Encyclopedia
The
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a country and sovereign state that lies off the northwest coast of mainland
Europe. Its territory and population are primarily situated on the island of
Great Britain and in
Northern Ireland on the island of
Ireland, with additional settlements on numerous smaller islands in the surrounding seas. The United Kingdom is bounded by the
Atlantic Ocean and its ancillary bodies of water, including the
North Sea, the
English Channel, the
Celtic Sea, and the
Irish Sea. On the island of Ireland, Northern Ireland has a land border with the
Republic of Ireland to the south and west.
The United Kingdom is a political union made up of four constituent countries:
England,
Scotland,
Wales, and
Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom also has several
overseas territories, including
Gibraltar,
Saint Helena and the
Falkland Islands. The dependencies of the
Isle of Man and the
Channel Islands, while possessions of the Crown and part of the
British Isles, are not part of the United Kingdom. A
constitutional monarchy, the United Kingdom has close relationships with fifteen other
Commonwealth Realms that share the same monarch —
Queen Elizabeth II — as
head of state.
A member of the
G8, the United Kingdom is a highly
developed country with the fifth largest gross domestic product in the world. It is the third most populous state in the
European Union with a population of 60 million and is a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and the
United Nations , where it holds a permanent seat on the
Security Council. The UK is also one of the world's major
nuclear powers with its own
nuclear weapons and has a
US$1.833 trillion economy.
After the dismantlement of the
British Empire, the United Kingdom retains influence throughout the world because of the extensive use of the
English language today as well as through the world-spanning
Commonwealth of Nations, headed by the Queen although legally this is a personal role and not one associated with the United Kingdom.
History
The present United Kingdom of
Great Britain and
Northern Ireland is the latest of several unions formed over the last 840 years. The
Kingdom of England and the
Kingdom of Scotland had existed as separate states with their own monarchs and political structures since the 9th century. The once independent
Principality of Wales fell under the control of English monarchs from the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284, becoming itself part of the
Kingdom of England by the
Laws in Wales Act 1535. With the
Act of Union 1707, the independent states of
England and Scotland, having been in personal union since 1603, agreed to a political union as the
Kingdom of Great Britain.
The
Act of Union 1800 united the
Kingdom of Great Britain with the
Kingdom of Ireland, which had been gradually brought under English control between 1541 and
1691, to form the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Independence for the now
Republic of Ireland in 1922 followed the
partition of the island of Ireland two years previously, with six of the nine
counties of the
province of Ulster remaining within the UK, which then changed to the current name in 1927.
The dominant industrial and maritime power of the 19th century, the United Kingdom is often credited with being the nation that "created the modern world",
by playing a leading role in developing
Western ideas of property,
capitalism, and
parliamentary democracy as well as making significant contributions to literature, the arts, and science and technology. At its zenith, the
British Empire stretched over one-quarter of the
Earth's surface and encompassed a third of its population, making it the largest empire in history. The first half of the 20th century, however, saw the Empire's strength seriously depleted from the effects of
World War I and
World War II. The second half witnessed the dismantling of the Empire and the United Kingdom rebuilding itself into the modern, prosperous, and technologically advanced nation it is today.
The United Kingdom has been a member of the
European Union since 1973. The attitude of the present government towards further integration with this organisation is mixed , with the Conservative Party favouring a return of some powers and competencies to the state . The government has yet to choose whether to adopt the
Euro currency. Plans are to hold a referendum on the issue if and when five economic tests indicate that entry into the
Eurozone would be beneficial.
Government and politics
The United Kingdom is a
constitutional monarchy, with executive power exercised on behalf of the
monarch by the
prime minister and other
cabinet ministers who head departments. The cabinet, including the prime minister, and other ministers collectively make up Her Majesty's Government. These ministers are drawn from and are responsible to
Parliament, the legislative body, which is traditionally considered to be "supreme" . The United Kingdom is one of the few countries in the world today that does not have a codified
constitution, relying instead on traditional customs and separate pieces of constitutional law.
While the monarch is
head of state and theoretically holds all executive power, it is the prime minister who is the head of government. The government is answerable chiefly to the
House of Commons, from which constitutional convention requires that the prime minister be drawn. The majority of cabinet members are from the House of Commons, the rest from the
House of Lords. Ministers do not, however, legally have to come from Parliament, though that is the modern day custom. The British system of government has been emulated around the world — a legacy of the British Empire's
colonial past — most notably in the other
Commonwealth Realms. The Member of Parliament who commands a majority in the House of Commons is normally appointed prime minister - usually the leader of the largest party or, if there is no majority party, the largest coalition. The current prime minister is
Tony Blair of the Labour Party, who has been in office since 1997.
In the United Kingdom, the monarch has extensive theoretical powers, but his/her role is mainly, though not exclusively, ceremonial . The monarch is an integral part of Parliament and theoretically gives Parliament the power to meet and create legislation. An Act of Parliament does not become law until it has been signed by the monarch , although not one has refused assent to a bill that has been approved by Parliament since
Queen Anne in 1708 . Although the abolition of the monarchy has been suggested, the popularity of the monarchy remains strong in the United Kingdom. Support for a British republic usually fluctuates between 15% and 25% of the population, with roughly 10% undecided or indifferent. The current monarch is
HM Queen Elizabeth II who acceded to the throne in 1952 and was crowned in 1953.
Parliament is the national legislature of the United Kingdom. It is the ultimate legislative authority in the United Kingdom, according to the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty . It is
bicameral, composed of the elected
House of Commons and the unelected
House of Lords, whose members are mostly appointed. The House of Commons is the more powerful of the two houses. The House of Commons houses 646 members who are directly elected from single-member constituencies based on population. The House of Lords has 724 members , constituted of
hereditary peers , life peers, and bishops of the
Church of England. The Church of England is the established church of the state in England .
Since the 1920s, the two largest political parties in British politics have been the Labour Party and Conservative Party. Though coalition and minority governments have been an occasional feature of
Parliamentary politics, the
first-past-the-post electoral system used for
general elections tends to maintain the dominance of these two parties, though each has in the past century relied upon a third party to deliver a working majority in Parliament . The
Liberal Democrats are the third largest party in the British parliament and actively seek a reform of the electoral system to address the dominance of the two-party system .
Though many in the United Kingdom consider themselves 'British' as well as 'English', 'Scottish' 'Welsh', or 'Irish' , there has long been a widespread sense of separate national identities in the nations of Scotland and Wales and amongst the Catholic community in Northern Ireland . Independence for the
Republic of Ireland in 1922 provided only a partial solution to what had been termed in the 19th Century the 'Irish Question', and competing demands for a
united Ireland or continued union with Great Britain have brought civil strife and political instability up to the present day.
Though 'nationalist' tendencies have shifted over time in Scotland and Wales, with the
Scottish National Party founded in 1934 and
Plaid Cymru in 1925, a serious political crisis threatening the integrity of the United Kingdom as a state has not occurred since the 1970s. Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland each possess a legislature and government alongside that of the United Kingdom. However, this increased autonomy and devolution of executive and legislative powers has not contributed to a reduction in support for independence from the United Kingdom, with the rise of new pro-independence parties. For example, the
Scottish Green Party and the
Scottish Socialist Party have gained popularity in recent years.
There is currently little appetite for a devolved English parliament, although senior Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have voiced concerns in regard to the West Lothian Question . Proposals for English
regional government have stalled, following a poorly received referendum on devolved government for the
North East of England, which was hitherto considered the region most in favour of the idea. England is therefore governed according to the balance of parties across the whole of the United Kingdom.
The resurgence in
Celtic culture and language, as well as 'regional' politics and development, have contributed to forces pulling against the unity of the state . However, there is at present little sign of any imminent 'crisis' . Nevertheless many in
Scotland would like
independence although most English do not. In Northern Ireland, there has been a significant decrease in violence over the last twenty years, though the situation remains tense, with the more hardline parties, such as
Sinn Féin and the
Democratic Unionists, now holding the most parliamentary seats .
Law
The United Kingdom has three distinct systems of law. English law, which applies in
England and Wales, and Northern Ireland law, which applies in Northern Ireland, are based on common-law principles.
Scots law, which applies in Scotland, is a hybrid system based on both common-law and civil-law principles. The
Act of Union 1707 guarantees the continued existence of a separate law system for Scotland.
The Appelate Committee of the
House of Lords is the highest court in the land for all criminal and civil cases in
England,
Wales, and
Northern Ireland, and for all civil cases in Scots law. Recent constitutional changes will see the powers of the House of Lords transfer to a new Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.
In
England and Wales, the
court system is headed by the Supreme Court of Judicature of England and Wales, consisting of the Court of Appeal, the High Court of Justice and the
Crown Court . In
Scotland, the chief courts are the
Court of Session, for civil cases, and the
High Court of Justiciary, for criminal cases, while the sheriff court is the Scottish equivalent of the county court.
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is the highest court of appeal for several independent Commonwealth countries, the UK overseas territories, and the British crown dependencies.
Geography
Most of England consists of rolling lowland terrain, divided east from west by more mountainous terrain in the Northwest and north and
limestone hills of the
Peak District by the
Tees-Exe line. The lower
limestone hills of the
Isle of Purbeck,
Cotswolds,
Lincolnshire and
chalk downs of the
Southern England Chalk Formation. The main rivers and estuaries are the
Thames,
Severn and the
Humber Estuary. The largest urban area is
Greater London. Near
Dover, the
Channel Tunnel links the United Kingdom with
France. There is no peak in
England that is 1,000
metres or greater, the highest mountain being
Scafell Pike in England's
Lake District, at some 978m .
Scotland's geography is varied, with lowlands in the south and east and
highlands in the north and west, including
Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the British Isles at 1,343 metres . There are many long and deep-sea arms, firths, and
lochs. Scotland has nearly 800 islands, mainly west and north of the mainland, notably the
Hebrides,
Orkney Islands and
Shetland Islands. The capital city is
Edinburgh, the centre of which is a
World Heritage Site. The largest city is
Glasgow . In total it is estimated that the UK includes around 1,000 islands, with 700 in Scotland alone .
Wales is mostly mountainous, the highest peak being
Snowdon at 1,085 metres above sea level. North of the mainland is the island of
Anglesey . The largest and capital city is
Cardiff ; it has been the Welsh Capital city since 1955, located in
South Wales. The greatest concentration of people live in the south, in the cities of
Swansea and
Newport, as well as Cardiff, and the
South Wales Valleys. The largest town in
North Wales is
Wrexham 
