The Dregruk Empire
28-01-2007, 02:28
The United Kingdom of Britain and Ireland
http://www.instoneinc.com/gallery/Rule%20Britannia-Smp-Flap%20&%20NT.jpg
The Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England had existed as separate states with their own monarchs and political structures since the 9th century. The once independent Principality of Wales fell under the control of English monarchs from the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284, becoming itself part of the Kingdom of England by the Laws in Wales Act 1535. With the Act of Union 1707, the independent states of England (including Wales) and Scotland, having been in personal union since 1603, agreed to a political union as the Kingdom of Great Britain. The Act of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain with the Kingdom of Ireland, which had been gradually brought under English control between 1541 and 1691, to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Capitals: London (England), Edinburgh (Scotland), Cardiff (Wales) and Dublin (Ireland)
Population: ~41m
Current Sovereign: Queen Victoria
Army: In peacetime, Britain has generally maintained only a small professional volunteer army, expanding this as required in time of war, due to Britain's traditional role as a sea power. Since 1745, the army has played little or no role in British domestic politics, and, other than in Ireland, has seldom been deployed against internal threats.
Navy: The British Royal Navy does not have a well-defined moment of formation; it started out as a motley assortment of "King's ships" during the Middle Ages, assembled only as needed and then dispersed, began to take shape as a standing navy during the 16th century, and became a regular establishment during the tumults of the 17th century. The Navy grew considerably during the global struggle with France that started in 1690 and culminated in the Napoleonic Wars, a time when the practice of fighting under sail was developed to its highest point. The ensuing century of general peace saw considerable technological development, with sail yielding to steam and cannon supplanted by large shell-firing guns, and ending with the race to construct bigger and better battleships. The Napoleonic Wars left Great Britain the most powerful naval country in the world, with no meaningful rivals. The country's economic and strategic strength was buttressed by the fleet; localized military action was a staple of the not-entirely-peaceful "Pax Britannica". In addition, the threat of naval force was a significant factor in diplomacy. The navy was not idle, however; the 19th century witnessed a series of transformations that turned the old wooden sailing navy into one of steam and steel.
http://www.instoneinc.com/gallery/Rule%20Britannia-Smp-Flap%20&%20NT.jpg
The Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England had existed as separate states with their own monarchs and political structures since the 9th century. The once independent Principality of Wales fell under the control of English monarchs from the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284, becoming itself part of the Kingdom of England by the Laws in Wales Act 1535. With the Act of Union 1707, the independent states of England (including Wales) and Scotland, having been in personal union since 1603, agreed to a political union as the Kingdom of Great Britain. The Act of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain with the Kingdom of Ireland, which had been gradually brought under English control between 1541 and 1691, to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Capitals: London (England), Edinburgh (Scotland), Cardiff (Wales) and Dublin (Ireland)
Population: ~41m
Current Sovereign: Queen Victoria
Army: In peacetime, Britain has generally maintained only a small professional volunteer army, expanding this as required in time of war, due to Britain's traditional role as a sea power. Since 1745, the army has played little or no role in British domestic politics, and, other than in Ireland, has seldom been deployed against internal threats.
Navy: The British Royal Navy does not have a well-defined moment of formation; it started out as a motley assortment of "King's ships" during the Middle Ages, assembled only as needed and then dispersed, began to take shape as a standing navy during the 16th century, and became a regular establishment during the tumults of the 17th century. The Navy grew considerably during the global struggle with France that started in 1690 and culminated in the Napoleonic Wars, a time when the practice of fighting under sail was developed to its highest point. The ensuing century of general peace saw considerable technological development, with sail yielding to steam and cannon supplanted by large shell-firing guns, and ending with the race to construct bigger and better battleships. The Napoleonic Wars left Great Britain the most powerful naval country in the world, with no meaningful rivals. The country's economic and strategic strength was buttressed by the fleet; localized military action was a staple of the not-entirely-peaceful "Pax Britannica". In addition, the threat of naval force was a significant factor in diplomacy. The navy was not idle, however; the 19th century witnessed a series of transformations that turned the old wooden sailing navy into one of steam and steel.