British Civilzation

8/3/2019 British Civilzation

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HistoryEngland is located on Great Britain, a "green and pleasant" island off of the western coast of Europe. It is the largest member of the political entity known as

the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Historically a seafaring people, for much of the past 500 years the English have used their incomparable navy to project their power into Europe and across the globe.Geography and ClimateEditEngland occupies the greater part of the island of Great Britain (along with theWelsh to the west and the Scots to the north). At some 80,000 square miles in s

ize, Great Britain is slightly larger than the state of Kansas in the USA. Untilapproximately 6000 BC a land bridge connected Great Britain to Europe; since th

at time the two have been separated by the English Channel, which is some 20 miles wide at its narrowest point. England is endowed with rolling hills and plentiful natural resources, including coal and (at one time) extensive forests. Benefitting from warm water brought to its shores by Atlantic Ocean currents, England

enjoys plentiful rainfall and relatively mild winters.

Early History: Enter the RomansThe first detailed written description of England comes from the Romans, who under Julius Caesar invaded Great Britain in 55 BC. Caesar found an island of perhaps one million Celtic people divided into various warring tribes and possessingan Iron Age level of technology. Caesar led two expeditions to the island in total, and though he fought several successful battles, unrest in Gaul drew him offthe island before he could solidify his conquests. The Romans returned to GreatBritain 90 years later and this time they came in force. In 43 AD four legions

(some 20,000 soldiers) under Aulus Plautius landed somewhere on the southern orsouth-eastern coast (the exact location is unknown) and made their way inland. After a number of stiff battles they crushed the local opposition, establishing a

provincial capital at Camulodunum (Colchester). Over the next fifty years the Romans extended their borders west, conquering Wales despite fierce resistance, and north as far as the river Tyne. In 122 AD construction was begun on Hadrian'sWall, a fortification designed to protect Roman Britain from the fierce Picts (

proto-Scots) in the northern highlands. The Romans remained in power in Great Britain for another three centuries, until approximately 410 AD. They had a profound effect upon the natives during their occupation, introducing important advances in agriculture, technology, architecture, and letters. Post-Roman Britain: The Rise and Fall (and Rise) of the Saxons As the Roman military presence retreated from Britain and Western Europe under pressure from invading Germanic tribes such as the Vandals local warlords appeared to fill the power vacuum. But none were strong enough to hold off the ever-increasing attacks on the island by the Pi

cts, the Irish, and other barbarian invaders. According to legend, King Vortigern invited the Germanic Saxons into Britain to fight the Picts, but in 442 AD theSaxons turned on their hosts and conquered much of the lowlands. The Saxons rem

ained in power for roughly fifty years until they were driven out largely thanksto the skilful use of cavalry by the surviving British. In the mid sixth centur

y a fresh wave of Germanic invaders, the Anglo-Saxons, reappeared, and they allbut annihilated the original inhabitants, driving the remnants of the populationwest into Cornwall and Wales. The Anglo-Saxons would remain in power for severa

l centuries, a period which saw the conversion of the population to Christianity, and a great increase in scholarship on the island, largely centered on the newChristian monasteries. It is during this period that the inhabitants of south-e

ast Great Britain began to consider themselves "English."

The VikingsBy the ninth century England (and Scotland and Ireland, not to mention much of Europe) was under continuous assault from Scandinavian raiders known as the Vikin


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gs. The Vikings captured cities and towns along the North Sea, and by the middleof the century they controlled almost half of Great Britain, including London.

In 877 Alfred the Great, King of Wessex, was able to stop their advance into Southern England, and over the next 50 years he and his heirs fought relentlessly to retake all of the Danish conquests. Athelstan, Alfred's grandson, was the first man to rule all of England in 927. However, the Danes were not finished with England, and another wave of raids began in 980. Worn down by 20 years of continu

ous fighting, in 1013 the English surrendered and accepted Sweyn of Denmark as their king. Sweyn was succeeded by Canute, who ruled until 1035. The Danes and the English coexisted fairly peacefully for the next 30 years until 1066, when England was once again subject to invasion.

The Norman ConquestOn September 27, 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, launched a major invasion against England, leading 6000 knights and foot soldiers across the English Channel.After defeating the English army and killing the English King Harold at the Battle of Hastings, William marched on London. By December of 1066 most of the English nobility had sworn allegiance to William, and he was crowned at Westminster Abbey on Christmas. Under Norman rule the country's historical ties with Scandina

via were largely severed and England came into much closer contact with Europe.The Middle Ages Lots of history occurred in England over the next 400 years. There were bitter power struggles, revolts, civil wars, as well as wars in Europe,Scotland and elsewhere. There were several Crusades, a number of plagues and famines, and there were many kings named Richard and Henry, some of whom appeared to be quite mad. Unfortunately, space and time constraints require us to move rapidly to the 16th century, and the rise of Elizabeth.

Queen Elizabeth IQueen Elizabeth I was one of the most remarkable rulers in English history. Thedaughter of King Henry VIII, Elizabeth took the throne in a period of great social and religious upheaval in England (and across Europe). Intelligent, beautiful, and with a great deal of courage, Elizabeth inherited a country that was virtu

ally bankrupt, on the brink of religious civil war, and under threat of conquestby its much stronger neighbor, Spain. During her reign Elizabeth I united the c

ountry, confounded Spain's attempts at conquest, and ushered in one of the greatgolden ages of arts and literature in human history. She also oversaw a major e

xpansion of the English navy, which would dominate the world's seas for centuries. For a more detailed discussion of Queen Elizabeth I, see her Civilopedia entry.

The StuartsElizabeth I died childless, and the English throne passed to James, the Stuart King of Scotland, who became James I of England. Charles I, James's successor, was overthrown by Parliament after the English Civil War (1641-1645). The crown was reinstated in 1660, but much weaker, serving "at the will of Parliament."

The United KingdomIn 1707, the "Acts of Union" united the kingdoms of Scotland with that of England and Wales. The English and Scottish Parliaments were merged, and England ceased to exist as a political entity. However, England was the largest, wealthiest and most powerful part of the United Kingdom, so much so that many still use theterms England and the United Kingdom interchangeably, much to the annoyance of the Welsh and Scots (and later, the Northern Irish). In 1800 the United Kingdom attempted to unite with Ireland, becoming the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland." Many of the largely Roman Catholic Irish were bitterly opposed to the union, leading to a terrible insurgency that lasted for over a century. In 1922 the southern portion of Ireland was granted its independence, and the UK was o

nce again renamed, this time becoming "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland."


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Rule BritanniaQueen Elizabeth's reign saw the first British colony established on the New World, while the powerful British navy protected the growing British interests across the world. England's earliest colonial interests lay in the Caribbean and North America, but over time they expanded into Asia and the South Pacific as well.As British power grew in India, all European competition was driven out, and theEnglish East India Company came to rule the subcontinent in everything but name

. In the late 18th century Britain lost control of much of North America to theThirteen Colonies (later, the United States of America) in a long and difficultrevolution. While this was a great blow to British prestige, the Empire continued to expand unabated, and by the early 20th century the British Empire was the largest and most powerful in history, encompassing one quarter of the Earth's landmass and human population.

The UK at WarFor much of its history, the UK has sought to keep anyone from becoming a dominant power in Europe, and to keep anyone from developing a navy to rival that of the UK's. During Elizabeth's reign Spain was the biggest threat, and the UK sought to bankrupt Spain by intercepting the Spanish treasure fleets from the New Wor

ld and to support insurgencies taking place in Spanish possessions. In the 17thcentury the UK fought a series of wars against the Netherlands when Dutch shipsthreatened British naval primacy. In the 19th century the UK faced off against the mighty French Empire under Napoleon Bonaparte. The French had an incomparablearmy and perhaps the greatest general in human history, while the UK had its na

vy and the wealth from its worldwide empire. The titanic struggle lasted some 12years, but eventually Napoleon was defeated and the UK emerged victorious. The

20th century of course saw the UK pitted against Germany (and allies) in two terrible conflagrations, World Wars I and II. These wars would test the British tothe limits of human endurance, and though the UK would be on the victorious side, the cost in wealth and human lives would leave the nation exhausted and virtually bankrupt, bereft of much of its once-great empire.

The Present and FutureIt has taken some years, but the UK has recovered from the devastations of the wars of the 20th century. Although it is no longer a dominant world power the United States and increasingly China are the world's "superpowers" it retains a powerful navy, a thriving culture and a strong economy. While an integral part of the increasingly united and powerful Europe it is also the strongest ally of theUnited States of America. There is no doubt that the "green and pleasant land" will continue to affect the course of world events for now and the foreseeable future.

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British Civilzation