Portal:England

The England portal

Flag of England	Royal Standard of England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. England shares a land border with Scotland to the north and another land border with Wales to the west, and is 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 extensive 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 amongst 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 London metropolitan area has a population of over 15 million as of 2025, 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...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Featured article - show another

This is a Featured article, which represents some of the best content on English Wikipedia..

Original line-up in 1965
From left: Pete Quaife, Dave Davies, Ray Davies, and Mick Avory

The Kinks were an English rock band formed in London in 1962. The band's original line-up comprised brothers Ray Davies (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) and Dave Davies (lead guitar, vocals), Pete Quaife (bass), and Mick Avory (drums, percussion). Emerging during the height of British rhythm and blues and Merseybeat, their breakthrough third single, the Ray Davies-penned "You Really Got Me" (1964), became an international hit, topping the charts in the United Kingdom and reaching the Top 10 in the United States. Other early hits included "All Day and All of the Night" (1964), "Tired of Waiting for You", "Set Me Free", "See My Friends", and "Till the End of the Day" (all 1965). They were part of the British Invasion of America until several problems during their 1965 American tour led to them being banned from touring there for a number of years.

The Kinks' music drew from a wide range of influences, including American R&B and rock and roll initially, and later adopting British music hall, folk, and country. Beginning with the late 1965 Kwyet Kinks EP, the band gained a reputation for reflecting English culture and lifestyle, fuelled by Ray Davies's observational and satirical lyricism, and made apparent in albums such as Face to Face (1966), Something Else by the Kinks (1967), The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968), Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) (1969), Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One (1970), and Muswell Hillbillies (1971), along with their hit singles during this period, including "Dedicated Follower of Fashion", "Sunny Afternoon", "Dead End Street" (all 1966), "Waterloo Sunset", "Autumn Almanac" (both 1967), "Days" (1968), and "Lola" (1970). After a fallow period in the mid-1970s, the band experienced a revival with their albums Sleepwalker (1977), Misfits (1978), Low Budget (1979), Give the People What They Want (1981), and State of Confusion (1983), the last of which produced one of the band's most successful US hits, "Come Dancing". (Full article...)

List of Featured articles

Selected article - show another

Bradford (/ˈbrædfərd/ ^ⓘ), also known as the City of Bradford, is a metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Bradford, but covers a larger area which includes the towns and villages of Keighley, Shipley, Bingley, Ilkley, Haworth, Silsden, Queensbury, Thornton and Denholme. Bradford has a population of 528,155, making it the fourth-most populous metropolitan district and the ninth-most populous local authority district in England. It forms part of the West Yorkshire Urban Area conurbation which in 2011 had a population of 1,777,934, and the city is part of the Leeds-Bradford Larger Urban Zone (LUZ), which, with a population of 2,393,300, is the fourth largest in the United Kingdom after London, Birmingham and Manchester.

The city is situated on the edge of the Pennines, and is bounded to the east by the City of Leeds, the south by the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees and the south west by the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale. The Pendle borough of Lancashire lies to the west whilst the unitary authority of North Yorkshire lie to the north west and north east of the city. Bradford is the 4th largest metropolitan district in the country, and the contiguous urban area to the north which includes the towns of Shipley and Bingley is heavily populated. The spa town of Ilkley lies further north, whilst the town of Keighley lies to the west. Roughly two thirds of the district is rural, with an environment varying from moorlands in the north and west, to valleys and floodplains formed by the river systems that flow throughout the district. More than half of Bradford's land is green open space, stretching over part of the Airedale and Wharfedale Valleys, across the hills and the Pennine moorland between. The Yorkshire Dales and the Peak District are both in close proximity. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

General images

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

Image 1Flatford Mill ('Scene on a Navigable River') by John Constable, c. 1816 (from Culture of England)
Image 2Countries where English is natively spoken or has official status (from Culture of England)
Image 3National performing arts are held annually at the Royal Albert Hall, as well as The Proms during the summer. (from Culture of England)
Image 4Jack 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 5The Procession Picture, c. 1600, showing Elizabeth I borne along by her courtiers (from History of England)
Image 6The Ruthwell Cross, 8th century AD (from History of England)
Image 7Stonehenge, erected in several stages from c.3000–2500 BC (from History of England)
Image 8Elizabeth I (from History of England)
Image 9Tomb of Richard I of England and Isabella of Angoulême (from History of England)
Image 10England 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 11The Royal College of Music is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, established by royal charter in 1882. (from Culture of England)
Image 12Durham Cathedral, dating from 1093 (from Culture of England)
Image 13Remains of Hadrian's Wall (from History of England)
Image 14The Lady Chapel of Wells Cathedral (from Culture of England)
Image 15The wizard Merlin features as a character in many works of fiction, including the BBC series Merlin. (from Culture of England)
Image 16View of the ramparts of the hillfort of Maiden Castle (450 BC), as they look today (from History of England)
Image 17A pint of real ale (from Culture of England)
Image 18Depiction of the Battle of Hastings (1066) on the Bayeux Tapestry (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 20Interior of Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford (from Culture of England)
Image 21The Lindisfarne Gospels (from Culture of England)
Image 22The Billingsgate Fish Market in London in the early 19th century (from History of England)
Image 23First played in 1877, the Wimbledon Championships is the oldest tennis tournament in the world. (from Culture of England)
Image 24Chester, c. 1880 (from History of England)
Image 25Francis 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 26William 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 27Silbury Hill, c. 2400 BC (from History of England)
Image 28The Battersea Shield (detail), 350 BC. (from History of England)
Image 29King James I of England (from History of England)
Image 30Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol played a major role in reviving the "spirit" of Christmas and seasonal goodwill. (from Culture of England)
Image 31Durham Cathedral. The Norman cathedral was built 1093–1133 (from History of England)
Image 32Dover Castle, 12th–13th century (from History of England)
Image 33Canterbury 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 34The 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 35Anglo-Saxon helmet from the Sutton Hoo ship burial, 625 AD (replica) (from History of England)
Image 36Frontispiece 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 37The 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 38The Mob Quad of Merton College, University of Oxford, 13th–14th century (from History of England)
Image 39The Spanish Armada and English ships in August 1588, (unknown, 16th-century, English School) (from History of England)
Image 40Artefacts from Bush Barrow at Stonehenge. Wessex culture, Early Bronze Age, c. 1900 BC (from History of England)
Image 41Bronze coins of Cunobelin, called "King of the Britons" by Suetonius. 1–42 AD. (from History of England)
Image 42Stinking Bishop cheese (from Culture of England)
Image 43Procession of characters from Shakespeare's plays (from Culture of England)
Image 44England in 878 (from History of England)
Image 45Whitehall by Francis Dodd (1920) displaying the Palace of Westminster (from Culture of England)
Image 46King Charles II (from History of England)
Image 47Portrait 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 48Gold torc from Snettisham, 70 BC (from History of England)
Image 49Sir 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 50King Charles I, who was beheaded in 1649 (from History of England)
Image 51One of only four surviving exemplifications of the 1215 text, Cotton MS. Augustus II. 106, property of the British Library (from History of England)
Image 52Kingdoms and tribes in Britain, c. AD 600 (from History of England)
Image 53The Great Fire London, 1666. (from History of England)
Image 54Sir Francis Drake's voyage 1585–86 (from History of England)
Image 55First English Civil War at the Battle of Marston Moor, 1644 (from History of England)
Image 56King Alfred the Great statue in Winchester, Hampshire. The 9th-century English king encouraged education in his kingdom. (from Culture of England)
Image 57The Fairy Ring by William Holmes Sullivan, c.1908 (from Culture of England)
Image 58Anglo-Saxon king with his Witan. Biblical scene in the Old English Hexateuch (11th century) (from History of England)
Image 59Remains of the Roman baths at Bath, England. (from History of England)
Image 60Edward Elgar is one of England's most celebrated classical composers. (from Culture of England)
Image 61Christopher Lee (seen here as Dracula in 1958) starred in many of Hammer's British horror films. (from Culture of England)
Image 62Victory in Europe Day celebrations in London, 8 May 1945 (from History of England)
Image 63Maps of territory held by Royalists (red) and Parliamentarians (green) during the English Civil War (1642–1645) (from History of England)
Image 64King 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 65The White Tower of the Tower of London, built in 1078 (from History of England)
Image 66The Alfred Jewel, late 9th century (from History of England)
Image 67Geoffrey Chaucer, c. 1340s–1400, author of The Canterbury Tales (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 69Alfred 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 70The English landscape garden at Stourhead, described as a 'living work of art' when first opened in the 1750s (from Culture of England)
Image 71Shoulder clasp from Sutton Hoo, 625 AD (from History of England)
Image 72King Henry VIII (from History of England)
Image 73Josiah Wedgwood was a leading entrepreneur in the Industrial Revolution. (from Culture of England)
Image 74Canterbury Cathedral nave, 1377 (from History of England)
Image 75Portrait of Edward VI, c. 1550 (from History of England)
Image 76Morris dancing (from Culture of England)
Image 77The epic poem Beowulf, set in 6th century Scandinavia, composed c. 700–1000 AD. (from History of England)
Image 78Folio 27r from the Lindisfarne Gospels, c. 720 AD (from History of England)
Image 79A traditional Punch and Judy booth, at Swanage, Dorset, England (from Culture of England)

Good article - show another

This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

The Silver Jubilee Bridge in Runcorn

Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port within the Borough of Halton in Cheshire, England. It lies on the south bank of the River Mersey, where the estuary narrows to form the Runcorn Gap, and is located approximately 15 miles (24 km) southeast of Liverpool and 29 miles (47 km) southwest of Manchester. The Runcorn built-up area had a population of 61,145 at the 2021 census.

Runcorn was founded by Æthelflæd of Mercia in 915 AD as a fortification against the Viking invasion at a narrowing of the River Mersey. Under Norman rule, Runcorn fell under the Barony of Halton and an Augustinian abbey was established there in 1115. It remained a small and isolated settlement until the Industrial Revolution, when the 1776 extension of the Bridgewater Canal to Runcorn established it as a port linking coastal Liverpool with inland Manchester and Staffordshire. The docks enabled the growth of industry, initially shipwrights and sandstone quarries; in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, it was a spa and health resort, but this ended with the growth of polluting industries, especially soap and chemical works. In 1964, Runcorn was designated a new town and expanded eastward, absorbing neighbouring settlements and more than doubling its population. (Full article...)

List of Good articles

Did you know?

...that the HMS Queen (1902) was fitted with Babcock and Wilcox cylindrical boilers due to service problems with the water service boilers?
...that the Charter Roll is the administrative record created by the medieval office of the chancery that recorded all the charters issued by the chancery?
...that Canterbury in eastern Kent was abandoned at the end of the Roman period, but was resettled by the Saxons?
...that English singer-songwriter Robbie Williams has sold more albums in the United Kingdom than any other British solo artist in history?

More selections

In the news

16 April 2026 – United Kingdom anti-immigration protests: Surrey Police issue a disorder warning in Epsom, England, after protesters clash with riot police in the town. The protesters are demanding the description of men who gang raped a woman outside a Methodist Church the previous weekend. (BBC News)
15 April 2026 – Antisemitism in the United Kingdom: Two people are arrested in Watford on suspicion of arson in an attempted attack on Finchley Reform Synagogue in North Finchley, London, England. The Metropolitan Police are treating the attempted attack as a hate crime. (BBC) (Politico)
11 April 2026 – 2026 Grand National: In horse racing, I Am Maximus, ridden by Irish jockey Paul Townend, wins this year's Grand National at Aintree Racecourse, England, becoming the second horse since Red Rum to win the Grand National twice. (BBC News)
7 April 2026 –: This year's Wireless Festival in London, England, is cancelled and all tickets are refunded after its headliner, American rapper Kanye West, is banned from entering the United Kingdom by the Home Office on the grounds that "his presence would not be conducive to the public good" amid controversy over his past antisemitic comments on Jews and Adolf Hitler, and his association with neo-Nazis. (BBC News) (CNN)
4 April 2026 – Protests against the 2026 Iran war: Two demonstrators are arrested outside the RAF Lakenheath station near the village of Lakenheath in Suffolk, England, United Kingdom. The protest comes after media reports that a U.S. F-15E fighter jet that was shot down took off from the base. (Irish News)
28 March 2026 –: Seven people are injured in a vehicle ramming attack in Derby, Derbyshire, England. An Indian national in his 30s is arrested with counter-terrorism police investigating. (BBC News) (The Guardian)

Read more...

Selected featured content

Articles:

Lists:

Read more...

Selected quotes

“

England... is a nation of shopkeepers

”

— Napoleon

More selections • Read more...

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

Things you can do

Things you can do.

Please visit the English Wikipedians' notice board and help to write new England-related articles, and expand and improve existing ones.
Visit Wikipedia:WikiProject England/Assessment, and help out by assessing unrated English articles.
Add the Project Banner to English articles around Wikipedia.
Check for announcements and open tasks for ways to improve English related articles.
Help nominate and select new content for the England portal.
Requested articles: Charterhouse Lane • Renewable energy in England • Ealing Village
Expand: Dorothy Boyd • David Troughton

Related Portals

East Midlands	London	North East England	North West England	South East England	South West England	West Midlands	Yorkshire and the Humber
East Midlands	London	North East	North West	South East	South West	West Midlands	Yorkshire and the Humber
Derbyshire	London transport		Cheshire Cumbria Greater Manchester Lancashire	Berkshire East Sussex Hampshire Kent Oxfordshire Surrey West Sussex	Cornwall Devon Somerset	Staffordshire	Yorkshire