The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the history of the British Isles:
History of the British Isles - history of the European island group known as the British Isles.
Throughout history, various political entities have inhabited the British Isles, with varying degrees of power and independence over one another.
The British Isles also includes three Crown dependencies of the United Kingdom.
The following political entities all at one time existed within the British Isles.
Anglo-Saxons inhabited England from the 5th Century, and formed their own kingdoms.
Prior to the Norman invasion of Ireland many Irish Kingdoms existed. Some of the larger ones were:
The following kingdoms all existed in what is now recognised as Scotland:
During the medieval era several kingdoms existed in Wales.
During the modern period the following entities have all existed, but no longer do so.
The history of the British Isles in the classical era was characterised by the attempts of the Roman Empire to conquer the islands.
Throughout history, there have been several events that had a lasting impact on the British Isles as a whole.
See main article: List of wars in Great Britain and List of conflicts in Ireland. Historically, there have been many conflicts between the people inhabiting the British Isles which led to a lasting impact on the history of the islands.
See main article: Invasions of the British Isles. There have been several invasions of the British Isles by outside entities, some of which had a lasting impact on the history of the islands.
The following events had a lasting impact on the political shape of the British Isles.
The following is a timeline showing the major nations within the British Isles, or which controlled parts of the islands, over time.