United Kingdom (England) Missions

Capital

London (6,933,000, 1993 est.)

System of Government

Constitutional Monarchy

Area

244,103 Sq Km (94,249 Sq Mi)

(slightly smaller than Oregon)

Estimated 2000 Population

58,991,500

Geography

United Kingdom is located off the northwestern coast of Europe between the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea. It is separated from the continent by the Strait of Dover and the English Channel, and from the Irish Republic by the Irish Sea and the St. Georges Channel. The united Kingdom is comprised of four constituents: England, Wales and Scotland which alone form Great Britain, and which combined with Northern Ireland and several island groups form the United Kingdom. The topography of the United Kingdom is mostly rugged hills and low mountains, with level to rolling plains in the east and southeast.

Climate

The United Kingdom has a temperate climate, moderated by prevailing southwest winds. Average temperatures in London range from 36 to 43 degrees Fahrenheit in January to 55 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit in July.

People

In the United Kingdom population the English account for 81.5%, Scottish 9.6%, Irish 2.4%, Welsh 1.9%, Ulster 1.8%, West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8%.

Vital Statistics

Life Expectancy at Birth: 72.2 years male, 77.9 years female (1988). Infant Mortality Rate: 7.4 per 1,000 live births (1991). HIV/AIDS Adult Prevalence Rate: 0.11% (1999 est.)

Religions

The United Kingdom is mostly Christian, with 59% of the population Protestant and 9% Roman Catholic. Other religious minorities include Muslims which account for 3% of the population, and also Jewish, Hindu and Sikh minorities.

History

The union between England and Wales was enacted in 1284. England and Scotland agreed to permanent union as Great Britain in 1707, and the union of Great Britain and Ireland was implemented in 1801. In 1921 Ireland was formally divided, with six northern Irish counties remaining part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland. Britain entered World War I when Germany invaded Belgium and France in 1914. our years of warfare followed, with great loss of life. After the war, the economy suffered during the Great Depression of the early 1930’s and unemployment soared.

In 1939 Hitler invaded Poland, and the United Kingdom declared war on Germany. Winston Churchill was prime minister throughout the war, and UK forces fought in all arenas of the conflict. Having occupied most of Europe, Germany prepared to invade the United Kingdom but was unable to gain enough mastery of the air to launch a sea invasion. The Allies made a successful landing in France on D-Day, June 6, 1944, and the war ended the following year.

The United Kingdom was impoverished by the war. By the 1950’s the economic situation had improved, and the United Kingdom began rebuilding itself into a modern and prosperous European nation. The UK currently is weighing the degree of its integration with continental Europe. A member of the European Union, it chose to remain outside of the European Monetary Union for the time being.