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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 about 62%, and more than 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 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 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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The Chew Valley is an affluent area in North Somerset, England, named after the River Chew, which rises at Chewton Mendip, and joins the River Avon at Keynsham. Technically, the area of the valley is bounded by the water catchment area of the Chew and its tributaries; however, the name Chew Valley is often used less formally to cover other nearby areas, for example, Blagdon Lake and its environs, which by a stricter definition are part of the Yeo Valley. The valley is an area of rich arable and dairy farmland, interspersed with a number of villages.

The landscape consists of the valley of the River Chew and is generally low-lying and undulating. It is bounded by higher ground ranging from Dundry Down and the south western boundary of Keynsham town to the north, the Lulsgate Plateau to the west, the Mendip Hills to the south and the Hinton Blewett, Temple Cloud, Clutton and Marksbury plateau areas to the east. The valley's boundary generally follows the top of scarp slopes except at the southwestern and southeastern boundaries where flat upper areas of the Chew Valley grade gently into the Yeo Valley and eastern Mendip Hills respectively. The River Chew was dammed in the 1950s to create Chew Valley Lake, which provides drinking water for the nearby city of Bristol and surrounding areas. The lake is a prominent landscape feature of the valley, a focus for recreation, and is internationally recognised for its nature conservation interest, because of the bird species, plants and insects. (Full article...)

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Wembley Stadium (sometimes referred to as The New Wembley and branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which had stood from 1923 until 2003. The stadium is England's national football stadium, and thus hosts the majority of the England national team home matches and the FA Cup Final – the final of England's primary domestic club football competition. It is widely regarded as one of the most iconic football stadiums in the world, and is considered a hub for the English game. Wembley Stadium is owned by the governing body of English football, the Football Association, whose headquarters are in the stadium, through its subsidiary Wembley National Stadium Ltd (WNSL). With 90,000 seats, it is the largest stadium in the UK and the second-largest stadium in Europe, behind Barcelona's Camp Nou.

Designed by Populous and Foster and Partners, the stadium is crowned by the 134-metre-high (440 ft) Wembley Arch which serves aesthetically as a landmark across London as well as structurally, with the arch supporting over 75% of the entire roof load. The stadium was built by Australian firm Multiplex at a cost of £798 million (£1.51 billion today). Two partially retractable roof structures over the east and west ends of the stadium can be opened to allow sunlight and aid pitch growth. (Full article...)

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General images

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

Image 1King Henry VIII (from History of England)
Image 2Procession of characters from Shakespeare's plays (from Culture of England)
Image 3England in 878 (from History of England)
Image 4Remains of the Roman baths at Bath, England. (from History of England)
Image 5Silbury Hill, c. 2400 BC (from History of England)
Image 6Stinking Bishop cheese (from Culture of England)
Image 7Frontispiece 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 8The Procession Picture, c. 1600, showing Elizabeth I borne along by her courtiers (from History of England)
Image 9William 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 10Edward Elgar is one of England's most celebrated classical composers. (from Culture of England)
Image 11One of only four surviving exemplifications of the 1215 text, Cotton MS. Augustus II. 106, property of the British Library (from History of England)
Image 12The 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 13The Spanish Armada and English ships in August 1588, (unknown, 16th-century, English School) (from History of England)
Image 14Elizabeth I (from History of England)
Image 15Chester, c. 1880 (from History of England)
Image 16Durham Cathedral. The Norman cathedral was built 1093–1133 (from History of England)
Image 17Sir 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 18Kingdoms and tribes in Britain, c. AD 600 (from History of England)
Image 19England 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 20Bronze coins of Cunobelin, called "King of the Britons" by Suetonius. 1–42 AD. (from History of England)
Image 21King Charles I, who was beheaded in 1649 (from History of England)
Image 22Remains of Hadrian's Wall (from History of England)
Image 23Interior of Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford (from Culture of England)
Image 24Victory in Europe Day celebrations in London, 8 May 1945 (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 27The Alfred Jewel, late 9th century (from History of England)
Image 28The Lindisfarne Gospels (from Culture of England)
Image 29Sir Francis Drake's voyage 1585–86 (from History of England)
Image 30Francis 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 31King 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 32Tomb of Richard I of England and Isabella of Angoulême (from History of England)
Image 33The 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 34The Billingsgate Fish Market in London in the early 19th century (from History of England)
Image 35The White Tower of the Tower of London, built in 1078 (from History of England)
Image 36National performing arts are held annually at the Royal Albert Hall, as well as The Proms during the summer. (from Culture of England)
Image 37Folio 27r from the Lindisfarne Gospels, c. 720 AD (from History of England)
Image 38Maps of territory held by Royalists (red) and Parliamentarians (green) during the English Civil War (1642–1645) (from History of England)
Image 39The Ruthwell Cross, 8th century AD (from History of England)
Image 40King Charles II (from History of England)
Image 41The Battersea Shield (detail), 350 BC. (from History of England)
Image 42Jack 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 43Dover Castle, 12th–13th century (from History of England)
Image 44Flatford Mill ('Scene on a Navigable River') by John Constable, c. 1816 (from Culture of England)
Image 45The Lady Chapel of Wells Cathedral (from Culture of England)
Image 46Canterbury 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 47Geoffrey Chaucer, c. 1340s–1400, author of The Canterbury Tales (from History of England)
Image 48Artefacts from Bush Barrow at Stonehenge. Wessex culture, Early Bronze Age, c. 1900 BC (from History of England)
Image 49King'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 50Alfred 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 51The Royal College of Music is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, established by royal charter in 1882. (from Culture of England)
Image 52King James I of England (from History of England)
Image 53First English Civil War at the Battle of Marston Moor, 1644 (from History of England)
Image 54Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol played a major role in reviving the "spirit" of Christmas and seasonal goodwill. (from Culture of England)
Image 55The English landscape garden at Stourhead, described as a 'living work of art' when first opened in the 1750s (from Culture of England)
Image 56Whitehall by Francis Dodd (1920) displaying the Palace of Westminster (from Culture of England)
Image 57Durham Cathedral, dating from 1093 (from Culture of England)
Image 58The epic poem Beowulf, set in 6th century Scandinavia, composed c. 700–1000 AD. (from History of England)
Image 59Portrait of Edward VI, c. 1550 (from History of England)
Image 60A traditional Punch and Judy booth, at Swanage, Dorset, England (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 62The wizard Merlin features as a character in many works of fiction, including the BBC series Merlin. (from Culture of England)
Image 63First played in 1877, the Wimbledon Championships is the oldest tennis tournament in the world. (from Culture of England)
Image 64The Great Fire London, 1666. (from History of England)
Image 65King Alfred the Great statue in Winchester, Hampshire. The 9th-century English king encouraged education in his kingdom. (from Culture of England)
Image 66Morris dancing (from Culture of England)
Image 67Londinium (Roman London), c. 120 AD (from History of England)
Image 68Gold torc from Snettisham, 70 BC (from History of England)
Image 69Stonehenge, erected in several stages from c.3000–2500 BC (from History of England)
Image 70The Mob Quad of Merton College, University of Oxford, 13th–14th century (from History of England)
Image 71A pint of real ale (from Culture of England)
Image 72Countries where English is natively spoken or has official status (from Culture of England)
Image 73Canterbury Cathedral nave, 1377 (from History of England)
Image 74Anglo-Saxon king with his Witan. Biblical scene in the Old English Hexateuch (11th century) (from History of England)
Image 75Depiction of the Battle of Hastings (1066) on the Bayeux Tapestry (from History of England)
Image 76Portrait 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 77The 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 78View of the ramparts of the hillfort of Maiden Castle (450 BC), as they look today (from History of England)

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Smithfield Meat Market

Smithfield, properly known as West Smithfield, is a district located in Central London, part of Farringdon Without, the most westerly ward of the City of London, England.

Smithfield is home to a number of City institutions, such as St Bartholomew's Hospital and livery halls, including those of the Butchers' and Haberdashers' Companies. The area is best known for the Smithfield meat market, which dates from the 10th century, has been in continuous operation since medieval times, and is now London's only remaining wholesale market. From the 12th century to the 19th century the area hosted Bartholomew Fair. Smithfield's principal street is called West Smithfield, and the area also contains the City's oldest surviving church building, St Bartholomew-the-Great, dating from 1123 (most City churches were destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666). (Full article...)

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Did you know?

...that Lambeth, in the London Borough of Lambeth appeared in the Domesday Book of 1086?
...that Kate Marsden journeyed overland to Siberia to find a leprosy cure.
...that the Old Bailey was destroyed in the 1666 Great Fire of London, only to be rebuilt in 1674?
...that a Jury is only sent to cases of an indictable offence that has been sent to a Crown Court by a magistrates?

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In the news

20 November 2024 – 2024 United Kingdom farmers' protests: Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner dismisses concerns brought on by protests in London from United Kingdom farmers against new agricultural inheritance taxation policies as "scaremongering". (Sky News)
19 November 2024 – 2024 United Kingdom farmers' protests: Thousands of British farmers protest at the Houses of Parliament in London, United Kingdom, against a new inheritance tax on land ownership that includes farms. (Al Jazeera) (BBC News)
6 November 2024 – Protests against Donald Trump: Just Stop Oil protesters spray orange paint on the outside of the American Embassy in London, United Kingdom, following Donald Trump's re-election in the 2024 U.S. presidential election. (The Independent)
24 October 2024 – Regulation of electronic cigarettes, Smoking bans in the United Kingdom: The British government announces that single-use vapes will be banned in England and Wales beginning on 1 June 2025. (BBC News)
23 October 2024 –: Three people are found deceased and seven are hospitalized due to carbon monoxide poisoning at a care home in Swanage, Dorset, England. (Sky News)

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“

England... is a nation of shopkeepers

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— Napoleon

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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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