History of UK

The bulk of the Christian era has seen the history of the British Isles mainly concerned with the three primary independent states of Wales, Scotland and England. Scotland and Wales gave way to an English stronghold that cultivated the United Kingdom, which now acknowledges the significance of the individual character of all three states. Even centralised London government saw a devolution into autonomy (Scotland retains its own parliament) under the leadership of its prime minister.

Though cultural distinctions between Scots, Englishmen and Welshmen are unrivalled, modern Britain has evolved via a joining of the cultures of Celts, Anglo-Saxons, Romans, Picts, and invading Vikings and Normans. Londinium was created, by the 43AD Roman invasion, as the empire’s command central. In Scotland, Hadrian’s Wall is sufficient evidence that the Scots were less successful, but they did bring a backbone, Christianity, civilization, and a transport infrastructure. The grand empire and most footprints of its prominence were gone.

Into the English cornucopia went Angles, Jutes and Saxon tribes, fusing with the Celts and creating local fiefdoms that by the 7th century were small kingdoms. Northward, though, the battle-oriented Scots, impressed upon by their Norse successors, descended from the highlands to dominate the Picts and establish a pattern of impassioned resistance to English supremacy.

The mid-9th century saw The Isles’ invasion from all sides  Vikings from the north, Danes from the east. Desperately, England retorted by conforming to its invaders. About to achieve calm, they were overtaken for the final time by William of Normandy from the South defeating the locals at the 1066 Battle of Hastings. Of the French language, he installed a feudal system, inducted a French aristocracy, created splendid castles, and commenced incorporation with the Saxons.

In this time of unrest, the Cymry community in the backwater that is modern Wales found itself invaded and subjugating to the Anglo-Saxon king. Their final acknowledged king was Llywelyn (1267), and a rebellion in 1400 was mercilessly defeated, sealing the issue conclusively. The Scots were not to be taken lightly, though, beginning in 1297 with the gallant William Wallace. By himself, before being betrayed, he mobilised his countrymen to hand the English a defeat. In 1315 at Bannockburn, Robert Bruce made it final that the English would not control the Highlands. Well-known efforts to replace the Hanoverian kings of England with Catholic Stuarts occurred, though due to the Lowland being suspect of Catholicism, the Jacobite cause suffered ill-support exterior to the Highlands. Infighting amongst the sovereignty and clashes regarding religious reform led to their demise. In 1707 the Scots succumbed to intimidation, disassembled their parliament and answered to London. Bonny Prince Charlie, a Stuart of French royal heritage, arrived in 1745 with an unsuccessful attempt to lay claim to the throne on behalf of Scotland.

Next was England’s Hundred Years War with France, containing an abundance of royal betrayal until the 16th century advent of the daunting Henry VIII. He broke from the Catholic Church and set up his own rules as Protestant, freeing him to divorce and execute his collection of wives with no consequences. The strife between monarchy and Parliament decayed into a mid-17th century civil war, pitting the royalists of Charles I  Catholics, traditionalists, the gentry and Church of England congregation  against the Protestant Cromwell parliamentarians. Cromwell’s victory led to his dictatorship, urging Parliament to reinstate the monarchy in the wake of much bloodshed. By this time, London had been basking in the status of seat of the crown and capital for a while, and Britain began claiming the united countries.

Ongoing expansionism followed, with England collecting colonies along America’s coast, licensing the East India Company’s operation from Bombay, and ushering in Canada, South Africa and Australia to its behemoth of influence. On the home front, England tightened its grip on the British Isles. In 1781 the empire’s first wake-up call was the American colonies’ victory in their war of independence, though England did claim a victory over Napoleon at Waterloo.

Britain experienced accelerated growth and industrialisation as it was thrust onto the front stage of world progress during the Industrial Revolution and its birth of water power, steam power and steam trains. Formerly napping Wales bolted onto the scene as coal, copper and slate mining as well as tin production spurred a population increase that transformed the country’s existence from non-unified rural neighbourhoods to citified centres for mining and industry.

When in 1837 Queen Victoria took the throne, Britain was the ultimate global powerhouse, with its factories reigning over world trade and its sea-commanding fleet stitching together the British Empire. Prime ministers Gladstone and Disraeli, concerning themselves with the most flagrant Industrial Revolution exorbitance, enabled universal education, legalized trade unions, and the majority of males were enfranchised, though women would wait until post-WWI.

Far into the 20th century, Britain retained its global dominance, fed by industrial bounty left virtually unscathed by the country’s severe losses of the First World War. But it was not so unchanged by WWII. Winston Churchill’s “never say die” mantra, reinforced by ally support, helped the country stave off encroaching Nazis at the Battle of Britain (RAF) and Dunkirk, and was instrumental in the development of the United Nations and divvying up the arising Europe. But away from home Britain was losing land, beginning in 1947 with its crown jewel India, succeeded during the 50s and 60s by its African colonies and its scant Asian stakes.

Since then, Britain has experienced a questioning of its own identity, perched within the irony of a shrunken empire crossed with an enduring significance in global politics and impact. London regressed from a platform for the hip 60s to a state of staleness in the 70s. The 80s saw the emergence of a grand statesperson in Margaret Thatcher, who oversaw Argentina’s defeat against Britain in the Falklands War, released the unions’ grip on the home front, made national industries private and mastered domestic policies  this after being ushered out of office by her conservative party in 1991. Her government, however, endured the continuing burr that was Northern Ireland.

In Thatcher’s wake were joblessness and pomposity since eradicated by the economy’s improvement of the 90s and the birth of a Labour government overseen by Tony Blair and from June 2007, Gordon Brown. Today’s Britain influences art, music, fashion and business, as London enjoys a status of one of the world’s financial centrepieces. New life is entering the Midlands, Britain has pioneered several sports games though its own victories on the field have decreased, and it retains a spot at the helm of research and development in many areas. Britons were hesitant to toss their Sterling currency into the Euro melting pot.

The 51st state of America as coined by some, Britain has served loyally its big brother the USA dating back to WWII, with today’s government joining that trend and freeing the US to decide Britain’s foreign policy in the face of mischievous countries. Hopefulness remains, but divided views remain amongst asylum seekers, health, education, farming, the EU and Northern Ireland.