London



"Here we are in London, the place where years ago, it has been hosted the modern Summer Olympic Games, not one, not two, but three times, in 1904, 1948, and in 2012. Do I mention it has double-decker buses, the London Eye, and the Big Ben, old chap?"

--Su Ji-Hoon, Britain

London (/ˈlʌndən/) is the capital and most populous city of both England and the United Kingdom. Standing on the River Thames in the south east of the island of Great Britain, London has been a major settlement for two millennia. It was founded by the Romans, who named it Londinium. London's ancient core, the City of London, largely retains its 1.12-square-mile (2.9 km2) medieval boundaries. Since at least the 19th century, "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent and Hertfordshire, which today largely makes up Greater London, a region governed by the Mayor of London and the London Assembly.