United Kingdom

== History ==
{{Main|Formation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|History of the British Isles}}
{{For timeline|Timeline of British history}}

=== Prior to the Treaty of Union ===
{{Main|History of England|History of Wales|History of Scotland|History of Ireland}}

[[File:Stonehenge, Condado de Wiltshire, Inglaterra, 2014-08-12, DD 18.JPG|thumb|[[Stonehenge]] in [[Wiltshire]] is a ring of stones, each about {{Cvt|13|ft|0|order=flip}} high, {{Cvt|7|ft|0|order=flip}} wide and 25 [[tonne]]s, erected 2400–2200&nbsp;BC.]]
Settlement by [[Cro-Magnons]] of what was to become the United Kingdom occurred in waves beginning by about 30,000 years ago.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_west/7069001.stm "Ancient skeleton was 'even older'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213081240/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/south_west/7069001.stm |date=13 February 2021 }}". [[BBC News]]. 30 October 2007. Retrieved 27 April 2011.</ref> The island has been continuously inhabited only since the last retreat of the ice around 11,500 years ago. By the end of the [[Prehistoric Britain|region's prehistoric period]], the population is thought to have belonged largely to a culture termed [[Insular Celts|Insular Celtic]], comprising [[Britons (historical)|Brittonic Britain]] and [[Gaelic Ireland]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Koch, John T. |url=https://archive.org/details/celticculturehis00koch_128 |title=Celtic culture: A historical encyclopedia |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-85109-440-0 |location=Santa Barbara, CA |page=[https://archive.org/details/celticculturehis00koch_128/page/n1016 973] |url-access=limited}}</ref>
[[File:Baños Romanos, Bath, Inglaterra, 2014-08-12, DD 39-41 HDR.JPG|alt=Photograph of the Baths showing a rectangular area of greenish water surrounded by yellow stone buildings with pillars. In the background is the tower of the abbey.|thumb|The [[Roman Baths (Bath)|Roman Baths]] in [[Bath, Somerset]], are a well-preserved ''[[thermae]]'' from [[Roman Britain]].]]

The [[Roman conquest of Britain|Roman conquest]], beginning in 43 AD, and the 400-year [[Roman Britain|rule of southern Britain]], was followed by an invasion by [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] [[Anglo-Saxon]] settlers, reducing the Brittonic area mainly [[Wales#Post-Roman era|to what was to become Wales]], [[Cornwall]] and, until the latter stages of the Anglo-Saxon settlement, the [[Hen Ogledd]] (northern England and parts of southern Scotland).<ref>{{Cite book |title=[[Encyclopaedia of Wales|The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales]] |publisher=University of Wales Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7083-1953-6 |editor-last=Davies |editor-first=John |editor-link=John Davies (historian) |location=Cardiff |page=915 |editor-last2=Jenkins |editor-first2=Nigel |editor-link2=Nigel Jenkins |editor-last3=Baines |editor-first3=Menna |editor-last4=Lynch |editor-first4=Peredur I. |editor-link4=Peredur Lynch}}</ref> Most of the [[Anglo-Saxon England|region settled by the Anglo-Saxons]] became unified as the Kingdom of England in the 10th century.<ref>{{Cite magazine |title=Short Athelstan biography |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/athelstan.shtml |magazine=BBC History |access-date=9 April 2013 |archive-date=13 February 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070213191353/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/athelstan.shtml |url-status=live }}</ref> Meanwhile, [[Dál Riata|Gaelic-speakers in north-west Britain]] (with connections to the north-east of Ireland and traditionally supposed to have migrated from there in the 5th century)<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mackie, J.D. |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofscotlan00mack_0/page/18 |title=A History of Scotland |publisher=Penguin |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-14-013649-4 |location=London |pages=[https://archive.org/details/historyofscotlan00mack_0/page/18 18–19] |author-link=J.D. Mackie}}; {{Cite book |last=Campbell, Ewan |title=Saints and Sea-kings: The First Kingdom of the Scots |publisher=Canongate |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-86241-874-8 |location=Edinburgh |pages=8–15}}</ref> united with the [[Picts]] to create the [[Kingdom of Scotland]] in the 9th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haigh |first=Christopher |url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistori0000unse_a9n8/page/30 |title=The Cambridge Historical Encyclopedia of Great Britain and Ireland |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1990 |isbn=978-0-521-39552-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistori0000unse_a9n8/page/30 30]}}</ref>
[[File:Bayeux Tapestry WillelmDux.jpg|thumb|The [[Bayeux Tapestry]] depicts the [[Battle of Hastings]], 1066, and the events leading to it.]]
In 1066, the [[Normans]] invaded England from northern France. After [[Norman conquest of England|conquering England]], they seized [[Norman invasion of Wales|large parts of Wales]], [[Norman invasion of Ireland|conquered much of Ireland]] and were invited to settle in Scotland, bringing to each country [[feudalism]] on the Northern French model and [[Norman-French]] culture.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ganshof, F.L. |url=https://archive.org/details/feudalism0000gans_j4b5 |title=Feudalism |publisher=University of Toronto |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-8020-7158-3 |page=165 |url-access=registration}}</ref> The [[Anglo-Normans|Anglo-Norman]] [[ruling class]] greatly influenced, but eventually assimilated with, the local cultures.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chibnall, Marjorie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qJl5Jm-IndUC&pg=PA115 |title=The Debate on the Norman Conquest |publisher=Manchester University Press |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-7190-4913-2 |pages=115–122 |author-link=Marjorie Chibnall |access-date=20 March 2023 |archive-date=26 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326164802/https://books.google.com/books?id=qJl5Jm-IndUC&pg=PA115 |url-status=live }}</ref> Subsequent [[House of Plantagenet|medieval English kings]] completed the [[conquest of Wales]] and tried unsuccessfully [[Wars of Scottish Independence|to annex Scotland]]. Asserting its independence in the 1320 [[Declaration of Arbroath]], Scotland maintained its independence thereafter, albeit in [[Anglo-Scottish Wars|near-constant conflict with England]].

The English monarchs, through inheritance of [[Angevin Empire|substantial territories in France]] and claims to the French crown, were also heavily involved in conflicts in France, most notably the [[Hundred Years' War]], while the [[List of Scottish monarchs|Kings of Scots]] were in [[Auld Alliance|an alliance with the French]] during this period.<ref>Keen, Maurice. [https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/hundred_years_war_01.shtml "The Hundred Years' War"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131214092949/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/middle_ages/hundred_years_war_01.shtml |date=14 December 2013 }}. BBC History.</ref>
[[Early modern Britain]] saw religious conflict resulting from the [[Reformation]] and the introduction of [[Protestant]] state churches in each country.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/479892/Protestantism/41558/The-Reformation-in-England-and-Scotland The Reformation in England and Scotland] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150515015218/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/479892/Protestantism/41558/The-Reformation-in-England-and-Scotland |date=15 May 2015 }} and [https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/293754/Ireland/22978/The-Reformation-period Ireland: The Reformation Period & Ireland under Elizabeth I] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150521133445/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/293754/Ireland/22978/The-Reformation-period |date=21 May 2015 }}, Encyclopædia Britannica Online.</ref> The [[English Reformation]] ushered in political, constitutional, social and cultural change in the 16th century and [[State religion|established]] the [[Church of England]].&nbsp;Moreover, it defined a national identity for England and slowly, but profoundly, changed people's religious beliefs.<ref>{{Cite web |title=English Reformation c1527-1590 |url=https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/the-english-reformation-c1527-1590/ |access-date=20 January 2023 |website=The National Archives |language=en-GB |archive-date=2 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221202002512/https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/the-english-reformation-c1527-1590/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Wales was [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542|fully incorporated into the Kingdom of England]],<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=5 November 2009 |title=British History in Depth&nbsp;– Wales under the Tudors |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/wales_tudors_01.shtml |magazine=BBC History |access-date=21 September 2010 |archive-date=7 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207145836/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/wales_tudors_01.shtml |url-status=live }}</ref> and Ireland was constituted as a kingdom in personal union with the English crown.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nicholls |first=Mark |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernb0000nich |title=A history of the modern British Isles, 1529–1603: The two kingdoms |publisher=Blackwell |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-631-19334-0 |location=Oxford |pages=171–172 |url-access=registration}}</ref> In what was to become Northern Ireland, the lands of the independent Catholic Gaelic nobility were confiscated and [[Plantation of Ulster|given to Protestant settlers]] from England and Scotland.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Canny |first=Nicholas P. |url=https://archive.org/details/makingirelandbri00cann |title=Making Ireland British, 1580–1650 |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-19-925905-2 |pages=189–200 |url-access=registration}}</ref>

In 1603, the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland were united in a [[personal union]] when [[James I of England|James VI, King of Scots]], inherited the crowns of England and Ireland and moved his court from [[Edinburgh]] to London; each country nevertheless remained a separate political entity and retained its separate political, legal, and religious institutions.<ref>Ross, D. (2002). ''[[iarchive:chronologyofscot0000ross|Chronology of Scottish History]]''. Glasgow: Geddes & Grosset. p. 56. {{ISBN|978-1-85534-380-1}}; Hearn, J. (2002). ''Claiming Scotland: National Identity and Liberal Culture''. Edinburgh University Press. p. 104. {{ISBN|978-1-902930-16-9}}</ref>

In the mid-17th century, all three kingdoms [[Wars of the Three Kingdoms|were involved in a series of connected wars]] (including the [[English Civil War]]) which led to the temporary overthrow of the monarchy, with the [[execution of Charles I|execution of King Charles I]], and the establishment of the short-lived [[unitary republic]] of the [[Commonwealth of England]], Scotland and Ireland.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=English Civil Wars |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/187936/English-Civil-Wars |access-date=28 April 2013 |archive-date=2 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150502204708/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/187936/English-Civil-Wars |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |date=14 March 2010 |title=Scotland and the Commonwealth: 1651–1660 |url=http://www.archontology.org/nations/uk/scotland/01_laws.php |access-date=9 March 2015 |publisher=Archontology.org |archive-date=16 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120716194016/http://www.archontology.org/nations/uk/scotland/01_laws.php |url-status=live }}</ref>

Although the [[Restoration (1660)|monarchy was restored]], the [[Interregnum (1649–1660)|Interregnum]] along with the [[Glorious Revolution]] of 1688 and the subsequent [[Bill of Rights 1689]] in England and [[Claim of Right Act 1689]] in Scotland ensured that, unlike much of the rest of Europe, [[royal absolutism]] would not prevail, and a professed Catholic could never accede to the throne. The [[British constitution]] would develop on the basis of [[constitutional monarchy]] and the [[parliamentary system]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lodge |first=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EBSpvBxGyqcC |title=The History of England&nbsp;– From the Restoration to the Death of William III (1660–1702) |publisher=Read Books |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-4067-0897-4 |page=8 |orig-date=1910 |access-date=29 September 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328140723/https://books.google.com/books?id=EBSpvBxGyqcC |url-status=live }}</ref> With the founding of the [[Royal Society]] in 1660, science was greatly encouraged. During this period, particularly in England, the development of [[English navy|naval power]] and the interest in [[Age of Discovery|voyages of discovery]] led to the acquisition and settlement of [[First British Empire|overseas colonies]], particularly in North America and the Caribbean.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tudor Period and the Birth of a Regular Navy |url=http://www.royal-navy.org/lib/index.php?title=Tudor_Period_and_the_Birth_of_a_Regular_Navy_Part_Two |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111103013901/http://www.royal-navy.org/lib/index.php?title=Tudor_Period_and_the_Birth_of_a_Regular_Navy_Part_Two |archive-date=3 November 2011 |access-date=8 March 2015 |website=Royal Navy History |publisher=Institute of Naval History }}; {{Cite book |last=Canny |first=Nicholas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eQHSivGzEEMC |title=The Origins of Empire, The Oxford History of the British Empire Volume I |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-19-924676-2 |ref=refOHBEv1 |access-date=29 September 2020 |archive-date=11 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230111135256/https://books.google.com/books?id=eQHSivGzEEMC |url-status=live }}</ref>

Though previous attempts at uniting the two kingdoms within Great Britain in 1606, 1667, and 1689 had proved unsuccessful, the attempt initiated in 1705 led to the [[Treaty of Union]] of 1706 being agreed and ratified by both parliaments.
{{Clear left}}

=== Kingdom of Great Britain ===
{{Main|Treaty of Union|Kingdom of Great Britain}}
[[File:Treaty of Union.jpg|thumb|The [[Treaty of Union]] led to a united kingdom of all of [[Great Britain]].]]
On 1 May 1707, the Kingdom of Great Britain was formed, the result of the [[Acts of Union 1707]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Articles of Union with Scotland 1707 |url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pathways/citizenship/rise_parliament/docs/articles_union.htm |access-date=19 October 2008 |publisher=UK Parliament |archive-date=8 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120608152446/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pathways/citizenship/rise_parliament/docs/articles_union.htm |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |title=Acts of Union 1707 |url=http://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/evolutionofparliament/legislativescrutiny |access-date=6 January 2011 |publisher=UK Parliament |archive-date=27 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101227033859/http://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/evolutionofparliament/legislativescrutiny/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |title=Treaty (act) of Union 1706 |url=http://www.scotshistoryonline.co.uk/union.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190527074630/http://www.scotshistoryonline.co.uk/union.html |archive-date=27 May 2019 |access-date=3 February 2011 |publisher=Scottish History online }}</ref> In the 18th century, cabinet government developed under [[Robert Walpole]], in practice the first prime minister (1721–1742). A series of [[Jacobite uprisings]] sought to remove the Protestant [[House of Hanover]] from the throne and restore the Catholic [[House of Stuart]]. The Jacobites were finally defeated at the [[Battle of Culloden]] in 1746, after which the [[Scottish Highlanders]] were forcibly assimilated into Scotland by revoking the feudal independence of [[Scottish clan chief|clan chiefs]]. The British colonies in North America that broke away in the [[American Revolutionary War|American War of Independence]] became the [[United States]], recognised by Britain in 1783. British imperial ambition turned towards Asia, particularly to [[India]].<ref>Library of Congress, [https://books.google.com/books?id=BQDgr_XvsHoC&pg=PA73 ''The Impact of the American Revolution Abroad''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328140724/https://books.google.com/books?id=BQDgr_XvsHoC&pg=PA73 |date=28 March 2024 }}, p. 73.</ref>

Britain played a leading part in the [[Atlantic slave trade]], mainly between 1662 and 1807 when British or British-colonial [[slave ships]] transported nearly 3.3&nbsp;million slaves from Africa.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Morgan |first=Kenneth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SGcwgJz5rQMC&pg=PA12 |title=Slavery and the British Empire: From Africa to America |publisher=Oxford University Press, USA |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-19-156627-1 |page=12 |access-date=5 October 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328141229/https://books.google.com/books?id=SGcwgJz5rQMC&pg=PA12#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> The slaves were taken to work on [[Plantation economy|plantations]], principally in the [[History of the British West Indies|Caribbean]] but also [[British America|North America]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Morgan |first=Kenneth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SGcwgJz5rQMC&pg=PA15 |title=Slavery and the British Empire: From Africa to America |publisher=Oxford University Press, US |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-19-156627-1 |page=15 |access-date=5 October 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328141229/https://books.google.com/books?id=SGcwgJz5rQMC&pg=PA15#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> Slavery coupled with the [[Sugar plantations in the Caribbean|Caribbean sugar industry]] had a significant role in strengthening the British economy in the 18th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Morgan |first=Kenneth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u6IUDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA83 |title=Slavery and the British Empire: From Africa to America |date=2007 |publisher=OUP Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-923899-6 |page=83 |access-date=5 October 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328141230/https://books.google.com/books?id=u6IUDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA83#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> However, with pressure from the [[Abolitionism in the United Kingdom|abolitionism movement]], Parliament banned the trade in 1807, banned slavery in the British Empire in 1833, and Britain took a role in the movement to abolish slavery worldwide through the [[blockade of Africa]] and pressing other nations to end their trade with a series of treaties.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/content/articles/2007/03/20/abolition_navy_feature.shtml Sailing against slavery] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081103004954/https://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/content/articles/2007/03/20/abolition_navy_feature.shtml |date=3 November 2008 }}. BBC Devon. 2007.; {{Cite book |last=Lovejoy |first=Paul E. |url=https://archive.org/details/transformationsi0000love/page/290 |title=Transformations in Slavery: A History of Slavery in Africa |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-521-78012-4 |edition=2nd |location=New York |page=[https://archive.org/details/transformationsi0000love/page/290 290] }}</ref>

=== United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland ===
{{Main|History of the United Kingdom|Acts of Union (1800)|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland}}
In 1800 the parliaments of Great Britain and Ireland each passed an Act of Union, uniting the two kingdoms and creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on 1 January 1801.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Act of Union |url=http://www.actofunion.ac.uk/actofunion.htm#act |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415061235/http://www.actofunion.ac.uk/actofunion.htm#act |archive-date=15 April 2012 |access-date=15 May 2006 |publisher=Act of Union Virtual Library}}</ref>
[[File:John Wilson Carmichael - The opening engagement at Trafalgar; H.M.S. 'Royal Sovereign' raking the stern of the Spanish flagship 'Santa Ana'.jpg|thumb|The opening engagement at the [[Battle of Trafalgar]], by [[James Wilson Carmichael|J.W. Carmichael]]]]
After the defeat of France at the end of the [[French Revolutionary Wars]] and [[Napoleonic Wars]] (1792–1815), the United Kingdom emerged as the principal naval and imperial power (with London the largest city in the world from about 1830).<ref>Tellier, L.-N. (2009). ''Urban World History: an Economic and Geographical Perspective''. Quebec: PUQ. p. 463. {{ISBN|978-2-7605-1588-8}}.</ref> [[Royal Navy#1815–1914|Unchallenged at sea]], British dominance was later described as ''[[Pax Britannica]]'' ("British Peace"), a period of [[International relations of the Great Powers (1814–1919)|relative peace among the great powers]] (1815–1914) during which the [[British Empire]] became the global [[hegemon]] and adopted the role of global policeman.<ref>[[#refJohnston2008|Johnston]], pp.&nbsp;508–510.; [[#refOHBEv3|Porter]], p.&nbsp;332.; Sondhaus, L. (2004). ''Navies in Modern World History''. London: Reaktion Books. p. 9. {{ISBN|978-1-86189-202-7}}.; {{Cite book |last=Porter |first=Andrew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oo3F2X8IDeEC |title=The Nineteenth Century, The Oxford History of the British Empire Volume III |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-19-924678-6 |page=332 |ref=refOHBEv3}}</ref> By the time of [[the Great Exhibition]] of 1851, Britain was described as the "workshop of the world".<ref>{{Cite magazine |title=The Workshop of the World |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/victorians/workshop_of_the_world_01.shtml |magazine=BBC History |access-date=28 April 2013 |archive-date=15 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181015200153/https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/victorians/workshop_of_the_world_01.shtml |url-status=live }}</ref> From 1853 to 1856, Britain took part in the [[Crimean War]], allied with the [[Ottoman Empire]] against [[Russian Empire|Tsarist Russia]],<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Benn |first=David Wedgwood |title=The Crimean War and its lessons for today |journal=[[International Affairs (journal)|International Affairs]] |volume=88 |issue=2 |date=March 2012 |pages=387–391 |jstor=41428613 |publisher=Oxford University Press|doi=10.1111/j.1468-2346.2012.01078.x }}</ref> participating in the naval battles of the [[Baltic Sea]] known as the [[Åland War]] in the [[Gulf of Bothnia]] and the [[Gulf of Finland]], among others.<ref>[https://runeberg.org/nfbs/0252.html ''Nordisk familjebok'' (1913), s. 435] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231209123019/https://runeberg.org/nfbs/0252.html |date=9 December 2023 }} (in Swedish)</ref> Following the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857|Indian Rebellion in 1857]], the British government led by [[Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston|Lord Palmerston]] assumed [[direct rule]] over [[British Raj|India]]. Alongside the formal control it exerted over its own colonies, British dominance of much of world trade meant that it effectively [[Informal Empire|controlled the economies]] of regions such as [[East Asia]] and [[Latin America]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Porter |first=Andrew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oo3F2X8IDeEC |title=The Nineteenth Century, The Oxford History of the British Empire Volume III |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-19-924678-6 |page=8 |ref=refOHBEv3 }}; {{Cite book |last=Marshall |first=P.J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S2EXN8JTwAEC |title=The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-521-00254-7 |pages=156–157 |ref=refMarshall |access-date=29 September 2020 |archive-date=16 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116094154/https://books.google.com/books?id=S2EXN8JTwAEC |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Queen Victoria Statue.png|thumb|[[Queen Victoria|Victoria]] reigned as [[Monarchy of the United Kingdom|Queen of the United Kingdom]] and [[Empress of India]] during the 19th century.]]Throughout the [[Victorian era]], political attitudes favoured [[free trade]] and [[laissez-faire]] policies, as well as a [[Reform Acts|gradual widening of the voting franchise]], with the [[Representation of the People Act 1884|1884 Reform Act]] championed by [[William Ewart Gladstone|William Gladstone]] granting [[suffrage]] to a majority of males for the first time. The British population increased at a dramatic rate, accompanied by rapid [[Urbanization|urbanisation]], causing significant social and economic stresses.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tompson |first=Richard S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H5kcJqmXk2oC&pg=PA63 |title=Great Britain: a reference guide from the Renaissance to the present |publisher=Facts on File |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-8160-4474-0 |location=New York |page=63}}</ref> By the late 19th century, the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservatives]] under [[Benjamin Disraeli]] and [[Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury|Lord Salisbury]] initiated a period of [[Scramble for Africa|imperial expansion in Africa]], maintained a policy of [[splendid isolation]] in Europe, and attempted to contain Russian influence in [[Emirate of Afghanistan|Afghanistan]] and [[Qajar Iran|Persia]], in what came to be known as the [[Great Game]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fromkin |first=David |date=1980 |title=The Great Game in Asia |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20040512 |journal=Foreign Affairs |volume=58 |issue=4 |pages=936–951 |doi=10.2307/20040512 |jstor=20040512 |issn=0015-7120 |access-date=4 June 2023 |archive-date=12 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412053528/https://www.jstor.org/stable/20040512 |url-status=live }}</ref> During this time, [[Canada]], [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]] were granted self-governing [[dominion]] status.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hosch, William L. |title=World War I: People, Politics, and Power |publisher=Britannica Educational Publishing |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-61530-048-8 |series=America at War |location=New York |page=21}}</ref> At the turn of the century, Britain's industrial dominance became challenged by the [[German Empire]] and the [[United States]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Zarembka |first=Paul |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NSrwpggmHigC&pg=PP1 |title=Contradictions: Finance, Greed, and Labor Unequally Paid |date=2013 |publisher=Emerald Group Publishing |isbn=978-1-78190-670-5 |access-date=21 October 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328141231/https://books.google.com/books?id=NSrwpggmHigC&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Edwardian era]] saw [[Liberal welfare reforms|social reform]] and [[Irish Home Rule movement|home rule for Ireland]] become important domestic issues, while the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] emerged from an alliance of [[Trade unions in the United Kingdom|trade unions]] and small socialist groups in 1900, and [[suffragettes]] campaigned for women's right to vote.<ref>Sophia A. Van Wingerden, ''The women's suffrage movement in Britain, 1866–1928'' (1999) ch 1.</ref>

=== World wars and partition of Ireland ===
{{Main|History of the United Kingdom during the First World War|Partition of Ireland|Interwar Britain|United Kingdom home front during the Second World War|Military history of the United Kingdom during World War II}}
[[File:Wreaths Are Laid at the Cenotaph, London During Remembrance Sunday Service MOD 45152052.jpg|thumb|Wreaths being laid during the [[Remembrance Sunday]] service at the [[The Cenotaph|Cenotaph]] in Whitehall, London]]

Britain was one of the principal [[Allies of World War I|Allies]] that defeated the [[Central Powers]] in the [[First World War]] (1914–1918). Alongside their French, Russian and (after 1917) American counterparts,<ref>Turner, John (1988). ''Britain and the First World War''. London: Unwin Hyman. pp. 22–35. {{ISBN|978-0-04-445109-9}}.</ref> British armed forces were engaged across much of the British Empire and in several regions of Europe, particularly on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]].<ref name="Westwell&Cove" /> The high fatalities of [[trench warfare]] caused the loss of much of a generation of men, with lasting social effects in the nation and a great disruption in the social order. Britain had suffered 2.5&nbsp;million casualties and finished the war with a huge national debt.<ref name="Westwell&Cove">Westwell, I.; Cove, D. (eds) (2002). ''History of World War I, Volume 3''. London: Marshall Cavendish. pp. 698, 705. {{ISBN|978-0-7614-7231-5}}.</ref> The consequences of the war persuaded the government to expand the right to vote in national and local elections with the [[Representation of the People Act 1918]].<ref name="Westwell&Cove" /> After the war, Britain became a permanent member of the Executive Council of the [[League of Nations]] and received a [[League of Nations mandate|mandate]] over a number of former German and [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] colonies. Under the leadership of [[David Lloyd George]], the British Empire reached its greatest extent, covering a fifth of the world's land surface and a quarter of its population.<ref>Turner, J. (1988). ''Britain and the First World War''. Abingdon: Routledge. p. 41. {{ISBN|978-0-04-445109-9}}.</ref>

By the mid-1920s, most of the British population could listen to [[BBC]] radio programmes.<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 June 2020 |title=100 years of radio since Marconi's big breakthrough |url=https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/latest/features-and-news/100-years-of-radio |access-date=17 November 2020 |website=Ofcom |archive-date=4 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804031332/https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/latest/features-and-news/100-years-of-radio |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=History of the BBC: The origins of BBC Local Radio |url=https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/research/local-radio |access-date=18 September 2022 |website=bbc.com |last=Linfoot |first=Matthew |archive-date=20 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920232207/https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/research/local-radio/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Experimental television broadcasts [[History of television#United Kingdom|began in 1929]] and the [[First day of BBC television|first scheduled BBC Television Service]] commenced in 1936.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of the BBC: 1920s |url=https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/timelines/1920s |access-date=18 September 2022 |website=bbc.com |language=en |archive-date=26 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926064808/https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/timelines/1920s |url-status=live }}</ref> The rise of [[Irish nationalism]], and disputes within Ireland over the terms of [[Irish Home Rule]], led eventually to the [[Partition of Ireland|partition of the island]] in 1921.<ref>[[SR&O 1921]]/533 of 3 May 1921.</ref> The [[Irish Free State]] became independent, initially with [[Dominion]] status in 1922, and [[Statute of Westminster 1931#Irish Free State|unambiguously independent in 1931]]. Northern Ireland remained part of the United Kingdom.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Anglo-Irish Treaty, 6&nbsp;December 1921 |url=http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/issues/politics/docs/ait1921.htm |access-date=15 May 2006 |website=CAIN Web Service |archive-date=14 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120514145108/http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/issues/politics/docs/ait1921.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[1928 Equal Franchise Act]] gave women electoral equality with men in national elections. Strikes in the mid-1920s culminated in the [[General Strike of 1926]], which ended in a victory for the government led by [[Stanley Baldwin]]. Britain had still not recovered from the effects of the First World War when the [[Great Depression in the United Kingdom|Great Depression]] (1929–1932) led to considerable unemployment and hardship in the old industrial areas, as well as political and social unrest with rising membership in communist and socialist parties. A [[National Government (1931)|coalition government]] was formed in 1931.<ref>Rubinstein, W.D. (2004). ''Capitalism, Culture, and Decline in Britain, 1750–1990''. Abingdon: Routledge. p. 11. {{ISBN|978-0-415-03719-8}}.</ref>
[[File:Spitfire and Hurricane in the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.jpg|thumb|[[Supermarine Spitfire|Spitfire]] and [[Hawker Hurricane|Hurricane]] as flown in the [[Battle of Britain]] during the [[Second World War]]]]

Nonetheless, "Britain was a very wealthy country, formidable in arms, ruthless in pursuit of its interests and sitting at the heart of a global production system."<ref name="Edgerton2012">{{Cite book|last=Edgerton|first=David|date=2012|title=Britain's War Machine|url=https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/55731/britain-s-war-machine/9780141026107.html|access-date=10 May 2020|publisher=www.penguin.co.uk|language=en|postscript=none|archive-date=28 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200428080558/https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/55731/britain-s-war-machine/9780141026107.html|url-status=live}}; {{Cite web |title=Britain's War Machine: Weapons, Resources and Experts in the Second World War |url=https://reviews.history.ac.uk/review/1114 |access-date=10 May 2020 |website=Reviews in History |language=en |archive-date=12 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200612173058/https://reviews.history.ac.uk/review/1114 |url-status=live }}</ref> After [[Nazi Germany]] invaded Poland in 1939, Britain entered the [[Second World War]]. [[Winston Churchill]] became prime minister and head of a [[Churchill war ministry|coalition government]] in 1940. Despite the defeat of its European allies in the first year, Britain and its Empire continued the war against Germany. Churchill engaged industry, scientists and engineers to support the government and the military in the prosecution of the war effort.<ref name="Edgerton2012" />

In 1940, the [[Royal Air Force]] defeated the German [[Luftwaffe]] in the [[Battle of Britain]]. Urban areas suffered heavy bombing during [[the Blitz]]. The [[Grand Alliance (World War II)|Grand Alliance]] of Britain, the United States and the [[Soviet Union]] formed in 1941, leading the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] against the [[Axis powers]]. There were eventual hard-fought victories in the [[Battle of the Atlantic]], the [[North Africa campaign]] and the [[Italian campaign (World War II)|Italian campaign]]. British forces played important roles in the [[Normandy landings]] of 1944 and the [[liberation of Europe]]. The British Army led the [[Burma campaign]] against Japan, and the [[British Pacific Fleet]] fought Japan at sea. British scientists [[British contribution to the Manhattan Project|contributed to the Manhattan Project]] whose task was to build an atomic weapon.<ref>{{cite book |author=Septimus H. Paul |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fSZpgW-N628C&pg=PA1 |title=Nuclear Rivals: Anglo-American Atomic Relations, 1941–1952 |publisher=Ohio State U.P. |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-8142-0852-6 |pages=1–5}}</ref> Once built, it was decided, with British consent, to use the weapon against Japan.<ref>{{cite web |title=Minutes of a Meeting of the Combined Policy Committee, Washington, July 4, 1945 |url=https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1945Berlinv01/d619 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170918063918/https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1945Berlinv01/d619 |archive-date=18 September 2017 |access-date=22 November 2017 |publisher=United States Department of State}}</ref> The wartime net losses in British national wealth amounted to 18.6% (£4.595 billion) of the prewar wealth (£24.68 billion), at 1938 prices.<ref>{{cite book|chapter=The United Kingdom: 'Victory at all costs'|first1=Stephen|last1=Broadberry|first2=Peter|last2=Howlett|title=The economics of World War II: Six great powers in international comparison|editor-last=Harrison|editor-first=Michael|publisher=Cambridge University Press|date=1998|page=69|url=http://ndl.ethernet.edu.et/bitstream/123456789/13137/1/300%20.%20Mark_Harrison.pdf|access-date=22 November 2023|archive-date=12 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231112071259/http://ndl.ethernet.edu.et/bitstream/123456789/13137/1/300%20.%20Mark_Harrison.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Postwar 20th century ===
{{Main|Postwar Britain (1945–1979)|Social history of Postwar Britain (1945–1979)}}
[[File:British Empire 1921.png|thumb|upright=1.5|left|The [[British Empire]] at its territorial peak in 1921]]

The UK was one of the [[Big Three (World War II)|Big Three]] powers (along with the US and the Soviet Union) who met to plan the post-war world;<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Doenecke |first1=Justus D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xdMF9rX6mX8C&pg=PA62 |title=Debating Franklin D. Roosevelt's foreign policies, 1933–1945 |last2=Stoler |first2=Mark A. |year=2005 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-8476-9416-7 |access-date=19 March 2016 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328141231/https://books.google.com/books?id=xdMF9rX6mX8C&pg=PA62#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}; {{Cite book |last=Kelly |first=Brian |url=https://www.iup.edu/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=37681 |title=The Four Policemen and Postwar Planning, 1943–1945: The Collision of Realist and Idealist Perspectives |publisher=Indiana University of Pennsylvania |access-date=25 August 2015 |archive-date=22 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151022125442/https://www.iup.edu/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=37681 |url-status=live }}</ref> it was an original signatory to the [[Declaration by United Nations]] and became one of the five permanent members of the [[United Nations Security Council]]. It worked closely with the United States to establish the [[IMF]], [[World Bank]] and [[NATO]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 July 2010 |title=The "Special Relationship" between Great Britain and the United States Began with FDR |url=http://rooseveltinstitute.org/special-relationship-between-great-britain-and-united-states-began-fdr |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125021103/http://rooseveltinstitute.org/special-relationship-between-great-britain-and-united-states-began-fdr |archive-date=25 January 2018 |access-date=24 January 2018 |publisher=Roosevelt Institute |quote=and the joint efforts of both powers to create a new post-war strategic and economic order through the drafting of the Atlantic Charter; the establishment of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank; and the creation of the United Nations. }}; {{Cite press release |title=Remarks by the President Obama and Prime Minister Cameron in Joint Press Conference |date=22 April 2016 |publisher=The White House |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/04/22/remarks-president-obama-and-prime-minister-cameron-joint-press |quote=That's what we built after World War II. The United States and the UK designed a set of institutions – whether it was the United Nations, or the Bretton Woods structure, IMF, World Bank, NATO, across the board. |access-date=24 January 2018 |archive-date=8 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608110653/https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/04/22/remarks-president-obama-and-prime-minister-cameron-joint-press |url-status=live }}</ref> The war left the UK severely weakened and financially dependent on the [[Marshall Plan]],<ref>{{Cite news |date=28 December 2006 |title=Britain to make its final payment on World War II loan from U.S. |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/28/business/worldbusiness/28iht-nazi.4042453.html |access-date=25 August 2011 |archive-date=20 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170820022220/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/28/business/worldbusiness/28iht-nazi.4042453.html |url-status=live }}</ref> but it was spared the total war that devastated eastern Europe.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Reynolds |first=David |date=17 April 2011 |title=Britain's War Machine by David Edgerton – review |work=The Guardian |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/apr/17/britains-war-machine-david-edgerton-review |access-date=10 May 2020 |archive-date=12 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200612130213/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/apr/17/britains-war-machine-david-edgerton-review |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the immediate post-war years, the [[Labour Government 1945–1951|Labour government]] under [[Clement Attlee]] initiated a radical programme of reforms, which significantly impacted British society [[Post-war consensus|in the following decades]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Francis |first=Martin |title=Ideas and policies under Labour, 1945–1951: Building a new Britain |publisher=Manchester University Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-7190-4833-3 |pages=225–233}}</ref> Major industries and public utilities were [[Nationalization|nationalised]], a [[welfare state]] was established, and a comprehensive, publicly funded healthcare system, the [[National Health Service]], was created.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lee |first=Stephen J. |url=https://archive.org/details/aspectsbritishpo00lees |title=Aspects of British political history, 1914–1995 |publisher=Routledge |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-415-13103-2 |location=London; New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/aspectsbritishpo00lees/page/n183 173]–199 |url-access=limited}}</ref> The rise of nationalism in the colonies coincided with Britain's much-diminished economic position, so that a policy of [[decolonisation]] was unavoidable. Independence was granted to India and Pakistan in 1947.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Larres |first=Klaus |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7D66_9YOof4C&pg=PA118 |title=A companion to Europe since 1945 |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4051-0612-2 |location=Chichester |page=118 |access-date=29 September 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328141350/https://books.google.com/books?id=7D66_9YOof4C&pg=PA118 |url-status=live }}</ref> Over the next three decades, most colonies of the British Empire gained their independence, and many became members of the [[Commonwealth of Nations]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 March 2009 |title=Country List |url=http://www.thecommonwealth.org/Templates/System/YearbookHomePage.asp?NodeID=152099&load=countrylist |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130506071236/http://www.thecommonwealth.org/Templates/System/YearbookHomePage.asp?NodeID=152099&load=countrylist |archive-date=6 May 2013 |access-date=8 March 2015 |publisher=[[Commonwealth Secretariat]]}}</ref>

[[File:British Airways Concorde G-BOAC 03.jpg|thumb|[[Concorde]] was a [[Supersonic speed|supersonic]] airliner that reduced transatlantic flight time from 8 hours to 3.5 hours.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/about-ba/history-and-heritage/celebrating-concorde|access-date=30 March 2023|title=Celebrating Concorde|archive-date=17 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230317103939/https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/about-ba/history-and-heritage/celebrating-concorde}}</ref>]]
The UK was the third country to develop [[Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom|a nuclear weapons arsenal]] (with its first atomic bomb test, [[Operation Hurricane]], in 1952), but the post-war limits of Britain's international role were illustrated by the [[Suez Crisis]] of 1956. The [[English-speaking world|international spread of the English language]] ensured the continuing international influence of its [[British literature|literature]] and [[Culture of the United Kingdom|culture]].<ref name="culture" /><ref name="sheridan" /> As a result of a shortage of workers in the 1950s, the government encouraged immigration from [[Commonwealth countries]]. In the following decades, the UK became a more multi-ethnic society.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Julios |first=Christina |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s3RQ4dsFEkoC&pg=PA84 |title=Contemporary British identity: English language, migrants, and public discourse |publisher=Ashgate |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7546-7158-9 |series=Studies in migration and diaspora |location=Aldershot |page=84 |access-date=29 September 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328141350/https://books.google.com/books?id=s3RQ4dsFEkoC&pg=PA84 |url-status=live }}</ref> Despite rising living standards in the late 1950s and 1960s, the UK's economic performance was less successful than many of its main competitors such as France, [[West Germany]] and Japan.

In the decades-long process of [[European integration]], the UK was a founding member of the [[Western European Union]], established with the [[London and Paris Conferences]] in 1954. In 1960 the UK was one of the seven founding members of the [[European Free Trade Association]] (EFTA), but in 1973 it left to join the [[European Communities]] (EC). In a [[1975 United Kingdom European Communities membership referendum|1975 referendum]] 67% voted to stay in it.<ref>{{Cite news |title=1975: UK embraces Europe in referendum |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/6/newsid_2499000/2499297.stm |access-date=8 March 2015 |archive-date=20 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620044520/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/6/newsid_2499000/2499297.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> When the EC became the [[European Union]] (EU) in 1992, the UK was one of the 12 founding member states.

From the late 1960s, Northern Ireland suffered communal and paramilitary violence (sometimes affecting other parts of the UK) conventionally known as [[the Troubles]]. It is usually considered to have ended with the 1998 [[Belfast Agreement|Belfast "Good Friday" Agreement]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Aughey |first=Arthur |url=https://archive.org/details/politicsnorthern00augh |title=The Politics of Northern Ireland: Beyond the Belfast Agreement |publisher=Routledge |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-415-32788-6 |location=London |page=[https://archive.org/details/politicsnorthern00augh/page/n15 7] |url-access=limited}}; "The troubles were over, but the killing continued. Some of the heirs to Ireland's violent traditions refused to give up their inheritance." {{Cite book |last=Holland |first=Jack |url=https://archive.org/details/hopeagainsthisto00holl/page/221 |title=Hope against History: The Course of Conflict in Northern Ireland |publisher=Henry Holt |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-8050-6087-4 |location=New York |page=[https://archive.org/details/hopeagainsthisto00holl/page/221 221]}}; Elliot, Marianne (2007). ''The Long Road to Peace in Northern Ireland: Peace Lectures from the Institute of Irish Studies at Liverpool University.'' University of Liverpool Institute of Irish Studies, Liverpool University Press. p. 2. {{ISBN|978-1-84631-065-2}}.</ref>
[[File:Greenwich and Canary Wharf (1) - 2022-04-24.jpg|thumb|[[Canary Wharf]], a symbol of [[Big Bang (financial markets)|the financial reforms]] initiated by [[Margaret Thatcher]] in the 1980s]]
Following a period of widespread economic slowdown and industrial strife in the 1970s, the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] government of the 1980s led by [[Margaret Thatcher]] initiated a radical policy of [[monetarism]], deregulation, particularly of the financial sector (for example, the [[Big Bang (financial markets)|Big Bang]] in 1986) and labour markets, the sale of state-owned companies (privatisation), and the withdrawal of subsidies to others.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dorey |first=Peter |title=British politics since 1945 |publisher=Blackwell |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-631-19075-2 |series=Making contemporary Britain |location=Oxford |pages=164–223}}</ref>

In 1982, [[Argentina]] invaded the British territories of [[South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands|South Georgia]] and the [[Falkland Islands]], leading to the 10-week [[Falklands War]] in which Argentine forces were defeated. The inhabitants of the islands are predominantly descendants of British settlers, and strongly favour British sovereignty, expressed in a [[2013 Falkland Islands sovereignty referendum|2013 referendum]]. From 1984, the UK economy was helped by the inflow of substantial [[North Sea oil]] revenues.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Griffiths, Alan |url=http://vig.pearsoned.co.uk/catalog/uploads/Griffiths_C01.pdf |title=Applied Economics |last2=Wall, Stuart |publisher=Financial Times Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-273-70822-3 |edition=11th |location=Harlow |page=6 |access-date=26 December 2010 |archive-date=23 August 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090823124048/http://vig.pearsoned.co.uk/catalog/uploads/Griffiths_C01.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[Gibraltar]] has also been a subject of contention regarding it's sovereignty, it was given to the UK from Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht 'for ever'.<ref>{{cite wikisource|title=Peace and Friendship Treaty of Utrecht between Spain and Great Britain}}</ref> It has been a [[Port of Gibraltar|key military base]] for the UK and a [[2002 Gibraltar sovereignty referendum|referendum in 2002]] for shared sovereignty with Spain was lost by 98.97%.

Around the end of the 20th century, there were major changes to the governance of the UK with the establishment of [[devolution|devolved]] administrations for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Keating |first=Michael |date=1 January 1998 |title=Reforging the Union: Devolution and Constitutional Change in the United Kingdom |journal=Publius: The Journal of Federalism |volume=28 |issue=1 |pages=217–234 |doi=10.1093/oxfordjournals.pubjof.a029948}}</ref> The [[Human Rights Act 1998|statutory incorporation]] followed acceptance of the [[European Convention on Human Rights]]. The UK remained a [[List of modern great powers#United Kingdom|great power]] with global diplomatic and military influence and a leading role in the United Nations and [[NATO]].<ref name="David M. McCourt">{{Cite book |last=McCourt |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lwpOnwEACAAJ&q=Britain+and+World+Power+Since+1945:+Constructing+a+Nation%27s+Role+in+International+Politics |title=Britain and World Power Since 1945: Constructing a Nation's Role in International Politics |publisher=[[University of Michigan Press]] |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-472-07221-7 |access-date=21 October 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328141741/https://books.google.com/books?id=lwpOnwEACAAJ&q=Britain+and+World+Power+Since+1945:+Constructing+a+Nation%27s+Role+in+International+Politics |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== 21st century ===
{{Main|Political history of the United Kingdom (1979–present)|Social history of the United Kingdom (1979–present)}}
[[File:Brexit Campaigners out side Parliament November 2016.jpg|thumb|left|Pro-[[Brexit]] campaigners outside Parliament in London in November 2016, after the [[Brexit referendum]]]]

The UK broadly supported the United States' approach to the "[[war on terror]]" in the early 21st century.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McSmith |first=Andy |date=5 July 2016 |title=The inside story of how Tony Blair led Britain to war in Iraq |work=Independent |location=London |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/chilcot-report-iraq-war-inquiry-tony-blair-george-bush-us-uk-what-happened-a7119761.html |access-date=17 February 2022 |archive-date=4 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160704200931/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/chilcot-report-iraq-war-inquiry-tony-blair-george-bush-us-uk-what-happened-a7119761.html |url-status=live }}</ref> British troops fought in the [[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)|War in Afghanistan]], but controversy surrounded Britain's [[Iraq War|military deployment in Iraq]], which saw the [[15 February 2003 anti-war protests|largest protest in British history]] demonstrating in opposition to the government led by [[Tony Blair]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Adams |first=Tim |date=11 February 2023 |title='A beautiful outpouring of rage': did Britain's biggest ever protest change the world? |work=The Observer |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/feb/11/slugs-iraq-war-london-protest-2003-legacy |access-date=5 June 2023 |archive-date=6 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406052000/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/feb/11/slugs-iraq-war-london-protest-2003-legacy |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[2008 global financial crisis]] severely affected the UK economy.<ref name="Latest UK GDP data">{{cite web |date=20 December 2013 |title=Quarterly National Accounts – National accounts aggregates (ABMI Gross Domestic Product: chained volume measures: Seasonally adjusted £m, constant prices) |url=http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/datasets-and-tables/data-selector.html?cdid=ABMI&dataset=qna&table-id=A2 |publisher=Office for National Statistics |access-date=28 July 2023 |archive-date=29 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150929150429/http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/datasets-and-tables/data-selector.html?cdid=ABMI&dataset=qna&table-id=A2 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Cameron–Clegg coalition]] government of 2010 introduced [[United Kingdom government austerity programme|austerity]] measures intended to tackle the substantial public deficits.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 November 2022 |title=What is austerity and where could 'eye-watering' cuts fall now? |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/63304224 |access-date=28 July 2023 |archive-date=28 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728105646/https://www.bbc.com/news/63304224 |url-status=live }}</ref> Studies have suggested that policy led to significant social disruption and suffering.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Butler |first=Patrick |date=4 October 2022 |title=Over 330,000 excess deaths in Great Britain linked to austerity, finds study |work=The Guardian |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/oct/05/over-330000-excess-deaths-in-great-britain-linked-to-austerity-finds-study |access-date=28 July 2023 |archive-date=28 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728105650/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/oct/05/over-330000-excess-deaths-in-great-britain-linked-to-austerity-finds-study |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Mueller |first=Benjamin |date=25 February 2019 |title=What Is Austerity and How Has It Affected British Society? |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/24/world/europe/britain-austerity-may-budget.html |access-date=28 July 2023 |archive-date=15 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200915170233/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/24/world/europe/britain-austerity-may-budget.html |url-status=live }}</ref> A referendum on [[Scottish independence]] in 2014 resulted in the Scottish electorate [[2014 Scottish independence referendum|voting by 55.3 to 44.7%]] to remain part of the United Kingdom.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Scottish independence referendum – Results |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/events/scotland-decides/results |access-date=18 February 2022 |website=BBC News |archive-date=18 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140918212409/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/events/scotland-decides/results |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2016, 51.9 per cent of voters in the United Kingdom [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|voted to leave the European Union]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=24 June 2016 |title=In stunning decision, Britain votes to leave the E.U. |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/britons-head-to-the-polls-for-historic-vote-on-eu/2016/06/23/0d466fb0-34a7-11e6-ab9d-1da2b0f24f93_story.html |access-date=24 June 2016 |first1=Griff |last1=Witte |first2=Karla |last2=Adam |first3=Dan |last3=Balz |archive-date=30 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221130215030/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/britons-head-to-the-polls-for-historic-vote-on-eu/2016/06/23/0d466fb0-34a7-11e6-ab9d-1da2b0f24f93_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Brexit|UK left the EU]] in 2020.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1 January 2021 |title=Brexit: New era for UK as it completes separation from European Union |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-55502781 |access-date=18 February 2022 |archive-date=14 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114212309/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-55502781 |url-status=live }}</ref> On 1 May 2021 the [[EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement]] came into force.<ref name="commission.europa.eu">{{Cite web |title=The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement |url=https://commission.europa.eu/strategy-and-policy/relations-non-eu-countries/relations-united-kingdom/eu-uk-trade-and-cooperation-agreement_en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230325155905/https://commission.europa.eu/strategy-and-policy/relations-non-eu-countries/relations-united-kingdom/eu-uk-trade-and-cooperation-agreement_en |archive-date=25 March 2023 |access-date=25 March 2023}}</ref>

The [[COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom|COVID-19 pandemic]] had a severe [[Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom|impact on the UK's economy]], caused major [[Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on education in the United Kingdom|disruptions to education]] and had [[Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom|far-reaching impacts on society and politics]] in 2020 and 2021.<ref name="GOVUK">{{cite web |url=https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/ |title=Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the UK |website=[[gov.uk]] |publisher=Government of the United Kingdom |access-date=15 April 2020 |archive-date=14 April 2020 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200414184317/https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Coronavirus and the impact on output in the UK economy: April 2020|url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/articles/coronavirusandtheimpactonoutputintheukeconomy/april2020|access-date=2 August 2020|publisher=Government of the United Kingdom|website=ons.gov.uk|archive-date=2 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200802031859/https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/articles/coronavirusandtheimpactonoutputintheukeconomy/april2020|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Walker|first=Andrew|date=10 June 2020|title=Coronavirus: UK economy could be among worst hit of leading nations, says OECD|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-52991913|access-date=2 August 2020|archive-date=18 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200818031423/https://www.bbc.com/news/business-52991913|url-status=live}}</ref> The United Kingdom was the first country in the world to use an approved [[COVID-19 vaccine]], developing its own vaccine through a collaboration between [[Oxford University]] and [[AstraZeneca]], which allowed the UK's vaccine rollout to be among the fastest in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Landmark moment as first NHS patient receives COVID-19 vaccination |url=https://www.england.nhs.uk/2020/12/landmark-moment-as-first-nhs-patient-receives-covid-19-vaccination/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230225194320/https://www.england.nhs.uk/2020/12/landmark-moment-as-first-nhs-patient-receives-covid-19-vaccination/|archive-date=25 February 2023|website=NHS}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Oxford University/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine approved |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/oxford-universityastrazeneca-covid-19-vaccine-approved |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230225194442/https://www.gov.uk/government/news/oxford-universityastrazeneca-covid-19-vaccine-approved |archive-date=25 February 2023|website=UK Government}}</ref>

On 8 September 2022, [[Elizabeth II]], the longest-living and [[List of monarchs in Britain by length of reign|longest-reigning British monarch]], [[Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II|died]] at the age of 96.<ref>{{Cite news |date=8 September 2022 |title=Queen Elizabeth II has died |work=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-61585886 |url-status=live |access-date=8 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220908173308/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-61585886 |archive-date=8 September 2022}}</ref> Upon the Queen's death, her eldest child Charles, Prince of Wales, acceded to the [[British throne]] as [[Charles III]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=8 September 2022 |title=King Charles III, the new monarch |work=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-59135132 |access-date=8 September 2022 |archive-date=20 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920002123/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-59135132 |url-status=live }}</ref>