“England” comes from the Old English for “land of the Angles”; the Angles were a Germanic tribe that settled in the Early Middle Ages. This sets the tone for the history of the country itself. England is influenced hugely by the European continent, which can be seen in its language, culture, religion, politics and economics. It has a history going back long before the middle ages, and again this is inextricably intertwined with Europe. But whilst England is influenced by Europe, it has a culture of its own.
The history of England is so dramatic that it has been the inspiration of many works of art, books and films, with all of these taking some artistic licence. Add to that the polishing that the victor gives to their personal story, and the history with which you may be familiar is likely to be, at least in part, an utter fabrication!
The English landscape, if we were forced to choose a single word, can best be described as pastoral rather than dramatic. The highest “mountain” in England isn’t the highest in the UK, or even Great Britain… or, to be honest, even the second highest. And it isn’t even called a mountain. But it is… beautiful.
