1.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was established as a sovereign state on 1 January 1801 by the Acts of Union 1800, which merged the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland. The growing desire for an Irish Republic led to the Irish War of Independence, Northern Ireland remained part of the United Kingdom, and the state was consequently renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Britain financed the European coalition that defeated France in 1815 in the Napoleonic Wars, the British Empire thereby became the foremost world power for the next century. The Crimean War with Russia and the Boer wars were relatively small operations in a largely peaceful century, rapid industrialisation that began in the decades prior to the states formation continued up until the mid-19th century. A devastating famine, exacerbated by government inaction in the century, led to demographic collapse in much of Ireland. It was an era of economic modernization and growth of industry, trade and finance. Outward migration was heavy to the colonies and to the United States. Britain also built up a large British Empire in Africa and Asia, India, by far the most important possession, saw a short-lived revolt in 1857. In foreign policy Britain favoured free trade, which enabled its financiers and merchants to operate successfully in many otherwise independent countries, as in South America. Britain formed no permanent military alliances until the early 20th century, when it began to cooperate with Japan, France and Russia, and moved closer to the United States. A brief period of limited independence for Ireland came to an end following the Irish Rebellion of 1798, the British governments fear of an independent Ireland siding against them with the French resulted in the decision to unite the two countries. This was brought about by legislation in the parliaments of both kingdoms and came into effect on 1 January 1801, however, King George III was bitterly opposed to any such Emancipation and succeeded in defeating his governments attempts to introduce it. When the Treaty of Amiens ended the war, Britain agreed to return most of the territories it had seized, in May 1803, war was declared again. In 1806, Napoleon issued the series of Berlin Decrees, which brought into effect the Continental System and this policy aimed to eliminate the threat from the British by closing French-controlled territory to foreign trade. Frances population and agricultural capacity far outstripped that of the British Isles, Napoleon expected that cutting Britain off from the European mainland would end its economic hegemony. The Spanish uprising in 1808 at last permitted Britain to gain a foothold on the Continent, after Napoleons surrender and exile to the island of Elba, peace appeared to have returned. The Allies united and the armies of Wellington and Blucher defeated Napoleon once, simultaneous with the Napoleonic Wars, trade disputes, arming hostile Indians and British impressment of American sailors led to the War of 1812 with the United States. The war was little noticed in Britain, which could devote few resources to the conflict until the fall of Napoleon in 1814, American frigates inflicted a series of defeats on the Royal Navy, which was short on manpower due to the conflict in Europe
2.
Sandwich, Kent
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Sandwich /ˈsændwᵻdʒ/ is a historic town and civil parish on the River Stour in the non-metropolitan district of Dover, within the ceremonial county of Kent, south-east England. It has a population of 4,985, Sandwich gave its name to the bread snack by way of John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, as described below. The word sandwich is now found in many languages, Sandwich was one of the Cinque Ports and still has many original medieval buildings, including several listed public houses and gates in the old town walls, churches, almshouses and the White Mill. While once a port, it is now two miles from the sea due to the disappearance of the Wantsum Channel. Its historic centre has been preserved, Sandwich Bay is home to nature reserves and two world-class golf courses, Royal St Georges and Princes. The town is home to educational and cultural events. The place-name Sandwich is first attested in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, where it appears as Sondwic in 851, in the Domesday Book of 1086 it appears as Sandwice. The name means town on sandy soil. In 1028 King Canute granted a charter to the monks of Christ Church, Canterbury to operate a ferry across the river, in 1192, returning from the Third Crusade, Richard the Lionheart was jailed by the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI. Henry released Richard in February 1194. On 13 March 1194, Richard landed at the port of Sandwich, the coat of arms of Sandwich is Per pale Gules and Azure three demi-Lions passant guardant in pale Or conjoined with as many sterns of demi-Ships Argent. Before Sandwich became a Cinque Port, the ancient Saxon town of Stonar on the bank of the Wantsum estuary and it remained a place of considerable importance but it disappeared almost without trace in the 14th century. The ruins of the major Roman fort of Richborough are close by and it was the landing place of the Roman invasion of Britain in AD43. In 2008, an archaeological dig proved that this was a site of a Roman beachhead. On 21 May 1216, Prince Louis of France landed at Sandwich in support of the war against King John of England. The Port of Sandwich is no stranger to odd events in English history and it was here in 1255 that the first captive elephant was landed in England. The prize beast arrived at Sandwich quayside, delivered as a gift to the English monarch Henry III from the French king, and was then taken on foot to the kings menagerie in the Tower of London. The journey through Kent is reported to have proceeded without incident, except when a bull in a field by the roadside took umbrage at the great beast passing, in one move, the animal was thrown by the elephant and killed outright. The Fisher Gate on the dates from 1384, and has been scheduled as an Ancient Monument
3.
Royal Navy
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The Royal Navy is the United Kingdoms naval warfare force. Although warships were used by the English kings from the medieval period. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the early 16th century, from the middle decades of the 17th century and through the 18th century, the Royal Navy vied with the Dutch Navy and later with the French Navy for maritime supremacy. From the mid 18th century it was the worlds most powerful navy until surpassed by the United States Navy during the Second World War. The Royal Navy played a key part in establishing the British Empire as the world power during the 19th. Due to this historical prominence, it is common, even among non-Britons, following World War I, the Royal Navy was significantly reduced in size, although at the onset of the Second World War it was still the worlds largest. By the end of the war, however, the United States Navy had emerged as the worlds largest, during the Cold War, the Royal Navy transformed into a primarily anti-submarine force, hunting for Soviet submarines, mostly active in the GIUK gap. The Royal Navy is part of Her Majestys Naval Service, which includes the Royal Marines. The professional head of the Naval Service is the First Sea Lord, the Defence Council delegates management of the Naval Service to the Admiralty Board, chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence. The strength of the fleet of the Kingdom of England was an important element in the power in the 10th century. English naval power declined as a result of the Norman conquest. Medieval fleets, in England as elsewhere, were almost entirely composed of merchant ships enlisted into service in time of war. Englands naval organisation was haphazard and the mobilisation of fleets when war broke out was slow, early in the war French plans for an invasion of England failed when Edward III of England destroyed the French fleet in the Battle of Sluys in 1340. Major fighting was confined to French soil and Englands naval capabilities sufficed to transport armies and supplies safely to their continental destinations. Such raids halted finally only with the occupation of northern France by Henry V. Henry VII deserves a large share of credit in the establishment of a standing navy and he embarked on a program of building ships larger than heretofore. He also invested in dockyards, and commissioned the oldest surviving dry dock in 1495 at Portsmouth, a standing Navy Royal, with its own secretariat, dockyards and a permanent core of purpose-built warships, emerged during the reign of Henry VIII. Under Elizabeth I England became involved in a war with Spain, the new regimes introduction of Navigation Acts, providing that all merchant shipping to and from England or her colonies should be carried out by English ships, led to war with the Dutch Republic. In the early stages of this First Anglo-Dutch War, the superiority of the large, heavily armed English ships was offset by superior Dutch tactical organisation and the fighting was inconclusive
4.
Ashford, Kent
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Ashford is a town in the county of Kent, England. It lies on the River Great Stour at the edge of the North Downs. In the 2011 census, it had a population of 74,204, the name comes from the Old English æscet, indicating a ford near a clump of ash trees. It has been a town since the 13th century. Ashford has been a hub and has stood at the centre of five railway lines since the 19th century. The arrival of the railways became a source of employment and contributed to the towns growth, with the opening of the international passenger station it is now a European communications centre, with new lines running between London and the Channel Tunnel. The M20 motorway also links Ashford to those two destinations for road traffic, the town has been marked as a place for expansion since the 1960s and appeared on several Government plans for growth. Changes have included the County Square shopping centre, the redevelopment of the Templer Barracks at Repton Park, and the award-winning Ashford Designer Outlet. In the 1970s, a ring road scheme and construction of the multi storey Charter House building destroyed significant parts of the old town. St Marys Church in Ashford has been a landmark since the 13th century. Today, the functions in a dual role as a centre for worship. Ashford has two schools, the Norton Knatchbull School and Highworth Grammar School. There has been evidence of habitation around Ashford since the Iron Age. Two axes from the Lower Paleolithic period have been found near Ashford, during the construction of the Park Farm estate in the late 1990s, excavation in the area revealed tools from the Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic period dating back to the 7th century BC. A number of other Mesolithic tools were discovered during construction of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link through Ashford, during Roman Britain, iron ore was mined in the Weald and transported to Ashford where two ironworks processed the ore into a workable metal. Archaeological studies have revealed the existence of a Roman town to the north of the current centre, roughly at the junction of Albert Road and Wall Road. The present town originates from a settlement established in 893 AD by inhabitants escaping a Danish Viking raid. The name comes from the Old English æscet, indicating a ford near a clump of ash trees, at the time of the Domesday Book of 1086 it was still known by its original Saxon name of Essetesford
5.
Royal Military College, Sandhurst
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The RMC was reorganised at the outbreak of the Second World War, but some of its units remained operational at Sandhurst and Aldershot. In 1947, the Royal Military College was merged with the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, general Sir William Harcourt was appointed as the first Governor of the Royal Military College at Great Marlow and continued in post until 1811. In 1799, a school for officers had been established at High Wycombe. In 1858 this became an institution, the Staff College. In 1942, this moved to Mons Barracks, Aldershot. In 1812, the posts of Lieutenant Governor and Commandant were merged into the role of Commandant, in 1888 the two remaining senior posts, Governor and Commandant, were merged into the single appointment of Governor and Commandant, which in 1902 was retitled as Commandant
6.
Sandhurst, Berkshire
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Sandhurst is a small town and civil parish in England of 7,966 homes and 20,803 inhabitants, primarily domiciliary in nature with a few light industries. Sandhurst is known worldwide as the location of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, despite its close proximity to Camberley, Sandhurst is also home to a large and well-known out-of-town mercantile development. The site is named The Meadows and has a Tesco Extra hypermarket, a large Next plc clothing and homeware store is open on the site of the old Homebase. Sandhurst is located at grid reference SU836618, Sandhurst is situated within the South East of England on the border of the Home Counties of Berkshire, Hampshire and Surrey. The town itself consists of four districts, from west to east, Little Sandhurst, Sandhurst and College Town. North of the town are Edgbarrow Woods and Wildmoor Heath, to the east is Broadmoor Bottom, an expanse of heathland together with fir tree plantations. This eventually backs onto the high-security Broadmoor Hospital, Sandhurst is bordered, on the south, by the River Blackwater, and several of the Yateley Lakes along its course are within the parish, notably Trilakes with its country park. This is also the county boundary with Hampshire at Blackwater, the town of Crowthorne is to the north, the village of Finchampstead to the west, and Camberley, across the Surrey county boundary, is on its southeastern side. This is the closest sizeable town, though Sandhurst is also only 9.5 km south of the new town of Bracknell, the soil is sandy, with a subsoil of sand and gravel. Sandhurst lies just off the A30, is close to junction 4 of the M3 motorway and within reach of the M4 via the Crowthorne bypass to Bracknell. Sandhurst railway station is served by First Great Western, on the line between Gatwick, Guildford and Reading, Sandhurst has representation through several tiers of government – town council, unitary authority, parliamentary. Its Town Council is divided into four wards, Central Sandhurst, Little Sandhurst, College Town and Owlsmoor and it is also part of the Bracknell Forest District. The ancient parish of Sandhurst also covered Crowthorne, until this became a parish in its own right in 1874. The current Mayor of Sandhurst is Councillor Philip Wallington, the name of the village is Anglo-Saxon and originates from the sandy soils and the hurst of the area. These lands belonged to the Bishops of Salisbury, there were two manors in Sandhurst, ‘Hall’ in the grounds of what is now the Royal Military Academy and ‘Sandhurst’ on the site of Sandhurst Lodge. Nothing remains of the original buildings, in the early modern era, Sandhurst parish was a small farming community on the very edge of Windsor Forest, Sandhurst Walke being an important forest division subject to forest laws. Locals had the right to cut turf, bracken, heather and these were hunted by Royal parties from a hunting lodge in the vicinity of Harts Leap Road. A number of disputes are on record, showing how Sandhurst people sometimes took more resources than was allowed
7.
British Army
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The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
8.
Naturalization
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Naturalization is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen in a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done by a statute, without any effort on the part of the individual, or it may involve an application, an oath or pledge of allegiance is also sometimes required. In some rare cases, laws for mass naturalization were passed, since World War II, the increase in international migrations created a new category of refugees, most of them economic refugees. The Peoples Republic of China gives citizenship to persons with one or two parents with Chinese nationality who have not taken residence in other countries, the country also gives citizenship to people born on its territory to stateless people who have settled there. Furthermore, individuals may apply for nationality if they have a relative with Chinese nationality, if they have settled in China. In practice, only few people gain Chinese citizenship, as of 2010, the naturalization process starts with a written application. Applicants must also submit original copies of a passport, a residence permit, a permanent residence permit. The Indian citizenship and nationality law and the Constitution of India provides single citizenship for the entire country, the provisions relating to citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution are contained in Articles 5 to 11 in Part II of the Constitution of India. Relevant Indian legislation is the Citizenship Act 1955, which has been amended by the Citizenship Act 1986, the Citizenship Act 1992, the Citizenship Act 2003, and the Citizenship Ordinance 2005. The Citizenship Act 2003 received the assent of the President of India on 7 January 2004, the Citizenship Ordinance 2005 was promulgated by the President of India and came into force on 28 June 2005. Following these reforms, Indian nationality law largely follows the jus sanguinis as opposed to the jus soli, Indonesian nationality is regulated by Law No. The Indonesian nationality law is based on jus sanguinis and jus soli, the Indonesian nationality law does not recognize dual citizenship except for persons under the age of 18. After reaching 18 years of age individuals are forced to choose one citizenship, Israels Declaration of Independence was made on 14 May 1948, the day before the British Mandate was due to expire as a result of the United Nations Partition Plan. The Israeli parliament created two laws regarding immigration, citizenship and naturalization, the Law of Return and the Israeli nationality law, the Law of Return, enacted on July 15,1950, gives Jews living anywhere in the world the right to immigrate to Israel. This right to immigrate did not and still does not grant citizenship, in fact, for four years after Israel gained independence, there were no Israeli citizens. On July 14,1952, the Israeli parliament enacted the Israeli Nationality Law. The Nationality Law naturalized all citizens of Mandated Palestine, the inhabitants of Israel on July 15,1952, because of Israels relatively new and culturally mixed identity, Israel does not grant citizenship to persons born on Israeli soil. Instead, the government chose to enact a jus sanguinis system, there is currently no legislation on second-generation immigrants
9.
Teetotalism
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Teetotalism is the practice or promotion of complete personal abstinence from alcoholic beverages. A person who practices teetotalism is called a teetotaler or is said to be teetotal. The teetotalism movement was first started in Preston, England, in the early 19th century, there is some dispute over the origin of the word teetotaler. One anecdote attributes the origin of the word to a meeting of the Preston Temperance Society in 1833, the story attributes the word to Richard Turner, a member of the society, who in a speech said Ill be reet down out-and-out t-t-total for ever and ever. A variation on the account is found on the pages of The Charleston Observer, Teetotalers. --The origin of this convenient word, is, we imagine, known. Hence total abstainers have been called teetotalers, an alternative explanation is that teetotal is simply a reduplication of the first T in total. It is said that as early as 1827 in some Temperance Societies signing a T after ones name signified ones pledge for total abstinence, according to historian Daniel Walker Howe the term was derived from the practice of American preacher and temperance advocate Lyman Beecher. He would take names at his meetings of people who pledged alcoholic temperance, such persons became known as Teetotallers. Some common reasons for choosing teetotalism are psychological, religious, health, medical, familial, philosophical and social, alcoholism, or sometimes it is simply a matter of taste or preference. When at drinking establishments, teetotalers either abstain from drinking completely, or consume non-alcoholic beverages such as water, juice, tea, coffee, most teetotaler organizations also demand from their members that they do not promote or produce alcoholic intoxicants. Methodists also historically abstained from alcohol, though many Methodist denominations no longer teach this, members are also required to refrain from selling such products. A translation of the New Testament, the Purified Translation of the Bible, abstention from alcohol is a tenet of a number of religious faiths, including those of the Sikhs, Baháís, Hare Krishnas, Hindus, Jains, and Meivazhi-ites, Pillays. Khamr is the term for all intoxicants which are prohibited in Islam, a number of Christian denominations also forbid the consumption of alcohol, including the Amish, Seventh-day Adventists, Mennonites, Church of the Brethren members, and Christian Scientists. Many Christian groups, such as Methodists, Mormons, and Quakers, are associated with teetotalism due to their traditionally strong support for temperance movements. However, tenets forbidding the consumption of alcohol are variably practiced, in many Christian denominations, abstinence is not a religious requirement, but the tradition is strong enough to make ritual and recreational alcohol consumption a controversial issue among members. Members of the Salvation Army make a promise on joining the movement to observe lifelong abstinence from alcohol, several authors have conducted research looking at the social and subjective experiences of young people who do not drink alcohol in varied social settings. A2015 study by the Office for National Statistics showed that young Britons were more likely to be teetotallers than their parents
