The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain, is a
sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of
continental Europe. It is an
island country,spanning the island of
Great Britain, the northeast part of the island of
Ireland, and many small islands.
Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK with a land border, sharing it with the
Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border, the UK is surrounded by the
Atlantic Ocean, the
North Sea, the
English Channel and the
Irish Sea. The largest island, Great Britain, is linked to
France by the
Channel Tunnel.
The United Kingdom is a
unitary state consisting of four
countries:
England,
Northern Ireland,
Scotland and
Wales It is governed by a
parliamentary system with its
seat of government in
London, the
capital, but with three
devolved national administrations in
Belfast,
Cardiff and
Edinburgh, the capitals of Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland respectively. The UK is a
constitutional monarchy with
Queen Elizabeth II as the
head of state. The
Channel Islands and the
Isle of Man are
Crown Dependencies and not part of the UK, but form a
federacy with it.The UK has fourteen
overseas territories all remnants of the
British Empire, which at its height encompassed almost a quarter of the world's land surface, the
largest empire in history. British influence can continue to be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. Queen Elizabeth II remains the head of the
Commonwealth of Nations and head of state of each of the
Commonwealth realms.
The UK is a
developed country, with the
fifth (nominal GDP) or
sixth (PPP) largest
economy in the world. It was the world's first
industrialised country and the world's
foremost power during the 19th and early 20th centuries,but the economic cost of two world wars and the decline of its empire in the latter half of the 20th century diminished its leading role in global affairs. The UK nevertheless remains a
major power with strong economic, cultural, military and political influence and is a
nuclear power, with the second highest
defence spending in the world. It is a
Member State of the European Union, holds a permanent seat on the
United Nations Security Council, and is a member of the
G8,
NATO,
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development,
World Trade Organization and the Commonwealth of Nations.