| United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Timeline: Rządź, Polsko! | ||||||
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| Anthem: God Save the King |
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 United Kingdom (green)
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| Capital | London | |||||
| Official languages | English • Scottish Gaelic • Welsh • Irish • Cornish | |||||
| Regional languages | Ulster Scots • Scots • British Sign Language | |||||
| Demonym | British | |||||
| Government | Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy | |||||
| - | Monarch | George V | ||||
| - | Prime Minister | Leo Varadkar | ||||
| Legislature | Parliament | |||||
| - | Upper house | House of Lords | ||||
| - | Lower house | House of Commons | ||||
| Formation | ||||||
| - | Laws in Wales Acts | 1535 and 1542 | ||||
| - | Union of the Crowns | 24 March 1603 | ||||
| - | Acts of Union of England and Scotland | 1 May 1707 | ||||
| - | Acts of Union of Great Britain and Ireland | 1 January 1801 | ||||
| - | Federalisation | 15 July 1947 | ||||
| Population | ||||||
| - | 2022 estimate | 71,154,410 | ||||
| Currency | Pound sterling (GBP) |
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| Drives on the | Left | |||||
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly referred to as the United Kingdom (UK or U.K.), is a sovereign country located on the British isles near Western Europe. Great Britain doesn't share any land borders with any nation, although it shares overseas borders with the Netherlands, Belgium and France to the southeast. The United Kingdom is the ninth-largest country in Europe, and has a population of around 71 million.
The United Kingdom is a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy. Since 1864, the British monarchy has been linked to the Belgian monarchy as a personal union - the current monarch, King George V, has reigned since 2017. The capital and largest city is London, a global city and financial centre with a metropolitan area population of 14 million. The United Kingdom consists of six federal countries: England, Scotland, Cornwall, Wales, Ireland and Ulster. The British Parliament is the federal legislature and government headed by an elected prime minister, who is elected in general elections held every five years in accordance with the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 1969.
The United Kingdom emerged from a series of annexations and unifications, beginning with the unification of England (including Wales, which had been annexed in 1542) and Scotland in 1707, forming the Kingdom of Great Britain. Its union in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Throughout the 19th century, Great Britain expanded its colonial empire, becoming the biggest empire in history by 1921 in the aftermath of World War I. In 1947, the United Kingdom federalised itself, granting each constituent country semi-autonomy and with its own local government.
History[]
Early years (1800-1830)[]
A painting from the Battle of Trafalgar
Prior to 1801, the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland were ruled in a personal union by George III, although there had already been debates to unify Ireland into the British state. This mentality was strengthened when a revolutionary Irish state backed by the French Republic was formed in 1798 as part of a rebellion, which was suppressed. The British government began making plans to incorporate the Kingdom of Ireland into Great Britain. After months of planning and drafting, the Acts of Union were passed on 1 January 1801 by both the Irish and British parliaments, officially creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Around 1800, Great Britain and several others were at war with the French Republic, fighting to reinstate the French monarch on the throne. However, after Russia and Austria left the coalition in 1801 with the Treaty of Lunéville, Britain became increasingly isolated. After recommendation from Russia to end tensions, the British government decided to seek peace with the French government, ultimately signing the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, ending the French Revolutionary Wars. However, hostilities reemerged when the British government sent an ultimatum to Napoleon, demanding the French withdrawal from Switzerland and several other demands, which were all refused by the French government. As a result, war broke out again.
Throughout the 1800s, Britain invaded and occupied several of its enemies' colonies, including the Dutch colonies in southern Africa.