United Kingdom

Through the ages

Rivals in history

The kingdoms, empires and states United Kingdom fought or stood against, from the first to today.

1. 🇮🇹 Roman Empire43 to 84

   Emperor Claudius invaded in AD 43. Boudica of the Iceni led a revolt that burned London around AD 60 or 61 before it was crushed. In the far north the Caledonians were beaten at Mons Graupius in AD 83 or 84 but never conquered.

2. 🇩🇰 Vikings793 to 1016

   Viking raids began with the attack on Lindisfarne in 793. A Danish army conquered much of England from 865, and Alfred of Wessex beat it at Edington in 878. Danish kings later took the whole English throne, with Cnut crowned in 1016.

3. 🇫🇷 Duchy of Normandy1066 to 1071

   Duke William of Normandy claimed the English crown, landed in Sussex and killed King Harold at Hastings on 14 October 1066. Northern revolts were crushed in the Harrying of the North in 1069 and 1070, and Norman lords replaced the English nobility.

4. Kingdom of Gwynedd1277 to 1283

   Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Wales, defied Edward I. Edward invaded in 1277 and again in 1282, when Llywelyn was killed. Edward ringed Gwynedd with castles such as Caernarfon and Conwy and ruled Wales from 1284.

5. Kingdom of Scotland1296 to 1603

   Edward I invaded Scotland in 1296. William Wallace and Robert the Bruce led the resistance, and Bruce won at Bannockburn in 1314. Border wars went on for three centuries, with a heavy Scottish defeat at Flodden in 1513, until the crowns united in 1603.

6. 🇫🇷 Kingdom of France1337 to 1453

   Edward III claimed the French crown in 1337. English armies won at Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt, and Henry V was recognised as heir to France in 1420. The French recovered under Joan of Arc and Charles VII, and by 1453 England kept only Calais, lost in 1558.

7. 🇪🇸 Kingdom of Spain1585 to 1604

   Elizabeth I backed the Dutch revolt against Spain, and English privateers raided Spanish treasure fleets. Philip II sent the Armada in 1588, but it was beaten off Gravelines and wrecked by storms. Peace came in 1604.

8. 🇳🇱 Dutch Republic1652 to 1674

   England and the Dutch Republic fought three naval wars over trade between 1652 and 1674. England took New Amsterdam, renamed New York, in 1664, and in 1667 a Dutch fleet raided the Medway and towed away the English flagship.

9. 🇫🇷 Kingdom of France1689 to 1815

   Britain and France fought a long series of wars for colonies and power in Europe. Britain won Canada and much of India in the Seven Years' War, ended in 1763. The struggle ended after Nelson's victory at Trafalgar in 1805 and Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo in 1815.

10. 🇺🇸 United States of America1775 to 1815

    Thirteen American colonies rebelled in 1775 and declared independence in 1776. With French help they won at Yorktown in 1781, and Britain recognised the United States in 1783. In the War of 1812 British troops burned Washington in 1814.

11. 🇦🇷 ArgentinaSince 1833Still open

    Britain took control of the Falkland Islands in 1833, and Argentina has claimed them, as the Malvinas, ever since. Argentina invaded in April 1982, and Britain retook the islands in June after a war that killed over 900 people. The claim remains.

12. 🇩🇪 German Empire1914 to 1918

    Britain entered the First World War in August 1914 after Germany invaded Belgium. Its armies fought on the western front, losing over 19,000 men killed on the first day of the Somme in 1916, while the navy blockaded Germany until the armistice of 1918.

13. 🇮🇪 Irish Republic1919 to 1921

    After winning most Irish seats in the 1918 election, Sinn Fein declared an Irish Republic in January 1919. The Irish Republican Army fought British forces until a truce in July 1921, and the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921 created the Irish Free State.

14. 🇩🇪 Nazi Germany1939 to 1945

    Britain declared war after Germany invaded Poland in September 1939. In 1940 the Royal Air Force won the Battle of Britain, preventing an invasion, and German bombing in the Blitz killed over 40,000 civilians. British forces landed in Normandy with the Allies in 1944.

Today

United Kingdom now

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was created when the Kingdoms of England and Scotland -- which previously had been distinct states under a single monarchy -- were joined under the 1707 Acts of Union. The island of Ireland was incorporated under the 1800 Acts of Union, while Wales had been part of the Kingdom of England since the 16th century. The United Kingdom has historically played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science.

Capital

London

Government

parliamentary constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm

Head of government

Andy Burnham

Head of state

Charles III

Languages

English

Through time

Then and now

• Population68.7 million2023 · 50.1 million in 1950
• Life expectancy81.3 years2023 · 68.6 years in 1950
• GDP per person$38,4062022 · $11,061 in 1950
• Living in cities83%2025 · 80% in 1950
• Literacy99%1950
• Political regimeElectoral democracy2025 · Liberal democracy in 1950
• Military alliancesNATO2024 · NATO in 1950
• Military spending2.4% of GDP2025 · 7.2% of GDP in 1950
• War deathsNone2025

Population: HYDE 3.3, Gapminder and UN WPP. GDP per capita: Maddison Project Database 2023. Urban share: UN WPP. Life expectancy: Riley, HMD, UN WPP. Literacy: OWID historical estimates, World Bank, UNESCO. Military spending: SIPRI. War deaths: UCDP. Political regime: V-Dem, Regimes of the World. All via Our World in Data (CC BY 4.0). Alliances and organization memberships: compiled by Atlas. Satellites in orbit: CelesTrak SATCAT. Modern borders, backcast.

Relations

Close partners and tensions

Summarised from World Bank and Wikipedia data, updated 23 October 2026.