North Sea

"North Sea? Well, I think this must've be a sea where Brits, Dutch, Jerries, Frenchies, Belgians and Nordics could sail in there. Now chaos is taking the North Sea once again, and this time, not the Germans in the past two World Wars, but it was the Russians in this war."

--Su Ji-Hoon, Battle of the North Sea

The North Sea is a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean located between Great Britain, Scandinavia, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. An epeiric (or "shelf") sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north. It is more than 970 kilometers (600 mi) long and 580 kilometers (360 mi) wide, with an area of around 570,000 square kilometers (220,000 sq mi).

The North Sea has long been the site of important European shipping lanes as well as a major fishery. The sea is a popular destination for recreation and tourism in bordering countries and more recently has developed into a rich source of energy resources including fossil fuels, wind, and early efforts in wave power.

Historically, the North Sea has featured prominently in geopolitical and military affairs, particularly in Northern Europe. It was also important globally through the power northern Europeans projected worldwide during much of the Middle Ages and into the modern era. The North Sea was the center of the Vikings' rise. Subsequently, the Hanseatic League, the Netherlands, and the British each sought to dominate the North Sea and thus the access to the markets and resources of the world. As Germany's only outlet to the ocean, the North Sea continued to be strategically important through the three World Wars.