To understand a country well and the character of its inhabitants, some history is needed. We are all influenced more than we imagine by images of the past, true or false, historical or legendary. Any account of British history is, however, whether long or short, an interpretation. No one person would agree with another what to put in, what to leave out, and how to say it. What follows tries to be a coherent if brief narrative of how the different nations came together. However it also mentions some events and persons, which, while not always important parts of that narrative of the making of the British state, yet are often mentioned in books, newspapers, broadcasts and sometimes in conversation, and might puzzle new arrivals to our shores.

 The name of the country on British passports is "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.” This refers to the union of what were once four separate countries: England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland (though most of Ireland is now independent). Most people, however, say, "Britain" or "Great Britain.” Usually "Britain" refers to the mainland and "Great Britain" includes Northern Ireland, and also the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man who have different institutions of government. But even the British can get confused with these different names and usages.

Scots and Welsh if asked, "What is your citizenship?" will correctly say "British,” and if asked, "What is your nationality?" they will almost always reply "Scottish" or “Welsh". But the native-born English, outnumbering the others by nine to one, will often give the same answer to both questions, as if his or her nationality as well as citizenship was British. So in the United Kingdom national identity and a strong and proud sense of citizenship is not always the same thing.

 "British" conveys those institutions, values, and beliefs that the four nations have in common. These are the laws and customs of the constitution, the crown as a symbol of unity and, for over three centuries, parliamentary and representative government. Originally, relatively few people had the vote but nowadays we are a democracy in which almost everyone over the age of eighteen has the right to vote. However, there are real and valued differences in the broader cultures and ways of life of the four nations. For instance we name poetry, novels and folk song English, Irish, Scottish, or Welsh, rarely if ever "British". Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have recently gained subsidiary parliaments or assemblies with important though limited powers. A common democratic and, with few exceptions, a mutually tolerant politics binds us all together. But apart from politics, the different senses of national identity have created four separate national football teams, and these are recognised in international competitions! Nothing is simple, however: for rugby union the three nations also compete separately but the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland combine in one team. In international cricket, England stands or falls alone, though its team may include players from Wales.

 EARLY BRITAIN.

 The Roman conquest Unity came from conquest. In the beginning of history there were no nations in these Islands, only local tribes. Their great monument was Stonehenge, still standing in what is now Wiltshire. Later came the Celtic tribes, who developed a sophisticated culture and economy.

 The Romans, who had conquered and given law and order to the whole Mediterranean world, began to expand into Britain some decades after Julius Caesar had made an exploratory foray into Britain in 55 Be. Not until the following century did they return to conquer and establish control of the entire island except Wales and the north. There was strong opposition from the native inhabitants; one great revolt is still remembered in the name of Boudicca, the Queen of the Iceni tribe in eastern England. To keep out the warlike Celts to the north, the Emperor Hadrian had a wall built across the narrow neck of land between the North Sea and the Irish Channel. Large parts of Hadrian's Wall can still be seen. This division eventually created a kingdom of Scotland.

 The fertile lands of Britain led the Romans to call it "the granary of the north". The civilisation they brought with them had a lasting effect. By the time their armies left around 410 AD to defend Rome against invasions of migrating peoples, they had established medical practice, a language of administration and law and had created great public buildings and roads. The routes taken by the main Roman roads are still followed today. Many English words are derived from the Latin language of the Romans. The Romans had no concept of race and little

ethnic prejudice. Anyone who obeyed Roman laws and acted like Roman could become a Roman citizen. Before the time of the Emperors Rome had been a republic with a large class of free citizens. The memory of this was never forgotten in the whole of Europe. In Britain a literate administrative and trading class of Romanised Celts emerged, although few among the common people, the peasants, labourers and farmers, could speak Latin.

 The coming of the Norsemen

 Even before the Romans withdrew, Jutes, Angles and Saxons from Denmark and north Germany had begun to raid across the North Sea and then to invade as settlers seeking better land. The Celts were pushed to the western fringes of Britain, despite resistance perhaps led, at one time, by a Romano-Celtic warlord, who became the mythical King Arthur. Invaders took over eastern Britain, largely ignoring the already decaying Roman culture. The Saxons soon dominated and rival kingdoms were established. But during this time missionaries from Rome spread Christianity across southern Britain, while in the north monks from Ireland converted the land.

 In the eighth and ninth centuries, Viking warriors from Denmark and Norway first plundered the coastal lands from the sea and then they came to settle and farm, conquering most of the east of England and the north-east of Scotland. Eventually the kingdom of Wessex, under King Alfred, a scholar, lawgiver, and warrior, united the Saxons and defeated the Danish and Viking armies. But most of the Danes remained, having settled as farmers, been converted to Christianity, and inter-married with the existing population. The Scots and the Irish also came to free themselves from Viking raiders and armies, but again some settlers remained.

 The great mixing of peoples had begun. Centuries later Daniel Defoe, the author of Robinson Crusoe, called us proudly "the mongrel breed", mocking beliefs that the aristocracy were of pure Norman and the common people of pure Saxon descent.

 The Norman Conquest

 Saxon rule did not last. A dispute over the inheritance of the crown led William, Duke of Normandy, to sail from France, land on the south coast and defeat King Harold of England at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. That is one date that proverbially "every schoolchild knows,” being the last foreign conquest of England.

 Unlike the Romans, who governed through local chiefs and leaders (somewhat like the indirect rule that centuries later the British practised in the Indian sub-continent), the Norman aristocracy took complete ownership of all the land and themselves governed with new systems of law and administration. William ordered the first ever census of property values called The Domesday Book. Military power depended on the ability to raise taxes. Norman- French became the official language - although Anglo-Saxon continued to be spoken by the common people. They conquered the south of Wales, established a foothold in Ireland, but made no attempt to conquer Scotland. But the Scottish kings and nobility in the lowlands were much influenced by Norman-French culture. There was migration and intermarrying of noble families so that some great nobles held land on both sides of the border. The highlands and the islands of Scotland remained firmly Celtic or Gaelic in language and tribal culture.

To be continued ..........