Place Information
|
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Its 51,092,000[1] inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population, while its mainland territory occupies most of the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain. England is bordered by Scotland to the north, Wales to the west and the North Sea, Irish Sea, Celtic Sea, Bristol Channel and English Channel. The capital is London, the largest metropolitan area in Great Britain, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by many measures. England became a unified state in the year 927 and takes its name from the Angles, one of the Germanic tribes who settled there during the 5th and 6th centuries. It has had a significant cultural and legal impact on the wider world being the place of origin of the English language, the Church of England, and English law, which forms the basis of the common law legal systems of countries around the world. In addition, England was the birth place of the Industrial Revolution, thus being the first country in the world to industrialise. It is home to the Royal Society, which laid the foundations of modern experimental science. England has the world's oldest parliamentary system, and consequently, other constitutional, governmental and legal innovations that stemmed from England have been widely adopted by other nations. England is a predominantly lowland country, although there are upland regions in the north (including the Lake District, Pennines and Yorkshire Moors) and in the south and south west (including Dartmoor, the Cotswolds, and the North and South Downs). The population of England is concentrated in London and the South East, as well as conurbations in the Midlands, the North West, the North East and Yorkshire, all of which developed as major industrial regions during the 19th century. The Kingdom of England (including Wales) continued as a separate state until 1 May 1707, when the Acts of Union, putting into effect the terms agreed in the Treaty of Union the previous year, resulted in political union with the Kingdom of Scotland to create the united Kingdom of Great Britain. In 1800, Great Britain was united with Ireland through another Act of Union 1800 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 in 1927 reincorporated into the kingdom six Irish counties to officially create the current United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
How places in England are organizedPrior to 1889 England was divided into 39 historic counties. From 1889-1974, it was divided into administrative counties. In 1974 the administrative counties were abolished and replaced by metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties. Unitary authorities were added in the 1990's. WeRelate labels metropolitan, non-metropolitan, and unitary authorities as "modern counties". The Family History Library Catalog (FHLC) lists places in England according to their historic county with one exception: London is an administrative county created in 1889 from the historic counties of Middlesex, Surrey, and Kent, and places are listed in the FHLC under London instead of being listed under their historic county. The standard at WeRelate is to title English places according to their historic county when it is known, with also-located-in links to the administrative county and modern county when they are known, although rather than locating towns in unitary authorities, they are located in the associated ceremonial counties. All places in EnglandFurther information on historical place organization in EnglandResearch TipsExternal LinksThis page offers a detailed description of English, Counties, Parish, etc..
|
