23rd April: National Day of England

Today is Saint George's day, National Day of England. So here are 10 things you might not know about England:

1. "England" is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means "land of the Angles", a Germanic tribe that settled there in the Middle Ages. They came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea. The first known use of "England" to refer to the southern part of the island of Great Britain occurred in 897. An alternative name for the country is Albion, which may come from the Latin, albus, meaning white, possibly referring to the White Cliffs of Dover. Yet another name for England is Loegria, related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr.
2. Although England is where the English language came from, the country's official language was French between 1066 and 1362. England’s national motto is in French: “Dieu et mon droit,” meaning “God and my right.”
3. Although England is 59 times smaller than Australia, its population is three times bigger than that of Australia.
4. England also has a lot of cities considering its small size - there are 50 of them. City status is not necessarily based on population, however, but whether or not there is a diocesan cathedral, so some of England's cities, such as Wells, Ely, Ripon, Truro and Chichester, are quite small.
5. England is home to the world's largest stone circle, Avebury, which covers 28 acres, and was built between 5300 and 4600 years ago.
6. The Queen owns all the sturgeons, Whales and Dolphins in the waters within 3 miles from the UK, and all the mute Swans in open water.
7. The first modern Olympic Games was held in England, not in Athens as many think. The first modern Olympic Games were in Much Wenlock in Shropshire, in 1850. The Olympic Games in Athens were not held until 1896.
8. London is home to the world's busiest airport in terms of numbers of international passengers (Heathrow), and the biggest Ferris wheel in Europe (The London Eye). It also has the world's oldest underground railway system and the world's oldest public Zoo. If London were a country, it would be the 8th largest in Europe.
9. It is illegal to wear a suit of armour in the Houses of Parliament or to die there. One of the few things the Queen is not allowed to do is enter the Houses of Parliament.
10. Buckingham Palace was built on the site of a once infamous brothel.