Portal:United Kingdom
The United Kingdom Portal
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The UK includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland, and most of the smaller islands within the British Isles, covering 94,354 square miles (244,376 km2). Northern Ireland shares a land border with the Republic of Ireland; otherwise, the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel, the Celtic Sea and the Irish Sea. It maintains sovereignty over the British Overseas Territories, which are located across various oceans and seas globally. The UK had an estimated population of over 68.2 million people in 2023. The capital and largest city of both England and the UK is London. The cities of Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast are the national capitals of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The UK has been inhabited continuously since the Neolithic. In AD 43 the Roman conquest of Britain began; the Roman departure was followed by Anglo-Saxon settlement. In 1066 the Normans conquered England. With the end of the Wars of the Roses the Kingdom of England stabilised and began to grow in power, resulting by the 16th century in the annexation of Wales and the establishment of the British Empire. Over the course of the 17th century the role of the British monarchy was reduced, particularly as a result of the English Civil War. In 1707 the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland united under the Treaty of Union to create the Kingdom of Great Britain. In the Georgian era the office of prime minister became established. The Acts of Union 1800 incorporated the Kingdom of Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. Most of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922 as the Irish Free State, and the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 created the present United Kingdom.
The UK became the first industrialised country and was the world's foremost power for the majority of the 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly during the Pax Britannica between 1815 and 1914. The British Empire was the leading economic power for most of the 19th century, a position supported by its agricultural prosperity, its role as a dominant trading nation, a massive industrial capacity, significant technological achievements, and the rise of 19th-century London as the world's principal financial centre. At its height in the 1920s the empire encompassed almost a quarter of the world's landmass and population, and was the largest empire in history. However, its involvement in the First World War and the Second World War damaged Britain's economic power, and a global wave of decolonisation led to the independence of most British colonies. (Full article...)
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West Wycombe Park is a country house near the village of West Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England. Built between 1740 and 1800 as a pleasure palace for the decadent 18th century libertine and dilettante Sir Francis Dashwood, the house is long and rectangular, and all four façades are columned and pedimented, three theatrically so. The house combines and encapsulates the entire progression of British 18th century architecture from early idiosyncratic Palladian to the Neoclassical, although anomalies in the design of the house make it architecturally unique. It is in an 18th century landscaped park, surrounded by smaller temples that act as satellites to the greater temple, the house. The house was given to the National Trust in 1943 by Sir John Dashwood, 10th Baronet, an action strongly resented by his heir. Dashwood retained ownership of the contents of the house, much of which he sold; after his death, the house was restored at the expense of his son, Sir Francis Dashwood. Today, while the structure is owned by the National Trust, the house is the home of Sir Edward Dashwood and his family. The house is open to the public during the summer months and a venue for civil weddings and corporate entertainment, which help to fund its maintenance and upkeep. (Full article...)
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Princess Charlotte of Wales (1796–1817) was the only child of George, Prince of Wales (later George IV), and Caroline of Brunswick. Had she outlived her father and her grandfather, King George III, she would have become Queen of the United Kingdom. Instead, she died following childbirth at the age of 21. Charlotte's parents disliked each other from before their pre-arranged marriage and soon separated. As Charlotte grew to adulthood, her father pressured her to marry William, Hereditary Prince of Orange, but after initially accepting him, Charlotte soon broke off the match. This resulted in an extended contest of wills between her and her father, and finally the Prince of Wales permitted her to marry Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (later Leopold I of Belgium). After a year and a half of happy marriage, Charlotte died after giving birth to a stillborn son. Charlotte's death set off tremendous mourning among the British, who had seen her as a sign of hope and a contrast both to her unpopular father and to her grandfather, whom they deemed mad. As she had been King George III's only legitimate grandchild, there was pressure on the King's unwed sons to marry. King George III's fourth son, Edward, Duke of Kent, fathered the eventual heir, Queen Victoria. (Full article...)
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- Visit the British Wikipedians' notice board.
- The noticeboard is the central forum for information and discussion on editing related to the United Kingdom.
- Comment at the British deletion sorting page.
- This page lists deletion discussions on topics relating to the United Kingdom.
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Did you know -

- ... that Dublin property developer Harry Crosbie received an OBE from the British ambassador to Ireland, partly for entertaining Elizabeth II with his showbiz contacts?
- ... that by losing her constituency of South West Norfolk in 2024, Liz Truss became the first former UK prime minister since 1935 to lose their seat?
- ... that New Zealand composer Maewa Kaihau sold her rights to the song "Now is the Hour" for £10, a decade before it became a hit in the United Kingdom and United States?
- ... that Elizabeth II's childhood toys at 145 Piccadilly included 30 toy horses and a farm set collected from Woolworths?
- ... that Change UK had eleven elected members of Parliament despite never actually winning an election?
- ... that the 2023 United Kingdom student protests were organised on TikTok and Snapchat?
In the news
- 1 June 2025 –
- A ban on the sale of disposable vapes enters force in the United Kingdom. (BBC News)
- 23 May 2025 – European Union–United States relations, Tariffs in the second Trump administration
- U.S. president Donald Trump announces the implementation of 50% tariffs on all goods imported from European Union countries starting June 1. European stock exchanges including the German DAX, the French CAC 40, and the British FTSE 100 report losses afterwards. (DW)
- 23 May 2025 – Israel–United Kingdom relations
- British Minister of State for the Armed Forces Luke Pollard says that the UK "does not recognize" the comments made by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday, where he accused British prime minister Keir Starmer, along with French president Emmanuel Macron and Canadian prime minister Mark Carney, of "siding with Hamas" and being on "the wrong side of humanity". (Sky News)
- 23 May 2025 –
- Authorities from Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the U.S. announce a joint operation to crack down on malware around the world, which took down over 300 servers, neutralized 650 domains, and seized over €3.5 million (US$3.9 million) of cryptocurrency. (DW)
- 22 May 2025 – Chagos Archipelago sovereignty dispute, Mauritius–United Kingdom relations
- British prime minister Keir Starmer signs a deal formally handing over sovereignty of the disputed Chagos Archipelago in its entirety to Mauritius. The UK and United States will retain control of the Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia for 99 years as part of the deal. (BBC News)
- 21 May 2025 – Foreign relations of Israel
- More than a dozen governments condemn the Israeli military firing in the direction of a diplomatic delegation with representatives from 31 countries including Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Egypt, the European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, the Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and Uruguay. (The Guardian) (Al Jazeera)
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