England

England is the largest and most populous constituent country of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total population of the United Kingdom, whilst the mainland territory of England occupies most of the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west. Elsewhere, it is bordered by the North Sea, Irish Sea, Celtic Sea, Bristol Channel and English Channel.

England became a unified state during the 10th century and takes its name from the Angles, one of a number of Germanic tribes who settled in the territory during the 5th and 6th centuries. The capital of England is London, which is the largest urban area in Great Britain.

England in Atlantis
England was on the verge of civil war in 1452. When Edward Radcliffe and his sons learned of the existence of Atlantis, they saw an opportunity to escape from England's more oppressive institutions, the war included.  Subsequently, the war drove even more refugees to Atlantis, creating the colonies of New Hastings, Freetown, and Bredestown.

The strong presence of English settlers in Atlantis insured that the conflicts of the home island would impact the Atlanteans, many of whom wanted England kept at a distance.

Nonetheless, English affairs found their way onto Atlantean shores. In 1470, the Earl of Warwick, a one-time supporter of Edward IV was exiled to Atlantis. He initiated a brief tyrannical reign over New Hastings before he was toppled and killed.

During the English Reformation, Henry VIII tried to impose Protestantism on the English settlements of Atlantis. While he had some success, far more English Atlanteans clung to Catholicism than did Englishmen, and the government did not have the stomach for the difficult task of suppressing recusancy in the always-willful colony.

Another century later, England again asserted itself in Atlantean affairs when the sundry pirates and corsairs who made their base in Avalon, Atlantis grew intolerable to English shipping. English naval forces joined with Dutch and Atlantean ships to form an armada to subdue the pirates once and for all. Despite these cooperation, Atlantean political leaders were able to keep the mother country at arms length.

In the eighteenth century, after England had become the core of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, England's traditional rivalry with France spilled over into Atlantis, as soldiers and subjects of both England and France did battle, with England ultimately pushing France out of Atlantis.

England in In High Places
In an alternate where the Great Black Deaths killed 4/5 of the population of Europe, England never became an important power. Instead, it was Europe's backwater (which in turn was the backwater of the world).

England in Ruled Britannia
England was ruled by Elizabeth until 1588, when it was invaded and conquered by a Spanish army under the Duke of Parma. Spain's King Philip II overthrew Elizabeth and administered England as a part of the Spanish Empire through his daughter, Isabella whom he installed as Queen of England; her husband, Albert, became King of England. This continued until Philip's death ten years later, at which point Isabella was overthrown by a plot engineered and executed by William and Robert Cecil. The Spaniards were expelled, and Elizabeth was restored to the throne.

In the sixteenth century, England alternated between the Catholic and Protestant religions as state religions on five separate occasions.