England, Ireland, Scotland & Wales

The United Kingdom also known as Great Britain is made up of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. England and Wales became united in the 13th century and as such became a principality, however it was never conquered or forcibly taken control of and it only became official in 1536 when the Act of the Union joined the two countries. When Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, King James VI of Scotland inherited the English throne and merged the two kingdoms and became King James I proclaiming himself as the King of Great Britain and the three lands became united and it became known as the ‘The Union of the Crowns’
Again it took many years for this to become official despite numerous attempts of combining the two parliaments, in the Acts of the Union 1707 the Scottish and English parliaments became one and finally became the “Parliaments of Great Britain”.

Ireland had a personal union with England since 15th century and was described as such due to the fact they both considered each other as a sovereign state. In 1801 the counties of Ireland under the Union Act of 1800 merged the two kingdoms and in 1801 this act created the new United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
The Republic of Ireland Act 1948 meant all but 6 counties of Ireland remained in the Union, Northern Ireland to this day remains part of the Union where as the Republic of Ireland is a sovereign state once more. This union is now referred to, The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. This union has Queen Elizabeth II as head of state and the national parliament located in the capital city London in Westminster.

The National flag is known as the “Union Jack” and is made up of all the kingdoms bar Wales as it was considered as a principality rather then a Kingdom and the national anthem is sung to God Save the Queen.

• Wales has the Welsh red dragon appearing on its flag,
  
• Scotland is represented by the flag of St Andrew,
  
• Northern Ireland is represented by the flag of St Patrick
  
• With England flying the St. Georges Cross,
• Combine the three and the Union Flag was formed.

Each of countries although part of the union has a very strong national identity Scotland in the northern part of the British Isles has its own Scottish parliament in its capital Edinburgh. The capital of Wales is Cardiff and the capital of Northern Ireland is Belfast. Britain has a rich and diverse history which can be explored in its many cities and towns and it would be well worth the effort to visit these sites of historical and natural significance to really experience it all.