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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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Sheerness clock tower

Sheerness (/ʃɪərˈnɛs/) is a port town and civil parish beside the mouth of the River Medway on the north-west corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 11,938, it is the second largest town on the island after the nearby town of Minster which has a population of 21,319.

Sheerness began as a fort built in the 16th century to protect the River Medway from naval invasion. In 1665 plans were first laid by the Navy Board for Sheerness Dockyard, a facility where warships might be provisioned and repaired. The site was favoured by Samuel Pepys, then Clerk of the Acts of the navy, for shipbuilding over Chatham inland. After the raid on the Medway in 1667, the older fortification was strengthened; in 1669 a Royal Navy dockyard was established in the town, where warships were stocked and repaired until its closure in 1960. (Full article...)

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The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England.

The Underground has its origins in the Metropolitan Railway, opening on 10 January 1863 as the world's first underground passenger railway. It is now part of the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines. The first line to operate underground electric traction trains, the City & South London Railway in 1890, is now part of the Northern line. (Full article...)

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

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

Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are cited as one of the progenitors of hard rock and heavy metal, although their style drew from a variety of influences, including blues and folk music. Led Zeppelin have been credited as significantly impacting the nature of the music industry, particularly in the development of album-oriented rock (AOR) and stadium rock.

Evolving from the Yardbirds where Page was lead guitarist, and originally named the New Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin signed a deal with Atlantic Records that gave them considerable artistic freedom. Initially unpopular with critics, they achieved significant commercial success with eight studio albums over ten years. Their 1969 debut, Led Zeppelin, was a top-ten album in several countries and featured such tracks as "Good Times Bad Times", "Dazed and Confused" and "Communication Breakdown". Led Zeppelin II (1969), their first number-one album, included "Whole Lotta Love" and "Ramble On". In 1970, they released Led Zeppelin III which opened with "Immigrant Song". Their untitled fourth album, commonly known as Led Zeppelin IV (1971), is one of the best-selling albums in history with 37 million copies sold. The album includes "Black Dog", "Rock and Roll" and "Stairway to Heaven", with the latter being among the most popular and influential works in rock history. Houses of the Holy (1973) yielded "The Song Remains the Same" and "Over the Hills and Far Away". Physical Graffiti (1975), a double album, featured "The Rover" and "Kashmir". (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 June 2024 –: The National Health Service declares a "critical incident" after several hospitals in London, including King's College Hospital, say they have cancelled appointments and turned away patients after a cyberattack on their Synnovis IT systems. (AP)
1 June 2024 – 2023–24 UEFA Champions League: In association football, Real Madrid win a record 15th Champions League title after defeating Borussia Dortmund 2–0 in the final at Wembley Stadium in London, England. (CNN)
29 May 2024 –: Four people are injured in a mass shooting in Dalston, London, UK. (BBC News)
25 May 2024 – 2023–24 FA Cup: Manchester United win their 13th FA Cup title after beating the defending champions, Manchester City, by a score of 2–1 in the final at Wembley Stadium in London, England. (The Guardian)
21 May 2024 – Singapore Airlines Flight 321: A Singapore Airlines flight from London, England, to Singapore makes an emergency landing at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, Thailand, after experiencing severe air turbulence over the Bay of Bengal, resulting in one death and at least 30 injuries. (BBC News)

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An Englishman, even if he is alone, forms an orderly queue of one.

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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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