English law
The English law legal system, developed over the centuries, is the basis of common law[100] legal systems used in most Commonwealth countries[101] and the United States (except Louisiana). Despite now being part of the United Kingdom, the legal system of the Courts of England and Wales continued, under the Treaty of Union, as a separate legal system from the one used in Scotland. The general essence of English law is that it is made by judges sitting in courts, applying their common sense and knowledge of legal precedent—stare decisis—to the facts before them.[102]
The court system is headed by the Supreme Court of Judicature, consisting of the Court of Appeal, the High Court of Justice for civil cases, and the Crown Court for criminal cases.[103] The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom is the highest court for criminal and civil cases in England and Wales. It was created in 2009 after constitutional changes, taking over the judicial functions of the House of Lords.[104] A decision of the Supreme Court is binding on every other court in the hierarchy, which must follow its directions.[105]
Crime increased between 1981 and 1995, but fell by 42% in the period 1995–2006.[106] The prison population doubled over the same period, giving it the highest incarceration rate in Western Europe at 147 per 100,000.[107] Her Majesty's Prison Service, reporting to the Ministry of Justice, manages most prisons, housing over 80,000 convicts.[107]
Regions, counties, and districts
Main article: Subdivisions of England
After devolution began to take place in other parts of the United Kingdom it was planned that referendums for the regions of England would take place for their own elected regional assemblies as a counterweight. London accepted in 1998: the London Assembly was created two years later. However, when the proposal was rejected by the northern England devolution referendums, 2004 in the North East, further referendums were cancelled.[88] The regional assemblies outside London were abolished in 2010, and their functions transferred to respective Regional Development Agencies and a new system of local authority leaders' boards.[109]
Below the regional level, all of England is divided into 48 ceremonial counties.[110] These are used primarily as a geographical frame of reference and have developed gradually since the Middle Ages, with some established as recently as 1974.[111] Each has a Lord Lieutenant and High Sheriff; these posts are used to represent the British monarch locally.[110] Outside Greater London and the Isles of Scilly, England is also divided into 83 metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties; these correspond to areas used for the purposes of local government[112] and may consist of a single district or be divided into several.
There are six metropolitan counties based on the most heavily urbanised areas, which do not have county councils.[112] In these areas the principal authorities are the councils of the subdivisions, the metropolitan boroughs. Elsewhere, 27 non-metropolitan "shire" counties have a county council and are divided into districts, each with a district council. They are typically, though not always, found in more rural areas. The remaining non-metropolitan counties are of a single district and usually correspond to large towns or counties with low populations; they are known as unitary authorities. Greater London has a different system for local government, with 32 London boroughs, plus the City of London covering a small area at the core, governed by the City of London Corporation.[113] At the most localised level, much of England is divided into civil parishes with councils; they do not exist in Greater London.[114]
Geography
Main article: Geography of England
Landscape and rivers
The ports of London, Liverpool, and Newcastle lie on the tidal rivers Thames, Mersey and Tyne respectively. At 354 kilometres (220 mi), the Severn is the longest river flowing through England.[117] It empties into the Bristol Channel and is notable for its Severn Bore tidal waves, which can reach 2 metres (6.6 ft) in height.[118] However, the longest river entirely in England is the Thames, which is 346 kilometres (215 mi) in length.[119] There are many lakes in England; the largest is Windermere, within the aptly named Lake District.[120]
In geological terms, the Pennines, known as the "backbone of England", are the oldest range of mountains in the country, originating from the end of the Paleozoic Era around 300 million years ago.[121] Their geological composition includes, among others, sandstone and limestone, and also coal. There are karst landscapes in calcite areas such as parts of Yorkshire and Derbyshire. The Pennine landscape is high moorland in upland areas, indented by fertile valleys of the region's rivers. They contain three national parks, the Yorkshire Dales, Northumberland, and the Peak District. The highest point in England, at 978 metres (3,209 ft), is Scafell Pike in Cumbria.[120] Straddling the border between England and Scotland are the Cheviot Hills.
The English Lowlands are to the south of the Pennines, consisting of green rolling hills, including the Cotswold Hills, Chiltern Hills, North and South Downs—where they meet the sea they form white rock exposures such as the cliffs of Dover. The granite Southwest Peninsula in the West Country includes upland moorland, such as Dartmoor and Exmoor, and enjoys a mild climate; both are national parks.[122]
Climate
Main article: Climate of England
England has a temperate maritime climate: it is mild with temperatures not much lower than 0 °C (32 °F) in winter and not much higher than 32 °C (90 °F) in summer.[123] The weather is damp relatively frequently and is changeable. The coldest months are January and February, the latter particularly on the English coast, while July is normally the warmest month. Months with mild to warm weather are May, June, September and October.[123] Rainfall is spread fairly evenly throughout the year.Important influences on the climate of England are its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, its northern latitude and the warming of the sea by the Gulf Stream.[123] Rainfall is higher in the west, and parts of the Lake District receive more rain than anywhere else in the country.[123] Since weather records began, the highest temperature recorded was 38.5 °C (101.3 °F) on 10 August 2003 at Brogdale in Kent,[124] while the lowest was −26.1 °C (−15.0 °F) on 10 January 1982 in Edgmond, Shropshire.[125]
| Climate data for England | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 7 (45) | 7 (45) | 9 (48) | 12 (54) | 15 (59) | 18 (64) | 21 (70) | 21 (70) | 18 (64) | 14 (57) | 10 (50) | 7 (45) | 13 (55) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 1 (34) | 1 (34) | 2 (36) | 4 (39) | 6 (43) | 9 (48) | 11 (52) | 11 (52) | 9 (48) | 7 (45) | 4 (39) | 2 (36) | 6 (43) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 84 (3.31) | 60 (2.36) | 67 (2.64) | 57 (2.24) | 56 (2.2) | 63 (2.48) | 54 (2.13) | 67 (2.64) | 73 (2.87) | 84 (3.31) | 84 (3.31) | 90 (3.54) | 838 (32.99) |
| Source: Met Office[126] | |||||||||||||
Major conurbations
See also: List of places in England
The Greater London Urban Area is by far the largest urban area in England[127] and one of the busiest cities in the world. It is considered a global city and has a population larger than other countries in the United Kingdom besides England itself.[127] Other urban areas of considerable size and influence tend to be in northern England or the English Midlands.[127] There are fifty settlements which have been designated city status in England, while the wider United Kingdom has sixty-six.While many cities in England are quite large in size, such as Birmingham, Sheffield, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Newcastle, Bradford, Nottingham and others, a large population is not necessarily a prerequisite for a settlement to be afforded city status.[128] Traditionally the status was afforded to towns with diocesan cathedrals and so there are smaller cities like Wells, Ely, Ripon, Truro and Chichester.[128] According to the Office for National Statistics the ten largest, continuous built-up urban areas are:[127]
| Rank | Urban area | Population | Localities | Major localities |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Greater London Urban Area | 8,278,251 | 67 | Greater London, divided into the City of London and 32 London boroughs including Croydon, Barnet, Ealing, Bromley[129] |
| 2 | West Midlands Urban Area | 2,284,093 | 22 | Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall |
| 3 | Greater Manchester Urban Area | 2,240,230 | 57 | Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Stockport, Oldham |
| 4 | West Yorkshire Urban Area | 1,499,465 | 26 | Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield, Wakefield |
| 5 | Tyneside | 879,996 | 25 | Newcastle, North Shields, South Shields, Gateshead, Jarrow |
| 6 | Liverpool Urban Area | 816,216 | 8 | Liverpool, St Helens, Bootle, Huyton-with-Roby |
| 7 | Nottingham Urban Area | 666,358 | 15 | Nottingham, Beeston and Stapleford, Carlton, Long Eaton |
| 8 | Sheffield Urban Area | 640,720 | 7 | Sheffield, Rotherham, Chapeltown, Mosborough |
| 9 | Bristol Urban Area | 551,066 | 7 | Bristol, Kingswood, Mangotsfield, Stoke Gifford |
| 10 | Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton | 461,181 | 10 | Brighton, Worthing, Hove, Littlehampton, Shoreham, Lancing |
Economy
Main article: Economy of England
The economy of England is the largest part of the UK's economy,[132] which has the 18th highest GDP PPP per capita in the world. England is a leader in the chemical[135] and pharmaceutical sectors and in key technical industries, particularly aerospace, the arms industry, and the manufacturing side of the software industry. London, home to the London Stock Exchange, the United Kingdom's main stock exchange and the largest in Europe, is England's financial centre—100 of Europe's 500 largest corporations are based in London.[136] London is the largest financial centre in Europe, and as of 2009[update] is also the largest in the world.[137]
England is highly industrialised, but since the 1970s there has been a decline in traditional heavy and manufacturing industries, and an increasing emphasis on a more service industry oriented economy.[83] Tourism has become a significant industry, attracting millions of visitors to England each year. The export part of the economy is dominated by pharmaceuticals, cars—although many English marques are now foreign-owned, such as Rolls-Royce, Lotus, Jaguar and Bentley—crude oil and petroleum from the English parts of North Sea oil along with Wytch Farm, aircraft engines and alcoholic beverages.[140] Agriculture is intensive and highly mechanised, producing 60% of food needs with only 2% of the labour force.[141] Two thirds of production is devoted to livestock, the other to arable crops.[142]
Science and technology
Main articles: List of English inventions and discoveries and Royal Society
Inventions and discoveries of the English include: the jet engine, the first industrial spinning machine, the first computer and the first modern computer, the World Wide Web along with HTML, the first successful human blood transfusion, the motorised vacuum cleaner,[149] the lawn mower, the seat belt, the hovercraft, the electric motor, steam engines, and theories such as the Darwinian theory of evolution and atomic theory. Newton developed the ideas of universal gravitation, Newtonian mechanics, and infinitesimal calculus, and Robert Hooke his eponymously named law of elasticity. Other inventions include the iron plate railway, the thermosiphon, tarmac, the rubber band, the mousetrap, "cat's eye" road marker, joint development of the light bulb, steam locomotives, the modern seed drill and many modern techniques and technologies used in precision engineering.[150]
Transport
Main article: Transport in England
Bus transport across the country is widespread; major companies include National Express, Arriva and Go-Ahead Group. The red double-decker buses in London have become a symbol of England. There is a rapid rail network in two English cities: the London Underground; and the Tyne and Wear Metro in Newcastle, Gateshead and Sunderland.[153] There are several tram networks, such as the Blackpool tramway, Manchester Metrolink, Sheffield Supertram and Midland Metro, and the Tramlink system centred on Croydon in South London.[153]
Rail transport in England is the oldest in the world: passenger railways originated in England in 1825.[154] Much of Britain's 16,116 kilometres (10,014 mi) of rail network lies in England, covering the country fairly extensively, although a high proportion of railway lines were closed in the second half of the 20th century. These lines are mostly standard gauge (single, double or quadruple track) though there are also a few narrow gauge lines. There is rail transport access to France and Belgium through an undersea rail link, the Channel Tunnel, which was completed in 1994.
England has extensive domestic and international aviation links. The largest airport is London Heathrow, which is the world's busiest airport measured by number of international passengers.[155] Other large airports include Manchester Airport, London Stansted Airport, Luton Airport and Birmingham Airport.[151] By sea there is ferry transport, both local and international, including to Ireland, the Netherlands and Belgium.[156] There are around 7,100 km (4,400 mi) of navigable waterways in England, half of which is owned by British Waterways (Waterscape),[156] however water transport is very limited. The Thames is the major waterway in England, with imports and exports focused at the Port of Tilbury in the Thames Estuary, one of the United Kingdom's three major ports.[156]
Healthcare
Main article: Healthcare in England
The government department responsible for the NHS is the Department of Health, headed by the Secretary of State for Health, who sits in the British Cabinet. Most of the expenditure of the Department of Health is spent on the NHS—£98.6 billion was spent in 2008–2009.[160] In recent years the private sector has been increasingly used to provide more NHS services despite opposition by doctors and trade unions.[161] The average life expectancy of people in England is 77.5 years for males and 81.7 years for females, the highest of the four countries of the United Kingdom.[162]
Demography
Population
The English people are a British people.[3] Some genetic evidence suggests that 75–95% descend in the paternal line from prehistoric settlers who originally came from the Iberian Peninsula, as well as a 5% contribution from Angles and Saxons, and a significant Norse element.[166][167][168] However, other geneticists place the Norse-Germanic estimate up to half.[169][170][171] Over time, various cultures have been influential: Prehistoric, Brythonic,[172] Roman, Anglo-Saxon,[173] Norse Viking,[174] Gaelic cultures, as well as a large influence from Normans. There is an English diaspora in former parts of the British Empire; especially the United States, Canada, Australia, Chile, South Africa and New Zealand.[note 6] Since the late 1990s, English people have migrated to Spain.[179][180]
Other people from much further afield in the former British colonies have arrived since the 1950s: in particular, 6.00% of people living in England have family origins in the Indian subcontinent, mostly India and Pakistan.[3][185] 2.90% of the population are black, mostly from the Caribbean.[3][185] There is a significant number of Chinese and British Chinese.[3][185] As of 2007[update], 22% of primary school children in England were from ethnic minority families.[186] About half of the population increase between 1991 and 2001 was due to immigration.[187] Debate over immigration is politically prominent;[188] according to a Home Office poll, 80% of people want to cap it.[189] The ONS has projected that the population will grow by six million between 2004 and 2029.[190]
Language
Main articles: English language and History of the English language
By the 15th century, English came back into fashion among all classes, though much changed; the Middle English form showed many signs of French influence, both in vocabulary and spelling. During the English Renaissance, many words were coined from Latin and Greek origins.[193] Modern English has extended this custom of flexibility, when it comes to incorporating words from different languages. Thanks in large part to the British Empire, the English language is the world's unofficial lingua franca.[194]
English language learning and teaching is an important economic activity, and includes language schooling, tourism spending, and publishing. There is no legislation mandating an official language for England,[195] but English is the only language used for official business. Despite the country's relatively small size, there are many distinct regional accents, and individuals with particularly strong accents may not be easily understood everywhere in the country.
Cornish, which died out as a community language in the 18th century, is being revived,[196][197][198][199] and is now protected under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.[200] It is spoken by 0.1% of people in Cornwall,[201] and is taught to some degree in several primary and secondary schools.[202][203] State schools teach students a second language, usually French, German or Spanish.[204] Due to immigration, it was reported in 2007 that around 800,000 school students spoke a foreign language at home,[186] the most common being Punjabi and Urdu.[205]
Religion
Main article: Religion in England
There are High Church and Low Church traditions, and some Anglicans regard themselves as Anglo-Catholics, after the Tractarian movement. The monarch of the United Kingdom is a titular leader of the Church, acting as its Supreme Governor. It has the status of established church in England. There are around 26 million adherents to the Church of England and they form part of the Anglican Communion with the Archbishop of Canterbury acting as the symbolic worldwide head.[208] Many cathedrals and parish churches are historic buildings of significant architectural importance, such as Westminster Abbey, York Minster, Durham Cathedral and Salisbury Cathedral.
A form of Protestantism known as Methodism is the third largest and grew out of Anglicanism through John Wesley.[210] It gained popularity in the mill towns of Lancashire and Yorkshire, and amongst tin miners in Cornwall.[211] There are other non-conformist minorities, such as Baptists, Quakers, Congregationalists, Unitarians and The Salvation Army.[212]
The patron saint of England is Saint George; he is represented in the national flag, as well as the Union Flag as part of a combination.[213][213] There are many other English and associated saints; some of the best known include: Cuthbert, Alban, Wilfrid, Aidan, Edward the Confessor, John Fisher, Thomas More, Petroc, Piran, Margaret Clitherow and Thomas Becket. There are non-Christian religions practised. Jews have a history of a small minority on the island since 1070.[214] They were expelled from England in 1290 following the Edict of Expulsion, only to be allowed back in 1656.[214]
Especially since the 1950s, Eastern religions from the former British colonies have begun to appear, due to foreign immigration; Islam is the most common of these, accounting for around 3.1% in England.[206] Hinduism, Sikhism and Buddhism are next in number, adding up to 2% combined,[206] introduced from India and South East Asia.[206] Around 14.6% claim to have no religion.[206]
Education
Main articles: Education in England and List of universities in England
Although most English secondary schools are comprehensive, in some areas there are selective intake grammar schools, to which entrance is subject to passing the eleven plus exam. Around 7.2% of English schoolchildren attend private schools, which are funded by private sources.[217] Standards in state schools are monitored by the Office for Standards in Education, and in private schools by the Independent Schools Inspectorate.[218]
England's universities include some of the highest-ranked universities in the world; the University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, the University of Oxford and University College London are all ranked in the global top 10 in the 2010 QS World University Rankings.[220] The London School of Economics has been described as the world's leading social science institution for both teaching and research.[221] The London Business School is considered one of the world's leading business schools and in 2010 its MBA programme was ranked best in the world by the Financial Times.[222] Academic degrees in England are usually split into classes: first class (I), upper second class (II:1), lower second class (II:2) and third (III), and unclassified (below third class).
The King's School, Canterbury and King's School, Rochester are the oldest schools in the English-speaking world.[223] Many of England's better-known schools, such as Winchester College, Eton College, St Paul's School, Rugby School, and Harrow School are fee-paying institutions.[224]
Culture
Main articles: Culture of England and English Renaissance
Architecture
Many ancient standing stone monuments were erected during the prehistoric period, amongst the best known are Stonehenge, Devil's Arrows, Rudston Monolith and Castlerigg.[225] With the introduction of Ancient Roman architecture there was a development of basilicas, baths, amphitheaters, triumphal arches, villas, Roman temples, Roman roads, Roman forts, stockades and aqueducts.[226] It was the Romans who founded the first cities and towns such as London, Bath, York, Chester and St Albans. Perhaps the best known example is Hadrian's Wall stretching right across northern England.[226] Another well preserved example is the Roman Baths at Bath, Somerset.[226]
Early Medieval architecture's secular buildings were simple constructions mainly using timber with thatch for roofing. Ecclesiastical architecture ranged from a synthesis of Hiberno—Saxon monasticism,[227][228] to Early Christian basilica and architecture characterised by pilaster-strips, blank arcading, baluster shafts and triangular headed openings. After the Norman conquest in 1066 various Castles in England were created so law lords could uphold their authority and in the north to protect from invasion. Some of the best known medieval castles include the Tower of London, Warwick Castle, Durham Castle and Windsor Castle amongst others.[229]
Georgian architecture followed in a more refined style, evoking a simple Palladian form; the Royal Crescent at Bath is one of the best examples of this. With the emergence of romanticism during Victorian period, a Gothic Revival was launched—in addition to this around the same time the Industrial Revolution paved the way for buildings such as The Crystal Palace. Since the 1930s various modernist forms have appeared whose reception is often controversial, though traditionalist resistance movements continue with support in influential places.[note 8]
Folklore
Main article: English folklore
During the High Middle Ages tales originating from Brythonic traditions entered English folklore—the Arthurian myth.[234][235][236] These were derived from Anglo-Norman, French and Welsh sources,[235] featuring King Arthur, Camelot, Excalibur, Merlin and the Knights of the Round Table such as Lancelot. These stories are most centrally brought together within Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae.[note 9] Another early figure from British tradition, King Cole, may have been based on a real figure from Sub-Roman Britain. Many of the tales and pseudo-histories make up part of the wider Matter of Britain, a collection of shared British folklore.
Cuisine
Main article: English cuisine
Sausages are commonly eaten, either as bangers and mash or toad in the hole. Lancashire hotpot is a well known stew. Some of the most popular cheeses are Cheddar and Wensleydale. Many Anglo-Indian hybrid dishes, curries, have been created such as chicken tikka masala and balti. Sweet English dishes include apple pie, mince pies, spotted dick, scones, Eccles cakes, custard and sticky toffee pudding. Common drinks include tea, whose popularity was increased by Catherine of Braganza,[245] while alcoholic drinks include wines, ciders and English beers such as bitter, mild, stout, and brown ale.[246]
Visual arts
Main articles: English art and Arts Council England
The Tudor era saw prominent artists as part of their court, portrait painting which would remain an enduring part of English art, was boosted by German Hans Holbein, natives such as Nicholas Hilliard built on this.[250] Under the Stuarts, Continental artists were influential especially the Flemish, examples from the period include—Anthony van Dyck, Peter Lely, Godfrey Kneller and William Dobson.[250] The 18th century was a time of significance with the founding of the Royal Academy, a classicism based on the High Renaissance prevailed—Thomas Gainsborough and Joshua Reynolds became two of England's most treasured artists.[250]
The Norwich School continued the landscape tradition, while the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood with their vivid and detailed style revived the Early Renaissance style—Holman Hunt, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and John Everett Millais were leaders.[250] Prominent amongst 20th century artists was Henry Moore, regarded as the voice of British sculpture, and of British modernism in general.[251] Contemporary painters include Lucian Freud, whose work Benefits Supervisor Sleeping in 2008 set a world record for sale value of a painting by a living artist.[252]
Literature, poetry and philosophy
Main article: English literature
Middle English literature emerged with Geoffrey Chaucer, author of The Canterbury Tales, along with Gower, the Pearl Poet and Langland. William of Ockham and Roger Bacon, who were Franciscans, were major philosophers of the Middle Ages. Julian of Norwich, who wrote Revelations of Divine Love, was a prominent Christian mystic. With the English Renaissance literature in the Early Modern English style appeared. William Shakespeare, whose works include Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, and A Midsummer Night's Dream, remains one of the most championed authors in English literature.[255]
Christopher Marlowe, Edmund Spenser, Philip Sydney, Thomas Kyd, John Donne, and Ben Jonson are other established authors of the Elizabethan age.[256] Francis Bacon and Thomas Hobbes wrote on empiricism and materialism, including scientific method and social contract.[256] Filmer wrote on the Divine Right of Kings. Marvell was the best known poet of the Commonwealth,[257] while John Milton authored Paradise Lost during the Restoration.
This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle, this earth of majesty, this seat of Mars, this other Eden, demi-paradise; this fortress, built by nature for herself. This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England.
In response to the Industrial Revolution, agrarian writers sought a way between liberty and tradition; William Cobbett, G. K. Chesterton and Hilaire Belloc were main exponents, while the founder of guild socialism, Arthur Penty, and cooperative movement advocate G. D. H. Cole are somewhat related.[261] Empiricism continued through John Stuart Mill and Bertrand Russell, while Bernard Williams was involved in analytics. Authors from around the Victorian era include Charles Dickens, the Brontë sisters, Jane Austen, George Eliot, Rudyard Kipling, Thomas Hardy, H. G. Wells, Lewis Carroll and Evelyn Underhill.[262] Since then England has continued to produce novelists such as C. S. Lewis, George Orwell, D. H. Lawrence, Virginia Woolf, Enid Blyton, Aldous Huxley, Agatha Christie, Terry Pratchett, J. R. R. Tolkien, and J. K. Rowling.[263]
Performing arts
Main articles: Folk music of England and Music of the United Kingdom
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