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"Home counties" is an informal phrase used to designate the group of counties
Counties of England

The counties of England are territorial divisions of England for the purposes of administrative, political and geographical demarcation. Many current counties have foundations in older divisions such as the Anglo-Saxon England kingdoms....
 that border or surround London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
 but not including Britain
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
's capital city itself. The term originated in the late nineteenth century, and is probably derived from the Home Circuit of the itinerant Assize Court
Assize Court

The Court of Assize, or Assizes, refers to an obsolete circuit criminal court in most common-law contexts, but is still in use elsewhere, e.g., Assizes of Jerusalem....
. The home counties have no official definition but are usually understood as coinciding with the London commuter belt
London commuter belt

The London commuter belt is the metropolitan area surrounding Greater London, England from which it is possible to commuting to work in the capital....
 or the area off the M25 motorway
M25 motorway

To see information about the M25 motorway under construction in Ireland, see N25 road.The M25 motorway, also known as the M25 corridor, is a 117 mile beltway which encircles Greater London, United Kingdom....
, i.e., where people can work in London without living in the city and travel back home each evening.






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"Home counties" is an informal phrase used to designate the group of counties
Counties of England

The counties of England are territorial divisions of England for the purposes of administrative, political and geographical demarcation. Many current counties have foundations in older divisions such as the Anglo-Saxon England kingdoms....
 that border or surround London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
 but not including Britain
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
's capital city itself. The term originated in the late nineteenth century, and is probably derived from the Home Circuit of the itinerant Assize Court
Assize Court

The Court of Assize, or Assizes, refers to an obsolete circuit criminal court in most common-law contexts, but is still in use elsewhere, e.g., Assizes of Jerusalem....
. The home counties have no official definition but are usually understood as coinciding with the London commuter belt
London commuter belt

The London commuter belt is the metropolitan area surrounding Greater London, England from which it is possible to commuting to work in the capital....
 or the area off the M25 motorway
M25 motorway

To see information about the M25 motorway under construction in Ireland, see N25 road.The M25 motorway, also known as the M25 corridor, is a 117 mile beltway which encircles Greater London, United Kingdom....
, i.e., where people can work in London without living in the city and travel back home each evening. The home counties are sometimes also called the South East, yet London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
 itself, or at least the inner cosmopolitan core of it, is not at all, culturally, politically or historically speaking, part of the Home Counties.

Social and political connotations

The term 'home counties' is occasionally used to describe the social and moral attitudes and physical attributes of the prosperous and frequently conservative
Conservatism

Conservatism is a political and social term whose meaning has changed in different countries and time periods, but which usually indicates support for the status quo or the status quo ante....
 (both culturally and in terms of support for the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)

The Conservative and Unionist Party, more commonly known as the Conservative Party, is a conservative political party in the United Kingdom....
, mostly rural
Rural

Rural areas are large and isolated areas of a country, often with low populations. Today, 75 percent of the United States' inhabitants live in suburban and urban areas, but cities occupy only 2 percent of the country....
, for which south eastern England is a stronghold) people who are thought to abound in them, for example in the phrase 'home counties accent'.

The home counties

There is no official definition of the "home counties". However, the term has been used in legislation and the administration of the armed forces during the twentieth century as follows:
  • 1908: The Home Counties Division of the Territorial Force
    Territorial Force

    The Territorial Force was a volunteer component of the British Army from 1908 to 1920, when it became the Territorial Army....
     comprised units recruiting in Middlesex
    Middlesex

    Middlesex , from the Old English Middelseaxe , is one of the 39 Historic counties of England of England and the List of counties of England by area in 1831....
    , Kent
    Kent

    Kent is a Counties of England in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the River Thames estuary....
    , Surrey
    Surrey

    Surrey is a counties of England in the South East England of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, and Berkshire....
     and Sussex
    Sussex

    Sussex , from the Old English Su?seaxe , is a Historic counties of England in South East England England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex....
    .
  • 1920: The London and Home Counties Electricity District consisted of the counties of London
    County of London

    The County of London was a ceremonial counties of England and administrative counties of England of England from 1889 to 1965. It bordered Middlesex to the north and west, Essex to the north east, Kent to the south east and Surrey to the south....
     and Middlesex; and parts of Berkshire
    Berkshire

    Berkshire is a Home Counties in the South East England of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1958, and Letters patent issued confirming...
    , Buckinghamshire
    Buckinghamshire

    Buckinghamshire is a Ceremonial counties of England and Metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England home counties Counties of England in South East England England....
    , Essex
    Essex

    Essex is a counties of England in the East of England England. The county town is Chelmsford, and the highest point of the county is Chrishall Common near the village of Langley, Essex, close to the Hertfordshire border, which reaches ....
    , Hertfordshire
    Hertfordshire

    Hertfordshire is a Ceremonial counties of England and Metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England Counties of England in the East of England region of England....
    , Kent and Surrey.
  • 1924: The London and Home Counties Traffic Advisory Committee
    London and Home Counties Traffic Advisory Committee

    The London and Home Counties Traffic Advisory Committee was established in 1924 to advise the Secretary of State for Transport on issues concerning traffic and transport in the London Traffic Area....
    , covering the London Traffic Area
    London Traffic Area

    The London Traffic Area was established by the London Traffic Act 1924 in order to regulate the increasing amount of motor traffic in the London area....
    : London, Middlesex, and parts of Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey.
  • 1926: The Home Counties (Music and Dancing) Licensing Act regulated activities in all parts of Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey within 20 miles of the City of London
    City of London

    The City of London is a geographically small city status in the United Kingdom within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which, along with Westminster, the modern conurbation grew....
     or City of Westminster
    Metropolitan Borough of Westminster

    The Metropolitan Borough of Westminster was a metropolitan borough in the County of London, England, from 1900 to 1965....
    .
  • 1938: Green Belt (London and Home Counties) Act limited development in parts of Middlesex, Kent, Buckinghamshire, Surrey, Essex, Berkshire and Hertfordshire.
  • 1948: The Home Counties Brigade
    Home Counties Brigade

    The Home Counties Brigade was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1948 to 1968. The Brigade administered the regular infantry battalions of the Home Counties of south east England....
     was formed to administer the infantry
    Infantry

    Infantry are soldiers who are primarily trained for the role of fighting on foot. A soldier in the infantry is known as an infantryman. Infantry units have more physically demanding training than other branches of armies, and place a greater emphasis on fitness, physical strength and aggression....
     regiments of the City and County of London, Kent, Middlesex, Surrey and Sussex.


See also


  • Dormitory town
  • London commuter belt
    London commuter belt

    The London commuter belt is the metropolitan area surrounding Greater London, England from which it is possible to commuting to work in the capital....
  • Thames Valley
    Thames Valley

    The Thames Valley generally implies the region that drains into the River Thames , from west of Cirencester to London but is used in a more specific term by the government....
  • Metro-land
    Metro-land

    Metro-land is the suburban areas that were built to the north west of London in the counties of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Middlesex in the early part of the 20th century, and were served by the Metropolitan Railway, an independent company until absorbed by the London Passenger Transport Board in 1933....