London serves as capital for not only the country of England, but also the larger sovereign state known as the United Kingdom, sometimes referred to as Great Britain or simply Britain.

Nicknames for London include: “Swinging City” reflecting its role in the 1960s musical and cultural revolution; “Where Royalty Lives” due to Buckingham Palace housing the Royal Family; “Big Smoke” dating back to the Industrial Revolution starting in 1874, or simply “London Town” as celebrated in various songs.

London places first among global cities demonstrating the strongest economic clout in PwC’s Cities of Opportunity Index.

London’s economic might is supported by the fact that 28 of Fortune Global 500 companies have their headquarters located in the British capital. Those global behemoths include petroleum refiner BP, financial services giant HSBC Holdings and mining behemoth Rio Tinto Group.

Over 80 billionaires reside in the UK’s capital, making London the city which is home for the greatest number of billionaires in the world.

London is also an important historical and cultural center, boasting 170 museums such as the British Museum, the Imperial War Museum, the National Gallery and the Wallace Collection. Cultural diversity is another feather in London’s cap, given the over 300 languages collectively spoken by Londoners.

One remarkable anomaly is that London is not formally considered a city since the governing Crown has yet to grant London its city status.

From an international trade perspective, the United Kingdom placed 11th among the biggest exporting nations, shipping US$468.2 billion worth of goods around the globe in 2019. The most valuable exports from the UK are cars (8.2% of its global total), turbo-jets (5.6%), crude oil (5.1%), gold (5%), drugs and medicines (3.8%), aircraft or spacecraft parts (3.4%), refined petroleum oils (2.5%), paintings, pastels and drawings (1.9%), liquor (1.7%) and human or animal blood (1.6%) according to the International Trade Centre.

Capital Facts for London, UK: Quick Reference

 
Britain’s national holiday is St George’s Day paying tribute to Scotland’s patron saint. Annually, St George’s Day occurs on April 23.

Greater London refers to a land mass measuring 607 square miles (1,572 square kilometers) that held 9.3 million residents at July 2020.

At the national level, the United Kingdom has a land area equal to 93,410 square miles (241,930 square kilometers). The UK’s population was 67.9 million inhabitants as of July 2020.

Density for the Greater London area is concentrated, with a population density of 15,328 people per square mile (5,919 per square kilometer).

Zooming out to the United Kingdom’s overall land boundaries, Britain’s national population density dilutes to an average 727 residents per square mile (281 per square kilometer).