Dark Earth: Imperial Almanac of Great Britain

[Simon Darkshade]

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign state in Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the Continent, the country includes the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, Lyonesse and a number of smaller islands. Britain is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the North Sea and the English Channel to the east and south and the Irish Sea between Great Britain and Ireland. The United Kingdom stretches over an area of 256,324 square miles square miles making it the 43rd-largest sovereign state on Earth and the 7th-largest in Europe.

Britain is the 9th-most populous country in the world, with a population of 125.5 million. It is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of government. The capital city is London, the largest city in the world and its most important financial centre with an urban population of 25,379,624. The current monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since February 6th 1952. Britain consists of five countries: England, Scotland, Wales, Lyonesse and Ireland. The smaller Channel islands of Guernsey, Jersey, and the Isle of Man are not a formal part of the United Kingdom, being dependencies of the British Crown with HM Government responsible for defence and international representation.

Britain has grown and expanded over the last thousand years. Wales and Lyonesse were gradually absorbed by the Kingdom of England in the 11th and 12th centuries and formally annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Acts of Union of 1369 and 1425. A union between England and Scotland in 1707 resulted in the Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1785 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The British Empire is the largest in the history of the world, spanning almost a third of the earth's land mass, encompassing over 2 billion subjects and joined in the world's largest economic union. British influence can be observed in the language, culture, parliament and legal systems of the independent dominions of the British Commonwealth.

Britain is a highly developed country and has the world's second-largest economy by Gross Domestic Product, with significant further wealth coming from foreign and imperial investments. Britain stands near the head of the Human Development Index of the League of Nations, ranking 2nd in the world. It was the world's first industrial nation and the world's leading great power during the 17th, 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. Britain remains one of the three major world superpowers, with her military, naval, scientific, industrial, economic, political and cultural influence felt across the globe.

It is the third great nuclear power and has the third highest ranking military expenditure in the world. The collective military forces of the British Empire are the largest in the world. Britain has been a permanent member of the Council of the League of Nations since after the Great War and is the leading state of the British Empire, the most powerful empire in the world and solar system.

Capital City: London
Largest City: London (25,379,624)
Major Cities: London, Birmingham (5.4 million), Liverpool (5.2 million), Manchester (4.8 million), Glasgow (4.2 million), Dublin (4.1 million), Newcastle (2.5 million)
Government: Constitutional Monarchy
Head of Government: Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden (Conservative)
Head of State: Queen Elizabeth II
Population: 125,532,876 (99.2% White British, 0.4% European, 0.2% Polish, 0.2% Other)
Area: 256,324 square miles
Language: English
Literacy Rate: 98.4%
Average Family Size: 3.2 children
Total Fertility Rate: 3.6
Life Expectancy: 87.6 years
GDP: £87,825 million ($2.19 trillion)
GDP/Capita: £699.62 ($17,491)
Currency: Pound Sterling
Demonym: British
Language: English
Religion: Church of England
Motto: Dieu et mon droit
National Anthem: God Save the Queen
National Sport: Cricket
National Animal: Lion
National Flower: Rose
National Bird: Robin
National Fruit: Apple
National Tree: English Oak
National Colours: Red, White and Blue
National Food: Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding
Major Industries: Agriculture, Oil, Mining, Steel, Rail, Automotive, Aviation, Manufacturing, Engineering, Defence, Aerospace, Electronics, Shipbuilding, Chemicals, Textiles, Banking, Finance, Retail, Computers, Machine Tools, Consumer Goods, Construction
Imports: Consumer Goods, Foodstuffs and Beverages, Cotton, Silk, Wine, Rubber, Bauxite
Exports: Automobiles, Industrial Machinery, Aircraft, Trains, Rail Equipment, Electronics, Chemicals, Plastics, Fertilizers, Steel, Aluminium, Petroleum, Natural Gas, Electricity, Coal, Tin, Copper, Armaments, Ships, Textiles, Foodstuffs and Beverages
Defence Spending: 12.5% of GDP - £10,978,125,000 ($274.45 billion)
(Army: £3250 million, Royal Navy £3460 million, Royal Air Force £4260 million)
Available for Military Service: 28,872,561 (Males 18-49)
Fit for Military Service: 24,541,676 (Males 18-49)
Reaching Military Age Annually: 984,580
Active Personnel: 2,960,599
Reserve Personnel: 3,935,856
British Army: 1,254,683 men, 7,528 tanks, 11,752 artillery pieces, 5,287 APCs, 1162 aircraft
Royal Navy: 792,384 men (162,856 Royal Marines) 797 ships, 215 submarines, 1724 Fleet Air Arm fixed wing aircraft, 890 Fleet Air Arm rotary aircraft, 2380 Royal Naval Air Service aircraft, 400 SLBM, 168 SLCM
Royal Air Force: 973,987 men, 10,236 aircraft, 2564 SAMs, 129 ICBM, 236 MRBM, 187 GLCM
Nuclear Weapons: 4225 (Army 50 strategic + 463 tactical, RN 648 strategic + 600 tactical, RAF 1640 strategic + 824 tactical)

[Simon Darkshade]

History

Prehistory
Humanoid habitation of the British Isles can be traced back to approximately 500,000 years ago in the Quaternary Glaciation. Populations of homo sapiens, Neanderthal and dwarven hunter-gatherer tribes fluctuated over the course of the Ice Ages. Like other inhabitants of Northern Europe at the time, they followed the movement of animal herds and fished the rich waters. The rise and fall of sea levels, the Toba eruption and the generally cold climate meant that it was only populated intermittently over the millenia of the Paleolithic period and permanent occupancy only dates back to 60,000 years ago. Harsh conditions in the last glacial maximum confined populations of modern humans to southern Lyonesse.

Age of Faerie
The first elven voyages of exploration reached the environs of Northern Europe approximately 25,000 years ago, planting the first mystic groves and establishing the first stone circles at points of power. These were followed by formal settlements that existed partly on Earth and partly in Faerie. The golden age of the elven kingdoms of the Tuatha Dé Danann, Aes Sídhe, Annwfyn and Avalon lasted several thousand years, leaving a mark on the land through their ruins, enchantments and elfpaths. The human population increased as the ice waned and the elves began a process of retreat from the Middle Earth. This era also saw the reestablishment of a dwarven presence in the British Isles with the series of great migrations from Scandinavia, Karelia and Ugria driven by the expansion of the orcs. Dwarven tools and elven magic was joined by the influence and goods of Atlantean traders in creating an outpost of the antediluvian civilization.The brief epoch of might that ended in the fall of the island empire after the great innundation that is thought to have been caused by a rogue meteor. By 5000 BC, man in Britain had once again advanced to a high level of development characterized by the mining of copper and the Neolithic Revolution. The initial establishment of halfling settlements alongside human villages can be traced back to this epoch.

Celtic Britain
Britain was a wealthy and advanced land in the Bronze and Iron Ages. Pottery and agriculture were developed after the initial flowering of civilization in the Fertile Crescent, India and China, but soon advanced to the building of barrows, ports, hill forts and walled settlements. The human tribes of the land were under the nominal rule and protection of the High Kings at Avalon, who were of the old blood, and whose numbers include such illustrious names as Bran the Blessed, Ælfstone, Ælfwine, Tælstar. This period ended with the migration of the Celts and the sons of Troy with their weapons of iron and the onset of the Iron Age. The population swelled to approximately 3.5 million by the 1st Century BC in wet, fertile conditions and a large town grew up in the Thames Valley that would become Londinium. The Druids guided the peoples of Britain in matters of religion and magic from their great centres at Mona and Stonehenge.

Roman Britain
Julius Caesar first invaded Britain in 55 BC as part of the Gallic Wars, but it was in the reign of Claudius that the main Roman Invasion occurred in 43 AD. Most of the southern part of the land was subdued by 60 AD and the process was only briefly interrupted by Boudicea's rebellion. Agricola's campaigns in Caledonia lead to an unsteady frontier being established before the construction of Hadrian's Wall, a mighty fortification that stands to this very day. Britain prospered under Roman rule and many great cities, roads and aqueducts were built as the benefits of civilization were reaped in full. The land grew rich from the trade of tin, lead, copper, iron, salt, gold and silver and from the produce of its forests and fields. There was peace and prosperity under Roman law and the protection of the legions and the native people soon became absorbed into a broader Romano-British culture. Christianity spread to the British Isles in the 2nd Century AD and it was well established as the dominant faith by the end of the 300s. The elves and dwarves largely went about their lives unhindered by Roman rule, whereas the gnomish and halfling cultures became thoroughly linked with those of men. The major exception to this was the seeming destruction of the Legio IX Hispana in the north by mystic forces. The Roman Empire declined as the barbarians pressed at its northern borders and the last legions were withdrawn from Britain in 410 AD.

King Arthur
Shortly after the Roman withdrawal from Britain, the first waves of migration from the barbarian lands of Germany began to fall upon her eastern shores. The Jutes, Angles, Frisians and the Saxons came as both invaders and settlers, displacing the native Britons and forcing them back towards the west. The Roman general Constantine II proclaimed himself as King of the Britons in 425 and was followed by the Last of the Romans, Aurelius Ambrosius, who held back the tide of the Anglo-Saxons until falling in battle in 467. His son Uther Pendragon rallied the forces of the Britons with the aid of the ancient wizard Merlin and forged a powerful kingdom in the West Country and the ancient vales of Wales before being laid low in a vile ambush through the treachery of Vortigern. His last act was to drive his kingly blade deep into a stone from whence none could wrest it. Uther's infant son was secreted away by Merlin in the custody of Sir Ector until he came of age and drew the sword from the stone in 498. Of all the Kings of England and Britain, his name stands out above all others - Arthur.

King Arthur united his peoples after a bloody civil war in 502, establishing his seat at Camelot and gaining the legendary blade Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake. His reign saw the new Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the east bow before him in vassalage, the great bard Taliesin foster a blossoming of learning and his valiant Knights of the Round Table quest far and wide for the Holy Grail. The treasure ships of Arthurian Britain travelled widely, reaching the shores of Africa and India and, some say, lost lands far beyond the ocean sea. This last golden age of Ancient Britain ended in 537 at the Battle of Camlann, where the traitor Mordred and the evil sorceress Morganna Le Fay lead rebels and Saxons alike against Arthur's host. Victorious yet sorely wounded, he was taken away to mystical Avalon to recover and await the call of his people once again.

Anglo-Saxon England
Camlann only slowed the tide of Anglo-Saxon expansion and they pushed inexorably into the west over the course of the mid 6th Century A.D. By 600, seven kingdoms - Wessex, Sussex, Kent, Essex, East Anglia, Mercia and Northumbria - had been established and stretched out across the verdant forests and fertile plains of what would come to be called England. The Anglo-Saxons began to be converted to Christianity by the mission of St. Augustine in 597 A.D. just as the Celtic Church spread from Ireland to Northumbria. The terror of the Vikings began with the 793 raid on Lindisfarne and changed the face of England forever. The struggles of King Offa of Mercia and Egbert of Wessex to unite the land were all in vain as the dreaded attacks from the sea occurred with ever-increasing intensity.

In due course, the eastern part of the country was eventually conquered by the invaders and ruled as the Danelaw, whilst the Christian rulers of Mercia and Wessex held out desperately in the west. King Alfred the Great (871-923) defeated the Danes and united the kingdoms of England under his wise and benevolent rule. The foundation of the Royal Navy can be traced back to the reign of Alfred and ranks among his many achievements that include the establishment of schools, the translation of the Holy Bible into English, the building of roads and the expansion of London. He is ranked among the greatest of the Kings of England and is the only one known to history as Great. He was followed by Aethelstan (923-939) and Edmund the Magnificent (939-950), who consolidated his achievements and ruled over a peaceful and prosperous land that was becoming the envy of Christendom. The disastrous reign of Aethelred the Unready lead to the resumption of Danish rule under Sveyn Forkbeard and the blessed time of Canute. The last years of Anglo-Saxon England under St. Edward the Confessor saw increasing internal strife between the nobles of Wessex and the rapacious attentions of foreign potentates, chief among them Duke William of Normandy. Harold Godwinsson succeeded Edward in 1066 and faced immediate invasion in the north by Harald Hadrada and a far deadlier threat from across the Channel. William invaded England in 1066 and his victoy at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 earned him the throne, the sobriquet of Conqueror and marked the end of the Anglo-Saxon era.

The Middle Ages
William I was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066 and set out to secure his reign through a combination of force and careful alliances. The Norman Conquest profoundly changed the course of English history, imposing a new foreign ruling class that rapidly supplanted the existing Anglo-Saxon nobility and Church. The Harrying of the North in 1069-70 saw most widespread resistance come to an end, although the Normans were delivered a sharp rebuff by the dwarves of Rheged at the Battle of Scarfell. The Domesday Book was commissioned in 1085, compiling details of towns, villages, lands and people of the entire kingdom. Throughout the early Norman period, great castles were built across England to cement their rule over the Anglo-Saxon population and the new lords of the land attempted to push back the frontiers of the vast forests with mixed success. William was succeeded by his son William Rufus, who was in turn followed by the stern and effective Henry I. The loss of Henry's son and heir William Adelin in the White Ship disaster of 1120 sowed the seeds for the Anarchy, a period of civil war lasting almost two decades following the death of Henry in 1135. The rival forces of Empress Matilda and Stephen of Bois clashed across England and Normandy for years, before the bloody stalemate gave way to a compromise peace and the accession of Matilda's son Henry Plantagenet to the throne in 1154.

Henry's domains stretched across large expanses of France and his holdings in England, Scotland, Wales, Lyonesse and Ireland are often known as the Angevin Empire. He established a grand royal court, greatly increased the finances of the Crown, built many new castles to secure his lands and instituted a number of reforms of English law and justice. His invasion of Ireland proved devastatingly successful and marked the beginning of English domination and settlement. These deeds were overshadowed by the events of the latter half of his reign, including the murder of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket, and the failed Great Revolt by his sons. His final years saw some measure of reconciliation, but the first of the Plantagenets is not remembered as a greatly loved king.

His son, King Richard I, known to history as Richard the Lionheart, is considered as one of England's greatest monarchs of the Middle Ages. He won eternal renown throughout Christendom for his victorious liberation of Jerusalem in the Third and Fourth Crusades, rebuilt the royal fleet and lead his armies to tremendous victories in France and Ireland in between the holy wars. At home, Richard proved a just and stern king over Saxon and Norman alike and the land enjoyed its greatest peace and prosperity in a century. The signing of the Magna Carta in 1215 proved a turning point in the history of England, restoring and protecting ancient rights and liberties and building what would become Parliament. The Fifth Crusade against the terrible Mongols saw the ageing Lionheart slay their leader Genghis Khan in single combat at the Battle of Krakow. Upon his death in 1230, all England mourned.

He was succeeded by his valiant young nephew, Henry III, a pious and effective ruler who could not replicate his predecessor's success in international diplomacy. The great nobles of the realm grew restive in the middle of his rule, leading to the vicious Baron's War and his temporary defeat and subjugation at the hands of Simon de Montfort. His son, Edward I, was a warrior-king in the tradition of Richard the Lionheart and William the Conqueror, earning the fearsome name of Hammer of the Scots. After crusading in his youth, he conquered Wales and Lyonesse, fought many battles in Ireland to cement English rule and defeated the rebellion of William Wallace in Scotland. Edward was notable for strengthening the powers of the Crown and summoning the first Parliament. The ongoing wars were paid for with substantially increased taxation and Edward began to encounter increased unrest towards the end of his reign. Under his rule, England began to rise as one of the most powerful kingdoms in Europe and enjoyed growing prosperity, particularly in the burgeoning wool trade and the great dwarven mines of the North.

Scotland secured its survival as an independent kingdom through the victory of Robert the Bruce over King Edward II at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, but became increasingly reliant on the Auld Alliance with France throughout the first half of the 14th century. The Treaty of Berwick in 1357 marked an end to the attempts of the Plantagenet kings to bring the last remaining sovereign realm under the control of the English crown, but Scottish capacity for independent action was increasingly limited. Advances in alchemy and metallurgy by several of the dwarven kingdoms of Scotland from 1284 are considered to be the beginning of the Dwarven Technological Revolution, a harbinger of later events of global significance.

The next hundred years would see much woe as the warm and prosperous period High Middle Ages came to an end. The destruction inflicted by the War of the Wizards, whilst mainly concentrated on the Continent, reached England in the early 14th Century and war responsible for widespread suffering and chaos. Barbarian raids and orc attacks similarly rose in frequency at this time as a result of migrations and wars in the North and renewed depridations of the Mongols. The Great Famine of 1315-1317 and its accompanying pestilence ravaged the land and lead to the deaths of tens of thousands of peasants from starvation. Worse was to come with the arrival of the calamitous Black Death in 1348, which killed almost 20% of the population of England in two terrible years and withstood almost all the desperate efforts of clerics and physicians, and the Dragonstrike of 1367, which wrecked devastation on many towns and cities. These all combined with ongoing economic and social tensions to spark the Peasant's Revolt of 1381, which lead to the end of serfdom in the English feudal system despite its ultimate failure.

The political history of the Kingdom of England in the 14th century was dominated by Edward III (reigned 1327-1368) and his son Edward IV (1368-1385), known to the ages as the Black Prince, and by their ongoing conflict with France in what is now considered as the first phase of the Hundred Years' War. The armies of England won famous triumphs at the Battle of Crecy in 1346 and the Battle of Poitiers in 1356 and the Welsh longbow became regarded as the most potent weapon on the medieval battlefield. King Richard II (1385-1399) encountered less success and was overthrown by his cousin Henry Bollingbroke, who became Henry IV. His son, Henry V (1413-1428) is regarded as one of England's greatest warrior-kings, a reputation cemented by his immortal triumph at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 and his valiant deeds in the Tenth Crusade. After his tragic early death, France began to gain the upper hand in the long conflict thanks to the inspiration of the young paladin Joan of Arc and the reign of Henry VI saw the gradual reconquest of English holdings in France, which, after the Battle of Castillion in 1453, had shrunk to the Pale of Calais.

One last great conflict marked the end of the Middle Ages in England and the British Isles, the long and bitter War of the Roses, a sporadic dynastic dispute between the rival House of Lancaster and House of York. Henry VI's weakness paved the way for the sons of Richard of York to seize the throne, with first Edward IV and then Richard III taking power. Great nobles such as the Earl of Warwick, 'the Kingmaker', lead the struggle against the Lancastrian monarchs, until Edward's apparent triumph at the Battle of Tewkesbury in 1472. He proved a successful ruler for the next decade before his sudden and early death in 1483, which was followed by the mysterious demise of his sons Edward V and Richard, Duke of York and the accession of Richard III. His reign was but brief, as Henry Tudor landed with Warwick and an army in Pembrokeshire and defeated Richard at the Battle of Bosworth Field. Henry then married Elizabeth of York, uniting the branches of the Plantagenets and creating the new House of Tudor.

The English Renaissance
King Henry VII reigned for 24 years from 1485 to 1509 and restored royal authority to a realm long wracked by war. He put great efforts into strengthening the Royal Navy, building drydocks and castles to defend the coast and expanding the economic prosperity of the kingdom. He readily concluded a treaty with France and built up trade with the burgeoning Low Countries and German city states. Perhaps one of his greatest achievements was the sponsorship of the voyages of John Cabot, the Genoese navigator, who explored the New World across the Atlantic and established the first English colonies in Newfoundland in 1498. This laid the foundations for further English and British expansion into the Americas and marked the beginning of the Empire of today.

His second son, Henry VIII, is unquestionably one of England's greatest and most consequential monarchs. He was a successful warrior-king, defeating Suleiman the Magnificent at Ascalon in the Eleventh Crusade, slaying the terrible red dragon Malfesius Rex in Northumberland and winning famous victories against Scotland and France on the field of battle. Like his father, he was a strong supporter of the Royal Navy, the exploration of the New World and the expansion of the English Empire and was responsible for the construction of some of the greatest warships of the 16th century which marked the beginning of English naval mastery. The conquest of Ireland was effectively completed in Henry's reign.

However, his greatest legacy came in the form of his break with the Papacy and Roman Catholic church. He had previously been hailed as a champion of orthodoxy, being given the title 'Defender of the Faith' by a grateful Pope Leo X for his criticism of the Protestant Martin Luther in 1521. The rupture was sparked by the lack of a son from his marriage with Catherine of Aragon and consequent quest for an annulment. He achieved his aim and married Anne Boleyn in 1532, the union providing a daughter, Elizabeth. Henry successfully suppressed rebellions against the English Reformation such as the Pilgrimage of Grace and broke the temporal power of the Catholic Church with the Dissolution of the Monasteries, which appropriated their lands, libraries and incomes while leaving their buildings, educational and social role of the institutions intact; the latter step was strongly influenced by the counsel of Henry's lifelong court wizard Sir Rastallion de Magius. Wales and Lyonesse were formally annexed to the Kingdom of England in 1535 and his former Chancellor Sir Thomas More was executed for treason in the same year, an act that would haunt King Henry for the remainder of his days.

Anne Boleyn fell from grace and was executed the next year and her successor as queen, Jane Seymour, lived for only a year before perishing from sickness after the birth of Henry's first and only legitimate son, Prince Edward. As the Kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire grew closer, he sought alliances with the city-states of Northern Germany and the kingdoms of Scandinavia. This lead to a short marriage of political convenience with Anne of Cleves, which lasted for a very short period before the King's affections moved onto Catherine Howard, a girl of 17 and niece of the Duke of Norfolk. She, too, was executed for adultery and Henry at last found some measure of comfort with his final wife, Catherine Parr. King Henry's final years were taken up with war with Scotland and France, although his youthful vigour had given way to corpulence and gout after years of luxury.

Henry VIII died on January 28 in 1545, having reshaped the nation, expanded its empire and changed the world. He was a popular king in his own time, a patron of the arts, an ardent trencherman and played a key role in the evolution of the modern Royal Navy and British Army. His impact on the finances of the Kingdom of England was a negative one, given his profligate spending on palaces and castles and the maintenance of the finest court in Christendom. Capable of great cruelty and great charity, he was both the last of the medieval monarchs and the first of the new rulers of the modern nation state. The establishment of the Church of England and the role of the Crown as Supreme Governor was to play a key role in the evolution of England and the British Isles over the next four centuries.

The final years of Henry VIII and the brief reign of Edward VI (1545-1553) saw the true flowering of what is now considered the English Renaissance. Science, literature, drama, music, art, magic, architecture and fashion blossomed in the thriving metropolis of Tudor London and the growing cities of England. Many of the riches of the New World and the far-off markets of the Orient and Africa began to stream in from around the world and English trade flourished as never before. The kingdom entered years of stability, prosperity and unity after the final tumultuous years of Henry's reign in stark contrast to the troubles encountered on the Continent. The boy king Edward VI, although mainly ruled by his advisors, was seen by his subjects as a kindly and virtuous ruler and his early death was the subject of much mourning. All was not perfect, however, as the land faced the same scourge of witchcraft as the rest of Europe in the 16th century and relations with France and Spain continued to decline.

The Elizabethan Golden Age
The Elizabethan era is rightly seen as one of the Golden Ages of English history, combining the apex of the English Renaissance with a protracted period of national peace and plenty at home and victory upon victory abroad. Elizabeth I reigned for 50 glorious years, maintaining internal political stability and resolving the disputes of the Reformation with the Elizabethan Religious Settlement, which confirmed the established status of the Church of England and balanced the interests of Puritans and Catholics. The population grew significantly during the Elizabethan era, reaching 13.4 million in 1600 and recovering from the decline of the late Middle Ages. Queen Elizabeth was never to marry or produce an heir, which was the cause of considerable tension throughout Europe. Ireland and Wales became truly pacified under her rule and Scotland functioned as what amounted to a vassal state of England. Known as the Virgin Queen or Gloriana, she left her mark on the kingdom like few others before or since.

England's primary enemy at this time was Catholic Spain under King Philip II. Long years of increasingly troubled relations broke out into open conflict in 1584 with the beginning of the Anglo-Spanish War. Philip's attempted naval invasion of England, the Spanish Armada of 1588, was utterly defeated in an immortal victory that firmly established the Royal Navy as the most powerful fleet in Christendom. The English Armada of 1589 won another triumph, smashing the Spanish fleet, capturing a fabulously wealthy treasure convoy and raising rebellion in Portugal. In alliance with the Dutch and Henry IV of France, English fleets raised havoc in the Mediterranean and Caribbean off the coast of the Spanish Main and secured control of the Bahamas and Bermuda under famed commanders such as Martin Frobisher, John Hawkins, Charles Ratcliffe and Francis Drake.

Drake is the foremost of the Elizabethan 'sea dogs' in the view of history, combining his achievements as an admiral and privateer with magnificent feats of nautical exploration. He successfully carried out the second circumnavigation of the world from 1577 to 1580, rounding Cape Horn and discovering Drake's Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The explorations of his expedition on the western coast of North America paved the way for settlement of the colony of New Albion in Southern California. Crossing the Pacific, Drake reached the Moluccas and the Golden Hind became the first English ship to visit China, India, Persia and Arabia before rounding the Cape of Good Hope and returning home along the coast of Africa. He was personally knighted by Queen Elizabeth for this achievement, which represented the beginning of the English East India Company.

English culture flowered as never before in the Elizabethan era as great poets and playwrights such as Christopher Marlowe and Ben Johnson produced myriad works of brilliance. All were overshadowed by the immortal Bard of Avon, William Shakespeare, who wrote many of the greatest dramatic, poetic and prose works ever seen and had an immense impact on the development of the English language itself. This epoch of art and science was supported by a growing overseas empire, at this time mainly based around trading posts and commercial interests in Africa and the Orient, but also including settler colonies in the West Indies and North America. The growing wealth and influence of the Elizabethan era can be identified as the key period when England became a truly Great Power.


The 17th Century: Rise of an Empire
Elizabeth's death in 1603 without an heir bought King James of Scotland and the House of Stuart to the throne in a Union of the English and Scottish crowns. James styled himself as King of Great Britain and Ireland, but the title was not formally conferred upon him. He was a strong proponent of the Divine Right of Kings and authored several books on the topic. The Jacobean era (1603-1625) saw a continuation of the golden age of literature and culture in England and expansion of colonisation of the Americas. He was responsible for authorising the creation and publication of the Authorised King James Version of the Bible and it serves as the basis of the Church of England scripture to this day and lead national efforts against the increasing menace of witchcraft and demonology. James escaped assassination in the dastardly Gunpowder Plot of 1605 and his deliverance is celebrated every 5th of November.

The establishment of Jamestown in Virginia in 1607 was England's first permanent settlement on the mainland of North America and was followed by the re-establishment of Roanoke the next year colonisation of Bermuda in 1610 and the arrival of the Pilgrims in the Plymouth Colony in 1620, which began the settlement of New England. The English East India Company opened its first factories in Java, the Malay Peninsula and India and British adventurers began to penetrate deep into the Gambia and Gold Coast of West Africa. The resumption of the Anglo-Spanish War in 1620 lead to a Royal Navy expedition that captured the Azure Islands in 1618 and the semi-mythical North Atlantic island of Hy Brasil was settled in 1623.

Succeeding James to the throne was King Charles I (reigned 1625-1650), whose rule would be dominated by the Thirty Years' War on the Continent. He encountered many struggles with Parliament regarding his religious policies, his marriage to a Roman Catholic queen and the questions of absolute monarchy and the divine right of kings. These were subsumed by the wider conflict against the Holy Roman Empire, Austria and Spain in the Thirty Years' War, where England's forces were vital to the Protestant cause. Fighting took place not only in Europe and the Americas, but in Africa and Asia in what would be the model for many wars to come. Charles I's nephew, Prince Rupert of the Rhine, was one of the great Protestant field commanders of the war, his successes bettered only by the English general Sir Oliver Cromwell and King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden.

Rebellions in Ireland and Scotland were suppressed, but Charles was forced to bow to the will of Parliament in order to fund the campaigns and dismissed several key advisers. The Grand Settlement of 1642 instituted a system of mixed government, preventing the growing spectre of open conflict between the Royalist and Parliamentarian parties of the realm, but proving to be only a temporary compromise. King Charles was stricken by terrible apoplexy and slowly recovered over the next three years, constraining the direct exercise of royal authority. The final years of his reign saw his earlier ardour tempered by a preference for consensus, but he is not regarded as one of England's finer kings.

Charles II (1650-1685) was far more successful and popular, winning renown as the 'Merry Monarch' as the profile of Puritanism faded. At home, the Great Plague and the Great Fire of London caused substantial damage and disruption. Two political parties, the Tories and Whigs, began to emerge at this point as the nation continued to transition to a mixed constitutional monarchy. England gained control over Dunkirk and Tangiers through careful diplomacy in the early part of his reign and extended its colonial empire in the Americas and Asia, particularly through the expanded influence of the East India Company. The Anglo-Dutch Wars that raged through much of the second half of the 17th century saw England's naval superiority seriously threatened, but ultimate victory was gained by 1680 in the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War after many defeats. Piracy was a particular scourge in the Caribbean during the Caroline period and the Royal Navy established several permanent squadrons in foreign waters as a consequence. The Scientific, Commercial and Arcane Revolutions all reached their high points under Charles II and England supplanted the Netherlands as the wealthiest power in Europe by 1685.

The death of Charles without a male heir saw the throne pass to his brother James, Duke of York. He faced immediate rebellions in Scotland and Ireland from Protestant aristocrats who feared the prospect of a Catholic heir and his Declaration of Indulgence was met with substantial opposition from the Church of England. His moves towards religious toleration were seen as thinly disguised attempts to promote Catholicism. In what was known as the Glorious Revolution of 1688, a group of Protestant nobles invited William of Orange, son-in-law of James II, to invade and take the throne. In a brief campaign, James was routed and forced to flee to the sanctuary of the court of King Louis XIV of France. Parliament passed the Bill of Rights the next year, declaring that James had abandoned his throne and prohibiting any Roman Catholic from ascending to the throne of England or marrying an English monarch. It also set out a number of certain fundamental rights and liberties of Englishmen that remain at the heart of the unwritten Constitution and English law.

William and Mary reigned in concert with each other until her death in 1694, with the crown to subsequently pass to Mary's younger sister Anne. King William suppressed attempted Jacobite Catholic rebellions in Ireland and Scotland in a series of pitched battles and negotiations and achieved mixed success in the Ten Years' War as one of the leaders of the Grand Alliance. The Bank of England was established in 1694 and English commercial strength continued to grow just as Dutch finances waned. Scottish attempts at replicating the colonial success of her southern neighbours came to naught with the demise of the Darien Scheme, making a substantial contribution to the crisis in Scotland's finances that precipitated the Act of Union.

The 18th Century: War and Peace
Queen Anne's (1700-1715) rule was dominated by the foreign events of the War of Spanish Succession and the domestic consequences of the Act of Union of 1707, which unified England and Scotland into the United Kingdom of Great Britain. John Churchill, the Duke of Marlborough, lead English and Allied armies to magnificent success in many battles against France and cemented his reputation as one of history's great captains. Gibraltar came into English possession in 1704 ans was subsequently ceded by Spain in perpetuity. She was succeeded to the throne by her second cousin, George, Elector of Hanover in 1715, bringing an end to the chequered time of the Stuarts and beginning the Hanoverian period.

George I was unpopular due to the perception that he was too German and did not speak English and spent part of his reign abroad in his German possessions. A Jacobite rising in Scotland in 1715 was swiftly defeated and the King could concentrate his efforts on foreign policy in Europe; he eschewed meeting with his Cabinet on domestic affairs and left much of the running of the nation to Robert Walpole, the first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The economic crisis of the South Sea Bubble in 1719 caused widespread discontent and made the King's ministers considerably more unpopular. Temporary confluence of British and French interests had began to decrease by the time of George I's death in 1727, shortly before France and Spain concluded the Bourbon Compact.

His successor, George II (1727-1760), was even further divorced from the domestic affairs of Great Britain and a large part of his reign was dominated by the conflicts that lead to the lengthy War of Austrian Succession (1739-1748), during the course of which Cuba was first captured by the Royal Navy. He lead an army of British and Allied troops in the field at the Battle of Dettingen in 1743, the last time a British monarch would lead his army in person until 1944. The Jacobite Rising of 1745 under Bonnie Prince Charlie came close to toppling Hanoverian rule in England, but was repulsed and then completely defeated at the Battle of Culloden in 1746. The death of Frederick, Prince of Wales, in 1751 was seen as something of a tragedy, given his greater involvement in British politics, aristocratic society and his patronage of the arts. It was at this time that cricket evolved into its modern form and took its place as the national game.

The Seven Years' War began in 1756 and represented the first truly global conflict. Britain did not begin the conflict auspiciously, but the Annus Mirabilis of 1759 saw decisive victories in North America, India, Asia, Europe and on the seas that turned the tide of the war. Naval supremacy and control of the oceans enabled British forces to seize Havana and Manila in 1762, although the latter was returned under the terms of the Treaty of Paris that ended the war in 1763. Britain emerged from the war as the most powerful country in the world, having driven the French from Canada and India and decisively broken Spanish power. Under the new King George III (1760-1806), a new era of further glory seemingly beckoned.

In the second half of the 18th century, a combination of social changes, technological advances and commercial evolution sparked the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution in Britain. The construction of canals and use of waterpower gave way to new steam engines and complex machines that could do the labour of hundreds of men. Coal mining and the production of iron expanded across the British Isles and the modern textile industry in particular began to take shape, providing great profits for British industrialists and financiers. Around the world, a new wave of great voyages of discovery lead to the exploration of Australia, Asia and the South Seas and expanded trade as they went. The powerful Macartney Embassy began the process of opening China to European trade in 1793, but greater events were afoot elsewhere in the world.

The seeds of the American Revolution had long ago been planted by the growing difference in interests and mindsets of Britain and the American colonies and matters came to a head in the aftermath of the Seven Years' War. Long tensions regarding trade and taxation, typified by the Boston Tea Party of 1773, lead to the outbreak of open war in 1775. Both sides achieved success and suffered setbacks over the first two years of the war until the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga in 1778 lead to French intervention, expanding the conflict to a global scale. The defeat of General Cornwallis' army at the Battle of Yorktown in 1781 heralded the end of the war and the independence of the United States of America, confirmed by the Treaty of Paris two years later.

French Revolutionary Wars: 1792-1815
One of the major consequences of the American War of Independence was the subsequent French Revolution of 1789, which overthrew King Louis XVI and replaced the Ancien Regime with a new government and social order. The execution of Louis in 1792 was met with horror throughout Europe and Britain joined the other power in declaring war on Revolutionary France. The main British role in the initial years of the conflict was at sea, where several great victories were won over France and her allies, including the Glorious First of June in 1794 and the Battles of Camperdown, Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Cape St. Vincent in 1797. Greater deeds were to follow in the Mediterranean, where Admiral Lord Nelson won a famous triumph over the French fleet at the Battle of the Nile in 1798, defeating the French attempt to seize Egypt and securing it for the British Empire. Nelson then captured Malta in 1799 and eliminated the Danish fleet at the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801.

Napoleon Bonaparte had come to power in France by 1799 and crowned himself Emperor of the French in 1804. Britain stood against the French Empire as part of six successive coalitions between 1802 and 1815, defeating Bonaparte's nefarious plan to launch a cross-Channel invasion by defeating the combined Franco-Spanish fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, an immortal triumph secured at the price of Nelson's death. British armies were built up to their greatest ever strength and the liberation of Europe from the Napoleonic yoke began with intervention to protect Portugal in 1808 in what would become the Peninsular War. Allied forces under Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington, invaded France in 1813 and reached Paris in concert with the Coalition armies in 1814, forcing Bonaparte's abdication. Napoleon escaped from Elba and returned to power briefly in 1815, but was decisively defeated by Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo, where 125,000 British and Allied troops defeated Napoleon's army of 138,000 in one of the most important battles in history.

Across the Atlantic in North America, war had broken out between Britain and the United States in 1812. An attempted American invasion of Canada was successfully repulsed and Washington D.C. burnt to the ground in one of many successful amphibious assaults, whilst Baltimore was successfully defended and the Anglo-Canadian invasion of New York and New England eventually halted. The conflict was eventually resolved with the Treaty of Ghent of December 1814, but is notable for both sides winning victories after the war had officially ended, the Americans at New Orleans and the Anglo-Canadians at Buffalo. The Indian forces of Tecumseh retreated into Canada and both sides returned to the status quo ante bellum.

Amid these momentous foreign events, Britain underwent significant change at home. An Act of Union incorporated Ireland into the United Kingdom in 1800 and Catholic emancipation was pushed through Parliament by Prime Minister William Pitt (1783-1810) over considerable opposition. He was responsible for far-reaching reforms to the nation's finances, controlling the growth of the national debt despite the ongoing Napoleonic Wars and instituting the first income tax in British history; as a result of his wise policies, the debt would be virtually paid off by 1849. At the end of the conflict, the Corn Laws were put in place to protect British agriculture from foreign imports.

Pax Britannica: 1815-1914
The Congress of Vienna in 1815 established the Concert of Europe and lead to general peace for decades to follow. Around the world, the British Empire was unchallenged and continued to thrive and expand as the Industrial Revolution continued to transform society. The newly independent republics and kingdoms of South America offered new markets and consumers and many soon fell into the British sphere of influence. Steamships, trains and flying machines began to revolutionise transport and the movement of goods around the world. At home, the era of George IV (1806-1830) was an age of plenty for many and of strife and suffering for others. The pressures for reform lead to considerable social disorder throughout the 1820s. After years of efforts lead by William Wilberforce, slavery was abolished across the British Empire in 1830, following the earlier outlawing of the slave trade, enforced by the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron. The Great Reform Act of 1832 extended the franchise and reformed the Parliamentary system in the first of several consequential actions.

Queen Victoria succeeded her uncle William IV in 1836 and in the young monarch were vested the hopes of the people. Contentious debate over the Corn Laws dominated the middle years of the 1830s, with a large portion of the Liberal Whigs supporting a return to free trade and the Tories supporting protection and tariffs. Prime Minister Sir Robert Peel lead their repeal in 1843, reinstating an income tax and championing free trade at the eventual cost of his office. These actions had many consequences, not the least of which was softening the impact of the Great Potato Blight which struck Scotland and Ireland at the end of the decade compared to the damage wrought on the Continent.

Victoria married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg in 1840, beginning a long and loving union that served as an example to her subjects. Britain began to enjoy the zenith of its military, economic, industrial, cultural and political power, as free trade, Empire and industrialisation combined to double national income and economic output per person between 1840 and 1855 alone and create unprecedented wealth and opportunity; almost two thirds of the world's coal, iron, steel and textiles were manufactured by Britain in 1850. The Great Exhibition of 1851 displayed Britain's power and industry to the world and the construction of railways boomed through the 1840s. Charles Babbage's difference and analytical engines began to be used for many different purposes, accelerating the pace of technological advance.

India was transferred from the control of the East India Company to the Crown in a series of gradual steps over the 1840s and 1850s in response to rising tensions with Russia and France and mounting evidence of mismanagement, with the process completed by 1856. Trade with Japan and Korea was opened up in the early 1840s amid a victorious war with Imperial China that resulted in the acquisition of Hong Kong. British soldiers were equipped with new advanced breech-loading rifles and artillery, assisting their triumphs over the Sikh Empire in India and orcs in Africa. The Royal Navy began to move towards steam powered battleships and iron frigates in this period, which, coupled with the introduction of long range artillery and explosive shells, enhanced its technological advantage over its competitors.

Tensions with the Russian Empire over the Eastern Question finally resulted in the outbreak of war in 1852. The Crimean War would be the first modern conflict, fought with steam powered warships, ironclad vehicles, repeating artillery, flying machines, trains and telegraphs as much as with guns, lances and sabres. Britain and France emerged victorious over their colossal opponent, being joined by Italy, Prussia, Austria and Sweden by 1856. In addition to the Crimea and Southern Russia, fighting also took place in the Baltic, Central Asia and the vast waters of the North Pacific, where the Royal Navy captured Russian Alaska in 1854. It was characterised by the first industrialised mobilisation of the British Empire's arms manufacturing capacity and the mass production of steam gunboats in British dockyards. A major consequence of the victory would be the Anglo-Russian Great Game in Asia as their rivalry continued over the next five decades.

Scientific development continued to occur at a rapid rate and increased fascination with observations of the moons and planets lead to speculation as to the next frontier of exploration. The discovery of cavorite in 1859 proved revolutionary, powering firstly new airships that opened up vast expanses of the globe. An Imperial Space Programme was initiated in 1865 as British prestige and confidence reached new heights. When it was joined by the aetheric engine in December 1867, it enabled realistic prospects of flying beyond the skies of Earth for the first time. Commander Simon McAdam's historic orbital flight of June 24th 1873 was followed just three years later by Captain William Ashton's voyage to Luna and by the landings on Mars in 1885. British exploration of space would not remain a monopoly for long, swiftly challenged by Germany, France, Russia and America, but the advantages of being the first empire in space continued into the 20th century.

Britain increasingly turned away from Continental affairs and alliances from the 1860s, becoming consumed by trade and the Empire. The period between 1867 and 1902 is often called 'Splendid Isolation', but Britain was by no means completely disengaged from European politics, successfully ending wars through the threat of the mobilisation of the Royal Navy on several occasions and engaging in gunboat diplomacy around the world. As the Scramble for Africa began in the 1870s, Britain took part wholeheartedly, expanding her colonial holdings in the west, east and south of the Dark Continent. The rise of Germany as a unified nation state and the flourishing of the United States of America across the Atlantic presented challenges to British hegemony, but it took until the 20th century for the latter to overtake Britain in national wealth and industrial might.

The South African Rebellion of 1899-1900 was a hard-fought victory after initial setbacks, presented an opportunity for the British Empire to display its unified power. At this apex of influence, the 1898 invasion of Britain itself by rebel Martian forces, known as the War of the Worlds, came as a great if momentary shock for British prestige and confidence and the eventual conquest of Southern Barsoom only partially ameliorated its impact. Yet even this was only perceived as a fleeting interruption in the continuing rise of the Empire.

The 20th Century and the World Wars
The dawn of the 20th century saw the British Empire at the apex of its power and global dominance and the Royal Navy clearly without peer on the seven seas. Victory in South Africa and over the Martian menace had seemingly put paid to any overt military threat and the first decade of the century saw a continuation of strong growth in wealth and science. The death of Queen Victoria in 1901 marked the true ending of an era and the Edwardian period that followed under her acclaimed son Edward VII would be an Indian summer for the Pax Britannica and the Belle Epoque.

Tensions with Germany and Russia began to rise over the first half of the 1900s, with the latter being soundly defeated by Britain's new Japanese allies in 1904, thus ending their effective threat. Anglo-French rivalry was finally buried with the signing of the Entente Cordiale in 1903 as both of the great European imperial powers focused their attention on the growing power of their German rivals. A naval arms race began as a result of Germany's desire for hegemony and a general lack of trust between the Great Powers, a course of action made easier by the commissioning of the revolutionary HMS Dreadnought in 1905. A gradual series of minor wars in the Balkans and Middle East and colonial conflicts in Africa increased international tensions to breaking point until finally the attempted assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary in July 1914 by a Bosnian Serb terrorist provided the spark for general conflict.

The Great War, lasting from 1914 to 1918, was the largest conflict in human history to that point and saw the loss of almost 20 million lives. The British Army fought across the world and committed its main effort to the Western Front in France, where over 100 divisions of the British Expeditionary Force and hundreds of thousands of troops from across the Empire ground back the Imperial German Army and finally smashed it back across France, Belgium and the Netherlands into Germany. In the Middle East, China and Africa, forces of the British Empire won tremendous victories over the German and Ottoman Empires and bought vast swathes of territory under the Union Flag. At sea, the Grand Fleet of the Royal Navy won a new Trafalgar over their German foes at the Battle of Jutland and lead the successful defence against the U-Boat menace. In the air, the Royal Air Force won dominance over the battlefield and bought the war home to the factories and military bases of Germany through its revolutionary strategic bombers. The great victory was not without cost and almost half a million Britons made the ultimate sacrifice for King and Country.

The Treaty of Versailles in 1919 marked the transition to the postwar world, although British forces continued to engage in the convoluted and difficult Russian Civil War for several years. The British Empire had won control of new lands in Africa and the Middle East and the latter proved to be the source of considerable vexation in the years to come. Contributions by the Dominions and India were recognised by widespread reforms to the structure of the Empire and the institution of regular Imperial Conferences and meetings of the representatives of the Imperial Council. The 1920s are often considered to be a golden decade, with only the brief threat of war with the Soviet Union in 1926 providing an interruption to protracted growth and a return to prewar prosperity and social order. Magic and science reached new heights of achievement and many openly heralded a new future of peace and luxury.

This was dramatically interrupted by the Crash of 1929 and the Great Depression that followed. World trade collapsed as nations and empires walled themselves off from competition and millions found themselves unemployed or destitute. The Depression struck particularly hard in the industrial heartlands of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales and society itself seemed broken. The actions of the National Government did much to ameliorate the devastation, taking Britain off the gold standard in 1930 and instituting a wide-reaching programme (largely authored by Liberal economist John Maynard Keynes) of public works, infrastructure construction and government spending. Interest rates fell, exports increased sharply and Britain began to slowly recover from late 1932 onwards.

The international order had been profoundly displaced by the impact of the Depression and the most direct sign of this was the rise of Nazi Germany under Adolf Hitler. Along with the expansionist Empire of Japan, whose 1931 invasion of Manchuria had begun the process of British rearmament, the increasing threat presented by Germany and Fascist Italy stimulated Britain to prepare for war whilst trying at the same time to prevent conflict. This lead to the dual policies of rearmament and appeasement, with the latter seeking to assuage German grievances in order to reach a reasonable settlement. Aggressive wars by Italy and Japan in Abyssinia and China raged around the world and Hitler moved steadily towards war, reinstituting conscription, building up the German fleet and re-militarising the Rhineland in 1936. The Austrian Crisis of 1938 removed the final illusions that a peaceful solution could be reached and British military spending swelled in anticipation of conflict.

Germany invaded Poland on September 3rd, 1939, marking the beginning of the Second World War, the most destructive and horrific conflict ever to occur in human history. Britain and the Empire mobilised their manpower and industry in a total war unlike any other and stood alone against the Nazi tide after the Fall of France in 1940. The Battle of Britain saved the nation and the world, but several hard years of struggle would follow before the turn of the tide in late 1942 with victory in North Africa. Japan struck in the Far East at the end of 1941 and Malaya, Burma and Australia barely held against their ferocious assault. The Royal Navy fought several key campaigns, winning control of the Mediterranean, defeating the U-Boat threat in the Atlantic once again and bleeding the remainder Imperial Japanese Navy white in a grinding campaign of attrition whilst the United States Navy struck the vital blows in the Pacific. In the air, the Royal Air Force dealt devastating blows to the Nazi war machine in the strategic bombing war and continued to guard the skies of the British Isles. In June 1944, the liberation of Europe began with the massive landings in Normandy and Allied armies smashed through to ultimate victory in the very heart of the fascist beast in Berlin less than a year later. Japan lasted for several more months, finally capitulating after the dropping of four atomic bombs and the invasion of the Home Islands.

The cost was once again incredible, with Britain alone suffering 426,538 military and 123,476 civilian deaths in six long years of war. Over £76,000 million pounds had been spent on the war and the National Debt had swelled to almost £24,000 million as a consequence of the intense efforts of the British Empire. Britain's position had waned in comparison to the United States and the Soviet Union, but its prestige, honour and repute remained strong and the possession of the awesome power of the atomic bomb seemed to secure the Empire's position in the postwar world for the immediate future.

Postwar: The New Elizabethan Age
The end of the Second World War in 1945 left a world much damaged by the ravages of conflict and scarred by the horrors of evil, but Britain itself had been reasonably fortunate and suffered comparatively little damage compared to Europe and Asia. Economic, industrial and social recovery gathered pace in the postwar years, assisted by generous aid from the United States and Canada and soon Britain had surpassed her prewar levels of production and prosperity. The shadow of a new Cold War with the Soviet Union put something of a pall on the general atmosphere of renewal and growing social prosperity, but the British Empire seemed to stand strong behind the shield of its armed forces and the atomic bomb.

The outbreak of the Korean War in 1950 came as a terrific shock to the world and resulted in economic and military mobilisation to deter the extension of Communist aggression to Europe, Africa or the Middle East. Colonial rebellions in Burma, Malaya and Kenya in the early 1950s were gradually suppressed with overwhelming force and new strategic weapons were developed and deployed to maintain the unsteady global peace. Korea ultimately ended in a victory for the united Allied forces of the League of Nations, vindicating the value of collective security and proving that all challenges could and would be met. As the decade wore on, continual colonial conflict in Africa and Asia began to make some call for a reappraisal of policies towards nationalist independence movements, whilst others advocated a hard line against Soviet-backed groups.

George VI, the much-loved and universally respected King-Emperor and Sovereign, died in early 1952 after several years of poor health and was mourned by the nation, Empire and world. He was succeeded to the throne by his young daughter, Elizabeth II, in whom the hopes and aspirations of countless millions were invested. In her short period on the throne, she has proved to be a wise and munificent Queen and a sense of a new Elizabethan golden age has taken hold across the British Empire.

Britain experienced the most protracted economic boom in its recorded history in the 1950s and it still continues to this day. Unemployment, that scourge of the 1930s, virtually disappeared and inflation was kept under steady control whilst productivity and general affluence rose dramatically. This period of growth was driven by an explosion in domestic demand, increased production of valuable goods and resources and most of all by new scientific discoveries and innovations. Televisions, electronics, computing engines, jet aircraft, integrated circuits and atomic power all contributed to what some have termed a third Industrial Revolution and Britain has stood at its forefront.

The War of 1956 threatened to reverse much of the progress made since 1945 and narrowly avoided escalating into a global conflagration. When the dust settled, Britain's primacy in the Middle East remained intact, albeit profoundly shaken, and the Atlantic Alliance seemingly damaged by the divergence of the interests of Britain, France and the United States. In the years since, the Cold War has continued apace, but shows distinct signs of thawing as a changing of the guard to new leadership takes place across the world. The Space Race has reached its moment of greatest intensity since 1945 and has had a subtle political influence. Britain stands as the third superpower, secure in its strengths and focused on a future that may be mightier and more glorious yet.

[Simon Darkshade]

Geography

The total area of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland is 256,324 square miles, consisting of Great Britain, Ireland, Lyonesse and surrounding smaller islands. It lies between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, separated from Europe by the English Channel, which is 36 miles wide at its narrowest point. 20% of the total land area is forested, with 36% used for pasture and 29% used for agriculture. Great Britain is the largest island in Europe and is the second most populous island in the world. The Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London, is the defining point of the Prime Meridian.

England makes up almost a third of the total area of the United Kingdom, covering 80,562 square miles. Most of the country consists of lowland terrain, gentle rolling hills and fertile plains, with highlands and mountains found in the north and north-west, including the Cumbrian Mountains of the Lake District, the Pennines, the Peak District and the Silver Mountains. England's highest mountain is the Great Mountain (12,469ft) in the Lake District. The main rivers are the Thames, Severn, Mersey, Humber, Tees, Tyne and Tweed. England is a heavily urbanised country of 84.5 million, with over half of the populace living in the metropolises of London (25 million), Birmingham (5.4 million), Liverpool (5.2 million), Manchester (4.8 million), Newcastle (2.5 million), Leeds (2 million), Bristol (1.3 million), Sheffield (1.25 million), Nottingham (1.1 million) and Middlesborough (1 million) with 52% of remaining populace dwelling in large towns and cities and 48% living in rural areas and villages. England is divided into 42 counties, with Lancashire and Yorkshire being the largest and most economically powerful.

Scotland covers 48,652 square miles and including nearly one thousand islands located mainly to the west and north, with the Hebrides, Faroes, Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands and Golden Isles being the major groups. Scotland is divided into the rugged Highlands and the populous Lowlands, with the former containing most of Scotland's rich mountains, including the 12,378ft tall Ben Nevis, and the latter home to the great cities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Perth, Dundee and Stirling. Scotland is an industrial and agricultural country of 14.6 million is balanced between the large population centres of Glasgow (3.5 million), Edinburgh (1.6 million), Aberdeen (1.1 million) and Inverness (0.8 million) and the smaller towns, cities and villages.

Ireland covers 52,154 square miles and is a verdant land of lush forest and fertile farmland. Low lying mountains surround a central plain fed by several major rivers. Ireland and Great Britain are linked by the 87 mile long undersea Victoria Tunnel between Stranraer and Belfast. The highest mountain in Ireland is the great Carrauntoohil, which reaches 8,562ft. Ireland is a largely rural country of 12.4 million, although Dublin is one of the largest cities in the United Kingdom with over 3.2 million inhabitants and Belfast is also a large urban centre with 2.4 million inhabitants.

Lyonesse, covering 25,638 square miles, is an island of contrasts with a rugged, forested interior dominated by the White Mountains rolling down to a temperate fertile coast through four great river valleys. Carn Lyon is the tallest mountain in Lyonesse, reaching a height of 7,931ft. Lyonesse is an agricultural country with a total propulation of 6.3 million of is with the major concentrations at Lyonesse in the north (1.29 million), Ys in the east (964,000) and Avalon in the west (732,000).

Wales is the smallest country in the British Isles, covering 12,832 square miles. It is a hard, mountainous land, with South Wales somewhat flatter than North and Central Wales. The main population and industry is found in South Wales, consisting of the coastal cities of Cardiff, Swansea, Haven and Newport, and the South Wales Valleys to their north. Snowdon, at 10,240 ft, is the highest peak in Wales. The great island of Anglesey lies off the northern coast. Wales is a rural country of 7.2 million inhabitants, with Cardiff (562,000), Swansea (284,000), Newport (263,000) and Haven (250,000) being the major population centres.

The Isle of Man and the Channel Islands are possessions of the Crown and their foreign affairs and defence are administered by the British Government and legislation passed on their behalf by the Imperial Parliament at Westminster. Consideration is being given to the incorporation of Britain's European possessions such as Gibraltar, Heligoland and Malta into the United Kingdom in response to changing world events.


British Empire
The British Empire is the largest in the world and includes territories on all continents. It consists of directly ruled Crown Colonies, sovereign states under British protection, the Indian Empire and the Commonwealth Realms or Dominions. The number of territories directly ruled by Britian has decreased over the years and as of 1960, 36 Crown Colonies and 16 protectorates remain in the formal Empire, with several on the cusp of self rule. India is a self-governing Dominion in a special relationship with Britain and full independence is scheduled for 1964/5. The Dominions of the British Commonwealth compromise Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Newfoundland, Rhodesia, New Avalon, Prydain, the Federation of the West Indies and Israel; Malaya, Ceylon and Kenya are expected to join their ranks by the middle of the decade.

Politics
Britain is a unitary state under a constitutional monarchy. Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state of the United Kingdom as well as Empress of India, Protector of the Realm, Head of the Church of England and Queen of the sovereign countries of the Commonwealth. The Crown exercises considerable power in Britain with many rights and responsibilities embodied in the Royal Prerogative, with the Prime Minister follows the commands and advice of the Sovereign. The Constitution of the United Kingdom is an unwritten one and consisting of centuries old traditions, precedents, treaties, laws and charters, stretching back to the Magna Carta from the reign of King Richard the Lionheart.

Government
Britain has a parliamentary system of government with the Westminster system being the model by dozens of states across the world. The Parliament of the United Kingdom is bicameral, consisting of the elected House of Commons and hereditary and appointed House of Lords. The House of Commons has 750 constituencies, each electing a single Member of Parliament. The House of Lords consists of the 124 Lords Spiritual, the 982 Lords Temporal, the 64 Lords Martial and the 80 Lords Arcane.

The head of government is the Prime Minister, who is appointed by the Monarch, and is the leader of the party that holds the largest number of seats in the House of Commons. The Cabinet is drawn from both houses and also appointed by the Monarch, with the most important members sitting on Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council. Their task is to debate and execute policy as directed by the leader. The current Prime Minister is the Right Honourable Sir Anthony Eden, the leader of the Conservative Party, who has been in office since 1956.

The five major political parties in Britain are the Conservative Party (Tories), the Liberal Party (Whigs), the Labour Party, the Socialist Party and the National Party, with the Radical and Imperialist parties among the larger of the smaller groups. The Conservative Party currently holds 345 seats, the Nationals 58 seats, the Liberals 107 seats, Labour 124 seats, the Socialists 36, the Imperialists 32 seats, the Radicals 25 seats and other smaller parties and Independents 23 seats. The next general election is scheduled to occur in 1964.

The Conservative Party is centred on social traditionalism, capitalism, patriotism, tariffs and Imperial preference, low taxation, strong national defences and Imperial ties, anti-communism, law and order and One-Nation Conservatism or the pursuit of national harmony. It is supported by the aristocracy, clergy and middle classes, particularly in Southern and Middle England and the shires. The Liberal Party supports social liberalism, free trade, the welfare state, moderate taxation and Keynesian government spending, centrist economics and Britain's position at the head of a reformed Empire. It draws its support primarily from the industrial middle classes and Nonconformist churches and has its heartland in North Wales, London and the Midlands.

The Labour Party has a social democratic platform supporting nationalisation of key industries, support of trade unions, social traditionalism, anti-communism, internationalism, Imperial reform and gradual decolonisation, extension of social welfare and has its heart in the trade union movement and industrial working class areas of Northern England, South Wales and Scotland. The National Party has a strong base of support in the countryside of Ireland, Scotland and South West England and from Roman Catholics. Its policies focus on protectionism, physiocracy, traditionalism, populism, low taxation, land reform and robust defence of Britain and the Empire.

Law and Justice
Britain has a single legal system across all of its countries, with the Law Lords and Privy Council acting as the highest court of appeal in the Commonwealth and the Empire. English law is based on common law principles, which apply statute, precedent and common sense to the relevant fact prior to issuing explanatory judgements of the relevant legal principles, which are binding in future cases. The rights of Englishmen have been clearly set out in several key documents over the centuries, including the Bill of Rights and the Magna Carta.

There is relatively little crime in Britain compared to Europe and the United States, with harsh justice, strong police forces and a generally law abiding population contributing to quite low rates of theft, violence and indecency. 105 murders were recorded in 1959 and the prison population numbers just under 50,000. Capital punishment by hanging is in place for murder, treason, treachery, rape, kidnapping, torture, espionage, piracy and highway robbery and by burning at the stake for necromancy and witchcraft. Young offenders under the age of 21 are confined in borstals, where corporal punishment is administered by the birch, rather than the cat o' nine tails used in adult prisons.

Foreign Relations
Britain is a one of the three superpowers in the world, being a permanent member of the Council of the League of Nations and a member of the Council of Europe, the Baghdad Pact and the Atlantic Treaty. Britain played the main role in the defeat of Germany in the First World War and stood alongside the United States and Soviet Union at the head of the Allies in the Second World War. The British Empire is one of the primary nations opposing the Soviet Union in the Cold War which has been ongoing since 1945, with this conflict seen as an extension of the long Great Game with the Russian Empire. Britain maintains a large network of bases around the world and can project power in every corner of the globe. Britain is the dominant power in Africa, the Middle East and South East Asia and is extremely powerful and influential in South America and the Far East. The central aims of British foreign policy over the last 500 years have been to maintain the balance of power in Europe and the mastery of the seas, with the Royal Navy being the key instrument of British global strategy in that time.

It stands at the head of the British Empire, the largest, richest and most powerful empire in the world, and has mutual defence and security treaties with the Commonwealth Dominions through the 1924 Treaty of Westminster. Australia, Canada and South Africa are the most senior Dominions and are often regarded as the Nuclear Commonwealth due to their independent possession of atomic weapons. India has a special relationship with Britain, maintaining very close defence, economic and strategic ties in addition to Commonwealth links, the full extent of which will be decided by the Indian government upon full independence in 1964. Israel is a member of the Commonwealth and enjoys extensive defence support from Britain.

Britain and France maintained a close partnership for most of the first half of the 20th century, before postwar trade tensions lead to a cooling of ties in the 1950s. British relations with Germany and Austria-Hungary have been strained since the Second World War, but recent governments have promoted rapprochement. Italy and Spain have growing commercial ties with Britain, but a number of territorial and political questions have prevented truly cordial relations. The Scandinavian countries, the Benelux Union, Portugal and Switzerland have extensive trade and strategic ties with Britain and are in the process of negotiating a collective free trade pact.

British global presence and influence in the Middle East and Asia is greatly increased through its extensive foreign trade and investment, economic aid and military assistance. Anglo-Chinese and Anglo-Japanese trade and diplomatic relations have been strained at various times in the 20th century due to conflict, but both are apparently improving at this time. The states of the Arab League are allied with Britain through the Baghdad Pact, but these links are proving increasingly unpopular in the view of nationalist movements in the region.

The British Empire and the United States of America share extensive trade, cultural, political and strategic ties and have fought alongside each other in every major conflict of the 20th century. Relations are generally amicable but subject to occasional strain through difference of economic and geopolitical interests. Britain has highly developed commercial interests in South America and Mexico and enjoys great influence in the states of the 'Southern Cone'.

Military
Her Majesty's Armed Forces consist of the four professional service branches - the Royal Navy and Royal Marines , which make up the Naval Service, the British Army, the Royal Air Force and the Royal Space Force. The forces are managed by thei Admiralty, the Ministry of War, the Air Ministry and the Ministry of Space, under the coordination of the Ministry of Defence. The Commander-in-Chief is the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, to whom members of the forces swear a sacred oath of allegiance and valiant service. The Armed Forces are protect Britain and the Empire, defend the the global strategic position of the Empire and support the collective security efforts of the League of Nations. Overseas garrisons and bases are located in every continent, every sea and ocean and on all the inner planets of the Solar System.

Britain's Armed Forces played a central role in the establishment of the British Empire as the dominant world power of the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Over the course of their illustrious history, British armies and fleets have seen action in many great wars, such as the Thirty Years' War, the War of the Grand Alliance, the War of Austrian Succession, the Seven Years' War, the Napoleonic Wars, the Chinese Wars, the Crimean War, the War of the Worlds, World War I and World War II and hundreds of colonial conflicts. Through victory in all of these conflicts, Britain has played a central and decisive role in the course of world events over the last 500 years.

Britain has the third highest military spending in the world, the second largest strategic nuclear arsenal and is the largest military power in Europe. With the resources and manpower of India, Australia, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, Rhodesia, Newfoundland, Israel, Prydain and the colonies, the British Empire is arguably the most powerful collective military entity in the world. The Commonwealth maintains a number of powerful joint military commands across the world and the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and British Army are heavily integrated with the command structures of the corresponding forces of the Dominions. Britain has extensive operational commitments to alliances and collective security in Scandinavia, the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the Far East.

The British Army has 1,254,683 personnel in 24 divisions and is the ninth largest army in the world. It is deployed around the world in defence of the British Empire with major deployments in India, Burma, Malaya, Hong Kong, Egypt, Iraq and Kenya. The Chieftain tank is the most powerful tank in current service, the Army Air Corps operates hundreds of helicopters and Rotodynes and the Royal Artillery is lavishly equipped with atomic capable guns and long range missiles. The Special Air Service, Special Forces and Commandos of the British Army are renowned as the finest in the world and the Parachute Regiment has unmatched strategic range and mobility. Regiments of Gurkhas and Sikhs provide superbly trained and capable light infantry for operations across the Empire. The Home Guard, numbering over 2 million strong, has remained in service for 20 years as Britain's main local defence force.

The Royal Navy, the 'Senior Service' has almost 800,000 personnel and is the second largest fleet in the world. It operates 26 aircraft carriers, 25 battleships and dozens of powerful cruisers and submarines and hundreds of destroyers and frigates. Atomic submarines, both hunter-killers and strategic missile boats, provide the RN with unlimited operational range and considerable lethality. The Royal Naval Air Service fields hundreds of aircraft in the defence of naval bases, maritime strike and oceanic patrol. The amphibious forces of the four divisions of the Royal Marines have a global reach and heavy firepower. It has an unrivalled network of bases around the world, including the largest naval base in the world at Singapore and the redoubtable Rock of Gibraltar. The RN is in the process of introducing a variety of nuclear powered surface ships.

The Royal Air Force is the oldest independent air force in the world and is the most potent weapon in the defence of the British Empire, operating just over 10,000 aircraft of various types. RAF Bomber Command has the main role in the operation of Britain's strategic nuclear deterrent and can strike any target in the world with the Blue Streak ICBM and the potent Avro Vulcan. Fighter Command provides the defensive shield of the British Isles and supports the British Army in field operations around the globe with such aircraft as the English Electric Lightning, de Havilland Spectre and the revolutionary Hawker-Siddeley Harrier. The RAF is engaged in many operations other than war including transportation, air policing, humanitarian relief, exploration, search and rescue, scientific research and training.

The Royal Space Force is the youngest and smallest of the Armed Forces, but plays a role of immense importance in the defence of the extraterrestrial territories of the British Empire on the moons, Venus, Mars and Vulcan. It operates the most sophisticated fleet of space fighters in the Solar System and a number of large spaceships which patrol the commercial routes between the inner planets.

Economy

Economy of Great Britain

Exports: £36,972 million ($924.3 billion)
Imports: £32,504 million ($737.6 billion)
Major Import Partners: USA (16%), Germany (12%), Canada (12%), India (11%), France, Australia, Sweden,China, Soviet Union, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa
Major Export Partners: USA (16%), Canada (14%), India (12%), France, Australia, Germany, China, Japan, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Austria-Hungary, South Africa, Egypt
Current Account Surplus: £4,468 million ($111.7 billion)
National Debt: £12,834 million (14% of GDP)
Inflation: 2.4%
Unemployment: 0.4% (278,800)
Labour Force: 69.7 million
Population below Poverty Line: 3.6%

Revenue: £31,388 million (12,506 Income Tax, Customs and Excise 5987, External Revenue 4873, National Insurance 4396, Corporation Tax 1762, Other Taxes and Royalties 2175)
Expenditure: £30,054 million (Defence 10.998, Health 3.975, Education 3.876, Pensions 2.438, Welfare 2.325, Trade and Industry 0.983, Space 0.782, Colonial Office 0.629, Housing 0.564, Home Office 0.562, Debt Interest 0.425, Foreign Aid 0.4, Energy and Power 0.388, Transport 0.375, India Office 0.367, Agriculture and Food 0.354, Commonwealth 0.329, Other 0.284)
Surplus: £1334 million

Major Budget Spending (% of GDP)
Defence: 12.5 %
Health: 4.52%
Education: 4.41%
Pensions: 2.78%
Welfare: 2.65%

Gold Reserves: 25,864 tons (£3,426 million)
Silver Reserves: 103,629 tons (£466.4 million)
Sterling Reserves: £10,423 million
Imperial Sovereign Fund: £9,236 million
Foreign Investment: 24% (2nd in the world; USA 35%)

Britain has a free capitalist economy, the largest in Europe, and second only to the United States of America in the world. It possesses the world’s second largest gold and silver reserves, and British companies, banks and interests are responsible for 24% of global investment. The City of London is the world’s largest financial centre, narrowly leading New York City. HM Treasury, under the Chancellor of the Exchequer, bears responsibility for the development and administration of British public finance and economic policies. The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and is responsible for issuing notes and coins in the nation's currency, the pound sterling. Banks in Scotland and Ireland retain the right to issue their own notes. The pound sterling is the world's largest reserve currency, narrowly ahead of the US dollar.

British companies own considerable assets (railways, mines, factories, ports, shipyards, utilities, power stations, plantations and farms) and property across the world as well as on Mars, Venus, the asteroid belt and the moons. Low rates of personal and corporate taxation make Britain perhaps the most attractive investment environment in the world. However, Britain faces increasing competition from Germany, Japan, France and Italy in once secure markets in Asia and South America. The system of Imperial Preference gives Britain the dominant role in Imperial and Commonwealth markets, with Canada and India growing in relative stature.

The British manufacturing and industrial sector makes over 40% of Gross Domestic Product. London is widely considered as the centre of the global economy, being world's largest financial centre ahead of New York and Tokyo and possessing the largest city GDP in the world. Edinburgh and Manchester are also two of the largest financial centres in Europe. Tourism is important to the British economy and, with over 10 million tourists arriving in 1959, Britain is ranked as the fifth major tourist destination in the world and London has more international visitors than any other city in the world.

The Industrial Revolution began in Britain in the 18th century, branching out from its beginnings in the textile industry to other heavy industries such as shipbuilding, coal mining, iron and steel, engineering and machinery. British mercantile, financial and commercial interests developed an overwhelming advantage in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, allowing Britain to dominate international trade for the next 150 years.

Agriculture in Britain is intensive, highly mechanised and efficient by European standards, producing 93% of food needs with under 4% of the labour force. Production is divided between livestock and arable crops. Britain had one of the world's largest fishing industries. It is also rich in a many natural resources including coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, gold, silver, iron ore, copper, bronze, lead, gems, salt, limestone, granite, clay, chalk, timber and a great abundance of fertile arable land.

Industry

Primary Industry (8.35 million employed; 14.22% of GDP)

Agriculture: 4.2 million; £3320 million (3.78%)
Mining: 2.5 million; £4296 million (4.89%)
Oil and Gas: 0.7 million; £2568 million (2.92%)
Fishing: 0.6 million; £1347 million (1.53%)
Forestry: 0.35 million; £962 million (1.1%)

Secondary Industry (23.5 million; 46.91%)

Light Industry: 5 million; £4338 million (4.94%)
General Engineering: 2.9 million; £3132 million (3.57%)
Textiles: 2.4 million; £2876 million (3.27%)
Electrical and Electronic: 2.1 million; £3263 million (3.72%)
Iron and Steel: 1.5 million; £3219 million (3.67%)
Chemicals: 1.4 million; £3327 million (3.78%)
Shipbuilding: 1.4 million; £2456 million (2.8%)
Aviation: 1.25 million; £5645 million (6.4%)
Automotive: 1.25 million workers; £5248 million (5.9%)
Transport: 1.25 million; £2091 million (2.38%)
Construction: 1.25 million; £2016 million (2.29%)
Defence: 1 million; £1759 million (2%)
Pharmaceutical: 0.8 million; £1926 million (2.19%)

Tertiary Industry (34.95 million; 38.76%)

Services and Commerce: 27.9 million; £15,150 million (17.25%)
Finance, Law and Banking: 1.1 million; £8254 million (9.4%)
Health Care: 1.5 million; £2772 million (3.16%)
Education: 1.2 million; £2123 million (2.41%)
Entertainment: 0.7 million; £2089 million (2.38%)
Domestic Service: 1.6 million; £1894 million (2.16%)

A large part of the strength of British industry lies in manufacturing and heavy industry, with shipbuilding, steel production, engineering, machine tools, rail, textiles and chemicals being areas of particular note. 68 million tons of steel were produced in 1959. The British automotive and rail industries are also the source of considerable exports, with almost half of the 2.578 million cars and lorries built in 1959 being exported and British locomotives and railway carriages being highly sought by railways in Africa, India, Asia, the Middle East and South America.

High technology industries such as aviation, aerospace, rocketry, optics, computing, electronics and superconductors have provided some of the greatest growth in the British economy in recent years and provide some of the finest products in the world, such as the rocketplane, the integrated circuit, the computer, the Fairey Rotodyne and the ubiquitous de Havilland Comet jet airliner. Over 1500 Comets have been delivered over the last 14 years, with orders for 896 still to be filled. Significant challenges are rising from Germany and Japan, while the United States remains a clear global leader in this sector.

Substantial revenues come from oil and gas production in the North Sea, the Irish Sea, Wales, England and Scotland, with the postwar oil boom from the North Sea and England playing a significant role in the white hot performance of the British economy in the 1950s. Construction of offshore oil platforms has allowed the exploitation of resources far from any shore. Britain is a net exporter of coal, oil, gas and electricity. Coal production totalled 524 million tons in 1959, with 206 million tons being exported.

Britain has historically been the largest shipbuilder in the world for the last century and a half until overtaken by the United States in the Second World War. The great shipyards of the Clyde, the Thames, Tyneside, Birkenhead, Barrow, Belfast, Southampton, Portsmouth and Aberdeen have flourished in the period following the Second World War, producing tankers, merchant ships, liners, cargo steamers, ferries, bulk carriers and warships by the hundred each year. Accompanying this rising rate of modern shipbuilding, the British ship breaking and scrap industry is a world leader, although the gap between it and its competitors is closing. The increasing demand for large supertankers from British Petroleum, Shell, Anglo-Saxon Petroleum and British Oil has been accommodated with a massive expansion of existing yards in Scotland, Northern England and Ireland, with some construction slips reaching almost half a mile in length.

Science and Technology

Britain is one of the most scientifically advanced nations in the world, being at the forefront of the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Great scientists in this era include Sir Isaac Newton, whose laws of motion and gravity are at the centre of modern science, Sir Michael Faraday and Sir James Clark Maxwell, the fathers of electromagnetism, Sir Charles Babbage, the inventor of the difference engine, Sir George Cayley, the pioneer of powered flight and Baron Kelvin, author of many of the key laws of thermodynamics. Famous British engineers of the Industrial Revolution include James Watt, George Stephenson, Richard Arkwright and the three towering figures of Sir Robert Stephenson, Sir Joseph Bazalgette and Lord Brunel.

Edward Jenner's smallpox vaccine and Sir Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin have saved countless millions of lives. British science and medicine has lead the way in battling the scourges of typhoid, cholera, influenza malaria, sweating sickness, bubonic plague and leprosy. The developments of vitamins, insulin and anaesthesia have greatly assisted care of the sick.

Major technological inventions and discoveries by British subjects include the steam locomotive, developed by Richard Trevithick and Andrew Vivian; the automobile by Samuel Brown; the electrical telegraph by Sir William Cooke and Charles Wheatstone; the steam aeroplane by Sir William Samuel Henson; the incandescent light bulb by Joseph Swan; the steam turbine by Sir Charles Parsons; the telephone by Alexander Graham Bell; the television by Sir John Logie Baird; penicilin by Sir Alexander Fleming; the discovery of nuclear fission by Sir Ernest Rutherford, Sir James Chadwick and Sir Henry Moseley; the hovercraft by Christopher Cockerill; and the jet engine by Sir Frank Whittle.

Dreadnoughts, aircraft carriers, destroyers, ironclads, fighters, bombers, tanks, torpedoes, the machine gun RDF and ASDIC all rank as great British military inventions. Britain has lead the way in space travel and exploration of the solar system, with the cavorite powered spacecraft and rocket powered spaceship travelling the aether between the inner planets for over 80 years.

Transport

The British road network consists of 62,548 miles of main roads, 5379 miles of Royal Highways and 524,629 miles of paved roads. Construction of the Royal Highways has been a great driver of economic activity since they began in 1928 and their use has increased with the rising prevalence of automobile use in Britain. As of 1960, there were a total of 87 million licensed vehicles in Great Britain.

Britain has a railway network of 42,356 miles in Great Britain, 3987 miles in Lyonesse and 10,154 miles in Ireland. It is publicly owned and run by British Rail, the successor to the famed 'Big Five' railway companies (Great Western Railway, Southern Railway, London and North Eastern Railway, London Midland and Scotland Railway and Irish Railways) which operate as regional subsidiaries to this day. Over 40,000 passenger trains and 12,000 freight trains are in daily operation. A number of railways have been converted to very high speed rail since the end of the War, with a long term goal of linking the major cities of England, Scotland and Wales with ultra-modern 250mph supertrains. The London Underground is the largest and busiest urban subterranean mass-transit system in the world.

There are four major airports in London in addition to airports in Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle, Sheffield, Leeds, Nottingham, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dublin, Belfast, Cardiff, Bristol, Plymouth and Southampton. The four main British airlines are Imperial Airways, British European Airways, British South American Airways and British Commonwealth Pacific Airlines, all of which operate a range of aeroplanes, seaplanes and airships across the globe.

The British Merchant Navy is the largest in the world, with 5264 vessels and a gross tonnage of 65,254,438 tons. British shipping companies are among the leaders in the global shipping industry, ranging from the great operators of the superliners, such as White Star and Cunard, to the dominant trading lines such as Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company and the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. The Port of London is the largest and busiest in the world, with over 2500 cranes handling 100,000 ships per year, having regained its position in the economic boom of the 1950s. Annual trade is over 125 million tons per year, amounting to some 48% of the total British volume.

Energy

Britain is the world's third-largest consumer of energy and the fourth-largest producer.The UK is home to five of the world's oil and gas supermajors, the so-called "Ten Titans" – British Petroleum, Burmah Oil, Anglo-Saxon Petroleum, Eagle Petroleum and Shell. In 1959, 40% of the UK's electricity was produced by coal, 20% by oil and gas, 20% by hydroelectricity, 19% by nuclear power and 1% by windpower. Over 486 TW of electricity were produced in 1958.

In 1958, Britain produced 3.2 million barrels per day of oil, the sixth highest production level in the world, and consumed 2.4 million bbl/d. The oil reserves of the North Sea have been commercially exploited since the end of the Second World War, with the capacity to significantly expand British oil production. In 1959, Britain was the 6th-largest producer of natural gas in the world and the largest producer in Europe. A significant proportion of British oil and gas is exported. The mainstay of British energy supplies comes from coal, with coal mining playing a key role in the British economy in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Coal production averaged over 480 million tons throughout the 1950s, with sufficient projected reserves for at least the next several hundred years.

The first civilian nuclear power station was opened in Britain in 1950, with twelve reactors built over the next decade and a further fifteen under construction or projected as of 1960. Top secret research into nuclear fusion continues with no developments expected in the short or medium term. The immense atomic production plants and power stations at Windscale are the largest nuclear facility in Europe and produce almost two tonnes of military material a year.

Hydroelectricity provides significant power in Scotland, Wales and Lyonesse, with the Severn Barrage in South West England producing 6850 MW of power. The Welsh Mountains scheme provides electricity for most of Wales and the Midlands through its underground power stations and subterranean rivers and lakes.

[Simon Darkshade]

Demography

Demographics
The population of Britain is a remarkably homogenous one, and has increased greatly over the last 120 years (almost doubling between 1800 and 1870 alone) through a combination of a thriving economy and subsequent general prosperity, advances in health care and medicine, a substantial decline in infant mortality, elimination of many diseases and public health works, improved nutrition and a strong family culture. A census is held every 10 years to record the population and collect information for national records.

The United Kingdom is the ninth largest country in the world, the second largest in Europe and the second largest in the British Empire. Annual population growth has been consistently high at a rate of 0.6% per decade. 24.6% of the population are aged under 15, a product of the long postwar 'baby boom' that saw birth rates soar in the aftermath of the Second World War.

1960 Human Population by Age Group

0-5: 7.6%
6-10: 8.4%
11-15: 8.6%
16-20: 7.1%
21-25: 6.3%
26-30: 6.2%
31-35: 6.1%
36-40: 6.2%
41-45: 6.2%
46-50: 6.1%
51-55: 5.7%
56-60: 5.6%
61-65: 5.5%
65-70: 5.2%
71-75: 4.9%
76-80: 2.3%
81-85: 1.2%
86-90: 0.7%
91-95: 0.05%
96-100: 0.03%
100+ : 0.02%

Historical Population

1000: 5.1 million
1200: 8.2 million
1350: 11.9 million
1400: 8.6 million
1500: 10.2 million
1600: 13.4 million
1700: 18.3 million
1750: 22.6 million
1800: 32 million
1850: 54 million
1900: 87 million
1910: 96 million
1920: 100 million
1930: 104 million
1940: 112 million
1950: 119 million
1960: 125 million

Major Urban Areas

1.) London (25,379,624)
2.) Birmingham (5.4 million)
3.) Liverpool (5.2 million)
4.) Manchester (4.8 million)
5.) Glasgow (4.2 million)
6.) Dublin (4.1 million)
7.) Belfast (2.8 million)
8.) Newcastle (2.5 million)
9.) Edinburgh (2.2 million)
10.) Leeds (2 million)

Race, Migration and Ethnicity
The majority of the human population of the British Isles is descended from the various groups present prior to the 11th century - Celts, Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Norse and Normans. Britain has not experienced great immigration over the last thousand years, with the predominant waves being Jewish and Eastern European migrants in the early 20th century and Poles after the Second World War.

Britain has primarily been a source of migrants rather than a destination for immigrants. Unable to return to Poland at the end of the Second World War, over 240,000 Polish veterans remain in Britain. Emigration to the Empire and the New World was a major feature of British society in the 19th and early 20th century. Between 1815 and 1930, 29.6 million people emigrated from Britain and 12.4 million from Ireland. Over 625 million people of British descent are settled around the world and solar system. Over 10 million Britons live abroad, mostly in India, Australia, the United States, Canada and the Empire.

There are relatively small populations of Indians and Chinese in the major cities, with there being just over 100,000 non-white residents in Britain, with virtually all born overseas. The Chinese community in Britain is the oldest in Europe and the small Black population dates back to the 17th century. There are significant non-humans living in Britain, with the 1958 population consisting of 2,564,359 dwarves, 1,829,573 halflings, 1,027,542 half elves, 925,805 gnomes and 529,578 elves, with smaller populations of giants, skeifen, cholean and other assorted races.

Languages
The official language of the United Kingdom is English, established by Act of Parliament in 1889. Five Celtic languages are spoken in Britain - Welsh, Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Cornish and Lyon - although they are understood by a gradually decreasing minority. The study of foreign language at school is compulsory, with French and German perhaps the two most commonly taught apart from the traditional classics of Latin and Greek.

Regional accents vary across the British Isles, ranging from Received Pronunciation to the charming vernacular of London's Cockneys and the many different varieties encountered in the industrial cities of the Midlands and North. The broad tones of the West Country are familiar to many as those used by the pirates of legend. Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Lyonesse all have a noticeable lyrical character of their own and harder, rural versions can be quite incomprehensible to many travellers.

Religion
The state religion of Britain is Christianity, with the established churches being the Churches of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Lyonesse. Church attendance is strong and has grown over the course of the 20th century, due in part to the Great Revival that emerged in Wales in 1902. 98.6% of the population are Christian, 0.8% are Jewish and the remainder is made up of small numbers of Hindoos, Sikhs, Moslems, Buddhists and Zarathustrans. Roman Catholicism is reasonably strong in certain areas, such as the Northwest and Ireland and various Nonconformist churches have a high profile in Wales and Scotland.

Britain's many churches and monasteries are among the greatest in Christendom and play an important role in the social fabric of the nation, providing sources of comfort, healthcare and education to substantial portions of the population. The Christian heritage of Britain extends back to the Roman era and the modern church reflects the peculiar blend of Celtic, Roman Catholic and Protestant belief. There remains a strongly Puritan streak, particularly in Scotland, and this has had a significant bearing on the development of British society.

Education
Education in Britain is coordinated at a national level under the Secretary of State for Education and run by individual counties. Universal free of charge state education was introduced between the 1850s and 1870s. Schooling is mandatory for boys and girls between the ages of 5 and 16 and is organized in a tripartite system of grammar schools, technical schools and secondary modern schools.

Free school meals and milk are provided to all pupils. Virtually all British schools have compulsary uniforms. 12% of students attend private schools and 84% of all secondary schools are single-sex schools. The main subjects taught in secondary schools are English, Mathematics, History, Religion, Geography, Science, Physical Education, Art, Music and Languages

Tertiary education is free to all British subjects. Over 460,000 students attend the 25 universities of Britain. The universities of Oxford and Cambridge are the oldest in the Western world with a history of over a thousand years and the other great medieval universities of Northampton, St. Albans, St. Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dublin and Lyonesse having only slightly less estimable longevity.

The Scouting Movement provides the single largest source of outdoor education and youth organisation in Britain, sporting over 4 million members. It was established by Sir Robert Baden-Powell in 1908 after the publication of his Scouting for Boys and is matched by the accompanying Guide Movement for girls and young women. Scouts provide a useful adjunct to the youth wings of the Armed Forces.

Healthcare
Britain spends 4.52% of GDP on health. Public healthcare is provided free to all British subjects and is paid for out of general taxation. It is organised by the National Health Service, which is one of the largest public employers in Britain. There are 4.6 doctors and 12.8 nurses per 1000 people, the highest rates in the world. The infant mortality rate is 2.5 and life expectancy is 87.6 years. The British health system is widely regarded as among the finest in the Western world, utilising modern medicines and technology to cure previously endemic ailments.

Culture

British culture has been shaped and influenced by several different factors: the island status of the nation; its history as the foremost Western liberal democracy and a Great Power; the nature of the lands, their wonders and magic; as well as being a union of five countries each with their own distinctive traditions, customs, food and drink, symbols and folklore. The influence of the British Empire can be observed in the language, culture, sports, political and legal systems of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, Rhodesia, Newfoundland, New Avalon, the West Indies, Prydain and the United States. Britain is often described as a cultural superpower.

At its heart, British culture is based around the home, family and simple pursuits. Gardening is an immensely popular national pastime, along with country walks, reading, music, handicrafts, sport and television. An Englishman's home is his castle and each man is his own master. Keeping pets is a popular family activity, with dogs and cats being the most popular choices. Britons are great joiners of clubs, teams and associations and significant supporters of charities. At the heart of every community and village is the Church, where many social gatherings and events take place.

Britain uses the Imperial system of weights and measures, enshrined in law and tradition; the Continental metric system has made only limited penetration into certain areas of science and industry. Road distances are measured in yards and miles and British road traffic travels on the left hand side of the road, in the manner of the majority of the British Empire. The British system of currency has resisted foreign pressures to adopt decimalisation for some decades and remains a notable example of the old ways.

There are many cultural icons held dear by the inhabitants of Britain and the Empire, ranging from famed buildings and sights such as the Palace of Westminster, Big Ben, the White Cliffs of Dover and St. Pauls, renowned individuals such as Queen Elizabeth II, King George VI and Sir Winston Churchill to the ubiquitous Union Jack, the traditional red coats of Britain's soldiers, the magnificent ships of the Royal Navy, the British Lion and the national embodiments of John Bull, St. George and Britannia. Many British inventions of war and peace such as the Comet, Land Rover, Spitfire and Crusader are immediately identifiable across the world.

Flags and Emblems
The Union Flag is the national flag of Britain, its red, white and blue combining the emblems of St. George for England, St. Andrew for Scotland and St. Patrick for Ireland. The royal arms of England were introduced by King Richard the Lionheart in 1198 and were combined with those of Scotland and Ireland to form the new heraldic emblem of the United Kingdom.

Each of the contingent countries has their own patron saint and floral emblem - England (St. George and the red rose), Scotland (St. Andrew and the thistle), Ireland (St. Patrick and the shamrock), Wales (St. David and the daffodil) and Lyonesse (St. Christopher and the iris). The red poppy has great historical resonance as a mark of remembrance for the fallen of the World Wars.

Fashion and Dress
Britain has no single, definitive national costume, but certain distinctive articles of clothing are closely associated with different parts of the British Isles. Scotland is well known for its kilts and tartan, Wales for its gowns and Welsh hats, Ireland for its tweed and flat caps and England for the rugged simplicity of country clothing. Traditional costumes such as the full dress uniform of the British Army and the Yeoman of the Guard are considered classically emblematic of England, along with the attire adopted by Morris dancers. The bowler hat, umbrella and black suit is often associated with British businessmen and the trench or great coat has been adopted by all levels of society as winter wear.

General fashion and British dress habits do depend on social status, with aristocrats tending towards Caroline, Georgian and early Victorian styles, while businessmen and the middle classes tending towards a more sober middle Victorian or Edwardian style and working classes tending towards modern adaptions of Victorian clothing. Wizards, sorcerers, alchemists, academicians and priests prefer elaborate robes and vestments of many colours and adventurers, swashbucklers and the like quite commonly adopt a style more akin to that of the Renaissance. Members of the nonhuman races either adopt styles appropriate to their social standing or wear more traditional racial costume.

Britain has been a key player in the development of global fashion since the 18th century, with noted dandy Beau Brummel responsible for the widespread popularity of the suit and necktie or cravat. King Edward VII was regarded as an icon of European fashion during his long period as Prince of Wales and Queen Victoria is often credited with the popularisation of the white wedding after her widely publicised marriage to Prince Albert in 1840.


Literature
British literature has a long and illustrious history, stretching back over two and a half thousand years. The majority of books and paper are in the English language, with a smaller number of works published in Welsh, Scots Gaelic, Irish, Lyon and Cornish. Over 524,000 booked were published in Britain in 1959.

The earliest works of written literature in the British Isles are from the ancient Elven and Dwarven kingdoms, with the Lay of Aelfstar dating from c.1962 BC and the Lament of Dirn from c.1250 BC. Only two copies of the former remain on Earth, with the latter carved in Old Dwarven runes in the Great Hall of Thangalor the Grim beneath the Silver Mountains. The works of Roman Britain were lost in the Fall and the great invasions of the 5th century and the first writings preserved of the deeds of men come from Taliesin the Bard, who recorded the deeds of King Arthur and set down the story of Beowulf, the national epic poem of England. It was followed by the historical work of the Venerable Bede, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and the monumental tomes of Geoffrey of Monmouth.

Geoffrey Chaucer was the one of the great English literary figure of the High Middle Ages and is best known for his masterpiece, the Canterbury Tales. Thomas Malory, Sir Thomas More, John Bunyan and John Milton are also esteemed masters of the canon of Early Modern English literature, with the latter pair's works A Pilgrim's Progress and Paradise Lost among the most published works in the English language. The playwrights Christopher Marlowe and Ben Jonson are known for their fine Elizabethan works, but one name in the entire history of English literature stands above all others: William Shakespeare. His collected works amount to 52 plays, 254 sonnets, 9 narrative poems and 4 prose novels, including the earliest such work in the English language, The Life of Robin Hood.

In the 18th century, Daniel Defoe and Jonathan Swift produced pivotal early English novels, the great Scotsman Robert Burns wrote countless celebrated poems and Dr. Samuel Johnson, perhaps the most distinguished man of letters in English history, authored A Dictionary of the English Language . The 19th century saw a flowering of British literature, as Sir Walter Scott, Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, Mary Shelley, Thomas Hardy, Sir Charles Dickens, Lewis Carroll, William Wordsworth, William Blake, Robert Louis Stevenson, W.B. Yeats and Lord Tennyson producing masterworks of prose and poetry. The end of the Victorian period and the current century has seen the flowering of such great authors as the historical scientist H.G. Wells, the lyrical poet Oscar Wilde, Bram Stoker, Sir Rudyard Kipling, the Poet Laureate of the British Empire, H. Rider Haggard, Lord Dunsany, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and the visionary playwright J.M. Barrie.

The years since the end of the Great War have been noted for the successful prose and verse works of Agatha Christie, Enid Blyton, C.S. Lewis, P.G. Wodehouse, Wilfred Owen and the esteemed Minister of Magic and master of historical fiction Sir J.R.R. Tolkien.

Music
Britain has produced many different styles of music over the course of its history, from the traditional folk music of England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Lyonesse to the masterworks of the great classical composers to modern popular music. Thomas Tallis, Henry Purcell and Thomas Arne were notable in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, but were overshadowed by the German born George Frideric Handel, whose greatest works, such as Messiah, were written in English.

In the later Victorian period and the beginning of the 20th century, Britain was blessed with a number of great composers, including Sir Edward Elgar, Sir Hubert Parry, Ralph Vaughan Williams, William Walton and Gustav Holst. The light operatic works of Sir Arthur Sullivan and the liberettist Sir W.S. Gilbert are among the most popular in modern Britain.

Britain is also home to the renowned Royal Symphonic Orchestra and various choruses including the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the London Symphony Chorus. The Music Hall tradition of popular song and light entertainment continues to be one of the most popular styles of music in Britain today. Brass bands are a very popular form of public musical entertainment and there are over 100,000 instrumentalists involved across the country.

British dance music has proved to be an enduringly popular form of music since the 1920s and has grown quite apart from its mutual roots with American swing and big band music. Jazz music is even more of a niche genre than across the Atlantic and is not viewed as acceptable in polite society.

Patriotic songs and hymns are popular across the British Isles, with the most loved being Hubert Parry's Jerusalem, Sir Edward Elgar's Land of Hope and Glory, Rule Britannia, The British Grenadiers and the national anthem God Save the Queen. British folk music reflects its varied heritage, including nautical pieces such as sea shanties and jigs, nursery rhymes, revered Christmas carols, Scottish bagpipe music and many venerable songs such as Greensleeves, Scarborough Fair, Summer is Icumen In and Pastime with Good Company.

Art
The history of the visual arts in the British Isles is a long and illustrious one. William Hogarth's 18th century works marked the advent of a particularly English style of painting and Thomas Gainsborough and Sir Joshua Reynolds were masters of great influence. John Constable, Samuel Palmer and John Mallard William Turner were among the foremost exponents of the Romantic pastoralist style of landscapes.

The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood of the mid 19th century were perhaps the most influential movement in British art of the last 150 years and influenced modern approaches to landscapes and portraiture alike. Historical portraiture and the Middle Ages in particular were a common subject of their works and the great John William Waterhouse classical paintings are renowned for their mystical blend of colour and the arcane.

William Blake's great golden and silver Statue of Britannia in Greenwich is the foremost sculpture in the United Kingdom and stands as a symbol of the nation. The influence of the vast and varied territories of the British Empire is heavily felt on all facets of artistic design across the nation and Indian, Oriental and Egyptian themes are common in a variety of works.

The Royal Academy of Arts in London is the main institution dedicated to the appreciation of the visual arts in Great Britain. Significant British art galleries include the National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery and the Imperial Gallery. Modernist works are largely eschewed in favour of traditionalist Romantic style portraits and sculpture.

Cinema
The British film industry is the second largest in the world behind that of the United States of America and dominates the cinematic market in the British Empire. The directors Alfred Hitchcock, David Lean, Michael Powell and Carol Reed are particularly esteemed across the English speaking world for their work in Britain and Hollywood.

Well known British screen actors and actresses include Charles Chaplin, Laurence Olivier, David Niven, Alec Guinness, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson, Cary Grant, John Mills, Charles Laughton, Basil Rathbone, Dame Peggy Ashcroft, Vivian Leigh, Olivia de Havilland and Audrey Hepburn. Ealing Studios in London is the oldest continually working film studio in operation.

The greatest British film is considered to by Henry V (1944), closely followed by Hamlet (1948), The Dam Busters (1955), The Battle of Jutland (1952) and David Lean's A Bridge over the River Mekong (1957).

Festivals, Carnivals and Holidays
Britons are renowned for their love of public festivals and elaborate ceremonies. The long tradition of circuses, pantomimes and music hall have all contributed to the national character. Grand events such as the Royal Tournament, Royal Military Tattoo, Royal Military Exhibition, the Lord Mayor's Show and the Trooping of the Colour attract crowds of thousands of enthusiastic onlookers. International expositions such as the Festival of Empire are commonly held in the Crystal Palace in London. Fairs and travelling shows are common sights in rural Britain, bringing joy and excitement to many villages and towns.

The most enthusiastically celebrated holidays and events in Britain are Christmas, New Year's Eve, Empire Day and St. George's Day. Midsummer in June and Harvest Thanksgiving in September are occasions for substantive public feasting and jubilation, but both pale in comparison to the outpouring of fun and fireworks that is Guy Fawkes Night, held every 5th of November since 1605.

Architecture
There are many different architectural styles across the British Isles and the heritage of its buildings stretch back to the Middle Ages and earlier. The oldest structures still in use are the churches and castles, many of which have been occupied for almost a thousand years, including the royal citadel of Camelot. English Gothic and Tudor architecture are among the most prevalent styles for aged buildings. The glories of the English Baroque and Georgian periods can be seen in many of Britain's great cathedrals, palaces and stately homes, particularly those designed by Sir Christopher Wren. The natural charm of the English garden also developed in the 17th century and is now popular around the world.

The Gothic revival of the 19th century gave Britain some of its most memorable buildings and structures, such as the Palace of Westminster, Tower Bridge and the Crystal Palace, and continues to have a broad impact on modern designs. The Arts and Crafts movement of the early 20th century and its best known exponent Sir Edwin Lutyens is currently the most popular form across the British Isles and Empire. There has been a deliberate eschewing of Continental modernism and brutalism in Britain, which also lacks many of the high rise buildings and skyscrapers found across the Atlantic.

Cuisine
British cuisine is well known and respected internationally for its great joints of roasted meat, beefsteaks, seafood, pies, puddings, cheeses, breads and a veritable cornucopia of fruits and vegetables. Its influence has extended around the English speaking world and the British Empire, setting a firm standard for heartiness and flavour. Many common parts of modern cuisine have their origins in the British Isles, including the sandwich, ice cream, soft drinks, potato crisps and the chocolate bar. The pattern of five square meals a day is well established across all levels of society, save for the halfling population, who survive on seven.

The traditional Sunday lunch of roast beef and Yorkshire pudding is the iconic British meal and arguably one of the marvels of world cuisine. It is closely followed in popularity by the full English breakfast, consisting of bacon, steak, eggs, sausages, fried bread, black pudding, mushrooms, tomatoes, baked beans, fried potatoes and cold meat served with tea and fruit juice. . Fish and chips is the most common Friday meal and is the widest consumed takeaway food in the British Empire. The consumption of previously expensive steak and chicken has increased due to more widespread affluence since the war and the end of rationing in 1946, particularly in the form of steak and chips on Saturdays.

British pies and puddings are found in both sweet and savoury forms. Sweets such as apple pie, rhubarb pie, spotted dick, jam roly-poly and bread and butter pudding are often served with custard. Savoury pies and puddings include the famed steak and kidney, beef pie, shepherd's pie and pork pies. Sausages come in many varieties and are widely consumed as bangers and mash or in toad in the hole. There are dozens of different types of hams in Britain, including York ham and Cumberland ham. Afternoon tea, that most civilized of meals, consists of tea, cakes, sandwiches and other delicacies.

Christmas dinner is a very traditional and sumptuous meal, built around roast goose or turkey, roast beef, a bountiful array of seafood and fish, boiled hams, sausages, Yorkshire pudding, stuffing, gravy, roast and mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and copious other vegetables, all finished off with mince pies, fruit pies, jelly, trifle, cheese, nuts, chocolates, Christmas pudding and Christmas cake. Formal British meals begin with a starter, followed by a soup, the fish course, poultry, roasted meats, game, salad, a savoury such as Welsh rarebit and concluded with pudding, fruit and cheese.

Britain produces hundreds of different types of cheese, including Cheddar and the kingly Stilton. Mushrooms, both cultivated and wild, are a treasure of the table and eaten in large quantities. The populace consume large quantities of fish and seafood as an island nation and fresh fish are available across the country. Jams and fruit sauces are produced in great quantities every summer and are ever-present on British sideboards and in larders.

The national drink is tea, which is drank in near universal preference to coffee. England and Lyonesse produced large quantities of wine and fruit wine, but beer and ale are the preferred alcoholic beverage of choice, with cider very popular in the West Country. Scotch whisky is the greatest fortified spirit on the isles. Children and non-drinkers consume milk, apple cider and fruit juice. The invention of carbonated soda water by Joseph Priestly in 1767 served as the basis for all modern soft drinks.

Sport
Britain is widely regarded as the birthplace of modern sport with cricket, association football, rugby, tennis, rowing, boxing and golf deriving their origin from the British Isles. The traditions of sportsmanship and fair play are entwined with the evolution of the British Empire and its accompanying traditions of Muscular Christianity and gentlemanly behaviour. Unified teams from all the Home Nations represent Britain in most international competitions, with the exception of the Imperial Cricket Conference and the Empire Games. Britain has been a central participant in the modern Olympic Games, ranking second in the all time medal count and London is the only city to have hosted the games three times in 1908, 1920 and 1948.

Cricket is the most popular sport in Britain and the Empire, having been invented in England and its code of laws established by the Marylebone Cricket Club in 1764. England, Scotland and Ireland all field Test teams selected from the 25 main county sides in the Premier Division of the Royal Championship. The home of cricket is the Lords Cricket Ground in London. England and Australia have a long-running rivalry in Test Matches and the winning team in each series is awarded the legendary Ashes; Australia won the last series in 1958-59 and the return series in England is greatly anticipated.

Association football is widely popular across Britain and is run by the Football Association under rules drafted in 1863 by Ebenezer Morley. The first international game was played between England and Scotland in 1870. Britain did not join the International Association Football Federation until 1919, but promptly exited the association over the participation of the enemy nations of the Central Powers. It did not rejoin until after the Second World War in 1948, but proceeded to encounter great success, winning the 1950 World Cup in Brazil.

Rugby football is the second most popular code of football in the United Kingdom, having been created at Rugby School in Warwickshire in the Victorian period. Teams from England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Lyonesse and France compete in the Six Nations tournament and any of the British teams that beats the other four is awarded the rare Quadruple Crown.

Modern lawn tennis developed in Birmingham in the mid 19th century and has subsequently spread around the Empire and the worlds. The Wimbledon Championships are the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world, first occurring in 1875. They are held annually over a period of two weeks in the height of the English summer in late June. Horse racing has a long and rich history in Britain, originating under under King Charles II in the 17th century and being known as the "sport of kings". Famed races include the Grand National, the Epsom Derby and Royal Ascot.

Folklore
Britain is a land steeped in magic and faerie enchantment and many are the strange beasts, eldritch ruins and fairy creatures that dwell within its bounds. It's folklore, myths and legends of Britain stretch back thousands of years to the period before recorded history and are rich with tales of dragons, elves, dwarves, woodland spirits and hideous goblins. The forests of Britain are filled with their own mystical power, often manifested in surprising ways, such as variable sizes and sentient trees. Many stories and beings stretch back to the Celtic period, such as Wayland Smith, while others feature historical figures from the Dark Ages and Medieval period, such as King Arthur, Taliesin, Merlin and Robin Hood. The customs, legends and fairy tales of Britain reflect its long history and the remarkable sights that can be found across the islands.

Magic
Britain has been renowned for its skilled wizards and the magical nature of its very landscape for centuries. It was in England in the late 16th century that modern sorcery was developed out of the confluence of high magic, natural philosophy and Renaissance alchemy. The druidic traditions of the Celtic nations can be seen in their styles of spellcraft and paths of power, whereas English magic is a combination of Anglo-Saxon, Frankish, Greco-Roman and Eastern forms. The legacy of Merlin, Taliesin, Bacon, Dee and the other great archmages of Britain's past can be seen in the large numbers of arcanely talented individuals born in every generation.

The introduction of a scientific approach to the Art in the 17th century lead to the Arcane Revolution and the development of a variety of practical applications for magic and modern methods for the creation of enchanted items. The English system of battle magic emerged out of the Oxford debates of 1669 and standardized variations of the fireball and lightning bolt were tried and tested by mages on the muddied battlefields of the 18th century. Modern combat wizards use a wide variety of specialized spells and mystical items in their duties in addition to the traditional English speciality of fire magic.

The ancient ley lines are the basis of many magical schools and towers of power across the British Isles, with some locations having a history stretching back to pre-human occupation. The powers of Stonehenge and Camelot have still not been completely discovered and, like the ancient howes and barrows of the countryside, have an amplifying effect on magic. These have been used as part of the arcane defences of the United Kingdom as well as being the central part of the network of sorcerous transport and communication. The magical levitation super trains of the Grand Railway link the 10 major cities of Great Britain with dedicated 525mph passenger services. The Royal School of Wizardry is the premier institution for the research of high magic and the training of academic mages in Britain, drawing from the cream of the magical schools.

The use of magic is subject to appropriate restrictions under British law and regular Spellcraft Acts are passed on what forms of arcane experimentation are permitted. Since the World Wars, the powers of the Ministry of Magic have been significantly expanded and a larger proportion of British wizards are employed in some form of military or government service. The police forces of the United Kingdom utilize a variety of forensic sorcerers, magical investigators and high level truth spells in their operations and this contributes greatly to the tranquillity of the realm. The National Health Service has pioneered a number of innovative approaches in the use of modern wizardry in treating illness and injury after the success of arcane atmospheric purification filters in eliminating smog in London.

[jemhouston]

Great job

[Simon Darkshade]

Thank you kindly. This is one I wrote up in 2016/17, so nothing new per se. I did start on one for the USA that I might finish one day.

[MFOM]

Is there something different about medieval Ireland in Dark Earth in terms of threat or ability, resources etc?
It seems to have attracted the personal attention of a number of monarchs and the TL hints at major campaigns and battles, compared to OTL. After Henry II went over to make sure his Lords would not get notions of making themselves Kings, the English Lordship became a backwater of endless small scale raids and skirmish against petty Lords that was seen as a massive pain the ass and a resource drain.
But here it attracts the Lion Heart, Edward the 1st etc, to do that it would seem that there must be something worth the effort,other than chasing petty chiefs around the bogs and mountains which would hardly compare to the glory of a crusade or stopping a Mongol hoard.

[Simon Darkshade]

Richard followed on from his father's wars in Ireland with an expansive invasion in the late 1190s, resulting in the defeat of King Roderic and the Lionheart being crowned as High King of Ireland at Tara. Edward I's Irish campaigns were in response to Irish lords getting rebellious and trying to shake off the English yoke; their efforts ended...poorly...

The 'one, two, three' of Henry II, Richard I and Edward II meant that the 'Tudor conquest' of Ireland was more akin to the Spanish finishing off the last independent Maya city state at Tayasal/Peten in 1697, rather than a larger scale reconquest.

Now, what was different about medieval Ireland? A large and fertile island with decent lands, forests and resources was seen as ripe territory for the picking. Further, English kings could direct some of their more aggressive vassals and their energies towards Ireland rather than England.

Why was it the target of English expansion? Like Everest, because it was there. The additional attraction of the prize of Ireland plus the larger population of England (and specifically some of the fecund feudal vassals of its Kings during the 1100s-1300s) made for a particular combination. The end result is that the Norman invasion was much more expansive and successful in its initial stages, with the consequences flowing on from there.