Britannica Student Encyclopedia - 2010

in a field in northern England. King Henry

VIII broke away from the Roman Catholic

church in the 1500s. He ordered Catholic

monks to leave the monasteries where they

lived and worked. He also founded a new

Protestant church called the Church of

England. Today most people in the United

Kingdom are Protestant.

Guards march in front of Buckingham Palace,

the London home of the king or queen

of the United Kingdom. The country is a

constitutional monarchy. This means that

though there is a king or queen, the real

power to rule the country rests with members

of the Parliament, who are elected by

the people.

Facts About

UNITED

KINGDOM

Population

(2008 estimate)

61,446,000

Area

93,635 sq mi

(242,514 sq km)

Capital

London

Form of

government

Constitutional

monarchy

Major cities

London,

Manchester, Birmingham,

Leeds,

Newcastle

18 United Kingdom BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA

 

Scotland fought many battles against

England to keep its independence. In

1603 Scotland and England were united

under one king, but Scotland kept its

own, separate parliament. Then, in

1707, the parliaments of Scotland and

Kings and Queens of England

Name Nationality or Family Years of Reign

Athelstan Saxon 925–939

Edmund I Saxon 939–946

Eadred Saxon 946–955

Eadwig Saxon 955–959

Edgar Saxon 959–975

Edward the Martyr Saxon 975–978

Ethelred II the Unready Saxon 978–1013

Sweyn Forkbeard Danish 1013–14

Ethelred II the Unready Saxon 1014–16

Edmund II Ironside Saxon 1016

Canute Danish 1016–35

Harold I Harefoot Danish 1035–40

Hardecanute Danish 1040–42

Edward the Confessor Saxon 1042–66

Harold II Saxon 1066

William I the Conqueror Norman 1066–87

William II Norman 1087–1100

Henry I Norman 1100–35

Stephen Blois 1135–54

Henry II Plantagenet 1154–89

Richard I Plantagenet 1189–99

John Plantagenet 1199–1216

Henry III Plantagenet 1216–72

Edward I Plantagenet 1272–1307

Edward II Plantagenet 1307–27

Edward III Plantagenet 1327–77

Richard II Plantagenet 1377–99

Henry IV Plantagenet: Lancaster 1399–1413

Henry V Plantagenet: Lancaster 1413–22

Henry VI Plantagenet: Lancaster 1422–61

Edward IV Plantagenet: York 1461–70

Henry VI Plantagenet: Lancaster 1470–71

Edward IV Plantagenet: York 1471–83

Edward V Plantagenet: York 1483

Richard III Plantagenet: York 1483–85

Henry VII Tudor 1485–1509

Henry VIII Tudor 1509–47

Edward VI Tudor 1547–53

Mary I Tudor 1553–58

Elizabeth I Tudor 1558–1603

BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA United Kingdom 19

 

England were joined. The newly united

country, which consisted of England,

Scotland, andWales, was called the

kingdom of Great Britain. The people of

the kingdom were called the British.

England conquered much of Ireland in

the late 1100s. The people of Ireland,

like the people of Scotland, resisted

English rule. But by the end of the

1600s England had firm control of the

Kings and Queens of England and Scotland

Name Family Years of Reign

James I Stuart 1603–25

Charles I Stuart 1625–49

Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector 1653–58

Richard Cromwell, Lord Protector 1658–59

Commonwealth (No King or Queen)

Name Years of Rule

Charles II Stuart 1660–85

James II Stuart 1685–88

William III and Mary II Orange/Stuart 1689–94

William III Orange 1694–1702

Kings and Queens of England and Scotland

Name Family Years of Reign

Kings and Queens of Great Britain (England and Scotland)

Name Family Years of Reign

Anne Stuart 1702–14

(Kingdom of Great Britain was

formed in 1707)

George I Hanover 1714–27

George II Hanover 1727–60

Kings and Queens of the United Kingdom

Name Family Years of Reign

George III Hanover 1760–1820

(United Kingdom was formed

in 1801)

George IV Hanover 1820–30

William IV Hanover 1830–37

Victoria Hanover 1837–1901

Edward VII Saxe-Coburg-Gotha 1901–10

George V Windsor 1910–36

Edward VIII Windsor 1936

George VI Windsor 1936–52

Elizabeth II Windsor 1952–

20 United Kingdom BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA

 

island. Ireland was officially joined to

England, Scotland, andWales in 1801.

It was called the United Kingdom of

Great Britain and Ireland.

The British Empire

Many years earlier England had begun

to establish settlements called colonies in

other parts of the world. People from

England started settling in North

America and Asia in the 1600s. Later

others settled in Africa and other places.

All the colonies and lands that were

ruled by England came to be known as

the British Empire.

Great Britain lost its American colonies

as a result of the American Revolution

(1775–83). But the United Kingdom

still became one of the richest and most

powerful countries in the world. During

the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–

1901) the British Empire included more

than one fourth of the world’s people.

Conflict in Ireland

Many Irish people did not want Ireland

to be part of the United Kingdom. One

concern was that most Irish people were

Roman Catholic while most English

were Protestant. The English government

established anti-Catholic laws in

both Britain and Ireland. For example,

Catholics were not allowed to hold public

office for many years.

After years of fighting, most of Ireland’s

counties split from the United Kingdom

in 1921. They formed the Irish Free

State (now Ireland). But six northern