England is not a country?

Last night I had an opportunity to have to think a bit... My neighbor Sean Vest just returned home from an LDS Mission to Leeds England... and someone at his welcome home party asked a question about...

"What is the difference between England, Britain and the UK"?

It made me think... I thought I knew the answer - and answered accordingly. But this morning I wanted proof that I was correct, and so did a bit of research and here are the results.

By the way... my answer last night was correct, but it's so much easier to explain with pictures and maps.

First, the players - England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland. Each of these is a distinct area on the map. England and Scotland were once Kingdoms, and Wales a Principality.

Britain - an old Roman term describing the area of just Wales and England.

Great Britain - Wales, England and ScotlandUnited Kingdom - Wales, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland (this is a country today)British Isles - all the above, plus the Republic of Ireland and all the little islandsBritish Empire - All of the British Isles, plus all of their past coloniesThe Flag of the United Kingdom is blue; the red cross of Saint George (England's patron saint) edged in white is superimposed on red cross of Saint Patrick (Ireland's patron) and white cross of Saint Andrew (Scotland's patron saint); properly called Union Flag. This is a combination of the England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland flags.