The England You Never Knew
Many people are familiar with the England they see on television and
the news media but there are some interesting facts about this European county
that are little known and might surprise you.
England, even though it is
regarded as a large country, is less than half the size of America. It is
half as small as Australia
and thirty percent smaller than Japan.
It holds almost three times as many people as Australia
and twice as many as the state of California.
London has a
total population of over twelve million people. It is the largest city in all
of Europe and was once the biggest city in the
world. With all these people living here, it is no surprise that England
consumes more tea than any other place in the world. Its tea consumption far surpasses
that of Japan!
From the beginning of the 11th century through the 14th
century, the rulers of England
spoke French. Richard the Lionheart, one
of England’s most famous
kings, spoke no English, hated the weather and spent only 6 months of his
ten-year-reign in England. Still, his English subjects loved him and
almost beggared themselves to collect an enormous ransom to free him from
captivity in Austria.
The English school system is another oddity. While there’s now a reasonably good state
school system in place, the well-bred and the well-off still send their
children to Public Schools ? which are actually private and extremely costly ?
as they have done for centuries. In the
past, these schools were the jumping board into England’s famous universities. Now anyone who can pass the entry exam will
earn a place, but Oxford
University still has a
rule that forbids its students to bring their bows and arrows to class with
them!
And if you consider that London
is one of the largest cities in the world, one of the largest financial centers
in the world and has ? in London Heathrow ? one of the busiest international
airports in the world ? would it then amaze you to learn that English police
officers go about their duties unarmed? How totally unique is that?
About Author:
Please visit http://www.essentially-england.com/ to learn about England’s history,food and culture. Check out some
interesting facts like staying in a lighthouse, driving a steam train
and playing golf late at night.
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