I.

Introduction

United Kingdom, constitutional monarchy in northwestern Europe, officially the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Great Britain is the largest island in the cluster of islands, or archipelago, known as the British Isles. England is the largest and most populous division of the island of Great Britain, making up the south and east. Wales is on the west and Scotland is to the north. Northern Ireland is located in the northeast corner of Ireland, the second largest island in the British Isles. The capital of the United Kingdom is the city of London, situated near the southeastern tip of England.

People often confuse the names for this country, and frequently make mistakes in using them. United Kingdom, UK, and Britain are all proper terms for the entire nation, although the term Britain is also often used when talking about the island of Great Britain. The use of the term Great Britain to refer to the entire nation is now outdated; the term Great Britain, properly used, refers only to the island of Great Britain, which does not include Northern Ireland. The term England should never be used to describe Britain, because England is only one part of the island. It is always correct to call people from England, Scotland, or Wales British, although people from England may also properly be called English, people from Scotland Scottish, and people from Wales Welsh.

The United Kingdom is a small nation in physical size. At 244,110 sq km (94,251 sq mi), the United Kingdom is roughly the size of Oregon or Colorado, or twice the size of New York State. It is located as far north in latitude as Labrador in North America, but, like the rest of northern Europe, it is warmed by the Gulf Stream flowing out of the North Atlantic Ocean. The climate, in general, is mild, chilly, and often wet. Rain or overcast skies can be expected for up to 300 days per year. These conditions make Britain lush and green, with rolling plains in the south and east and rough hills and mountains to the west and north.

Despite its relatively small size, Britain is highly populated, with an estimated population density of 252 persons per sq km (652 per sq mi) in 2007. It is highly developed economically, preeminent in the arts and sciences, sophisticated in technology, and highly prosperous and peaceful. In general, British subjects belong to one of the more affluent states of Europe and enjoy a high standard of living compared to the rest of the world.

Many nations around the world have been influenced by British history and culture. With each passing year, English comes closer to being a world language for all educated people, as Latin once was. The prominence of English can be traced to the spread of the British Empire during the last three centuries. In the early 20th century, a quarter of the world’s people and a quarter of the world’s land surface were controlled in some way by Britain. Some parts of the world received substantial numbers of British emigrants and developed into what were called daughter nations. These colonies eventually became self-governing areas called dominions. Canada, Australia, and New Zealand fit this pattern. For a long time India was the most important colony in the British Empire, but after a long anticolonial struggle with Britain, independent India today is the world’s most populous democracy. The British Empire once included substantial portions of southern, western, and eastern Africa; important areas in Asia, such as Hong Kong; a few holdings in the Americas; and a large number of islands in the Pacific. Today most of these are independent nations, but many retain some British law, institutions, and customs.

Even parts of the world never included in the British Empire have adopted the British system of parliamentary government, often referred to as the Westminster model. Originally a vehicle for royal authority, this system gradually evolved into a representative government and finally became a means through which democracy could be exercised. Today legislative power comes from the lower house of Parliament, known as the House of Commons. The freely elected members of the House of Commons select the nation’s chief executive, the prime minister. He or she in turn appoints members of the House of Commons to the Cabinet, a body of advisers. Because the executive is not separated from the legislature, the government is efficient as well as responsive to the electorate.

Britain was a pioneer in economic matters. The first industrial revolution occurred in Britain in the 18th and early 19th centuries and led to the development of the world’s first society dominated by a middle class. Britain was the first nation to have more than half of its population living in urban areas. Rapid economic development and worldwide trade made Britain the richest nation in the world during the reign of Queen Victoria in the 19th century. For a long time before and after the Industrial Revolution, London was the center of world capitalism, and today is still one of the world’s most important business and financial centers.

Britain has been important in the arts throughout modern times. Plays, novels, stories and, most recently, screenplays from Britain have been admired throughout the world. The output of English-language literature from Britain has far surpassed its output in art and music, fields dominated by other European nations. Nevertheless, Britain can claim several 20th-century artists and composers of note, including painter David Hockney and composer Sir Edward Elgar.

II.

Land and Resources of the United Kingdom

A.

Geographical Components and Borders

The United Kingdom is bordered on the south by the English Channel, which separates it from the continent of Europe. It is bordered on the east by the North Sea, and on the west by the Irish Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The United Kingdom’s only land border with another nation is between Northern Ireland and Ireland.

England is the largest, most populous, and wealthiest division of the United Kingdom. It makes up 130,410 sq km (50,352 sq mi) of the United Kingdom’s total 244,110 sq km (94,251 sq mi). The area of Scotland is 78,790 sq km (30,420 sq mi), the area of Wales is 20,760 sq km (8,020 sq mi), and the area of Northern Ireland is 14,160 sq km (5,470 sq mi). This means that England makes up 53.4 percent of the area of the United Kingdom, Scotland 32.3 percent, Wales 8.5 percent, and Northern Ireland 5.8 percent.

The United Kingdom contains a number of small islands. These include the Isle of Wight, which lies off of England’s southern coast; Anglesey, off the northwest coast of Wales; the Isles of Scilly in the English Channel; the Hebrides archipelago to the west of Scotland, consisting of the Inner and the Outer Hebrides; the Orkney Islands to the northeast of Scotland; and the Shetland Islands farther out into the North Sea from Scotland.

Several dependencies and dependent territories are associated with the United Kingdom. The dependencies, located close to Britain, are the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea and the Channel Islands off the northern coast of France. These dependencies, while not technically part of the United Kingdom, maintain a special relationship with it. The Channel Islands were once part of the Duchy of Normandy and retain much of their original French culture. The Isle of Man, controlled by Norway during the Middle Ages, came under English rule in the 14th century. Both dependencies are largely self-governing and have their own legislative assemblies and systems of law. Britain is responsible for their international relations and defense.

Britain’s dependent territories are scattered throughout the world and are the remains of the former British Empire. They are generally small in area and without many resources. Once considered colonies, they have opted to remain under British control for a variety of reasons. Today Britain assists the territories economically, with the understanding that they may become independent when they wish. Most are locally self-governing, although the queen appoints a governor for each territory who is responsible for external affairs and internal security, including the police and public service. The ultimate responsibility for their government rests with the foreign and commonwealth secretary, a minister in the British Cabinet. The United Kingdom has experienced difficulties with some of its territories—Argentina has made claims to the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and Spain has made claims to Gibraltar. China’s claim to the former dependent territory of Hong Kong was satisfied in July 1997 when Britain’s lease ran out and China assumed control of the area.

B.

Natural Regions and Topography

The island of Great Britain can be divided into two major natural regions—the highland zone and the lowland zone. The highland zone is an area of high hills and mountains in the north and west. The lowland zone in the south and east consists mostly of rolling plains. The zones are divided by an imaginary line running through England from the River Exe on the southwest coast to the mouth of the River Tees on the northeast coast. The lowland zone has a milder climate and better soils for farming. Historically, most people in Britain have lived in the lowland zone rather than in the harsher highland zone.

B.1.

The Highland Zone

The highland zone contains what is often called rough country, consisting to a large extent of rugged hills, mountains, and eroded areas frequently broken by valleys and plains. The highest elevations in the British Isles are in the highland zone; the highest point is Ben Nevis at 1,343 m (4,406 ft), located in the Highlands of Scotland. The highland zone is cooler than the lowland zone, and receives more rainfall and less sunlight. In many places farming is impossible. Even where it is feasible, the soil is often thin and stony, with a hard rock formation below. Rainwater often cannot escape readily, so many areas tend to be waterlogged.

Wales, Scotland, and parts of England are located in the highland zone. The parts of England in the highland zone include the Pennine Chain of mountains, extending down into northern England and into the southwestern peninsula. The Pennine Chain is sometimes called the backbone of England. It is a massive upland area extending 260 km (160 mi) north to south, starting at the Cheviot Hills on England’s border with Scotland and ending in the Midlands of central England. It is made up of several broad, rolling, windswept moorlands separated by deep river valleys. Many of England’s major industrial areas lie on the flanks of the Pennine Chain, where there are many coalfields. To the west of the northern Pennines are the Cumbrian Mountains, a mountainous dome of ancient rocks deeply eroded by glaciers. This region contains the Lake District, famous for its lakes and scenic beauty.

The part of the highland zone in England’s southwest peninsula is often referred to as the West Country. This peninsula, which juts out into the Atlantic Ocean, contains the counties of Devon and Cornwall. It features hilly, rough areas, the moorland plateaus of Dartmoor and Exmoor, and many picturesque valleys. Its sheltered areas are noted for their mild climate.

North of the Cheviot Hills, in Scotland, are the Southern Uplands, an area of rounded hills and broad valleys. The maximum elevation here is 850 m (2,800 ft), and much of the area consists of moorlands used for grazing sheep. North of the Uplands is a broad valley known variously as the Central Lowlands, the Scottish Lowlands, or the Midland Valley. This valley is sandwiched between two areas of uplands and contains most of Scotland’s urban centers, industries, and mines.

Farther north are the Scottish Highlands, a rugged area of mountain ranges, bleak moorlands, and deep, narrow valleys known as glens. The Highlands contain sparsely populated areas of moors. These tracts of wasteland are mostly covered with coarse, low, bushy plants, including varieties of heath and heather, hardy evergreen shrubs most often found in cooler climates. The Grampian Mountains are the chief range in the Highlands, reaching as high as 1,343 m (4,406 ft) above sea level. The western portion of the Highlands contains most of Scotland’s famous lochs, or large lakes.

Northern Ireland consists of hilly highlands similar to those of Scotland. Most of Northern Ireland is situated in a large valley formed from an old lava plateau. In the center of the valley is Lough Neagh, the largest lake in the British Isles, which is 29 km (18 mi) long and 18 km (11 mi) wide. The highest part of Northern Ireland is the Mourne Mountains in the southeast, which reach a maximum elevation of 852 m (2,796 ft) above sea level. The narrowest point between the islands of Britain and Ireland is a distance of only 21 km (13 mi), between Tor on the coast of Northern Ireland to Mull of Kintyre on the Scottish coast.

The peninsula of Wales is almost entirely covered by mountains. The Cambrian Mountains extend roughly from northeast to southeast across the peninsula, forming an area of high, craggy peaks and bleak moorlands. They contain the highest peak in Wales, the huge mountain called Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa Fawr in Welsh), which rises to 1,085 m (3,560 ft) above sea level. In southern Wales lower and less rugged mountains, the Brecon Beacons, extend in a roughly east-west direction. A thin ribbon of lowland rims much of the Welsh coast, broadening out in the northwest to include the offshore island of Anglesey. It also broadens out in the southwest and southeast. Sometimes the lowland region of southeastern Wales is considered an extension of the lowland zone of Britain. This region contains the largest cities and industrial establishments in Wales. Coal mines in the mountains just to the north of this southern lowland were of great importance to the Welsh economy for many years. Hills running along the Welsh border with England continue into parts of a few English counties.

B.2.

The Lowland Zone

In general the lowland zone is a great plain with a gentle, undulating surface and extensive areas of almost-level ground. It receives less rain and more sunshine than the highland zone and much of the soil in the zone is fertile. Most of the lowland region is less than 150 m (500 ft) above sea level, and the hills rarely reach more than 300 m (1,000 ft) above sea level. It has been extensively inhabited, farmed, and grazed for thousands of years. Most of Britain’s population lives densely packed into the lowland zone, which covers most of England. The metropolis of London and most of Britain’s large cities are located in the lowland zone.

The flattest lands in the lowland zone are in the east, particularly on the large, hump-shaped area called East Anglia. The inlet called the Wash is located off East Anglia’s northern coast. The Wash was once surrounded by the flat, swampy areas of the Fenlands, or the Fens, most of which has now been drained. The broad, rolling Midland Plain is south of the Pennine Chain. Northwest of this plain, on the western side of the Pennines, is the Lancashire-Cheshire plain. Another plain extends from the eastern slope of the Pennines to the sea. It is broken in the north by the Yorkshire Moors, a high wasteland overgrown with coarse plants.

Several chains of low hills break up the lowland plain. They are sometimes called scarplands or escarpments, meaning that they tend to drop steeply on one side and slope gently downward on the other side. One of these upland ridges, the South Downs, runs along the southern coast eastward from the Salisbury Plain. Running parallel to this ridge, south of the Thames valley, are the North Downs. In between the North Downs and the South Downs is a region called The Weald, an area of scenic, gentle hills. Another elevated chain is the Chiltern Hills, which stretch southwest from the central part of the lowland plain. The Cotswold Hills lie to the west near Wales. The Cotswolds and the plain’s northern hills have a limestone base, while the Downs have a chalk base.

C.

Rivers and Lakes

Since Britain has a moist climate with much rainfall, rivers and lakes are numerous. Rivers in central and eastern Britain tend to flow slowly and steadily all year long because they are fed by the frequent rain. Many have been navigable, and from the earliest times they have served peoples interested in either commerce or invasion. The Highlands act as a divide and determine whether rivers flow west to the Irish Sea or east to the North Sea. Rivers and streams moving westward down from the Highlands tend to be swift and turbulent; rivers flowing eastward tend to be long, graceful, and gentle, with slowly moving waters.

The Thames and the Severn are the longest rivers in Britain and are almost equal in length. The Severn flows south out of the mountains of central Wales to the Bristol Channel at Bristol. It is 354 km (220 mi) long. The Thames, 338 km (210 mi) long, flows eastward out of the Cotswold Hills and weaves through the metropolis of London. The Thames provides water to the city of London and is used to carry commercial freight. Other important rivers in England are the Mersey, which enters the Irish Sea at Liverpool; the River Humber on the east coast, into which the Trent River and several other rivers flow; and the Tyne River in northern England, which flows past Newcastle upon Tyne to the North Sea.

In Scotland the important rivers are the Clyde and the Forth, which are joined by a canal. The River Clyde flows northwest, past Glasgow, and empties into the Atlantic at the Firth of Clyde. (Firth is the Scottish name for an arm of the sea that serves as the broad estuary of a river.) The River Forth flows eastward into the Firth of Forth, where Edinburgh rises on its south bank. The most important rivers in Northern Ireland are the Lagan, the Bann, and the Foyle.

Most of the large lakes in the United Kingdom are located in the upland areas of Scotland and northern England, although Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland is the largest lake in the United Kingdom. Loch Lomond, on the southwestern edge of the Highlands of Scotland, is the largest on the island of Great Britain, measuring 37 km (23 mi) long and from 1.6 to 8 km (1 to 5 mi) wide. Lake Windermere is the largest of the 15 major lakes in the famous Lake District of northwestern England. It is about 1.6 km (1 mi) wide and more than 16 km (10 mi) long.

D.

Coastline

Great Britain’s coastline is highly irregular, with many bays and inlets that provide harbors and shelters for ships and boats. Coastal trade involving ships sailing along the coast has been carried on since ancient times. The coastline is about 8,000 km (about 5,000 mi) long and affords some of the best scenery in Britain. The western coast is characterized by cliffs and rocky headlands, especially where the Highlands meet the sea in northwestern Scotland. On the more gentle southern and eastern coasts there are many sand or pebble beaches as well as tall limestone or chalk cliffs, the most famous of which are the White Cliffs of Dover in the southeast.

A few islands lie just off of Britain’s coast. The Hebrides, an archipelago of about 500 islands, cover a considerable area along the coast of western Scotland; the isle of Anglesey lies just off the coast of northwestern Wales; and the Isle of Wight is off England’s southern coast. Northern Ireland has a beautiful and rugged coastline and is the location of the famous and unique Giant’s Causeway, an expansive and curious formation of rocks shaped like giant cylinders.

E.

Natural Resources

E.1.

Soils

Britain’s soil quality varies greatly. In northern areas the soils are thin, lying right above rock formations, while the south possesses areas of rich loam and heavy clay soils. When handled carefully the soils of eastern and south central England are very productive. While about three-fourths of the land in Britain is suitable for agriculture, only 24 percent of this land is used to grow crops. Almost all of the rest is planted with grass or used as grazing land.

E.2.

Forests and Woodlands

Trees grow well and quickly in the heavy soils of England, and for a long time prehistoric settlers did not have tools strong enough to cut down the heavy oak forests. Over the centuries the expanding human population cut back the forests, so that today only 11.8 percent of the United Kingdom is forested, roughly 3 million hectares (7 million acres). Only 7 percent of England is covered by forest, 15 percent of Scotland, 12 percent of Wales, and 5 percent of Northern Ireland. Efforts have been made in Britain to grow more trees and expand the managed forest areas. Local authorities have the power to protect trees and woodlands. It is an offense to cut down trees without permission, and when trees protected by the government die they must be replaced.

E.3.

Mineral Resources

Britain’s mineral resources were historically important, but today most of these resources are either exhausted or produced in small quantities. Britain currently relies upon imports from larger, cheaper foreign supplies. Before and during the Roman occupation, about 2,000 years ago, Britain was noted for its tin mines, which were concentrated in Cornwall. The tin was mixed with copper to produce bronze, an important material in ancient times used for weapons and jewelry. Today nearly every tin mine in Britain has been exhausted and shut down.

Britain’s small deposits of iron ore were critically important to the Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries, particularly because iron ore deposits were located close to rich deposits of coal. When iron ore and coal are heated together, they produce iron alloys, such as wrought iron. When iron ore is heated at high temperatures with coke, a derivative of coal, it produces pig iron, a cheaper, softer iron that is more easily purified into the iron and steel essential for constructing machines and railroads. During the Industrial Revolution towns and cities sprang up close to these resources, and they remain among Britain’s leading urban areas. Today Britain imports iron, along with most other minerals used for industrial production.

Raw materials for construction, particularly aggregates (minerals mechanically separated from ores), are still important, and many quarries continue to operate profitably. Limestone, sand, gravel, rock, sandstone, clay, chalk, salt, silica sands, gypsum, potash, and fluorspar are all quarried.

E.4.

Energy Resources

Britain has the richest energy sources in the European Union (EU), and its resources of oil and natural gas are of vital importance to the British economy. Until the 1970s small amounts of oil were produced from onshore wells, but this amount was far less than Britain needed. In 1969 large supplies of oil and natural gas were discovered in the North Sea off the eastern coast of Britain, particularly off the coast of Scotland. Oil and natural gas production soared after supplies were brought ashore in 1975. Britain’s production of crude oil peaked in 1999 and began to decline in the early 2000s. However, Britain continues to export oil and natural gas.

For many years coal was mined extensively, providing the primary source of energy in Britain. It was also exported. Coal production reached its peak in 1913, when more than 300 million tons were mined. Today production is less than a tenth of that figure and coal is far less important to the British economy.

Britain also has a number of nuclear energy facilities. Britain meets 23 percent of its energy needs through nuclear energy. Recently much research has been devoted to developing biofuels—energy from wastes, landfill gas, and crops—as well as to developing solar energy, wind power, and waterpower.

F.

Plant and Animal Life

F.1.

Plant Life

The mild climate, ample rain, and long growing season in Britain support a great variety of plants, which grow exceptionally well. Sometimes plant growth is compared to the lush areas of the well-watered and mild coasts of the states of Washington and Oregon. Most of Britain was once covered with thick, deciduous forests in which oak trees predominated. (Deciduous trees are those that lose their leaves every year.) The impact of centuries of dense human population has massively altered the flora of Britain, and only tiny remnants of these forests remain today. Although 11.8 percent of Britain is still forested, most of this area consists of commercially planted, fast-growing coniferous forests in Wales and northeastern Scotland. (Coniferous trees are evergreen trees that have cones.)

Before they were affected by centuries of clearing and human use, the great oak forests spread over the best soils in Britain. Forests were unable to establish themselves in the poorer soils of the mountains, wetlands, heath, and moorlands. The plants common to these wilder areas are heather, gorse, peat moss, rowan, and bilberry. These regions have been altered by heavy grazing of livestock and by controlled burning. Controlled burning creates environments suitable for game birds, which feed on the shoots of the new plants that spring up after the older plants are burned away. Some wetland areas have been subjected to massive draining efforts for hundreds of years and are now covered by towns and farmland. The marginal wetlands that remain continue to be threatened by reclamation for farms and homes, and some wetland plant species now grow only in conservation areas.

F.2.

Animal Life

An estimated 30,000 animal species live in Britain, although many have limited distribution and are on the endangered list. Britain has many smaller mammals, and the larger ones tend to be gentle. The only surviving large mammals are red deer, which live in the Scottish Highlands and in Exmoor in southwestern England, and roe deer, found in the woodlands of Scotland and southern England. Semiwild ponies also inhabit Exmoor (see Exmoor Pony) and the Shetland Islands. At one time wild boars and wolves roamed Britain, but they were hunted to extinction.

Many smaller mammals inhabit Britain, including badgers, foxes, otters, red squirrels, and wildcats. Wildcats are found only in parts of Scotland. Otters are found mainly in southwestern England and in the Shetland and Orkney islands. The red squirrel, driven out of most of its range by the imported gray squirrel, is now limited mainly to the Isle of Wight and Scotland. Other species introduced from elsewhere include rabbits, black rats, muntjac deer, wallabies, and mink. Britain has five species of frogs and toads and three species of snakes, of which only the adder is venomous. Northern Ireland has no snakes.

Birdwatching is a popular national pastime. Britain is home to a large variety of birds, due in large measure to its position as a focal point of a migratory network. About 200 species are regularly seen in Britain. The most common are birds that remain year-round, such as blackbirds, chaffinches, sparrows, and starlings. Other well-known resident birds include crows, kingfishers, robins, wrens, woodpeckers, and various tits. Cuckoos, swallows, and swifts are the best-known summer visitors, and in the winter many species of duck, geese, and other waterbirds reside in British estuaries and wetlands. Human population pressures have adversely affected the habitats of many species. One of the worst dangers for birds is the popularity of ordinary housecats, which prey upon many bird species.

Saltwater fish were once important to Britain’s economy. Cod, haddock, whiting, herring, plaice, sole, and mackerel are still caught off the coasts of Britain, although grave concerns about the depletion of stocks caused by overfishing have led to the imposition of quotas. Lobster, crab, and other shellfish are caught along inshore waters. Freshwater fish in Britain include game fish, salmon, and trout, while so-called coarse fish include perch, pike, and roach. Freshwater fishing is almost entirely recreational, rather than commercial, except for fish farms, which concentrate on Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout. Shellfish farming specializes in mollusks such as clams, mussels, oysters, and scallops.

G.

Climate

The Atlantic Ocean has a significant effect on Britain’s climate. Although the British Isles are as far north in latitude as Labrador in Canada, they have a mild climate throughout the year. This is due to the Gulf Stream, a current of warm water that flows up from the Caribbean past Britain. Prevailing southwesterly winds moving across this warmer water bring moisture and moderating temperatures to the British Isles. The surrounding waters moderate temperatures year-round, making the UK warmer in winter and cooler in summer than other areas at the same latitude. Great Britain’s western coast tends to be warmer than the eastern coast, and the southern regions tend to be warmer than the northern regions. The mean annual temperature in the far north of Scotland is 6°C (43°F), and in warmer southwestern England it is 11°C (52°F). In general, temperatures are ordinarily around 15°C (60°F) in the summer and around 5°C (40°F) in the winter. Temperatures rarely ever exceed 32°C (90°F) or drop below -10°C (14°F) anywhere in the British Isles. In many areas, frosts, when the temperature dips below 0°C (32°F), are rare.

Winds blowing off the Atlantic Ocean bring clouds and large amounts of moisture to the British Isles. Average annual precipitation is more than 1,000 mm (40 in), varying from the extremes of 5,000 mm (196 in) in the western Highlands of Scotland to less than 500 mm (20 in) in the driest parts of East Anglia in England. The western part of Britain receives much more moisture than the eastern areas. It rains year-round, and in the winter the rain may change to snow, particularly in the north. It snows infrequently in the south, and when it does it is likely to be wet, slushy, and short-lived.

The climate has affected settlement and development in Britain for thousands of years. The mild, wet climate ensured that thick forests rich in game, as well as rivers and streams abundant with fish, were available to prehistoric hunters and gatherers. Britain was regarded as a cold, remote, and distant part of the ancient Roman Empire in the first few centuries ad, so relatively few Romans were motivated to move there for trade, administrative, or military reasons. Preindustrial settlements clustered in southern England, where the climate was milder, the growing season longer, and the rich soil and steady rainfall produced bountiful harvests. Successive waves of invaders made the plains of southern England their primary objective. After the Industrial Revolution began in the 18th century, populations grew enormously in areas with rich resources beneath the ground, particularly coal, even though these resources were sometimes located in the colder, harsher northern regions of England or the western Lowlands of Scotland.

H.

Environmental Issues

Environmental protection is an important issue in the United Kingdom because as a highly populated and technologically advanced nation grows the environment suffers. Compared to many other industrialized nations, the country has a relatively good record of protecting the environment. Much environmental activity involves ordinary citizens at the local level, while the national government provides leadership, goals, and direction, particularly through the secretary of state for the environment. The United Kingdom, along with other prospering nations, has contributed funds and expertise toward global efforts to preserve the environment. In 2004, 15.3 percent of the United Kingdom was protected by national parks, regional parks, and smaller protected areas.

As the world’s first industrialized society, Britain has a long history of dealing with environmental problems. Contamination from sewerage, impure water supplies, and filthy streets from massive horse traffic were all problems handled with success before World War I broke out in 1914. Air pollution from smoke remained a major problem until the Clean Air Act was passed in 1955, a measure that reduced industrial pollution by three-quarters. The increased substitution of gas and electricity for coal as a source of energy further reduced air pollution, both from industry and homes. In recent decades, however, the large increase in the number of motor vehicles has erased many of the gains achieved by the Clean Air Act. River pollution has been more difficult to deal with. This is partly because local sewerage authorities, which were among the worst polluters, were represented on the boards regulating pollution in the rivers. In 1989 a National Rivers Authority was created that has no connection with potential polluters, and Britain’s rivers are slowly improving.

Since the 1940s one of the most serious environmental problems has been disposal of radioactive waste, including the dismantling of nuclear power stations after they become obsolete. The country’s early nuclear industry disposed of radioactive waste by ocean dumping, leaving a legacy of contamination, particularly in the Irish Sea. Another serious environmental issue is the pressure to develop more land. To maintain productive agricultural land and viable agricultural communities, Britain has severely restricted urban and suburban development in some areas. As a result, land prices are extremely high.

III.

People and Society of the United Kingdom

Britain has a diverse population that includes people with connections to every continent of the world. The ethnic origins of this population have been complicated by immigration, intermarriage, and the constant relocation of people in this highly developed industrial and technological society. Nevertheless, a few particulars about the historical formation of the population are noteworthy.

A.

Early Ethnic Groups

Britain’s predominant historical stock is called Anglo-Saxon. Germanic peoples from Europe—the Angles, the Saxons, and the Jutes—arrived in Britain in massive numbers between the 5th and 7th centuries ad (see Ancient Britain).These people tended to be tall, blond, and blue-eyed. Their language became the foundation of the basic, short, everyday words in modern English. These groups invaded and overwhelmed Roman Britain, choosing to settle on the plains of England because of the mild climate and good soils. Native Britons fought the great flood of Germanic peoples, and many Britons who survived fled west to the hill country. These refugees and native Britons were Celts who had absorbed the earliest peoples on the island, the prehistoric people known as Iberians. Celts tended to be shorter than Anglo-Saxons and have rounder heads. Most had darker hair, but a strikingly high percentage of Celts had red hair.

After the Anglo-Saxon conquest, the Celts remained in Wales, Scotland, Ireland, and the West Country (the southwestern peninsula of Britain), where Celtic languages are still used to some extent and Celtic culture is still celebrated. This geographic separation between the Germanic Anglo-Saxons and the Celts has broken down over the centuries as people have migrated and intermarried.

A substantial number of Scandinavians raided and settled in Great Britain and Ireland during the 9th century. By then the Anglo-Saxons had established agricultural and Christian communities, and eventually they succeeded in subduing and integrating the Scandinavians into their kingdoms. In 1066 the Normans, French-speaking invaders of Norse origin, conquered England, adding yet another ethnic component. Although the Normans were the last major group to add their stock to the British population, waves of other foreigners and refugees have immigrated to Britain for religious, political, and economic reasons. Protestant French (see Huguenots) sought refuge in the 17th century, sailors of African ancestry came in the 18th century, and Jews from central and eastern Europe immigrated in the late 19th century and during the 1930s and late 1940s.

B.

Immigration After World War II

Most British people attribute their origins to the early invaders, calling themselves English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, or Ulsterites. The Ulsterites are an ethnically controversial group—some claim they are Scottish and others identify themselves as Protestant Irish. The remaining share of the population consists of minorities who arrived, for the most part, in the decades following the end of World War II in 1945.

These minorities—Chinese, Asian Indians, Pakistanis, Africans, and Caribbean people of African ancestry—came to Britain in substantial numbers after 1945. Immigration from the South Asian subcontinent (India and Pakistan) stabilized in the 1990s, but immigration from African countries continued to rise. By the late 1990s more than half of the people in these categories had been born in the United Kingdom. These newer ethnic groups tend to live in the more urban and industrial areas of England, especially in London, Birmingham, and Leeds. In 2004 the right to work in Britain was opened to people in central Europe and the Baltic countries, and they began to form the latest group of immigrants.

Although population censuses have been taken in the United Kingdom every decade since 1801, the 1991 census was the first to include a question on ethnic origin. In the 2001 census just over 92 percent of the population was described as white. Asian Indians made up 1.8 percent of the British population; Pakistanis, 1.3 percent; Caribbeans, 1 percent; Africans, 0.8 percent; Bangladeshis, 0.5 percent; and Chinese, 0.4 percent.

The United Kingdom is generally a prosperous, well-educated, and tolerant society, and ethnic differences have sparked relatively little violence and hostility. Local and national government programs exist to seek fairness and justice for ethnic minorities. Educational programs and the law bolster equal opportunity. The Race Relations Act of 1976 makes it illegal to discriminate against any person because of race, color, nationality, or origin, and it is a criminal offense to incite racial hatred. However, class tensions and racial unrest—especially conflict between white police forces and nonwhite immigrants—have flared from time to time in crowded and impoverished urban neighborhoods. In addition, high unemployment rates have made it difficult for immigrants to find jobs. Tensions heightened in July 2005 after four young British Muslims were implicated in the suicide bombings of three underground trains and a bus in London. Although the bombings were linked to Britain’s participation in the U.S.-Iraq War, some politicians sought to tighten British immigration policy in the aftermath of the bombings.

In late 2007 the government unveiled substantial reforms to the entry criteria for people wishing to work, train, or study in the United Kingdom. The new criteria utilized a points-based system, which set a threshold for points needed for entry and awarded points according to the skills and earning potential of applicants. The new system replaced work permits and other entry schemes. In addition, all low-skilled workers from countries outside the European Union (EU) were to be denied entry. Workers from within the EU were not required to obtain permission prior to entry.

C.

Demographic Trends

From the 18th century until well into the 19th century, Britain’s population soared as the death rate dropped and the birth rate remained high. During this period the total population increased from approximately 6 million in the 1760s to 26 million in the 1870s. Toward the end of the 19th century and into the 20th century the birth rate stabilized and the death rate remained low. The population took on the characteristics of a modern, developed, and prosperous state. Family size decreased and the median age of the population rose. Compared to the rest of the world, the UK has a smaller percentage of younger people and a higher percentage of older people, with more than 20 percent over the age of 60; those under the age of 15 years make up only 13 percent of the population. Life expectancy in 2007 was 76 years for men and 81.3 years for women. Britain’s population has been growing slowly, slower than the average for countries in the European Union.

D.

Population Statistics

The United Kingdom has a population of 60,776,238 (2007 estimate), with an average population density of 252 persons per sq km (652 per sq mi). The population density of the United Kingdom is one of the highest in Europe, exceeded by Netherlands and Belgium. England is the most populated part of the United Kingdom, with 50,094,000 people (2004), which means nearly four-fifths of the United Kingdom’s population resides in England. It is also the most densely populated portion of the United Kingdom, with a population density of 384 persons per sq km (995 per sq mi). Scotland possesses 5,078,000 people, and a population density of 64 persons per sq km (167 per sq mi). Wales has 2,952,000 people, with a population density of 142 persons per sq km (368 per sq mi). Northern Ireland’s population is 1,710,000, and it has 121 persons per sq km (313 per sq mi).

Britain’s population is overwhelmingly urban, with 89 percent living in urban areas and 11 percent living in rural areas. The Industrial Revolution built up major urban areas, and most of Britain’s people live in and around them to this day. England’s population is densest in the London area, around Birmingham and Coventry in the Midlands, and in northern England near the old industrial centers of Leeds, Sheffield, Manchester, Liverpool, and Newcastle upon Tyne. In the 1980s and 1990s southern England, particularly the southeast, became a center of population growth, due in large part to the growth of the high-tech and service sectors of the economy.

In Wales two-thirds of the people live in the industrial southern valleys. In Scotland three-quarters of the people live in the central lowlands, around Glasgow to the west and Edinburgh to the east. About half of the people living in Northern Ireland reside in the eastern portion, in Belfast and along the coast.

The population of Greater London is about 7.2 million (2001 census), making it by far the most populous city in the United Kingdom. It is the seat of government, center of business, and the heart of arts and culture. Birmingham is the second largest city, with 976,400 people. Other large cities in the United Kingdom include Leeds with 715,500, Glasgow with 578,700, and Sheffield with 513,100. Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, has a population of about 449,000; Cardiff, the capital of Wales, has 305,200 people; and Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, has a population of 277,200.

E.

Language

English is the official language of the United Kingdom and is the first language of the vast majority of its citizens. The use of language was extremely important to Britain’s class structure for much of the 20th century. Some educated English people, regardless of their class origin, strove to free themselves of regional or local accents in order to sound like educated English-speaking people. Others, including people from East London and people in northern England, enjoyed their particular way of speaking, regarding it as warmer and friendlier than standard English. Many regional and local speech patterns and accents remained in use, and in recent decades they have become far more acceptable in all social circles. BBC broadcasters today have Scottish, Welsh, and Northern Irish regional accents.

The Celtic language, an ancient tongue, continues to be spoken in Scotland by some people, usually those in the more remote fringes of the country, especially in the Hebrides Islands. Approximately 80,000 Scots speak Scottish Gaelic, a type of Celtic language. English is the predominant language in Northern Ireland, although at least some of the Roman Catholic minority speak Irish, another Gaelic dialect, as a second language.

The ancient Celtic language of Wales is strongly tied to the cultural nationalism of the region. At the time of the 2001 census, about 21 percent of the Welsh population could speak Welsh. Welsh is spoken in northern and western Wales much more than in southern Wales, where many English people have relocated. Many schools in Wales offer bilingual education, and there is a Welsh-language television channel. In 1993, after long and considerable agitation by Welsh nationalists, the government made Welsh a joint official language with English in Wales for use in the courts, the civil service, and other aspects of the public sector.

F.

Religion

The United Kingdom guarantees its citizens religious freedom without interference from the state or the community, and most of the world’s religions have followers in Britain. As in many European countries today, the majority of the population in Britain does not regularly attend religious services, yet nearly all faiths have devoted congregations of active members. An increasing percentage of the population professes no religious faith and some organizations represent secular outlooks. Estimating membership is difficult because congregations count their members differently, and government figures rely upon the numbers provided by the different groups.

In the past religion was often deeply entwined with politics. The only place this is still true in the United Kingdom is in Northern Ireland, where two communities use religious designations to express different, and hostile, political agendas. Many Protestants, largely descendants of Scottish and English settlers, are interested in maintaining their union with Britain, while some Roman Catholics campaign strongly for union with Ireland. (see Northern Ireland: History.)

F.1.

The Established Churches

The United Kingdom has two established churches: the Church of England and the Church of Scotland. An established church is the legally recognized official church of the state. The Church of England, also called the Anglican Church, is a Protestant Episcopal church. It is the parent body of churches belonging to the Anglican Communion, which includes the Episcopal Church of the United States. The Church in Wales and the Church of Ireland, once members of the Church of England, belong to the Anglican Communion but are not the official churches of their states.

The Church of England claims to be an apostolic church, meaning it traces a direct line of bishops back to the 12 apostles of Jesus. Anglicans also speak of themselves as a catholic, or universal, church, with a lowercase c, meaning that their beliefs are intended for humankind as a whole. Since its inception in the 16th century, the Church of England has debated how close its practices should be to those of the Roman Catholic Church. The history of the Church of England is marked by the division between High Church, with practices that favor Roman Catholicism, and Low Church, with practices that are more Protestant. In the last quarter of the 20th century, the Anglican Church was involved in a serious controversy over the ordination of women, which it finally allowed in 1992, and in 1994 the first women were ordained as priests in the Anglican Church. This action caused some Anglican clerics and lay people to convert to Roman Catholicism. Further controversy erupted in the early 2000s over the ordination of gay clergy.

The British monarch, who must be a member of the Anglican Church, holds the titles of Supreme Governor of the Church of England and Defender of the Faith. The monarch appoints archbishops and bishops upon the advice of the prime minister, who consults a commission that includes both lay people and clergy. Two archbishops and 24 senior bishops sit in the House of Lords. The archbishop of Canterbury holds the title of Primate of All England; another archbishop presides at York. Changes in church ritual can only be made with the consent of Parliament.

About 47 percent of the British population is Anglican. A third of the marriages in Britain are performed in the Anglican Church. Many members are merely baptized, married, and buried in the church, but do not otherwise attend services. More than a million people attend the Church of England on an average Sunday.

The established church in Scotland is the Church of Scotland, which is Presbyterian (see Presbyterianism). The Presbyterian Church is governed by courts composed of ministers and elders. The Church of Scotland is not subject to state control. It is the principal religious group in Scotland and has about 600,000 members. A number of independent Scottish Presbyterian churches exist; these are largely descended from groups that broke away from the Church of Scotland.

F.2.

Other Religious Groups

The Roman Catholic Church has an extensive formal structure in Britain made up of provinces, dioceses, and local parishes. The Catholic Church has many orders—groups of ordained men and women who follow special religious rules—and maintains an extensive school system out of public funds. About 16 percent of the population identifies itself as Roman Catholic.

A number of Protestant denominations are called Free Churches; in the past they were called Nonconformist or Dissenting churches. The Methodist Church is the largest of these (see Methodism). Others include the Baptist Union of Great Britain, along with Baptist Unions in Scotland, Wales, and Ireland; Free Presbyterian churches in England, Wales, and Scotland; and the United Reformed Church.

Other Christian religious groups include Unitarians, Pentecostals, Quakers, Christian Brethren, Eastern Orthodox, Lutherans, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Seventh-day Adventists, Christian Scientists, and Mormons.

The fast-growing Muslim community numbered 1.6 million, or more than 2 percent of the total population. Britain has the second largest Jewish community in Western Europe, with some 275,000 people. There are also about 580,000 Hindus, 340,000 Sikhs, and thousands of Jains and Buddhists. Newer religious movements and sects have also flourished in Britain, including the Church of Scientology and the Unification Church.

G.

Education

G.1.

Historical Importance of Education

Education is a vital concern throughout Britain because a highly developed nation depends upon educated professionals and a skilled workforce. The literacy rate in Britain is one of the highest in the world at over 99 percent. Education is compulsory for all children between the ages of 5 and 16.

Britain’s first education act, in 1870, was inspired by the pioneering example of mass compulsory education in Germany and provided for state-financed primary education. Another major education act, passed in 1902, established local education authorities (LEAs) that were responsible for providing schools and education in their areas. The act also authorized LEAs to use public funds for church-affiliated schools. This policy was severely criticized by people whose children attended state schools because their taxes were used to support church schools. The 1902 act also established scholarships for secondary education. An education act passed in 1944 and administered by the newly created Ministry of Education established free and compulsory secondary education up to age 15; this was increased to age 16 in 1973. An education reform act in 1988 allowed individual schools to control their own affairs and budgets, free from LEAs, and to receive grants directly from the government. It also established a controversial national curriculum, which was simplified in 1994 after complaints about its complexity. Legislation pertaining to education is laden with controversies because of education’s importance in Britain.

G.2.

Contrasts with American Education

Compared to the United States, fewer people go on to higher education in Britain, and there is more emphasis on segregating pupils at the lower levels on the basis of ability. Most British schools are funded by the central government, with local governments providing supplemental funding. England and Wales have a national curriculum of core courses for students 5 to 16 years old, and schools are inspected by the Office for Standards in Education. National tests at the ages of 7, 11, and 14 assess students’ progress. Schools must provide religious education and daily collective worship for all pupils, although parents can withdraw their children from these. Full-time school begins at age 5 in Great Britain and at age 4 in Northern Ireland. In addition, many 3- and 4-year-olds are enrolled in specialized nursery schools or in nursery classes at primary schools.

In Britain, the term form is used to designate grade; old boys and old girls refer to people who have graduated from a school. Private schools or independent schools are called public schools, a term that means just the opposite in the United States. What are called public schools in the United States are called state schools in Britain. When a person is sent down from school, it means he or she has been thrown out. Grammar schools are university preparatory schools, most of which have been replaced by comprehensive schools catering to students of all academic abilities. Secondary modern schools provide vocational education rather preparation for university entrance.

G.3.

Types of Schools in Britain

The most famous schools in Britain are private boarding schools, such as Eton College, Harrow School, Rugby School, and Winchester School. These famous private schools, founded during the Middle Ages, are theoretically open to the public, but in reality are attended by those who can afford the fees. Many of Britain’s leaders have attended these private schools, which cater to the wealthy and influential but also offer some scholarships to gifted poorer children. Local authorities and the central authority also provide assistance to some families who are unable to pay the fees. Only a small percentage of the population can attend these ancient and highly prestigious schools. A variety of other schools are also private, including kindergartens, day schools, and newer boarding schools. Private schools that take pupils from the age of 7 to the age of 11, 12, or 13 are called preparatory schools. Private schools that take older pupils from the age of 11, 12, or 13 to 18 or 19 are often referred to as public schools. Only 7 percent of British students attend private school.

In England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, the education systems are similar. The majority of the students attend schools wholly or partly supported with public funds. These include state schools owned and funded by LEAs; voluntary schools established and funded mostly by religious denominations; self-governing or grant-maintained (GM) schools that receive funds directly from the government rather than local authorities; and specialist schools that are connected to a private backer. Most pupils attend LEA schools.

In Scotland, educational authorities are largely independent of those in the rest of the United Kingdom, although reforms, such as raising the age at which students may leave school, are similar. Nearly all Scottish schools are comprehensive, meaning they serve students of all abilities, and school boards involve parents and professionals. Recent reforms introduced local management of schools and allow state schools to become self-governing if voters approve the change in an election. The school then receives funds directly from the central government instead of from the local authority.

In 1997 Scotland elected to form its own legislature, separate from the Parliament in London. Through its parliament, Scotland can address its own educational issues and create its own educational authorities. These authorities have the responsibilities once handled by the secretary of state for Scotland and other non-Scottish educational organizations. Wales also elected its own governing body, the Welsh Assembly, with the power to make similar decisions regarding the Welsh education system.

In Northern Ireland most schools are segregated by religious affiliation. Local educational authorities provide for schools, but many secondary students in Northern Ireland attend schools maintained by either the Catholic or the Protestant church. Many Protestant schools that are not maintained by the church reserve a place on the school board for a church representative. In an attempt to break down religious segregation and provide integrated education, the state established a number of integrated schools.

G.4.

Education Beyond Age 16

At the age of 16, prior to leaving school, students are tested in various subjects to earn a General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE). If they wish to go on to higher education at a university, they take Advanced Level examinations, commonly known as “A” Levels. Scotland has comparable qualifications. About a third of British students leave school as soon as possible after turning 16, usually taking lower-level jobs in the workforce. Those who stay in school past the age of 16 may pursue either further education or higher education. Further education is largely vocational, as is adult education. Students may also stay in school until age 18 to prepare for higher education.

The percentage of young people entering universities in Britain is far lower than in the United States, where more than half attend. In Britain the proportion of students entering university rose from one in six in 1989 to almost one in three in 1996. In 2001–2002 there were over 2.2 million students enrolled in full- or part-time higher education in Great Britain, compared with just under 850,000 a decade earlier. By 1995 over 47 percent of 16- to 24-year olds were undertaking some form of higher education in the United Kingdom, and by 2001 more than 18 percent of the population had achieved a degree-level (or equivalent) educational qualification.

Britain has about 90 universities. British universities can be divided into several categories. The foremost universities are the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge, both founded in the Middle Ages. The term Oxbridge is used to refer to both schools as a single entity, much as Americans would use the term Ivy League in reference to the group of prestigious East Coast universities. Scotland has equivalent ancient institutions at Edinburgh, Glasgow, and St. Andrews. Another type of university is the so-called redbrick variety—old and solid schools built in the 19th century when bricks were the standard building material. The large number of ultramodern universities that sprouted up in the last half of the 20th century are often called cement block and plateglass universities. London has its own great schools, the enormous University of London and its world-famous college, the London School of Economics.

Students interested in advanced education can also attend polytechnics, which are schools dedicated to the sciences and applied technology. An education act in 1992 changed the status of these colleges to universities. Higher education can also be obtained through the Open University, founded in 1969, which offers extension courses taught through correspondence, television and radio programs, and videocassettes. It also sponsors local study centers and residential summer schools. The purpose of the Open University is to reach people who may not ordinarily be qualified for university study.

H.

Social Structure

H.1.

Historical Background

Britain’s social structure developed much like the social structure in other European nations. In the past, most people inherited their class because there was limited social mobility until modern times. Those with incomes from rents and property payments were considered in the upper class; those who dealt with paper, either in business or in a profession, were middle class; and those who did manual labor, such as carpentry and factory work, were in the working class.

Upper, landed classes that controlled most of the agricultural land and wealth emerged during the Middle Ages. Families from these upper classes became the nobility, or aristocracy, and played key political roles on the monarch’s councils, in the House of Lords in Parliament, and in local government. Often members of the House of Lords from the nobility had politically conservative views. England’s upper-class social structure differed from that of the rest of Europe in three important ways. In addition to a landowning nobility with the right to sit in the House of Lords, a lower upper class developed that, while still landed, didn’t have the same privileges as the nobility. Secondly, the aristocracy did not lose its status during Britain’s revolutions of the 17th and 18th centuries as the Continental aristocracy did during revolutions in Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries. Lastly, inheritance arrangements based on primogeniture, a system in which the first-born son is the prime inheritor, encouraged a degree of social mobility.

The lower upper class has been called knights, squires, gentry, or country gentlemen. Members of this class were elected to the House of Commons and played a major role in asserting control over monarchs through their positions in Parliament during the revolutions of the 17th century. Many present-day members of the House of Commons are still drawn from this class, and they continue to play significant roles in local politics and as leaders in society.

Because Britain was spared the wave of revolutions that began in France in 1789, its noble families did not have their estates or wealth confiscated. These families increased their wealth during the Industrial Revolution, because they owned much of the land from which natural resources were taken. Several families can trace their enormous wealth and significant involvement in politics at the highest levels back hundreds of years. In recent centuries steep inheritance taxes have accomplished what revolutions failed to do earlier. Nevertheless, most of Britain’s nobles have found ways to retain their land and resources and, in most cases, their prestige.

The principle of primogeniture has had significant consequences for social structure in Britain. In noble families the first-born son, as the prime inheritor, gains the title while his siblings have only courtesy titles. These siblings were likely to do something off of the estate, such as governing a colony, serving as a general in the army, or playing a part in politics. The younger sons could not sit in the House of Lords, but they could have political careers in the House of Commons. Many younger sons of aristocrats also followed religious careers, becoming bishops and archbishops. For the gentry, or lower upper classes, primogeniture usually meant the first-born son inherited the estate and the younger sons sought other occupations, perhaps as doctors, lawyers, or writers. Many went into professions in which they studied and worked with members of the middle class. This made for an element of social mobility in the class structure, although for the gentry it could mean downward social mobility.

Marriages were extremely important to the nobility, as they could provide alliances with other families to increase a family’s prestige or influence. Families usually took a strong hand in arranging marriages. Women were expected to marry within their rank, but a woman with a large dowry could often marry someone with a higher social status—an eligible young nobleman or a gentleman—whose income fell far short of his expenditures.

By the 17th century, a “middling order” existed that included farmers, merchants, clergy, and military officers. The middle class evolved rapidly during the 18th century as more and more people became involved in businesses and professions and became wealthier. As towns and cities grew, particularly with the sudden and massive growth experienced during the Industrial Revolution, this class expanded further—people in the middle class ranged from humble clerks to bankers and factory owners. The middle classes placed great emphasis on education, social advancement, economic gain, and accumulating material wealth.

Until the Industrial Revolution, the working class included predominantly agricultural laborers. The general population increased during the 18th and 19th centuries, prompting the need for new ways to survive. As jobs became plentiful in new industries, the working class shifted from agriculture to mining and factory jobs. Thereafter most workers labored in industrial production and mining. In recent decades the number of working-class employees in service industries has risen dramatically. See also Thematic Essay: British Political and Social Thought

H.2.

Current Trends

Many class distinctions have become blurred in Britain. Today only a small number of people are considered upper class, and their former influence in conservative politics has been largely taken over by wealthy people in the middle class. Liberal and left-wing politics have middle-class leadership as well. Because the British economy has created many semiprofessional and technical jobs, it is no longer easy to tell which jobs are middle class and which are working class. Moreover, growing national affluence has brought greater social mobility between the working class and the middle class. As technological advances have expanded the ranks of affluent professionals, managers, administrators, and technical experts, part of the working population has shifted into these positions and now identifies itself as middle class. Although prosperity may move working-class people into the middle class, no amount of wealth will guarantee upper-class status, which is determined by land and family.

The increasingly widespread distribution of capital has also blurred class lines, as more money in the form of stocks, bonds, property, and bank accounts is in more hands. Many middle-class employees and workers have become owners of capital. Much of the 20th century saw a decreasing inequality in wealth, due in part to the spread of home ownership and the creation of government programs to promote equal access to health services and education. Inequality in income began to increase during the 1980s.

Family structure has changed as well. Married couples have an average of two children, a figure that has not changed since World War II. However, marriage rates fell in the 1980s, and there has been a significant shift from formal marriage to stable cohabitation. By 1993 one-third of births were to parents who were not formally married; by the early 2000s, this number had surpassed two-fifths (42 percent).

H.3.

Current Social Problems

Perhaps the worst feature of the current class situation in Britain is the existence of a permanent underclass. These people are on the dole, that is, on welfare, permanently. They subsist in poor surroundings with little hope that they or their children, who usually drop out of school, will break out of the cycle of poverty. This segment of the population lives in the run-down neighborhoods of cities such as Glasgow, Liverpool, and Leeds. In the mid-1990s it was estimated that about 23 percent of the population lived in poverty, one of the highest poverty rates in Europe.

Another social problem, somewhat related to this underclass, has been the rise in crime and violence. Vandalism and rowdiness by youths are problems in British society, and the brutality of British football (soccer) fans has gained international notoriety. These outbursts stand out in a society where civility and politeness are prominent characteristics. Yet overall the rate of violent crime, and crime in general, remains far below that of the United States. In 1996 about 92 percent of the offenses recorded by the police in England and Wales were directed against property; only 7 percent involved violence.

The degree to which racism is a problem in Britain is a source of debate. Some say it is a hidden tradition and others believe that decency and fair play prevail. Expressions of racism include not only those based on color but also those based on culture. Poverty, poor housing, and unemployment were some of the causes behind inner-city disturbances of the 1980s. Black people and some groups of Asians in Britain suffer from higher unemployment than whites, and have had comparatively little mobility within the employment market. These groups also have tended to have inferior housing, education, and health care. The situation is improving among the generations born in Britain.

As the percentage of women in Britain’s workforce has risen, women have struggled for equal pay for equal work. The state passed an Equal Pay Act in 1970 that has been aggressively applied to civil service, teaching, and local government jobs. The Sex Discrimination Act of 1975 made discrimination between men and women unlawful in employment, education, training, housing, facilities, and services. In 1987 another Sex Discrimination bill sought to bring the 1975 measure within guidelines established by the European Economic Community (now the European Union). In the early 2000s about one-fifth of the members of the House of Commons were women.

I.

Social Services

I.1.

National Health Care

The British government administers an extensive health and welfare system that the Labour government established between 1945 and 1951. The National Health Service Act of 1946 established the socialized health-care system that went into effect in 1948 (see National Health Insurance). Because citizens were deemed to have a right to free health care, it provided free medical care for all British people regardless of income. The system covered physician and dental services, prescription drugs, hospital care, eyeglasses, and dentures. It provided better health care than most people could previously afford, but the program cost more than anticipated. Therefore, some charges were introduced for prescriptions, dentures, and eyeglasses. Nevertheless, costs for the government remained high due to expensive new technologies, as well as the growing demand for services, especially by the increasing number of elderly people.

General taxation pays for most of the system’s cost, and the national insurance payment—money that employers and employees contribute—takes care of the remainder. Treatment fees for items such as prescriptions and eyewear have risen for patients in recent decades. Certain patients—including children, pregnant women, the unemployed, those disabled in the armed forces, men over 65, and women over 60—are exempt from payments or fees. Hospital care remains free. Most doctors, dentists, nurses, and health-care professionals are members of the National Health Service (NHS), although some see fee-paying private patients outside of the system.

The controversial NHS and Community Care Act of 1990 sought to make health care more efficient and less costly by encouraging competition within the health-care industry. The act allowed hospitals and other health-care professionals to become trusts that directly control the funds they receive from the government. They now could determine their own staffing needs, salaries, and service fees, things previously determined by local health authorities, who controlled their funds. Under the 1990 act, local health authorities, which are responsible for providing health care to the public with government money, would “purchase” health care for patients from these trusts. In addition, general practitioners (GPs), or ordinary family doctors, were encouraged to become fundholders or directly manage the NHS funds allotted for their patients. The new health-care arrangements were designed to bring competitive market forces to bear upon health care, with the trusts competing to become the facility chosen by local health authorities and GPs to provide health care to patients.

In order to improve service and guarantee higher levels of patient care, Patient’s Charters were started in 1992. The charters list the rights and service standards patients can expect. In particular, they pledge to provide treatment within a specific time span, since long delays for treatment and elective surgery were among the chief complaints about the system. Since 1992 separate charters have been created for the various kinds of health services, such as for dental, mental health, and maternity care. In contrast, emergency care has always gained high approval.

The system established in 1990 has been criticized. Patients of doctors who were not fundholders complained they were not receiving hospital treatment as quickly as patients whose doctors managed their funds. The new hospital trusts are criticized for their admissions policies, including sending patients to other hospitals, and for not being sufficiently accountable for spending. While NHS hospitals have long waiting lists, private hospitals have empty beds because fewer people can afford them. The Labour government increased funding for the NHS and instituted reforms of the payment system and administrative structure. Despite the reforms and increased funding, the NHS was running huge deficits in the early 2000s and services had not improved.

I.2.

Welfare

Welfare services in Britain are supported by taxpayers and are meant to act as a safety net for the entire society from birth to death. The needs of those in difficulty are met by local authorities, who draw upon funds provided by the central government. Revenue for the system also comes from compulsory weekly contributions by employees and employers. Those in need receive weekly cash benefits. There are also special services for the disabled.

The National Insurance Act of 1946 consolidated earlier welfare legislation, expanded coverage, and increased benefits for a number of programs, including unemployment insurance, industrial injuries, retiree pensions, sickness insurance, maternity and widows’ benefits, and death grants. Today there are family allowances for children up to the age of 16 (18 if the child is still in school full time), as well as allowances for guardians and widows. Pensions for the elderly, or retirement benefits, begin for men at the age of 65 and for women at the age of 60. The pension age for women was set to rise to age 65 between 2010 and 2020.

IV.

Culture and the Arts of the United Kingdom

Britain’s rich cultural heritage and traditions are the main reasons why it has millions of overseas visitors each year. The attractions include the many theaters, museums, art galleries, and historical buildings to be found in all parts of the United Kingdom, as well as the numerous annual arts festivals and the pageantry associated with the British royal family. The expansion of tourism, combined with the collapse of many traditional economic activities, has helped encourage the growth since the 1980s of the so-called heritage industry, seen in the explosion of “living” museums illustrating Britain’s rural and industrial past.

A.

Historical Context of the Arts

The United Kingdom has a long history of excellence in the arts. British contributions to literature are remarkable in their richness, variety, and consistency. For many centuries in Britain and elsewhere, art and music were the domain of the nobility, who patronized the arts and set the tone and style into the Victorian era. Britain’s artistic output was focused on literature in the 16th and 17th centuries, and the country came late to Renaissance influences in art and architecture that had been prevalent on the Continent since the 15th century. As a Protestant nation, Britain did not experience the full flowering of the baroque era that followed the Renaissance in Roman Catholic countries, such as Italy and Spain, during the 17th and 18th centuries (see Baroque Art and Architecture). English style during the late 18th century was more reminiscent of the classical world of the Greeks and Romans. In the 19th century, a movement called romanticism sought to make art more emotional. Exotic places, the beauty of nature, and fascination with the Middle Ages were themes that became the hallmarks of romantic artists and writers.

During the Victorian era Britain became the world’s first urban, industrialized society, and a vast middle class developed. More people had the time, education, and inclination to appreciate the arts, and the middle class developed an interest in literature, art, and music. A close relationship evolved between this large audience and the creators of art and literature because authors wrote about and painters depicted characters, situations, and scenes either familiar or interesting to large numbers of middle-class people. Although some of the works created were trite and ordinary, such as sweet paintings of dogs and children, many others were not.

The time and money spent on the arts continued to increase during the 20th century, particularly after World War II ended in 1945. Popular music and film have had the widest audiences, although classical music and ballet still attract significant numbers of people. In the postwar era, serious musical compositions came from modern composers such as Peter Maxwell Davies and Harrison Birtwistle. Britain attained prominence in modern sculpture through the work of Sir Jacob Epstein, Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, and others.

B.

Cultural Traditions Today

London has the greatest concentration of theaters, orchestras, and galleries, and is also the main home of the print and broadcast media, and of the fashion, recording, motion picture, and publishing industries—as such, it often seems to dominate modern British culture. However, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and the regions of England all have vigorous cultural traditions that have contributed to and still enrich all aspects of British life. The traditions and abilities of the various ethnic minorities are also reflected in modern British culture, notably in music and literature, and are celebrated in events like the annual Notting Hill Carnival in west London.

The traditional music, song, and dance of Scotland, much of it derived from the country’s Gaelic heritage, thrives in the ceilidh, the (bag)pipe band, and the Highland games. In the contemporary arts, Scotland has noted museums, galleries, and orchestras, and national ballet and opera companies. It also hosts the world’s premier arts festival, the annual Edinburgh International Festival; Britain’s second-largest arts festival, the Mayfest, is held in Glasgow. The choral and bardic traditions of Wales are seen most notably in the country’s male-voice choirs and in the eisteddfod. These annual festivals celebrating Welsh music, poetry, and customs are held throughout Wales, culminating in the Royal National Eisteddfod, which has developed into an international festival of the arts. Cardiff is home to the Welsh National Opera, one of Britain’s leading symphony orchestras, and several museums. In Northern Ireland, the ancient Celtic traditions of the whole island coexist with those of the descendants of the English and Scottish settlers. Opera Northern Ireland, the Ulster Symphony Orchestra, and the national Ulster Museum are based in Belfast.

In England, ancient folk traditions are maintained in all parts of the country. Many are unique to particular areas; some, like the morris dance, are more widespread. All English cities and many towns have art galleries and museums. Many contain notable collections.

British society is overwhelmingly urban, but it has retained distinct links with its rural past. These links are reflected in the popularity of gardening, and in the working-class tradition of growing vegetables on allotments. Sport is important in Britain, and the British originated or developed the modern forms and rules of a number of sports—notably soccer (known as football in Britain), rugby, cricket, tennis, polo, horse racing, field hockey, and croquet. Angling (fishing) is the most popular British sport or pastime, attracting more active participants than soccer.

C.

Literature

By the end of the 20th century, English had become a true world language, and English literature is taught today in secondary schools and universities everywhere. Famous English poets, playwrights, and novelists are quoted, translated, and loved throughout the world. Welsh, Scottish, and Irish writers who write in English rather than in their native Celtic tongues are customarily included as contributors to English literature. For the development of literature in the British Isles, see Cornish Literature, English Literature, Gaelic Literature, Irish Literature, Scottish Literature, and Welsh Literature.

The earliest celebrated example of English literature is the bloody Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf, written sometime between the 8th century and the late 10th century. After the Norman conquest in 1066, French was the language of the ruling elite, but native Britons still spoke English. The greatest English writer of the Middle Ages was Geoffrey Chaucer, who wrote The Canterbury Tales in the late 14th century. This work displayed not only the vigor and vitality of the English language, but also shaped the future of the language for centuries to come.

A great flowering of English writing took place in the late 16th century, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The themes of Englishness, love, violence, and the turmoil of human emotions were explored from a nonreligious standpoint. Poetry was considered the most polished form of literary expression. The Faerie Queene (Books I-III, 1590; Books IV-VI, 1596), an epic poem in six books by Edmund Spenser, is one of the masterpieces of the century. The sonnet, a poetry style that uses a formal rhyme scheme, was used by Sir Philip Sidney and William Shakespeare, who excelled at this form.

A shift to spiritual themes began in the early 17th century, as seen in the writings of John Donne, who is famous not only for his religious sermons but also for his love poetry. Donne’s complex and dramatic style made him one of the founders of metaphysical poetry. Amid the religious and civil turmoil of the English Revolution in the mid-17th century, Ben Jonson, a contemporary of Donne, wrote plays and poetry in a formal style that rejected the floweriness of 16th-century writing. This more classical style inspired a group of writers who became known as Cavalier Poets. The prose of John Milton also shared this classical style. His works, mostly pamphlets, supported the Puritan side of the revolution by stressing civil and religious liberty. Milton’s later works, the poems Paradise Lost (1667) and Paradise Regained (1671), were written in blank verse. This unrhymed poetry focused on such religious themes as the fall of Adam and human redemption. John Bunyan wrote the popular work The Pilgrim's Progress (published in two parts, 1678 and 1684), which depicts Christian salvation as a journey.

This classical writing style continued from the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 to the middle of the 18th century, a century often called the Age of Enlightenment. It was during this time that the modern novel emerged as a popular form of expression. The modern novel encompassed stories about people and their relation to society, whether they lived within society’s confines or not. Journalist Daniel Defoe wrote Robinson Crusoe (1719) and a number of other popular adventure novels. Anglo-Irish satirist Jonathan Swift authored Gulliver's Travels (1726), a charming and biting social commentary. Bawdy and wild aspects of 18th-century life are reflected in the novel Tom Jones (1749), by writer and lawyer Henry Fielding. It was also during the 18th century that writer and literary critic Samuel Johnson compiled his Dictionary of the English Language (1755).

Toward the end of the 18th century, a reaction against reason, rationalism, and the physical world developed. This movement (romanticism) pervaded many aspects of society. The romantic movement in literature idealized nature and was characterized by a highly imaginative and subjective approach. Emotions and exotic places, both present and past, became central to countless lengthy novels and torrents of poetry. Poet William Wordsworth found his inspiration in nature, while Samuel Taylor Coleridge and William Blake were inspired by mysticism. Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and John Keats wrote romantic poetry. Scottish author Sir Walter Scott, whose most famous work is Ivanhoe (1819), wrote more than 20 historical novels, many of them set in the Middle Ages.

Women also made their mark as writers during the romantic period. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley is noted for the Gothic novel Frankenstein (1818), which took the romantic interest in emotions to the point of terror. Jane Austen wrote clever, elegant novels such as Sense and Sensibility (1811) and Pride and Prejudice (1813). Her down-to-earth main characters were reactions against the emotionalism of romantic writers.

During the last two-thirds of the 19th century, the Victorian era produced an amazing number of popular novelists and poets. This time period saw the rise of an increasingly urbanized, middle-class, and educated society that included a much larger reading audience. Many authors wrote about characters and situations well-known or easily comprehensible to their audience and became universally popular and in touch with their vast readership to a degree not matched in the 20th century. Perhaps the most famous author of this time was Charles Dickens, who portrayed the hardships of the working class while criticizing middle-class life. Writers prominent during the heart of the Victorian period include George Eliot, who, despite being a critic of Christianity, was known for her intense, moral novels; William Makepeace Thackeray, who wrote humorous portrayals of middle- and upper-class life; the Brontë sisters—Charlotte, Emily, and Anne—whose novels tended to be autobiographical; Anthony Trollope, a keen observer of politics and upper Victorian society; and Robert Louis Stevenson, who wrote children’s books, adventure stories, and poetry. The most popular of the many Victorian poets was Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Other famous poets include Matthew Arnold, Christina Rossetti, and Robert Browning and his wife, Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

As the late Victorian era gave way to early modern times at the turn of the 20th century, the focus shifted away from stories of everyday Victorian life. The novels of Thomas Hardy, H. G. Wells, and Joseph Conrad possess a certain pessimism and uncertainty about life. In the early 20th century the dark, psychological novels of D. H. Lawrence were censored for their explicit language; his novel Lady Chatterley's Lover (1928) was banned as pornographic. The poetry of T. S. Eliot, especially The Waste Land (1922), expresses disillusionment with modern civilization, as do the popular novels of Aldous Huxley, who wrote Brave New World (1932). Exotic and foreign places are the settings of works by Rudyard Kipling and E. M. Forster. Forster’s novels became popular in the 1980s and 1990s as films, including A Room with a View (1908) and A Passage to India (1924). Irish writer James Joyce and English novelist Virginia Woolf were instrumental in forging the new stream-of-consciousness writing style. The rich and memorable poetry of Dylan Thomas made him the greatest Welsh poet of the 20th century.

During the 1920s and 1930s, Evelyn Waugh and P. G. Wodehouse wrote novels satirizing British upper-class life. In the mid-20th century the works of George Orwell, such as Animal Farm (1945) and Nineteen Eighty-four (1949), focused on his fears about society. William Golding also expressed fears about the breakdown of society in his novel Lord of the Flies (1954). Works of fantasy were written during this period in response to the horrors of World War II. J. R. R. Tolkien is famous for his fantasy novels, particularly The Hobbit (1937) and its sequel, the trilogy Lord of the Rings (1954-1955). British writers whose work won attention in the late 20th century included novelists Iris Murdoch, Muriel Spark, and Ian McEwan; poets Ted Hughes and Seamus Heaney; and dramatists Harold Pinter, Tom Stoppard, and Michael Frayn.

D.

Visual Arts

The earliest visual arts in Britain were most likely ornamentations on ordinary objects. Scandinavian wood carvings date from the 8th century, after Scandinavians came to Britain in considerable numbers. Decorative arts were particularly notable in early Christian Ireland, especially from the 6th to the 9th century. Irish missionaries, who were preaching Catholicism in Europe during this time period, brought Celtic metalworking techniques and stone carvings to Britain. Huge stone crosses, exquisitely decorated, still stand in northern Britain and Ireland. Painting was confined to illuminated manuscripts—bright and exactingly detailed miniature paintings in prayer books that were produced by monks. This art continued through the Middle Ages because books were still illustrated by hand, even after printing was invented in the mid-15th century. During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church was the chief patron of artists and sculptors, who were hired to decorate the massive cathedrals as well as local churches.

In early modern times portrait painting became important, particularly for monarchs interested in marriage opportunities abroad, and paintings of prospective spouses were often sent before making marital arrangements. Noted artists who produced paintings in early modern England were foreigners, such as German artist Hans Holbein the Younger in the 16th century and Flemish painter Sir Anthony van Dyck in the 17th century. English artists came to excel at miniature painting in the 17th century.

By the 18th century a distinctive British style began to emerge that tended to be brighter and livelier than the darker European canvases. British artists also stayed within the confines of neoclassical rationalism; that is, their art exhibited the values of order, logic, and proportion (see Neoclassical Art and Architecture). The etchings and paintings of William Hogarth show satirical scenes from ordinary life and were enormously popular. Sir Joshua Reynolds, Thomas Gainsborough, and George Romney became famous for their polished and elegant portraits. Gainsborough and others painted natural landscapes and seascapes. The artworks of Gavin Hamilton and John Flaxman depict Greek and Roman themes.

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries romantic painters appeared who emphasized the beauties and forces of nature (see Romanticism). This is seen in the landscapes of John Constable and J. M. W. Turner, whose paintings directly influenced French impressionism. Noted poet William Blake was also a painter, and he illustrated his poems and stories with imaginative drawings.

Scores of artists in the Victorian era painted specifically for middle-class tastes. Sir Edwin Henry Landseer was noted for paintings that often feature animals, such as dogs or wildlife. Frederick Leighton painted mythological and historical subjects and illustrated popular magazines. William Powell Frith painted large, busy canvases in the popular style known as genre painting, which realistically depicted scenes from everyday life. Sophie Anderson painted sweet children.

In reaction to Victorian art styles and middle-class materialism, with its concern for worldly objects, several painters came together in 1848 and founded a movement called the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. They sought to return to an earlier, simpler time, and their works exhibited the brightness, color, and purity of medieval and Renaissance painting done before the time of Italian artist Raphael. These painters included William Holman Hunt, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Sir Edward Burne-Jones, and Sir John Everett Millais. This return to earlier traditions affected other aspects of the arts as well. Artist and poet William Morris sought to return to medieval traditions in craftsmanship. He is credited with founding the Arts and Crafts movement, which became influential in furniture, decorative items, and textile designs.

Toward the end of the Victorian era, art nouveau (literally, “new art”) developed out of the Arts and Crafts movement. Art nouveau is a decorative style with strong elements of fantasy. It borrowed motifs from sources as varied as Japanese prints, Gothic architecture, and the symbolic paintings of William Blake. This style, which became popular in Europe, influenced many art forms as well as architecture and interior design. The art nouveau illustrations of Aubrey Beardsley, in particular, are still popular. Artists and architects from the Glasgow School, notably Charles Rennie Mackintosh, were noted for their work in both the Arts and Crafts and art nouveau styles.

Britain has produced many artists in the 20th century. They include sculptors Jacob Epstein, Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore, and Anthony Caro. Painters include Paul Nash, a war artist who painted scenes of landscapes and battles during both world wars; Sir Stanley Spencer, whose works often used biblical themes; and Graham Sutherland, who developed a unique style of landscape painting. Noted painters after World War II include Francis Bacon, whose paintings are steeped in the horrific; David Hockney, who also designed opera sets; and portrait painter Lucian Freud.

E.

Architecture

Some of the oldest examples of British architecture include a few small, squarish Anglo-Saxon buildings. After the Norman Conquest in 1066, Norman architecture became prevalent in the British Isles. The Normans built monumental castles and churches with enormous arches and huge columns. Their style was called Romanesque on the Continent. The greatest structures built by the Normans are the White Tower, which is part of the Tower of London, and the castle, cathedral, and monastery complex at Durham. From the 12th to the 15th century gracefully soaring spires and arches marked the development of the great Gothic cathedrals; two of these, Westminster Abbey in London and Lincoln Cathedral, still dominate the skylines of their cities. Between 1485 and 1625, the English started to incorporate some classic Roman and ornate elements of the Italian Renaissance into Tudor, Elizabethan, and Jacobean styles. During the Tudor era, brick became a popular building material for English country houses.

The architecture of the late Italian Renaissance was introduced in England by Inigo Jones in the 17th century. Jones was the first of the great British architects to be influenced by the ideas of Italian architects. Jones in turn influenced Sir Christopher Wren, Britain’s greatest architect, who studied the baroque style popular in Europe in the mid-17th century. After the devastating Great Fire of London in 1666, Wren helped in the rebuilding of the city. As the premier architect of the time, he designed 52 new churches in London. Many of his churches still stand. The grandest of them, Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London, is an example of Wren’s distinctively graceful and monumental British style.

In the 18th century few English buildings followed the ornate patterns of the baroque and rococo architectures used in Europe. Rather, a more restrained, neoclassical style was introduced in Britain by Scottish architect Robert Adam. This style was based on the ancient ruins of Greece and Rome and incorporated such elements as colonnades and stone domes. English furniture and ceramics also became renowned in the 18th century. Thomas Chippendale and Thomas Sheraton were noted for their elegant furniture styles, and the ceramic designs produced by Josiah Wedgwood are still made.

Victorian architecture borrowed from a variety of styles, including classical, Gothic, and Renaissance, and was characterized by ornate decoration. The most famous Victorian neo-Gothic building is Parliament, built between 1840 and 1870. The only truly original building of the Victorian era was the Crystal Palace, which housed the Great Exhibition of 1851. It was made of metal and glass, materials architects would come to use in constructing office buildings in the 20th century.

In the early 20th century, Scottish architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh rejected elaborate Victorian architecture styles for a more modern, functional design. His work influenced 20th-century architects and interior designers. After World War II many new buildings were needed to replace the ones destroyed during the war. Because London’s subsoil is not suitable as a foundation for tall skyscrapers, many of the new buildings erected were big and boxy with geometric designs. One of the largest examples of this style is the National Theatre in London. These cold and impersonal buildings have been criticized because they clash with the graceful London architecture that survived the war. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries architects Norman Foster and Richard Rogers designed buildings in a high-tech style, with their construction and functional aspects fully exposed. The most notable building in this style is Rogers’s Lloyd’s Building in London.

F.

Performing Arts

F.1.

History of Performing Arts

Throughout the world the name Shakespeare is associated with the greatest achievements of England in the performing arts. William Shakespeare emerged in the colorful Elizabethan era of the 16th century, and his works are still played and quoted throughout the world. The 16th century was a time of immense creativity, when it was said that the full flower of the Renaissance had finally come to England. It was during this era that commercial theater began. The most famous was the Globe Theatre in London. Destroyed by Puritans in the mid-17th century, the Globe was replaced in the 1990s with an authentic replica. Dozens of other playwrights, including Christopher Marlowe and Ben Jonson, had their works staged at the Globe and at other theaters built during this time. Marlowe was noted for writing tragedies in a period when comedies were more common, and his most famous work is The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus (1604?). Jonson was a gifted satirist who wrote for both the royal court and commercial theaters. The words to the famous song “Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes” are from a play he published in 1616.

The foundations of choral music, which became an important musical tradition in England, were laid during the Elizabethan era. Its development was encouraged at this time by the Protestant Reformation in England, which changed the language used in church services and music from Latin to English. Thomas Tallis and his student William Byrd are noted composers who worked in the royal chapel of Queen Elizabeth I. There were also many secular composers in Britain. The English madrigal, a song for two or more voices, developed during the Elizabethan era as well.

The Puritans banned theater as immoral when they controlled England in the mid-17th century. Theater was revived, along with the monarchy, in the Restoration of 1660. Restoration theater featured witty and often acerbic comedies about social manners, a contrast to the great dramatic themes of Shakespeare’s era. William Wycherley and William Congreve were noted Restoration dramatists. England’s first operas were written in the late 17th century, and Henry Purcell is a noted British composer of the era.

George Frideric Handel, a German who settled in London, wrote many operas and oratorios in the early 18th century. He is most famous for his Messiah oratorio, first sung in 1742. During the 18th century the number of theaters grew and the plays performed became more satirical. Oliver Goldsmith, born in Ireland, wrote comedies as well as novels, poems, and essays. Another noted comic playwright was Richard Brinsley Sheridan.

The 19th century saw the development of a uniquely British form of amusement, the music hall, which is related to early-20th-century vaudeville. Music halls provided variety shows with comic acts and songs, many of them risqué. The pantomime also emerged in the Victorian era as elaborately costumed retellings of fairy tales, staged during the Christmas season. Pantomime performances involved song, dance, slapstick comedy, and audience participation. The comic operas of Sir William Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan were also an important part of Victorian music; the works of Gilbert and Sullivan are still produced around the world.

F.2.

Performing Arts in the 20th Century

In the 20th century, Britain remained one of the world’s greatest centers for drama. Britain’s many theaters attract crowds from all over the world. This is due in large measure to the high caliber of 20th-century British actors, including Sir Laurence Olivier, Sir Michael Redgrave, Sir John Gielgud, Sir Alec Guinness, Sir Rex Harrison, Richard Burton, Glenda Jackson, Vanessa Redgrave, Dame Maggie Smith, Ian McKellen, Dame Judi Dench, and Emma Thompson. The quality of the plays is another important factor. In the early 20th century, noted playwrights included John Galsworthy and Noel Coward. Post-World War II Britain saw a renaissance of drama with the avant-garde works of Irish-born Samuel Beckett and the plays and screenplays of Harold Pinter, Alan Bennett, and Tom Stoppard. Playwright and screenwriter John Osborne presented stark social realism in his play Look Back in Anger (1956), which was made into a film in 1959. Caryl Churchill continued the tradition of stark realism, while Alan Ayckbourn provided witty, complex comedies.

Britain has several hundred professional theaters and about as many professional theater companies. Some companies are associated with specific theaters and some are touring companies. The world-famous Royal Shakespeare Company performs in London and in Stratford-upon-Avon. Famous theaters in London also include the Royal National Theatre, the Old Vic Theatre, and the Royal Court Theatre. Countless amateur theatrical groups also perform throughout Britain.

Music was enormously important in Britain in the 20th century, and London is regarded as one of the great music capitals of the world. Appreciation of music is extremely widespread, and the kinds of music regularly performed are diverse, ranging from early music to modern. Britain boasts thousands of amateur opera societies, choirs, and musical groups, including orchestras; dance, brass, and steel bands; and rock and jazz groups.

Important composers in the early 20th century included Sir Edward Elgar, who wrote choral and orchestral music, and Frederick Delius, who composed the opera A Village Romeo and Juliet (1900-1901). Later in the century, Ralph Vaughan Williams established himself as Britain’s foremost composer, and Sir William Walton composed many important classical works, including the opera Troilus and Cressida (1954). In opera, Benjamin Britten and Sir Michael Tippett created several important works. Britten adapted Henry James’s story “The Turn of the Screw” and Shakespeare’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream into operas in 1954 and 1960, respectively. Tippett combined classical music with popular music—his Fourth Symphony (1977) contained elements of jazz. Thomas Adès was a rising star in the early 2000s, with operas such as The Tempest (2004), commissioned by the Royal Opera House. Andrew Lloyd Webber has composed musicals for the theater since the 1970s, producing such smash hits as Jesus Christ Superstar (1971), Phantom of the Opera (1986), and Bombay Dreams (2002).

Britain has many professional orchestras, the most famous of which are the London Philharmonic and the London Symphony. The BBC maintains six orchestras and since 1927 has sponsored the popular annual Promenade Concerts at the Royal Albert Hall. Britain has several major opera companies, the best known of which are the Royal Opera at Covent Garden and the English National Opera in London, and the Glyndebourne Opera in southeastern England. Glyndebourne presents an annual summer opera season that later tours the country.

Britain’s worldwide impact in music in the second half of the 20th century, especially in the realm of popular music, was enormous. The Beatles appeared in the 1960s and were followed by other successful rock groups and singers, including names such as The Rolling Stones, The Who, Elton John, Sting, and the Spice Girls. A high-spirited kind of rock music known as Britpop became popular in the 1990s. Pop and rock music remain the most popular kinds of music in Britain, although jazz also has a large following.

Britain also has famous dance companies that rank among the world’s leading troupes. These include the Royal Ballet and the English National Ballet, located in London; the Birmingham Royal Ballet, a division of the Royal Ballet; and the Northern Ballet Theatre, a touring company based in Leeds. The leading contemporary groups are the Rambert Dance Company and the Siobhan Davies Dance Company. London hosts two contemporary dance festivals every year. Also popular are traditional dances of the British Isles, including English morris dancing and the Scottish Highland fling, and social gatherings featuring Celtic music and dancing that are known as céilidhs (pronounced kay-lees</