British Isles

Bronze Age

The Bronze Age in the British Isles began with the introduction of metalworking, particularly bronze tools and weapons. Migrants from mainland Europe introduced new pottery styles, burial practices, and metalworking techniques.

Megalithic structures like Stonehenge were completed, reflecting complex societies with spiritual and astronomical knowledge.

Tin from Cornwall and copper from Wales were traded across Europe, linking the Isles to Mediterranean and continental networks.

Iron Age

The Iron Age saw the rise of Celtic cultures across the British Isles. Tribes such as the Iceni and Brigantes emerged. Proto-Celtic languages spread, laying the foundation for later Gaelic, Brythonic, and Welsh languages. Tribal societies became more organized, with chieftains leading communities in trade and warfare.

Antiquity

This period was marked by Roman conquest and its transformative impact on the British Isles.

Julius Caesar’s expeditions (55-54 BC) were followed by the Roman invasion under Emperor Claudius in 43 AD, establishing Roman Britain.

Cities like Londinium (London), Eboracum (York), and Aquae Sulis (Bath) flourished. Roman governance brought roads, forts, and a mixed Romano-British culture.

Leaders like Boudica of the Iceni led uprisings against Roman occupation.

Ireland remained outside Roman control, while Scotland saw sporadic Roman campaigns, such as the construction of Hadrian's Wall to defend against the Picts.

Early Middle Ages

The collapse of Roman rule in 410 AD led to a period of migration, conflict, and cultural fusion. Germanic tribes (Angles, Saxons, Jutes) settled in Britain, displacing or assimilating the native Britons.

St. Patrick evangelized Ireland, while missionaries like St. Augustine converted Anglo-Saxon England.

In the period of the so-called Heptarchy England was divided in many Anglian, Saxon and Jute kingdoms like East Anglia, Mercia, and Wessex. Wales maintained Celtic Language and Culture, and was divided in many petty kingdoms. Scotland was unified under Kenneth MacAlpin. In this period Ireland was divided in several Gaelic Kingdoms.

Beginning in the late 8th century, Norse raiders attacked monasteries and settlements, later establishing the Danelaw in eastern England.

Amidst the Norse Invasions, the king of Wessex Alfred the Great declared himself King of the Anglo-Saxons in 886. By 927 AD Æthelstan (reigned 924-939) reconquered all the territories occupied by the Norsemen.

High Middle Ages

In 1066 the last Anglo-Saxon King was defeated by Norman Duke William the Conqueror in the Battle of Hastings, establishing Norman rule in England and introducing feudalism..

The Normans expanded into Wales, while Scotland maintained its independence through rulers like William Wallace and Robert the Bruce.

Anglo-Norman lords began settling in Ireland, marking the start of English influence.

In 1215 English barons forced King John to sign the Magna Carta, limiting royal power and laying the groundwork for constitutional governance.

Late Middle Ages

The Wars of Scottish Independence (1296-1357) cemented Scotland's autonomy under leaders like Robert the Bruce.

England and France engaged in a protracted conflict, the Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453), which saw victories like Agincourt (1415) but ultimately led to England's loss of continental territories.

The Wars of the Roses (1455-1487) between the houses of Lancaster and York ended with Henry Tudor’s victory and the rise of the Tudor dynasty.

Early modern period

The early modern era saw religious upheaval, colonial expansion, and the union of crowns.

Henry VIII’s break from the Catholic Church (1534) created the Church of England, sparking conflicts with Catholics and Puritans.

In the 16th century the whole of Wales was annexed by England and incorporated within the English legal system under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542.

The accession of James VI and I in 1603 resulted in the Union of the Crowns, with the Stuart dynasty ruling the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland. Under the Stuarts, England plunged into civil war, which culminated in the execution of Charles I in 1649. The monarchy was restored under Charles II, and the Glorious Revolution (1688) ensured Protestant succession.

This period also saw the English colonization of the Americas, India, Africa and Indonesia.

In 1707 the acts of Union merged the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland into a single Kingdom of Great Britain.

French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Period (1789-1815)

Great Britain was the main enemy of France during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic period. France enacted the Continental Blockade in an effort to damage the economy of Britain. Great Britain and a coalition of European powers defeated of Napoleon at Waterloo (1815).

During the Wars, Britain occupied most of the French and Dutch overseas possessions.

Inspired by revolutionary ideals, Ireland saw an unsuccessful rebellion against British rule.

The Acts of Union of 1801 merged the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland into one sovereign state.

19th Century

Britain became the world's leading imperial power, dominating trade and colonization. In this period Great Britain was mostly in peace with the other Great Powers. It did however engage in extensive wars in Africa and Asia to expand the Empire. Due to the relative peace (between the western countries) and the British hegemony, this period is often called the Pax Britannica. Great Britain was the first industrialized country. Great Britain (with the Empire) was also the largest economy of the world in terms of GDP in this period.

The Great Famine devastated Ireland, leading to mass emigration and rising nationalist movements.

From 1900 to the End of World War II

The United Kingdom was a leading Allied Power during the First World War.

Colonies with consistent English-speaking population (Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland and South Africa) became self-governing Dominions and eventually independent coutnries.

With the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921), Ireland gained independence as the Irish Free State, while Northern Ireland remained part of the United Kingdom.

During World War II, Britain played a central role in defeating Nazi Germany, enduring the Blitz and leading the Allied war effort under Winston Churchill.

Cold War Period

As one of the victorious allies of World War II, Great Britain became one of the founding countries of the United Nations (with veto power) and of NATO. However, Great Britain was not able to stop the wave of decolonisation that followed the war. Immediately after World War II, India, Pakistan, Burma, and Ceylon became independent coutnries. In the following decades the Empire dissolved. By the end of the Cold War period, the British possessions were reduced to some islands scattered around the world.

Northern Ireland experienced violent conflict between unionists and nationalists, leading to significant unrest.

Post-Cold War Period (1990-2010)

The Good Friday Agreement (1998) largely ended The Troubles in Northern Ireland.

Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland gained greater autonomy through new parliaments and assemblies.

Hong Kong was one of the last British possessions to gain independence in 1997.

2010s and 2020s

The UK voted to leave the European Union ("Brexit"), reshaping its global role. Renewed calls for Scottish independence followed the Brexit vote.