Lancashire
Lancashire (/ˈlæŋkəʃər/ LAN-kə-shər, /-ʃɪər/ -sheer; abbreviated Lancs.) is a county in North West England. Lancashire is a historic, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county and the county boundaries differ between these different forms. Its county town is Lancaster. The non-metropolitan county was created by the Local Government Act 1972 and is administered by the Lancashire County Council and twelve district councils. Its administrative centre is Preston. The ceremonial county has a population of 1,449,300 and an area of 1,189 square miles (3,080 km2).
Lancashire | |
|---|---|
 The Red Rose of Lancaster is the county flower of Lancashire, and a common symbol for the county. | |
 Coat of arms | |
| Motto(s): "In Concilio Consilium" ("In Council is Wisdom") | |
 | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Constituent country | England |
| Region | North West England |
| Established | c. 1182[1] |
| Time zone | UTC±00:00 (Greenwich Mean Time) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+01:00 (British Summer Time) |
| Members of Parliament | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Lord Lieutenant | Charles Kay-Shuttleworth[2] |
| High Sheriff | Catherine Penny[3] (2020–21) |
| Area | 3,079 km2 (1,189 sq mi) |
| • Ranked | 17th of 48 |
| Population (mid-2019 est.) | 1,498,300 |
| • Ranked | 8th of 48 |
| Density | 487/km2 (1,260/sq mi) |
| Ethnicity | 89.7% White British 6.0% S. Asian 2.1% Other White 0.9% Mixed 0.7% E. Asian and Other 0.5% Black 2005 Estimates |
| Non-metropolitan county | |
| County council | Lancashire County Council |
| Executive | Conservative |
| Admin HQ | Preston |
| Area | 2,903 km2 (1,121 sq mi) |
| • Ranked | 12th of 26 |
| Population | 1,219,799 |
| • Ranked | 4th of 26 |
| Density | 422/km2 (1,090/sq mi) |
| ISO 3166-2 | GB-LAN |
| ONS code | 30 |
| ITL | UKD43 |
| Website | www |
| Districts | |
 Districts of Lancashire Unitary County council area | |
| Districts | |
The historic County Palatine of Lancashire is still recognised today[4] and includes the large cities of Manchester and Liverpool as well as the Furness and Cartmel peninsulas in the Lake District, and an area of 1,909 square miles (4,940 km2). Many of these places still identify strongly with the county, with Lancashire still being used as part of the postal address. The historic county was subject to a significant boundary reform for administrative purposes in 1974. This created the current ceremonial county and removed Liverpool and Manchester, and most of their surrounding conurbations, to form the metropolitan and ceremonial counties of Merseyside and Greater Manchester.[5][6] The detached northern part of Lancashire in the Lake District, including the Furness Peninsula and Cartmel, was merged with Cumberland and Westmorland to form Cumbria. Administratively, Lancashire lost 709 square miles of land to other counties – about two fifths of its original area – although it did gain some land from the West Riding of Yorkshire. The historic county is celebrated in November on Lancashire Day.[7]
The history of Lancashire begins with its founding in the 12th century. In the Domesday Book of 1086, some of its lands were treated as part of Yorkshire. The land that lay between the Ribble and Mersey, Inter Ripam et Mersam, was included in the returns for Cheshire. Lancashire emerged as a major commercial and industrial region during the Industrial Revolution. Liverpool and Manchester grew into its largest cities, with economies built around the docks and the cotton mills respectively.[8] These cities dominated global trade and the birth of modern industrial capitalism. The county contained several mill towns and the collieries of the Lancashire Coalfield. By the 1830s, approximately 85% of all cotton manufactured worldwide was processed in Lancashire.[9] A number of towns and cities were major cotton mill towns during this time. Blackpool was a centre for tourism for the inhabitants of Lancashire's mill towns, particularly during wakes week.
Today, the county borders Cumbria to the north, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and North and West Yorkshire to the east; with a coastline on the Irish Sea to the west. The historic county's boundaries remain the same as those of the county palatine with Lancaster serving as the county town, and the Duke of Lancaster (i.e. the Queen) exercising sovereignty rights,[10] including the appointment of lords lieutenant in Greater Manchester and Merseyside.[11]