The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (usually shortened to the United Kingdom, the UK, or Britain) is a country and sovereign state that is situated in west Northern Europe. Its territory and population are primarily situated on the island of Great Britain and in Northern Ireland on the island of Ireland, as well as numerous smaller islands in the surrounding seas. The United Kingdom is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, and its ancillary bodies of water, including the North Sea, the English Channel, the Celtic Sea, and the Irish Sea. The mainland is linked to France by the Channel Tunnel and Northern Ireland shares a land border with the Republic of Ireland.

The United Kingdom is a political union made up of four constituent countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom also has several overseas territories, including Bermuda, Gibraltar, Montserrat and Saint Helena among others. The dependencies of the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, formally possessions of the Crown, form a federacy with the United Kingdom collectively known as the British Islands. A constitutional monarchy, the United Kingdom is a Commonwealth Realm, sharing the same person — Queen Elizabeth II — with the fifteen other Realms as monarch and head of state, forming a personal union with each.

A member of the G8, the United Kingdom is a highly developed country with the fifth largest economy in the world and second largest in Europe, estimated at US$2.2 trillion. It is the third most populous state in the European Union with a population of 60.2 million and is a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the United Nations (UN), where it holds a permanent seat on the Security Council. The UK is also one of the world's major nuclear powers.

After the end of the British Empire, the UK retains influence throughout the world because of the extensive use of the English language as well as through the world-spanning Commonwealth of Nations, headed by Queen Elizabeth II.

History

Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the latest of several unions formed over the last 300 years. The Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England had existed as separate states with their own monarchs and political structures since the 9th century. The once independent Principality of Wales fell under the control of English monarchs from the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284, becoming itself part of the Kingdom of England by the Laws in Wales Act 1535. With the Act of Union 1707, the independent states of England and Scotland, having been in personal union since 1603, agreed to a political union as the Kingdom of Great Britain.

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	1886 Great Britain 1 Shilling Silver Coin ... Fine £1.66	2007 - £2 Coin - Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants-Gc £1.99

	1909 Edward Vii Silver Threepence £3.00	english set of 1986 gold coins £350.00

	1959 British 2 Shillings Queen Elizabeth Ii £1.32	1962 Queen Elizabeth Ii Coin Collection £9.49

	1890 British Shilling About Uncirculated+ Silver Coin £6.32	1942 Farthing £1.00

	Two Three Pence Pieces £1.50	2003 Isle Of Man Christmas Coloured 50P Snowman Coin £14.95

	A 1977 Queen Elizabeth The 2nd Five Shilling Piece. £1.25	1940 British 3 Pence Uncirculated Silver Coin £9.31

	1958 50th Birthday Golden Wedding Shilling Necklace £4.99	1926-2006 vivat regina £5 coin in excellent condition £9.99

	1948 60th Birthday Diamond Wedding Shilling Necklace £4.99	Guernsey coin - 2 Doubles 1929 £2.49

	50th Birthday 1958 English Shilling Coin Necklace £4.69	Brass Threepence Threepenny Bit 3d Gb 1967 Bu Mint £1.50

	1953 Elizabeth Ii Coronation Crown £3.00	Qe11 Silver Jubilee Crown £2.00

	1965 Winston Churchhill Crown £2.00	1981 Royal wedding commemorative crown £2.00

	1995 Unc Dove Of Peace £2 Coin Gift Pack Free P+P £10.00	Edward Vi, 1547-53, Shilling, Mm Tun, Stunning Portrait £395.00

	Victoria Yh Gold Half Sovereign - 1871 (die no 60) £25.00	collection of florins/2 shillings £2.99

	1983 Original 8 Coin Proof Set - As Issued £3.99	1977 Silver Jubilee Elizabeth Ii Silver Proof Crown £9.99

	Superb Proof Minted Queen Mother 2000 Silver £5 Pound £34.99	1994 - £2- Silver Proof Piedfort - Bank Of England £19.95

	A Great Commemorative Proof Coin Collection 1997 Bnib £7.99	1919-C Geo V Sovereign (Very Scarce) £194.00

	William Iii farthing dated 1696 - good filler coin £2.99

Click to see more British items Prices current as of last update, 11/20/08 12:33am.

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