England is the largest and most populous home nation of the United Kingdom. It accounts for more than 83% of the total UK population, occupies most of the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west. Elsewhere, it is bordered by the North Sea, Irish Sea, Atlantic Ocean and English Channel.

England is named after the Angles, one of a number of Germanic tribes believed to have originated in Angeln in Northern Germany, who settled in England in the 5th and 6th centuries. This is also the origin of its Latin name Anglia. It has not had a distinct political identity since 1707, when the Kingdom of Great Britain was established as a unified political entity; however, it has a legal identity separate from those of Scotland and Northern Ireland, as part of the entity “England and Wales”.

England’s largest city, London, is also the capital of the United Kingdom.Vibrant , multicultural and contradictory, contemporary England is a place of extremes yet, at times, fiercely united. From the essential glories of London, Stratford, Gloucester and York, to the quirky delights of Newcastle, Liverpool and Manchester, England’s cities are lively, buzzing places, where a love of nostalgia strains against a spirit of inventiveness.

Enjoy the unrivalled beauty of the Cotswolds and the Dales, but travel the byways of Northumberland, and church-laden Lincolnshire too. With time to spare, escape the tourist trails and wander over peaceful countryside, savour ‘real’ ale at a country pub, visit a traditional town market, or sample England’s ‘new-wave’ wines and a cosmopolitan cuisine that rivals any in the world. England today is welcoming, friendly, fascinating and fun, where pomp and circumstance balance the often bizarre idiosyncrasies of its people, and a sense of humor is the passport to certain acceptance.