The historic counties of Britain & Ireland.
By the Historic Counties Institute.
Real Counties | Historic Counties
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LANCASHIRE: #OnThisDay in 1890, Stan Laurel was born at Ulverston.
From a town on the edge of Morecambe Bay to the golden age of Hollywood, he became one half of Laurel and Hardy - one of the most beloved comedy double acts in film history.
A Lancashire beginning.
A global legacy of laughter.
Today is Sussex Day.
The celebration is on St Richard's Day, as Richard was Bishop of Chichester from 1245 until his death in 1253.
Richard became patron saint of Sussex in the fifteenth century and is also patron saint of coach drivers.
Stan Laurel. Lancashire. 16 June 1890.
Sussex Day: celebrating one historic county, from Chichester to Rye
On 16 June, Sussex Day celebrates the county's rich heritage, community, and identity, reminding people of Sussex's enduring significance beyond modern administrative boundaries.
A world-changing aviation story, rooted in an Irish county landscape.
Alcock and Brown. County Galway. 15 June 1919.
You’ve probably been told:
“Arran used to be in Buteshire but now it's in Ayrshire.”
It sounds true.
But it isn’t.
Buteshire hasn’t changed, only administration has.
So why are we pretending otherwise?
Magna Carta. Surrey. 15 June 1215.
SURREY: #OnThisDay in 1215, Magna Carta was sealed at Runnymede.
In a meadow beside the Thames, King John accepted that royal power could be limited by law — a moment that echoed through the centuries.
A cornerstone of constitutional history, rooted in a Surrey landscape.
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COUNTY GALWAY: #OnThisDay in 1919, John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown landed near Clifden.
After flying through fog, ice and darkness from Newfoundland, they completed the first non-stop transatlantic flight - proving that the Atlantic could be crossed by air.
