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England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. The country is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers roughly 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. The population was 56,490,048 at the 2021 census. London is both the largest city and the capital.

The area now called England was first inhabited by modern humans during the Upper Paleolithic, but 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 being a separate sovereign state on 1 May 1707 when the Acts of Union put the terms agreed in the Treaty of Union the previous year into effect; this resulted in a political union with the Kingdom of Scotland that created the Kingdom of Great Britain.

England is the origin of many well known worldwide exports, including 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 Church of England; 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 greater metropolitan 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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Lennon in 1974

John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 1940 – 8 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter and musician. He gained worldwide fame as the founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. His work included music, writing, drawings and film. His songwriting partnership with Paul McCartney remains the most successful in history.

Born in Liverpool, Lennon became involved in the skiffle craze as a teenager. In 1956, he formed the Quarrymen, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. Sometimes called "the smart Beatle", Lennon initially was the group's de facto leader, a role he gradually seemed to cede to McCartney. Through his songwriting in the Beatles, he embraced myriad musical influences, initially writing and co-writing rock and pop-oriented hit songs in the band's early years, then later incorporating experimental elements into his compositions in the latter half of the Beatles' career as his songs became known for their increasing innovation. Lennon soon expanded his work into other media by participating in numerous films, including How I Won the War, and authoring In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works, both collections of nonsense writings and line drawings. Starting with "All You Need Is Love", his songs were adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement and the larger counterculture of the 1960s. In 1969, he started the Plastic Ono Band with his second wife, multimedia artist Yoko Ono, held the two-week-long anti-war demonstration Bed-ins for Peace and left the Beatles to embark on a solo career. (Full article...)

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Illuminated miniature, c. 1402

Henry IV (c. April 1367 – 20 March 1413), also known as Henry Bolingbroke, was King of England from 1399 to 1413. Henry was the son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, himself the son of Edward III.

Henry was involved in the 1388 revolt of Lords Appellant against Richard II, his first cousin, but he was not punished. However, he was exiled from court in 1398. After his father, John of Gaunt, died in 1399, Richard blocked Henry's inheritance of his father's duchy. That year, Henry rallied a group of supporters, overthrew and imprisoned Richard II, and usurped the throne; these actions later contributed to dynastic disputes in the Wars of the Roses (1455-1487). (Full article...)

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

Image 1Durham Cathedral. The Norman cathedral was built 1093–1133 (from History of England)
Image 2Portrait of Edward VI, c. 1550 (from History of England)
Image 3The 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)
Image 4Bronze coins of Cunobelin, called "King of the Britons" by Suetonius. 1–42 AD. (from History of England)
Image 5The Great Fire London, 1666. (from History of England)
Image 6A pint of real ale (from Culture of England)
Image 7Chester, c. 1880 (from History of England)
Image 8Remains of the Roman baths at Bath, England. (from History of England)
Image 9The Staffordshire Hoard is the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver metalwork yet found^[update]. It consists of almost 4,600 items and metal fragments. (from Culture of England)
Image 10Morris dancing (from Culture of England)
Image 11Artefacts from Bush Barrow at Stonehenge. Wessex culture, Early Bronze Age, c. 1900 BC (from History of England)
Image 12One of only four surviving exemplifications of the 1215 text, Cotton MS. Augustus II. 106, property of the British Library (from History of England)
Image 13The Lindisfarne Gospels (from Culture of England)
Image 14The Royal College of Music is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, established by royal charter in 1882. (from Culture of England)
Image 15Jack 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)
Image 16Canterbury 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)
Image 17England in 878 (from History of England)
Image 18Tomb of Richard I of England and Isabella of Angoulême (from History of England)
Image 19The Ruthwell Cross, 8th century AD (from History of England)
Image 20Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol played a major role in reviving the "spirit" of Christmas and seasonal goodwill. (from Culture of England)
Image 21Portrait 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)
Image 22Countries where English is natively spoken or has official status (from Culture of England)
Image 23Edward Elgar is one of England's most celebrated classical composers. (from Culture of England)
Image 24Geoffrey Chaucer, c. 1340s–1400, author of The Canterbury Tales (from History of England)
Image 25Victory in Europe Day celebrations in London, 8 May 1945 (from History of England)
Image 26The wizard Merlin features as a character in many works of fiction, including the BBC series Merlin. (from Culture of England)
Image 27King Charles I, who was beheaded in 1649 (from History of England)
Image 28The Billingsgate Fish Market in London in the early 19th century (from History of England)
Image 29Francis 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)
Image 30The Alfred Jewel, late 9th century (from History of England)
Image 31King Charles II (from History of England)
Image 32Canterbury Cathedral nave, 1377 (from History of England)
Image 33Silbury Hill, c. 2400 BC (from History of England)
Image 34A traditional Punch and Judy booth, at Swanage, Dorset, England (from Culture of England)
Image 35Anglo-Saxon helmet from the Sutton Hoo ship burial, 625 AD (replica) (from History of England)
Image 36Flatford Mill ('Scene on a Navigable River') by John Constable, c. 1816 (from Culture of England)
Image 37King Alfred the Great statue in Winchester, Hampshire. The 9th-century English king encouraged education in his kingdom. (from Culture of England)
Image 38Sir 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)
Image 39The 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)
Image 40Gold torc from Snettisham, 70 BC (from History of England)
Image 41King James I of England (from History of England)
Image 42The Battersea Shield (detail), 350 BC. (from History of England)
Image 43Sir Francis Drake's voyage 1585–86 (from History of England)
Image 44Folio 27r from the Lindisfarne Gospels, c. 720 AD (from History of England)
Image 45The epic poem Beowulf, set in 6th century Scandinavia, composed c. 700–1000 AD. (from History of England)
Image 46England 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)
Image 47King 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)
Image 48The Mob Quad of Merton College, University of Oxford, 13th–14th century (from History of England)
Image 49The Spanish Armada and English ships in August 1588, (unknown, 16th-century, English School) (from History of England)
Image 50Alfred 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)
Image 51King Henry VIII (from History of England)
Image 52The Procession Picture, c. 1600, showing Elizabeth I borne along by her courtiers (from History of England)
Image 53Depiction of the Battle of Hastings (1066) on the Bayeux Tapestry (from History of England)
Image 54The Lady Chapel of Wells Cathedral (from Culture of England)
Image 55Maps of territory held by Royalists (red) and Parliamentarians (green) during the English Civil War (1642–1645) (from History of England)
Image 56Stonehenge, erected in several stages from c.3000–2500 BC (from History of England)
Image 57Whitehall by Francis Dodd (1920) displaying the Palace of Westminster (from Culture of England)
Image 58King'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)
Image 59Dover Castle, 12th–13th century (from History of England)
Image 60Christopher Lee (seen here as Dracula in 1958) starred in many of Hammer's British horror films. (from Culture of England)
Image 61Interior of Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford (from Culture of England)
Image 62William 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)
Image 63National performing arts are held annually at the Royal Albert Hall, as well as The Proms during the summer. (from Culture of England)
Image 64First played in 1877, the Wimbledon Championships is the oldest tennis tournament in the world. (from Culture of England)
Image 65Shoulder clasp from Sutton Hoo, 625 AD (from History of England)
Image 66Kingdoms and tribes in Britain, c. AD 600 (from History of England)
Image 67Stinking Bishop cheese (from Culture of England)
Image 68Procession of characters from Shakespeare's plays (from Culture of England)
Image 69The English landscape garden at Stourhead, described as a 'living work of art' when first opened in the 1750s (from Culture of England)
Image 70Elizabeth I (from History of England)
Image 71Londinium (Roman London), c. 120 AD (from History of England)
Image 72First English Civil War at the Battle of Marston Moor, 1644 (from History of England)
Image 73Anglo-Saxon king with his Witan. Biblical scene in the Old English Hexateuch (11th century) (from History of England)
Image 74View of the ramparts of the hillfort of Maiden Castle (450 BC), as they look today (from History of England)
Image 75Durham Cathedral, dating from 1093 (from Culture of England)
Image 76Remains of Hadrian's Wall (from History of England)
Image 77The White Tower of the Tower of London, built in 1078 (from History of England)
Image 78Frontispiece 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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Bullfrog Productions Limited was a British video game developer based in Guildford, England. Founded in 1987 by Peter Molyneux and Les Edgar, the company gained recognition in 1989 for their third release, Populous, and is also well known for titles such as Theme Park, Theme Hospital, Magic Carpet, Syndicate and Dungeon Keeper. Bullfrog's name was derived from an ornament in the offices of Edgar's and Molyneux's other enterprise, Taurus Impact Systems, Bullfrog's precursor where Molyneux and Edgar were developing business software. Bullfrog Productions was founded as a separate entity after Commodore mistook Taurus for a similarly named company.

Electronic Arts, Bullfrog's publisher, acquired the studio in January 1995. Molyneux had become an Electronic Arts vice-president and consultant in 1994, after EA purchased a significant share of Bullfrog. Molyneux's last project with Bullfrog was Dungeon Keeper, and as a result of his dissatisfaction of the corporate aspects of his position, he left the company in July 1997 to found Lionhead Studios. Others would follow him to Lionhead, and some founded their own companies, such as Mucky Foot Productions. After Molyneux's departure, Electronic Arts' control over Bullfrog caused several projects to be cancelled. Bullfrog was merged into EA UK in 2001 and ceased to exist as a separate entity. Bullfrog titles have been looked upon as a standard for comparison and have spawned numerous spiritual sequels. (Full article...)

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Did you know?

The Westminster Assembly

... that the 1643 Westminster Assembly, which was appointed by the Parliament of England to restructure the Church of England, produced the Westminster Confession, the foundation of the Presbyterian Church?
... that Declaration of Sports was a 1617 declaration of James I of England listing archery and dancing as permissible on Sundays and that Puritans in Parliament had it publicly burned in 1643?
... that Jemmy Button was a Yaghan from Tierra del Fuego who was bought for a mother-of-pearl button in 1830 and taken on HMS Beagle to meet the King and Queen of England?

In the news

4 May 2024 – 2024 London mayoral election: Sadiq Khan wins re-election as mayor of London, England, with 43.8% of the vote, becoming the first London mayor to be elected to a third term. (BBC News)
30 April 2024 – 2024 Hainault sword attack: A man attacks people with a sword after crashing a car into a house in Hainault, London, England, United Kingdom, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring four other people, including two police officers. (BBC News) (The New York Times)

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“

I have seen much to hate here, much to forgive. But in a world where England is finished and dead, I do not wish to live.

”

— Alice Duer Miller

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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

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