Pray for England

England is part of the United Kingdom and makes up the central/southern part of Great Britain.
It is bordered by Scotland in the north and Wales in the west, the Irish Sea
in the north west, the Celtic Sea in the south west, the North Sea in the east
and the English Channel in the south.

The country includes over 100 smaller islands including Portsea Island,
the Isles of Scilly, the Isle of Wight and the Isle of Sheppey.

London is the capital and largest city.
The population is over 53 million.

FACTS
The name 'England' means 'Land of the Angles'.

English is the most widely used language in the world.

London was founded by Rome in 43 A.D.

According to legend Glastonbury Abbey was founded by Joseph of Arimathea
during the 1st century.

Sherwood Forest is a Royal Forest in Nottinghamshire, England.
It is famous for its association with the legend of Robin Hood.

The University of Oxford (founded 1096) is the oldest university in the English-speaking world,
and the 2nd oldest surviving university in the world.

The King James Version of the Bible (1611) has been ranked, along with Shakespeare's works,
as the greatest masterpiece of English literature.

At its height, the British Empire (1583-1914) was the largest empire in history
and covered a 4th of the planet's surface.

During the Victorian Era (1837-1901) London was the largest metropolitan area in
the world.

The Big Ben clock tower was built in 1858.
It is the largest four-faced chiming clock in the world.
 
Collies originated in Scotland and northern England.
The Bulldog and English Sheepdog were also bred in England.

DEMOGRAPHICS
85.5%  White
7.7%    Asian
3.4%    Black
2.2%    Mixed
1.0%    Other

59.4%   Christian
24.7%   None
7.2%    Undeclared
5.0%    Muslim
1.5%    Hindu
0.8%    Sikh
0.5%    Jewish
0.5%    Buddhist
0.4%    Other

FAMOUS ENGLISH
Rulers
King Arthur (Late 5th-early 6th century)
William I/William the Conqueror (1028 –1087)
Richard I (The Lionheart) (1157 – 1199)
Henry VIII (1491-1547)
Elizabeth I (1533 – 1603)
Queen Victoria (1819 – 1901)
Elizabeth II (b 1926)

Other Leaders
Sir Francis Drake (1540–1596)
Oliver Cromwell (1599–1658)
Winston Churchill  (1874 – 1965)

Scientists
Isaac Newton  (1642 – 1727)  Physicist and mathematician
Charles Robert Darwin, (1809-1882) Naturalist
Stephen William Hawking,  (b 1942) Physicist and cosmologist

Theologians
John Wycliffe ( 1320-1384)     Scholar and Bible translator
William Tyndale (c. 1494–1536)  Scholar and Bible Translator
John Wesley ( 1703-1791)

Philosophers
John Locke  (1632 –1704)
Thomas Paine (1737-1809)

Writers
Geoffrey Chaucer (1343-1400)  Author of The Canterbury Tales
William Shakespeare (1564- 1616)  Poet and playwright
John Milton (1608 – 1674)    Author of ‘Paradise Lost’
John Bunyan (1628 – 1688)    Author of ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’
Mary Shelley (1797 – 1851)   Author of ‘Frankenstein’
Charles Dickens (1812–1870)  Author of ‘Christmas Carol’
Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930) Author of ‘Sherlock Holmes’
Herbert George Wells (1866–1946) Author, Regarded as a "father of science fiction"
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien   (1892–1973) Author of ‘The Hobbit’, and ‘Lord of the Rings’
Joanne "Jo" Rowling (b 1965) Author of the 'Harry Potter' Series

Musicians
Elton Hercules John  (b 1947)
Roderick David "Rod" Stewart  (b 1945)

Music Bands
The Beatles          Formed in Liverpool, in 1960
The Rolling Stones   Formed in London in 1962
Led Zeppelin         Formed in London in 1968
Pink Floyd           Formed in 1965
Queen                Formed in London in 1970

Movie Actors
Christopher Lee  (b 1922)         Starred in 'Hobbit', 'Lord of the Rings'
Richard Attenborough (b 1923)     Starred in 'Miracle on 34th Street' and 'Jurassic Park'
Hugh John Grant    (b 1960)       Starred in 'Bridget Jones's Diary'
Christian Bale (b 1974)           Starred in 'Batman Begins'
Benedict Cumberbatch (b 1976)     Starred in 'Sherlock' tv series.
Thomas "Tom" Hiddleston (b 1981)  Starred in 'War Horse', 'Thor' and 'Avengers'

HISTORY
England has been inhabited for thousands of years.

People from the Beaker culture arrived in England around 2500 B.C.
The Beakers built the Neolithic monuments of Stonehenge and Avebury.

Around 800-100 B.C. England was settled by Celtic groups.

Julius Caesar attempted to invade England twice in 55 B.C. but was unsuccessful.

Rome invaded and conquered England and Wales in 43 A.D.
London was the first Roman settlement in Britain.

England was under Roman rule until the 5th century.
During this time the inhabitants were called Britons.

In 60 A.D Boudica/Boadicea, Queen of the Celtic Iceni tribe led an unsuccessful
uprising against Roman forces.

Roman forces withdrew from Britain in 410 A.D.

After the Romans withdrew, Germanic tribes (Angles, Saxons and Jutes) invaded
and settled in England.

The Britons fought for years to repel the Saxon invaders.
One of the leaders during this time was King Arthur.

By the 7th century the Angles and Saxons had established several kingdoms:
East Anglia
Essex
Kent
Mercia
Northumbria
Sussex
Wessex

Their territory was called 'Engla-Land' (Land of the Angles) which in time became 'England.'
From the Angles and Saxons came the term 'Anglo-Saxon'.

During the 9th -10th centuries Vikings invaded and conquered large areas of England.

In 1066 the Normans, under William the Conqueror, conquered England.

In 1282 England gained control of Wales.

During the Hundred Years War (1337-1453) England and France fought a series of wars
for control of France.

In 1348 the Black Death (bubonic plague) wiped out half of the population.

During the War of the Roses (1453-1487) two branches of the royal family
(The House of York and The House of Lancastrians) fought a civil war for
control of England.

Eventually a branch of the Lancastrians, led by Henry Tudor, gained control.

From 1485-1603 the Tudor Dynasty ruled England.
During this time England began to develop naval skills and explored the Americas.

In 1534 Henry VIII broke with the Catholic Church over issues of divorce
and established the Church of England.

Wales was officially annexed by England in 1536.

Roanoke, England's 1st American colony, was founded in Virginia in 1585.
Jamestown, the 1st permanent settlement was founded in 1607.
Plymouth was founded in Massachusetts in 1620.

During the 17th-18th centuries, England established many territories in Canada,
North America, the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, Australia and the Pacific.

From 1642-1651 a civil war was fought between the forces of Parliament
and of Charles I.
In the end Charles was executed and the kingdom replaced with the Commonwealth.
In 1653 Oliver Cromwell, leader of the Parliament forces,declared himself Lord Protector.

After Cromwell's death, Charles II was invited to return as king in 1660.
From that point on monarchs and Parliament ruled together.

In 1666 London was devastated by the Great Fire but was rebuilt.

In 1707 England and Scotland joined into the Kingdom of Great Britain.

In 1775 the North American colonies rebelled and broke away from British rule.

In 1801 England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland formed the United Kingdom.

During World War I and II, England fought on the side of the Allies.

After the end of WWII the British Empire lost many of its colonies.

CONDITIONS
England is the 3rd largest economy in Europe and the largest of the UK.
The main industries are banking, high tech manufacturing, textiles,
chemical and pharmaceutical sectors and consumer goods.

England is highly industrialized but since the 70’s there has been more emphasis
on the service industry.

Agriculture provides 60% of the population’s food needs.

England, along with the rest of the UK, is a leading trade and financial power.

Tourism is a huge vector.
London gets millions of international tourists each year.

England is highly educated.
Nearly 100% of the population is literate.

Materialism and secularism are high.

England is a center for money laundering.

Since the 20th century there has been a rise in immigrants and asylum seekers.
Many asylum seekers end up in detention centers for months.

Oil and gas reserves are declining.

The global financial crisis has hit the economy hard.
Many are suffering from debt.

There has been a rise in the poor and homeless

Violent crime is increasing.
Prostitution and sexually transmitted diseases are increasing.
England is a major consumer of heroin and cocaine.

There is a rising lack of concern for the 'common' person.
Many who needs benefits to survive are looked down upon.

With an aging population, it’s becoming more common for people to suffer sight loss.

There has been increasing anger toward politicians and government figures.
Many feel cynical about the future.
There has also been increasing despair and hopelessness about the future.

SPIRITUAL CONDITIONS
59% of the population claims the Christian faith.
For many this is purely cultural/tradition.
There has been a steep decline in attendance.
Nominalism and spiritual deadness is rampant.

Secularism and humanism are very high.
There is increasing apathy and cynicism.
24.7% of the population are agnostic/atheist.

Due to immigration there has been an increase in Islam and other groups.

There has been a rise in neo-paganism and the occult.

PRAYER NEEDS
Pray that the government makes wise decisions.

Pray that the economy stabilize.
Pray for those suffering from debt.

Pray that natural resources be managed wisely.

Pray for those who have lost hope for the future.

Pray that violent crime stop.
Pray for those who have suffered as a result of violent crime.

Pray for those suffering from drug addiction.

Pray for those suffering from sexual transmitted diseases.

Pray for those trapped in prostitution.

Pray that money laundering cease.

Pray for those suffering from blindness or vision problems.

Pray for the disabled and long-term unemployed.
Pray for the unemployed

Pray that asylum seekers be treated with compassion and justice.
Pray for those who are in detention centers.

Pray that churches experience a revival.

Pray that the Gospel spread.

Pray that immigrants and asylum seekers be exposed to the Gospel.

Pray that occult spirits be bound.