The Sun Never Sets On the British Empire

As of September 8, 2008 at 8:00 PM
Steps: 53,118
Miles: 22.62
Miles To Go: 2682.38


The Flag of the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain, is an island country located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. The UK spans the island of Great Britain, the northeast part of the island of Ireland, and a great many small islands.

Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK with a land border, sharing it with the Republic of Ireland (Southern 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 union of four constituent countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It is governed by a parliamentary system with its seat of government in London, the capital, and is a constitutional monarchy with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state.

Great Britain is the larger of the two main islands of the British Isles, the largest island in Europe and the ninth-largest island in the world. Great Britain is also the third most populated island on earth (after Java and Japan). It is also the second richest island in the world (after Japan) with the world's 5th largest economy and 58 million people.

Traces of early humans have been found in Great Britain from some 700,000 years ago and modern humans from about 30,000 years ago. Up until about 9,000 years ago, Great Britain was joined to Ireland. As recently as 8,000 years ago Great Britain was joined to the continent as the southeastern part of Great Britain was still connected by a strip of low marsh to the European mainland in what is now northeastern France.

In the Cheddar Gorge near Bristol, the remains of animal species native to mainland Europe such as antelopes, brown bears, and wild horses have been found alongside a human skeleton, 'Cheddar Man', which has been dated to about 7150 B.C. Thus, animals and humans are thought to have moved between mainland Europe and Great Britain via a land crossing.

The island of Great Britain formed at the end of the Pleistocene ice age when sea levels rose due in part to the melting of glaciers. Its Iron Age inhabitants are known as the Britons, a group speaking a Celtic language, and most of it (not the northernmost part where the majority of Scotland lies today) was conquered to become the Ancient Roman province of Britannia.

The United Kingdom retains sovereignty over 14 territories outside of the British Isles, collectively named the British overseas territories, which remain under British rule, some of these territories might be side trips as the Virtual Walker will be walking through England, Scotland and Wales which are (mostly) situated on the island of Great Britain, along with their capital cities, London, Edinburgh and Cardiff respectively.

I do hope I've not messed this up! Otherwise MarmiteToasty and Tori_Z will be around to straighten me out! :)