A surprising number of citizenship candidates lose easy marks by confusing the United Kingdom, Great Britain and the British Isles. This article fixes that once and for all.
The four countries
- England — capital London — flag St George's Cross (red on white).
- Scotland — capital Edinburgh — flag St Andrew's Cross (white saltire on blue).
- Wales — capital Cardiff — flag of the red dragon (Y Ddraig Goch) on green and white.
- Northern Ireland — capital Belfast — uses the Ulster Banner unofficially; the official flag of Northern Ireland is the Union Jack.
United Kingdom vs Great Britain vs British Isles
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the formal name of the sovereign state. It contains all four countries. Great Britain refers only to the largest island and so includes England, Scotland and Wales but not Northern Ireland. The British Isles is a wider geographical term that also includes the Republic of Ireland and the Crown Dependencies (Channel Islands and the Isle of Man).
Further reading: a related editorial guide on this topic opens in a new window for additional context.
Patron saints and saint days
- St George — England — 23 April.
- St Andrew — Scotland — 30 November.
- St David — Wales — 1 March.
- St Patrick — Northern Ireland — 17 March.
The Union Jack
The Union Jack combines the crosses of three patron saints: the red on white cross of St George (England), the white on blue saltire of St Andrew (Scotland) and the red on white saltire of St Patrick (then all of Ireland). Wales is not directly represented because it had been formally united with England before the Union Flag was created.
Keep going
- Read the full study notes for What is the UK.
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