What are the Countries of the United Kingdom?

The United Kingdom is made up of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It was formed in stages. Wales was annexed by England through the Laws in Wales Acts of 1535 and 1542. Scotland and England shared a monarch from 1603, and the Acts of Union of 1707 merged them into the Kingdom of Great Britain. A further Act of Union joined Ireland in 1801, creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. When most of Ireland left to form the Irish Free State in 1922, Northern Ireland stayed, and the country took its current name. Since 1999, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have had their own devolved parliaments or assemblies, while England is governed directly by the UK Parliament.