Flag of the United Kingdom

Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom

The location of the United Kingdom

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; a sovereign country in Europe, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK), or Britain.^[1][2][3] Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, it includes the island of Great Britain—a term also applied loosely to refer to the whole country—the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands.

General reference

Countries of the United Kingdom, Dependencies, Territories and Commonwealth

Political map featuring the United Kingdom

Countries of the UK and their subdivisions

• England
  • Subdivisions of England
    • Regions of England
      • Counties of England (see also Metropolitan county and Shire county)
      • Unitary authorities of England
      • Districts of England (see also Metropolitan district and Shire district)
      • Civil parishes
    • Greater London
      • London boroughs
    • West Midlands
• Northern Ireland
  • Counties of Northern Ireland
  • Local government in Northern Ireland
    • Districts of Northern Ireland
• Scotland
  • Subdivisions of Scotland
• Wales
  • Subdivisions of Wales

Crown Dependencies

Map of the British Crown Dependencies

Crown Dependencies

• Isle of Man
• Channel Islands
  • Jersey
  • Guernsey
  • Alderney
  • Sark

British Overseas Territories

British Overseas Territories

British Overseas Territories

• Anguilla
• Bermuda
• British Antarctic Territory
• British Indian Ocean Territory
• British Virgin Islands
• Cayman Islands
• Falkland Islands
• Gibraltar
• Montserrat
• Pitcairn Islands
• Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
• South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
• Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in Cyprus
• Turks and Caicos Islands

Commonwealth of Nations

Member states of the Commonwealth of Nations

The United Kingdom is a member state of the Commonwealth of Nations

• Member states of the Commonwealth of Nations
  • Commonwealth realm
• Commonwealth citizen
  • Head of the Commonwealth
• Commonwealth War Graves Commission (1917-)
• Commonwealth Games (1930-)

Geography, resources and demography

An enlargeable topographic map of the United Kingdom

Geography of the United Kingdom

• Location:
  • Northern Hemisphere, on the Prime meridian
  • Atlantic Ocean
  • Eurasia (but not on the mainland)
    • Europe
      • Northern Europe and Western Europe
        • British Isles
          • Great Britain (entire island and adjacent isles)
          • Ireland (northeastern sixth of the island)
  • Time zone: Greenwich Mean Time = Western European Time (UTC+00), British Summer Time = Western European Summer Time (UTC+01)
• Area of the United Kingdom: 244,820 km² (94,530 sq mi) – 79th most extensive country
  • Area of the countries of the United Kingdom
• Extreme points of the United Kingdom:
  • North: Out Stack, Shetland Islands 60°51′N 0°52′W / 60.850°N 0.867°W / 60.850; -0.867
  • South: Western Rocks, Isles of Scilly 49°51′N 6°24′W / 49.850°N 6.400°W / 49.850; -6.400
  • East: Lowestoft Ness, Suffolk 52°28.87′N 1°45.77′E / 52.48117°N 1.76283°E / 52.48117; 1.76283
  • West: Rockall¹ 57°35′N 13°41′W / 57.583°N 13.683°W / 57.583; -13.683
  • High: Ben Nevis, Lochaber at 1,343 m (4,406 ft) 56°47′49.150″N 5°0′17.22″W / 56.79698611°N 5.0047833°W / 56.79698611; -5.0047833
    • Low: The Fens at −4 m (−13 ft) 52°29′18″N 0°13′52″W / 52.48838°N 0.23118°W / 52.48838; -0.23118
  • Land boundaries:  Republic of Ireland 360 km
  • Land boundary:  France undersea in Channel Tunnel
  • Coastline: 12,429 km
• Atlas of the United Kingdom
  • Atlas of England
  • Atlas of Northern Ireland
  • Atlas of Scotland
  • Atlas of Wales
  • Economic geography of the United Kingdom

Ecoregions

List of ecoregions in the United Kingdom

An enlargeable satellite image of the United Kingdom

Environment

• Climate of the United Kingdom
• Environmental issues in the United Kingdom
• Conservation in the United Kingdom
• Energy in the United Kingdom
• Green building in the United Kingdom
• Ecoregions in the United Kingdom
• Renewable energy in the United Kingdom
  • Green electricity in the United Kingdom
    • Hydroelectricity in the United Kingdom
    • Wind power in the United Kingdom
    • Solar power in the United Kingdom
• Geology of the United Kingdom
  • Earthquakes in the British Isles
• National parks of the United Kingdom
  • National parks of England and Wales
  • National parks of Northern Ireland
  • National parks of Scotland
• Protected areas of the United Kingdom
  • Environmentally sensitive area (ESA)
  • Heritage coast
  • Scenic areas
    • Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) – England, Wales, Northern Ireland
    • National scenic area – Scotland
  • Scheduled monument
  • Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
  • Special Area of Conservation (SAC) (European Union)
  • Special Protection Area (SPA) (European Union)
  • Wetlands designated under the Ramsar Convention (International)
• Wildlife of the United Kingdom
  • Flora of the United Kingdom
    • Trees of Britain and Ireland
    • List of the vascular plants of Britain and Ireland
  • Fauna of the United Kingdom
    • List of mammals of the United Kingdom
    • Birds of the United Kingdom
      • List of birds of Great Britain
      • List of birds of Wales
    • List of reptiles of Great Britain
    • List of amphibians of Great Britain
    • List of fish of Great Britain
    • Lists of insects of Great Britain
• Climate of the United Kingdom
  • United Kingdom Climate Change Programme
  • List of UK extreme rainfall amounts
• Conservation in the United Kingdom
• Environmentally sensitive area
  • Green belts
  • Notable trees in Great Britain
  • National nature reserve
  • National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
  • Special Protection Area
    • Site of Special Scientific Interest
• List of waterfalls of the United Kingdom
• List of natural disasters in the British Isles
  • The Great Storm of 1987

Geographic features

• Coastline
• Islands
• Lakes
• Lochs
• Mountains and hills
  • Volcanoes
• Rivers
  • Waterfalls
• World Heritage Sites

Regions

Thirteen areas are designated as national parks in England and Wales

• Time zone of the UK

Municipalities

• Cities
  • Capital of the United Kingdom: London
  • Second city of the United Kingdom
  • Cities by population
• Towns:
  • Towns in England
  • Burghs in Scotland
  • Towns in Wales
  • Towns in Northern Ireland
• City status in the United Kingdom
• Conurbations
• Green belt

Natural Resources

Map of population density in the UK as at the 2011 census.

NASA VIIRS image highlighting UK population centres

Population density (people per km²) by country, 2015.

Demography

Demography of the United Kingdom

• Population of the United Kingdom: 64,105,700 (2013 estimate) making it the 22nd most populous country and, with a population density of 259/km² (679/sq.mile), ranking it 51st on the List of sovereign states and dependent territories by population density. This is largely due to the particularly high population density of England which measures 406/km².
  • Population of the countries of the United Kingdom
  • UK birth and deaths since 1960
  • Immigration to the United Kingdom

Ethnicity

Government, monarchy, politics and honours

Rishi Sunak is the current UK Prime Minister

• Form of government: parliamentary multi-party representative democratic constitutional monarchy
• Censorship in the United Kingdom
• Elections in the United Kingdom
  • British elections (specific elections)
• Gun politics in the United Kingdom
• Political parties in the United Kingdom
• Political scandals of the United Kingdom
• Taxation in the United Kingdom

Monarchy

• Air transport of the Royal Family and government of the United Kingdom
• British Royal Family
• British monarchs' family tree
• Monarchy of the United Kingdom
• Coronation of the British monarch
• Household Cavalry
• Household Division
• HMY Britannia
• Line of succession to the British throne
• List of British royal residences
• List of British monarchs
• List of Royal Yachts of the United Kingdom
• List of UK place names with royal patronage
• List of organisations in the United Kingdom with a royal charter
• King's Guard and King's Life Guard
• Royal Assent
• Royal Charter
• Royal Christmas Message
• Royal Collection Management Committee
• Royal Collection Trust
• Royal Collection
• Royal Household
• Royal Librarian
• Royal Library, Windsor
• Royal Peculiar
• Royal Philatelic Collection
• Royal Prerogative
• Royal Standard
• Royal Style and Titles Act
• Royal Train
• Royal Warrant of Appointment (United Kingdom)
• Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom
• Royal forest
• Style of the British sovereign
• Succession to the British Throne

Branches of the government

Executive branch

• Head of state: Sovereign of the United Kingdom, King Charles III
  • Coronation of the British monarch
    • Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom
• Head of government: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (list), Rishi Sunak
• Cabinet of the United Kingdom
• Departments of the United Kingdom Government

Legislative branch

• Parliament of the United Kingdom (bicameral)
  • List of parliaments of the United Kingdom
  • List of parliaments of Great Britain
  • Upper house: House of Lords
  • Lower house: House of Commons of the United Kingdom
    • List of British MPs

Judicial branch

Courts of the United Kingdom

• Courts of England and Wales
• Courts of Northern Ireland
• Courts of Scotland
• Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

Foreign relations

Foreign relations of the United Kingdom

• History
• Timeline of British diplomatic history
• United Kingdom and the United Nations
• Special Relationship
• Diplomatic missions in the United Kingdom
• Diplomatic missions of the United Kingdom

International organisation membership

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a member of:^[1]

Local government

Manchester Town Hall, a centre of local government

• List of local governments in the United Kingdom

Politics of England

Politics of England

• Regional assemblies in England
• Local government in England
  • History of local government in England
  • Mayors in England

Politics of Northern Ireland

Parliament Buildings at Stormont, Belfast, seat of the Northern Ireland Assembly

Politics of Northern Ireland

• Northern Ireland Assembly
  • First Minister of Northern Ireland, Office vacant
  • Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, Office vacant
• Local government in Northern Ireland
  • History of local government in Northern Ireland
  • Mayors in Northern Ireland

Politics of Scotland

The Scottish Parliament Building in Edinburgh

Politics of Scotland

• History of Scottish devolution
• Local government in Scotland
  • History of local government in Scotland
  • Provosts in Scotland
• Pressure Groups in Scotland
• Scottish Parliament
  • First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon
  • Members of the Scottish Parliament
  • 2007 Scottish Parliament election
  • 2011 Scottish Parliament election
  • 2016 Scottish Parliament election
  • 2021 Scottish Parliament election

Politics of Wales

The Senedd building in Cardiff Bay

Politics of Wales

• Local government in Wales
  • History of local government in Wales
  • Mayors in Wales
• Senedd (Welsh Parliament)
  • Members of the Senedd
  • Members of the 6th Senedd
  • 2007 National Assembly for Wales election
  • 2011 National Assembly for Wales election
  • 2016 National Assembly for Wales election
  • 2021 Senedd election
  • Welsh Government
    • Second Drakeford government
    • First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford

Honours

• New Year Honours
• King's Birthday Honours
• Prime Minister's Resignation Honours
• Chivalric order
  • Chivalric order#Modern orders
• List of honorary British knights and dames
• Category:British honours system
• Declining a British honour

Military and Defence

British troops in Iraq

British Armed Forces

Command

• Commander-in-chief: The Sovereign – King Charles III
  • Chief of the Defence Staff: General Sir Nick Carter
    • First Sea Lord: Admiral Tony Radakin
    • Chief of the General Staff: General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith
    • Chief of the Air Staff: Air Chief Marshal Michael Wigston
• Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
  • Defence Council of the United Kingdom

Forces

• British Armed Forces
  • British Army
  • Royal Navy
  • Royal Marines
  • Royal Air Force

History

See § History

Related topics

• United Kingdom and weapons of mass destruction
  • Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom

Law and order

The Middlesex Guildhall is home to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

Law of the United Kingdom

Law of England and Wales

Law of Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland law

• Independent Commission on Policing for Northern Ireland

Law of Scotland

Scots law

Infrastructure

Economy

Economy of the United Kingdom

History

"A new map of Great Britain according to the newest and most exact observations"

• History of the United Kingdom
  • Timeline of British history
• History of England
  • Social history of England
  • Timeline of English history
• History of Scotland
  • Timeline of Scottish history
• History of Wales
• History of Northern Ireland
  • Plantation of Ulster
• History of the formation of the United Kingdom
  • Treaty of Union
  • Acts of Union 1707
  • Act of Union 1800
• British Empire and the Commonwealth
• UK underground

History by period

• Georgian era
• Victorian era
• Edwardian era
• First World War
• Interwar
• Second World War
  • civilian
  • military
• Postwar
  • political
  • social
• Since 1979
  • political
  • social

Historical states of the British Isles

Roman Britain in 410

• Ancient Britain
• Avalon
• Roman Britain
• Caledonia
• Hibernia
• Kingdom of the Picts
• Kingdom of the Scots
• Heptarchy
• States in Medieval Britain
• Commonwealth of England
• Kingdom of England
• Kingdom of Ireland
• Kingdom of Scotland (when Picts and Scots merged in 843)
• Kingdom of Great Britain (when England & Scotland merged in 1707);
• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (when Great Britain and Ireland merged in 1801)

By subject

Culture

Sunday roast consisting of roast beef, roast potatoes, vegetables and Yorkshire pudding

Culture of the United Kingdom

Architecture

Belfast City Hall is a municipal building in the Edwardian Baroque style.

Architecture of the United Kingdom

The arts

The Angel of the North near Gateshead by Antony Gormley, 1998

Museums

Music

Led Zeppelin performing in 1975

The Proms in 2004

• Music of the United Kingdom
  • List of music festivals in the United Kingdom

Popular music

Classical music

Folk music

Theatre

Shakespeare's Globe

Film

Cinema of the United Kingdom

Cultural icons

Union Flag

Row of phone boxes in Covent Garden

AEC Routemaster bus

Black cab

Mini Cooper S

A cup of tea

Giant's Causeway stones

A thistle

Edinburgh Castle

A daffodil, a national symbol of Wales

Land Rover Defender

Stonehenge

United Kingdom icons

English icons

Northern Irish icons

Scottish icons

Welsh icons

Languages

Languages of the United Kingdom

People

Demography of the United Kingdom

Interest groups and societies

Religion

Westminster Abbey is used for the coronation of British monarchs

Religion in the United Kingdom

Sports, games, and pastimes

Sport in the United Kingdom The following are the major sports; local groups may well play many others.

Angling

• National Federation of Anglers
• National Federation of Sea Anglers
• Salmon and Trout Association

Chess

• English Chess Federation
• Scottish Chess Championship

Cricket

The first England team to tour Southern Australia

The media centre at Lord's Cricket Ground

• Cricket in England
  • 2005 English cricket season
  • England cricket team
  • Marylebone Cricket Club
  • County cricket
• Cricket in Scotland
  • Scotland national cricket team
• Cricket in Wales
  • England cricket team
  • Wales national cricket team
• Cricket in Ireland
  • Ireland cricket team

Hiking

• Long-distance footpaths in the UK
• Ramblers' Association

Association football

Wembley Stadium exterior

The Old Firm derby

• British Home Championship

Polo

• Hurlingham Polo Association

Rugby

England playing Wales in the Six Nations

Sport rowing

• Boat Race (Oxford vs Cambridge)
• Henley Royal Regatta

Skiing

• Ski Club of Great Britain

Other sports, games, and pastimes

Olympic Stadium in June 2011

Education

• Education in the United Kingdom
  • Schools in the United Kingdom
    • Preparatory school
    • Grammar schools in the United Kingdom
    • Independent school (UK)
    • List of schools in the United Kingdom
    • School years
  • Universities in the United Kingdom
    • British undergraduate degree classification
    • List of universities in the United Kingdom
    • National Union of Students of the United Kingdom

Education in England

• Education in England

• Academy (England)
• General Teaching Council for England
• List of schools in England
• List of universities in England
• National Curriculum for England

Education in Northern Ireland

• Education in Northern Ireland

• List of schools in Northern Ireland
• Northern Ireland Curriculum

Education in Scotland

• Education in Scotland

• Curriculum for Excellence
• Educational Institute of Scotland
• General Teaching Council for Scotland
• Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education
• List of schools in Scotland

• List of independent schools in Scotland

• List of universities in Scotland
• Students' representative council
• Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association
• Scottish Qualifications Authority

Education in Wales

• Education in Wales

• List of schools in Wales
• National Curriculum for Wales