Kingdom of Great Britain

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|} The Kingdom of Great Britain, also known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain,^[1][2][3][4] was a sovereign state in northwest Europe, in existence from 1707 to 1801. It was created by the merger of the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England, under the Acts of Union 1707, to create a single kingdom encompassing the whole of the island of Great Britain and its minor outlying islands, excluding Ireland—which remained a separate jurisdiction under the British crown. A single parliament and government, based in Westminster, controlled the new kingdom. The kingdoms had shared the same monarch since James VI, King of Scots became King of England in 1603 following the death of Queen Elizabeth I.

The Kingdom of Great Britain was superseded by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on 1 January 1801, when Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland by the Acts of Union of 1800 following the suppression of the Irish Rebellion of 1798. Most of Ireland left the union in 1922, leading to another re-naming of it in 1927, to the form which still exists today. These subsequent British states are direct continuations of the Kingdom of Great Britain (albeit with territorial changes), and therefore are not generally considered successor states.

Name

While the Treaty of Union agreed between England and Scotland on 22 July 1706 refers to the new state as the United Kingdom of Great Britain, both the Treaty of Union and the subsequent Acts of Union themselves, state explicitly that the name of the new kingdom is to be Great Britain.^[5] Those who prefer to describe 'Great Britain' as the 'Kingdom of Great Britain' argue that the word "United" is only an adjective and that the term United Kingdom only came into the language with the Act of Union 1800, when it was intended to emphasize Union with Ireland.^[6] The Historical Association stated in The Times in 2006, "The United Kingdom did not come into being until 1800, with the Act of Union with Ireland."^[7]

The name "United Kingdom" is sometimes preferred for the historical Great Britain by later writers for purposes of continuity, particularly in the military and colonial spheres. At the time of the Act of Union 1800, which unambiguously styled the successor state as the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland", the British were embroiled in the Great French War and the British Empire possessed many colonies in North America, India, and Australia. Some who would otherwise prefer the term "Kingdom of Great Britain" thus use "United Kingdom" to avoid using two different names for a single military and colonial power, which may confuse the discussion.

Monarchs

• Anne (1707–1714), previously Queen of England, Queen of Scots, and Queen of Ireland since 1702.
• George I (1714–1727)
• George II (1727–1760)
• George III (1760–1801), continued as King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until 1820.

See also

• Early Modern Britain
• Georgian era

References