The Anglo-Saxon Social Model - The Expanded Universe

The CIS seems like one of those countries that only exists on paper and given a moment will fly apart- do the Soviets do anything to mix the populations and suppress the old national identities? To promote being CIS over say Polish? Could the CIS stick together as a Federal entity without the USSR?

A good question. The normal demonym in the Soviet Union and the CIS itself is just "European" or "Slav", although the latter is only really used in a derogatory sense by Soviet individuals. Within the CIS itself, they often refer to themselves as "Easterners" or "Europeans" and to the outside wold they often describe themselves as "Cis" or, as you say, by their ethnic demonym. The latter is officially discouraged though. National identities and nationalisms are officially discouraged as "counter-revolutionary" but in practice they're suppressed through a process of divide and rule (e.g. "you're not a German, you're a Thuringian and you really don't have anything in common with those weird Brandenbergers over there...").

As for whether the CIS could hold together without the USSR, the answer is: maybe. Frankly, it's never been tried but I wouldn't think the odds are looking too good...

So Greece is not in the Latin Economic Union? Not it seems any other trade bloc?

Nope. The Greeks were very concerned that the LEU has basically become a forum for all the members to take orders from the Italians and so stayed out (the Italians weren't too keen on having them in either, for the same reason).

Do all the cheap package holidays, 18-30 etc still happen in Spain or are the conditions to different here?

I don't want to say that there's no tourist industry in Spain but its marginally better late 19th century and post-World War mean that their economy was already diversified (well, more than OTL) meaning they don't have to pursue that tourist option as aggressively as OTL. So some of the larger tourist complexes in Majorca, Ibiza and so forth will not exist or will be smaller. Club 18-30 and suchlike are more likely to provide trips to resorts in the UK or, for the more adventurous, the West Indies.

Mongolia actually sounds better off ITTL than OTL? Not sure though, Has it been opening up to Western tourists and historians?

As I've said before in similar contexts: maybe at the margins but not hugely. The abandonment of collectivisation means there are more nomadic communities than OTL, which goes for the Soviet Union too, so that's interesting.

Cricket in North America? Exactly as it should be old bean!

OTL it was the most popular sport in Pennsylvania up to WW1 but its chances in the region were really ruined when the cricketing authorities in Australia, South Africa and England deliberately cut them out of the touring program because they weren't in the British Empire. TTL obviously they take the opposite approach.

How old is Anakin here?

19, same age as Luke in A New Hope. The "he's too old" objection is mentioned but isn't as big of an obstacle as in OTL.

What did Spectre of the Past do to annoy the critics so much?

Thrawn dies at the end of season 3 and the final season and Spectre of the Past is the Yuuzhan Vong storyline.

You have never said what happened to Jim Henson and the Muppets ITTL. It would be nice if Henson lived a lot, lot longer and the Muppets remained their own thing somehow.

To be honest, Henson is one of these people I've never quite been able to get into, although I did like the 2011 Muppets movie. Not really a sleight on him but I never got into the Muppets and wasn't allowed to watch Sesame Street as a kid (because of the American pronunciation) so I just never got into it. Anyway, enough about me, but the point was that I don't have firm opinions as to his TTL fate.

Overall, I've tried to imply that there's been less corporate agglomeration so I can foresee the Jim Henson Company continuing to exist as an independent entity but IIRC Henson was willing to sell to Disney before he died so if he lives another 20 years then maybe the sale would go through anyway?

Any chance of a write up for ITTL's KFC please?

I'll put it on the to-do list but, to be honest, I don't think it'll be hugely different from OTL.

I would watch this.

Much obliged. I'll set up a Kickstarter to see if I can raise the $300 million to get it made...
 
Formosa
Formosa, officially the Republic of Formosa, is an island nation in East Asia. The nearest countries are China to the northwest, Japan in the northeast and the Philippines to the south. The country has an area of 35,808 square kilometres (13,826 sq mi), with mountain ranges dominating the eastern two-thirds and plains in the western third. The majority of the population is concentrated in this latter part of the island. Taipei is the capital and largest metropolitan area, while other major cities include Kaohsiung, Taichung, Tainan and Taoyuan. With just under 24 million inhabitants, Formosa is among the most densely populated countries in the world.

Formosa was first settled by indigenous Formosans in around 4000 BC. In the 17th century, partial Dutch colonisation opened the island to Chinese immigration, leading to the island’s subsequent annexation by the Qing Dynasty in 1683. It would remain a province of China for the next two centuries, before China’s defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War led to the cession of the island to Japan under the terms of the Treaty of Shimonoseki. This precipitated an independence movement amongst the Han elite, who declared a republic in May 1895. Although this state would be overthrown by the Japanese in October of the same year, the republic would remain a potent rallying cry during the years of Japanese occupation.

Japan retained control of the island until 1940, when the Kuomintang Chinese regime captured it. The surrender of the understaffed garrison was a major blow to Japanese prestige in the region. After five years, the island was occupied recaptured by the US Navy. It was thereafter returned to Japanese control but nationalist impulses resulted in an outbreak of guerrilla violence. A military clampdown by the Japanese in 1956 briefly pacified the island but an agreement between the Japanese and the Formosan independence movement in 1959 gave the island independence on the condition that it did not unify with China for at least 50 years. Although there was some speculation at the time of the passing of the deadline in 2009, there has been no formal move to integrate Formosa into China.

Upon independence, the island was governed by the Formosan League for Emancipation until the 1980s, at which point it transitioned to a multi-party democracy. Under the League the country underwent an aggressive process of economic expansion by way of import substitution. The country remains dominated by labour-intensive companies as a legacy of this policy. However, a lack of natural resources and low domestic aggregate demand has put a cap on Formosan economic development. On the other hand, the country is a world leader in education, with its universities and elite boarding schools being popular amongst wealthy Chinese, Japanese and Philippino students.

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Is Formosa in any international Trade organisations?
Was the country a one party state until the 80's?

Nice they use a £.
 
Great Men: Arsène Wenger
Arsène Charles Ernest Wenger OBE (born 22 October 1949) is a retired French politician and professional football manager and player. He is most closely associated with the British club Arsenal - with whom he had three managerial stints (1997-2000, 2002-2003 and 2013-14) and spent many years as director of football - and with the French national team, who he led to both World and European Cup success.

Born in Strasbourg and raised in Duttlenheim in an entrepreneurial family, Wenger was introduced to football by his father, the manager of the local village team. After a modest playing career, Wenger began his managerial career in 1984 with an impressive but nonetheless trophyless three-year stint at Nancy. He subsequently moved to Reims, where he won two league championships in a six-year spell before leaving to coach the French national team in July 1994. However, following the overthrow of the Fifth Republic in January 1996, Wenger found himself chafing against restrictions imposed by the new government. In particular, he objected to rules which forbade players not in the French domestic league from being selected for the French national team. This rule was viewed by many as an attempt to force non-white players out of the national team, as domestic team owners were also strongly encouraged not to add non-white players to their squad. Wenger, along with director of football Gerard Houllier, resigned from the FFF in February 1996 in protest over the new rules.

Wenger moved to Jersey, where he was given the position of Minister for Sports in the French government-in-exile. In this position he had a key role in helping exiled French footballers transfer to other European clubs, mainly in Britain and Iberia. He left this role after a year to become head coach of Arsenal in the British Premier League. In his first season, he led the club to a Premier League and FA Cup double, retaining the title the following season. However, after a trophyless 1999-2000 season, he resigned his position. He moved to Iberia, where he became manager of Nueva Sociedad de Madrid. He won the Copa del Presidente in 2001 but was unable to disrupt the Barcelona-Benfica duopoly at the top of the Iberian League.

He returned to Arsenal in 2002 for a single season as head coach before moving upstairs in 2003 to work as the club’s Director of Football. In this position he was responsible for signings and youth development. Players such as Jack Wilshere, Michael Carrick and Lionel Messi have credited Wenger with having a major influence on their early careers. When David Rocastle was forced to step down due to illness in 2013, Wenger took over as Arsenal manager for a third and final time, winning another FA Cup in the sole season of his third spell. By this time the French government had changed, following the revolution of February 2009, and Wenger was persuaded to leave Arsenal for the final time in 2014 and manage to French national team once again. He led the team to victory in the 2018 World Cup and 2020 European Championships before retiring at the end of the latter tournament.

In Britain, Wenger is commonly nicknamed “Le Professeur” to reflect his studious demeanour. His approach to the game emphasised an attacking mentality with players taking responsibility on the pitch. However, his teams have also been criticised for their indiscipline: over his three spells in charge his Arsenal teams received 30 red cards in five seasons.

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Cricket: World Test Championship
A minor retcon of a previous cricket update. The plot of Attack of the Clones will come tomorrow.

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The International Cricket Council (ICC) is a global professional cricket organisation that administers the World Test Championship (WTC), the second oldest major international sporting competition in the world (after the British Home Championship). A total of 20 international teams play in the WTC: 5 teams in each of the Bradman, Grace, Trumper and Warner Divisions. The competition has been through numerous different formats as the number of teams competing rose and fell over the years before settling on the current structure in 1991.

As well as the WTC, the ICC also oversees the List-A World Series Cricket, which comprises 50 more international teams around the world. The ICC and the domestic cricket associations jointly manage the domestic first class competitions. The only exception to this rule is the Ranji Trophy, which has been solely administered by the Board of Control for Cricket in India since 2009.

The first officially recognised Test match took place on 15-19 March 1877 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, between England and Australia. Australia won by 45 runs. Reciprocal tours thereafter became the established pattern of international cricket. A surprise victory for Australia against England in England in 1882 led to the establishment of the Ashes, inspired by a mock obituary of English cricket published in the Sporting Times the following day. The English tour of Australia in 1884-85 established the five-match tour as the standard length of competition. South Africa became the third team to play Tests in 1888, followed by the United States in 1891 and Ireland in 1892.

The first WTC took place in 1910-11, with Australia, Great Britain, Ireland, South Africa and the United States playing one another in a round robin format, with the United States finishing on top. The second edition was cancelled due to the outbreak of the Great War but the competition resumed in 1919-20. The introduction of Canada, India, New Zealand, Puerto Rico and the West Indies saw the competition divided into two divisions for the first time, with the introduction of a Championship Series and the elongation of the season to three years.

After the World War, the WTC underwent an expansion first to 12 teams in 1949 and then 15 (and 3 divisions) in 1952. The expulsion of South Africa from the Commonwealth in 1961 saw them ejected from the WTC at the end of the 1961-63 season. This led to the contraction of the competition to 14 teams and 2 divisions until an expansion to 16 teams and 4 divisions in 1982. In 1991, the competition expanded again, to 20 teams, a format it has maintained ever since.

Each edition of the WTC takes place over three calendar years, with the regular season occupying two years and the finals tournaments the third. Over a regular season, each team plays each other team in its division in one five match series, with home advantage alternating from one season to the next. Teams are awarded 0 points for a lost Test, 1 for a drawn Test, 2 for a won Test, 3 for a drawn series, 4 for a series victory and 5 for a whitewash. The winner of each division then advances to the finals tournaments, which consist of the semi-finals and then a Championship Series, all of which are played at pre-agreed neutral venues. The semi-finals are five-match series but the Championship Series only goes beyond three Tests if the result is in doubt.

Since the creation of the WTC, Australia holds the overall record with 9 victories and 7 further appearances in the Championship Series. The West Indies and Great Britain have each won 7 titles, the United States 5, Pakistan 3 and Puerto Rico 1. India are the current champions, winning the 2018-20 edition of the competition, their second title.

Cricket is the most popular sport in India and either the first or second most popular in most Commonwealth countries (usually behind soccer and rugby but also hockey in the case of Canada) but is the national sport in a number of member states such as Australia, Papua New Guinea, Puerto Rico, Ceylon, Rhodesia and the West Indies. It is also a minority sport with a significant following in countries like the United States and the Benelux. The WTC itself is the third richest professional sport league in the world, by revenue.

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Film: Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2017)
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones is an American epic space-opera film directed by Jon Favreau, written by Favreau and Chris Yost and produced by George and Marcia Lucas. It is the second installment of the Star Wars prequel trilogy and the fifth film to be produced. It stars Ewan McGregor, Zazie Beetz, Adam Driver, Ian McDiarmid, Tessa Thompson, Oscar Isaac and Frank Oz. Set five years after the events depicted in The Phantom Menace, the Galactic Republic is struggling under the assaults of Confederacy of Independent Systems. Best friends Anakin Skywalker and his master Obi-Wan Kenobi are sent on separate missions, both of which are vital to the Republic’s war effort, all the while contending with their own private trials.

Attack of the Clones had its world premiere at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on May 17, 2017 and was released in the United States and worldwide on May 19. Despite being the largest box office success of 2017, with a total worldwide gross of just over $1.8 billion, it was nearly $900 million lower than the box office of the previous film in the trilogy, The Phantom Menace. The film also received a more mixed critical response, with many fans unhappy with the dark turn for some of the characters. The film received four nominations at the CGAAs and two nominations at the CAFTAs, all in the score and technical categories. A sequel, Revenge of the Sith, was released in May 2019.

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CAST
  • Adam Driver as Jedi Anakin Skywalker
  • Zazie Beetz as Padmé Amidala
  • Ewan McGregor as Jedi Master Obi-wan Kenobi
  • Oscar Isaac as Count Dooku
  • Tessa Thompson as Satine Kryze
  • Giancarlo Esposito as Grand Marshal Gideon
  • Joel Edgerton as Admiral Owen Lars
  • Benicio del Toro as Jedi Master Pong Krell
  • Laura Dern as Senator Breha Organa
  • Ian McDiarmid as Supreme Minister Sheev Palpatine
  • Frank Oz as Jedi Grand Master Yoda
In addition, Michael K. Williams, Dani Pudi and Danny Glover return as their characters from The Phantom Menace. Antony Daniels and Kenny Baker also return in cameos as R2-D2 and C3PO, their characters from the original trilogy. Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker in the original trilogy, provided the voice and motion capture performance of Darth Bane.

PLOT

Five years into the Clone War, the Republic is desperately defending its position on the planet Malastare. Via hologram, Supreme Minister Palpatine tells Jedi Generals Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi to deploy the Republic’s new superweapon, an electro-proton bomb. Despite Kenobi’s misgivings, the Jedi agree to deploy the bomb, which completely disables the droid army but accidentally awakens an ancient horror known as the Zillo Beast. The Republic’s army is only saved at the last minute by the arrival of a Mandalorian army led by Satine Kryze.

While travelling to Mandalore, Satine explains to Anakin that she and Obi-Wan were once Jedi padawans together before she left the order to return to her clan and that she has now persuaded the Madalorian warrior caste to commit soldiers to the side of the Republic. Palpatine and Padme Amidala arrive on Malastare to finalise the treaty between the Republic and the Mandalorians. Palpatine announces that the Confederacy’s leader, Count Dooku, has agreed to secret peace talks on Moraband and he argues about strategy with Grand Master Yoda, who argues that the Jedi and the clone army must concentrate on defeating the deadly Grand Marshal Gideon, now reconstructed as a cyborg warrior. They eventually agree that Anakin will accompany a republican naval detachment commanded by Admiral Owen Lars and escort Palpatine and Padme to the peace talks. They are accompanied by Senator Breha Organa of Alderaan. Obi-Wan and Satine, meanwhile, will lead the clone army and Mandalorian warriors to Gideon’s last known location on Umbara, where the Republic’s forces under Jedi Pong Krell are sorely outnumbered.

On the journey to Umbara, Satine and Obi-Wan reminisce over their past together. However, Obi-Wan reminds her of the vow of celibacy he took as a Jedi and they share the rest of the journey together awkwardly. This is contrasted with events in the other Republican fleet, where it is revealed that Anakin and Padme are conducting an affair.

When they arrive at Umbara, the Republican-Mandalorian forces find Krell’s army has already been overrun and the Jedi is being brought before Gideon for execution. Obi-Wan and Satine lead a daring airborne attack on the Confederate base. There Obi-Wan duels with the cyborg Gideon, who is now wielding the lightsaber of the deceased Jedi Mace Windu. The Republic escapes with Krell but then it is revealed that Krell has, in fact, already betrayed the Republic. His clone troops fire on Satine’s and Obi-Wan’s, although those two manage to escape.

At night on Moraband, Anakin is awoken by a vision of Mace Windu, who promises him the power to end the war. Anakin follows and enters a tomb complex, where he encounters a vision of the ancient Sith Lord Darth Bane. Bane attempts to convince Anakin to turn to the dark side but Anakin refuses, his defiance appearing to banish the spectre back to its tomb. The next morning, Padme remarks on Anakin’s tired appearance. He chooses to tell her nothing but confides in Palpatine about his visions.

Obi-Wan and Satine send a distress signal to the Republic’s forces on Moraband, causing Palpatine to ostentatiously storm out of the peace negotiations, against Organa’s better instincts. He orders Lars to lead an attack group to Umbara immediately, with Anakin and Padme joining him. On Umbara, Obi-Wan and Satine intercept Confederate communications revealing that this has all been a trap. However, Republic's fleet is already en route and they won't be able to reach it in time.

When Lars’ fleet arrives in-system, they are immediately set upon by the combined fleets of the Confederacy and the traitor clones. Anakin and Padme lead a small force to make landfall to supervise the evacuation of the loyal clones and the Mandalorians. Leading the final Confederate assault, Gideon and Krell engage Anakin, Obi-Wan and Satine in a duel. Anakin manages to slay Krell but just as they look like they’re going to escape, Gideon cuts off Anakin’s arm and mortally wounds Satine. She dies on a transport ship in Obi-Wan’s arms but not before they confess their love for one another.

Onboard the Republic’s capital ship, newly-arrived Grand Master Yoda attempts to comfort Obi-Wan but he storms off, seeking revenge. From his hospital bed, Anakin reaches out to his Master with the force and makes a last-ditch attempt to appeal to his best friend. Obi-Wan rejects this, angrily revealing that when they were padawans he and Satine had agreed to leave the Jedi Order so they could be together but that he had changed his mind at the last minute. He says that now he is honouring her wish and that the Jedi Order is an empty husk, before taking a fighter and leaving.

On Mandalore, Obi-Wan erects a small monument to Satine but his peace is disturbed by the arrival of Dooku. He and Dooku duel, the latter explaining that the Jedi are so fallen they have failed to notice that both sides of this war are equally bad. He says that only by following the Dark Side can Obi-Wan learn the power to gain true revenge. Obi-Wan becomes angrier and angrier until he realises that his thirst for revenge and power has led his lightsaber crystal to bleed, turning its balde red. Distraught, he sinks to his knees. Dooku christens him “Darth Maul” and initiates him into the Sith Order.
 
That was a very interesting take. There's a whole load of stuff from the Clone Wars series in there.

So, does Anakin manage to bring Obi-Wan back from the dark side, only to fall to it himself?
 
That's by far the most original idea I've seen in a prequel rewrite. Eager to see your Revenge of the Sith.

So, does Anakin manage to bring Obi-Wan back from the dark side, only to fall to it himself?
Maybe Obi-wan never really fully turns back. After all, being with the CIS and Dooku is less clearly bad than it would have been in the OTL prequels. Obi-wan could end the movie not fully redeemed but having seen the error of his ways, seeing some of himself in Darth Vader.
 
Maybe Obi-wan never really fully turns back. After all, being with the CIS and Dooku is less clearly bad than it would have been in the OTL prequels. Obi-wan could end the movie not fully redeemed but having seen the error of his ways, seeing some of himself in Darth Vader.

It also puts a new spin on the Darth Maul vs. Obi-Wan revenge thing from Rebels.
 
Indochina
Indochina, officially the United Kingdoms of Indochina, is a country in southeast Asia. It is bordered to the east by the South China Sea, to the north by China, to the northwest by Burma, to the west by Thailand and to the south by Cochinchina. With an estimated 78.5 million people, the country is the 9th most populous in Asia and its capital and largest city is Hanoi. A federal constitutional monarchy, the country consists of four kingdoms each with federal powers.

Archeological excavations indicate that Indochina was inhabited as early as the Paleolithic age. The ancient Vietnamese nation, which was centered on the Red River valley, was annexed by the Han Dynasty in the 2nd century BC, paving the way for Chinese rule that lasted for over a millennium. Independent monarchies emerged in the 1st century AD and a succession of royal or imperial dynasties governed the region until it was colonised by the French over the course of the 19th century, giving Indochina its modern territorial form.

Following occupation by Kuomintang China during the World War, the country was returned to French control in 1945 but nascent independence movements threatened the returning colonial administration. In an attempt to placate nationalist sentiment, the country was divided into Cochinchina, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos and the four became members of the French Union in 1946. However, while Cochinchina underwent rapid economic and social modernisation the other countries remained mostly rural and agricultural societies with their own demands for independence. Fragile power-sharing agreements broke down and Vietnam unilaterally declared independence in 1963, followed quickly by Cambodia and Laos.

Nationalist forces in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos conducted a vicious but ultimately successful fight against the French Union forces sent to pacify them. All three countries were granted their independence by the Paris Peace Accords in 1969. However, all three countries almost immediately faced major challenges to state-formation, as the newly-created nationalist governments faced insurgencies from far-left and far-right groups. These three civil wars were intimately connected early on and operations regularly crossed national borders. The Soviet-backed group the United Front for the Liberation of Indochina (“FULI”) operated in all theatres, seeking to reunify the region. Conflict intensified over the next few years until they were ended by a secret agreement between China and the Soviet Union in 1974, whereby the Soviets agreed to end their support for FULI in return for resolving various border disputes between its satellites and China. Later that year, China launched an invasion of the region, precipitating the Sino-Indochinese War, which was ended with Chinese victory and the imposition of the present political compromise.

Constitutionally, Indochina is a union of the four kingdoms of Tonkin, Annam, Cambodia and Laos. All of these countries have their own royal families (that of Tonkin being a junior branch of that of Annam’s) and local governments with substantial powers over their own regions. However, the Indochinese Nationalist Party is the sole legal political party and monopolises power at all levels. The Chief Executive is the head of state of the federation as a whole and since 2011 this position has been held by Nguyễn Phú Trọng, from Tonkin.

The country has had a close relationship with China since the conclusion of the Sino-Indochinese War and since that time has enjoyed a high GDP growth rate. It nevertheless continues to face challenges in the form of poverty, corruption, inadequate social welfare provision and a poor human rights record. It is a member of a number of international organisations including the United Nations, the International Clearing Union and the World Bank Group.

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Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones

I audibly said "whoah". This is a hell of a plot twist, and despite the fact that neither Vader, Yoda, or Obi-Wan never mentions the latter's fall from grace to Luke sticks out to me, a morally gray Ben tracks with the well-meaning but mind-tricking pathological liar hermit we meet in A New Hope.
 
That was a very interesting take. There's a whole load of stuff from the Clone Wars series in there.

So, does Anakin manage to bring Obi-Wan back from the dark side, only to fall to it himself?
That's quite a twist!
That's by far the most original idea I've seen in a prequel rewrite. Eager to see your Revenge of the Sith.


Maybe Obi-wan never really fully turns back. After all, being with the CIS and Dooku is less clearly bad than it would have been in the OTL prequels. Obi-wan could end the movie not fully redeemed but having seen the error of his ways, seeing some of himself in Darth Vader.
I audibly said "whoah". This is a hell of a plot twist, and despite the fact that neither Vader, Yoda, or Obi-Wan never mentions the latter's fall from grace to Luke sticks out to me, a morally gray Ben tracks with the well-meaning but mind-tricking pathological liar hermit we meet in A New Hope.

I've got to say, I'm slightly concerned that my ROTS won't measure up now...
 
A minor retcon of a previous cricket update. The plot of Attack of the Clones will come tomorrow.

Can i say Firstly good work on the cricket, but secondly all that and not a Woman to be seen. Come on surely a few words on the Women's Game could have been included. Especially on the opening day of Englands OTL series with West Indies.......

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United Kingdom: Religion and the Lords Spiritual
Religion in the United Kingdom, and in the various nations that preceded it, has been dominated by various forms of Christianity for over 1,000 years but has grown more diverse over the course of the 20th century. Religious affiliations of British residents and citizens are recorded by regular surveys and published yearly as the British Religious Attitudes Survey.

According to the 2020 Religious Attitudes Survey, Christianity (taken together) is the majority religion, with just under two thirds of the population describing themselves as members of one Christian sect or another. The established Church of England has just over 34,000,000 members, representing around 47% of the nation. The memberships of the established churches of Scotland and Ireland (the Church of Scotland and Church of Ireland, respectively) are much smaller, with around 1.2 million and 0.5 million adherents, respectively. Catholicism is the second largest religion, with just over 10 million adherents nationwide, although nearly half of that comes from Ireland, where it is demographically the dominant religion. Other sects, such as Methodism and Baptism, are much smaller but retain certain regional strongholds.

After Christianity, Islam is the second most common religion, with just under 3 million members, of whom around 75% are of the Sunni sect. Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism (mostly Reform Judaism) and Buddhism then follow in terms of the number of adherents. Just over 250,000 people are members of other, smaller, religions and nearly 60,000 claim adherence to neopagan or wiccan beliefs. However, despite the numerical dominance of Christian sects, regular church attendance among self-described Christians is relatively low, at only 50%, whereas regular attendance at places of worship amongst Muslims, Hundus, Sikhs, Jews and Buddhists ranges from 75-90%.

After Christianity, however, the largest individual belief groups are those who do not state their religion (7%) or who declare themselves as being atheists, agnostics or otherwise having no religion (20%). These numbers increased rapidly over the course of the second half of the 20th century, peaking in the 1990s with just under a third of the country declaring themselves to be atheist or agnostic. However, numbers have declined since then due to a revival in religious feeling and have plateaued at around their present number in the past decade.

Religious figures have held political office in the United Kingdom and its predecessor states for many centuries. Bishops have sat in the House of Lords as Lords Spiritual since at least the 13th century. Since the Reformation, the position of Lords Spiritual came to be divided between archbishops and bishops of the Churches of England and Ireland. (The Church of Scotland does not have bishops in a traditional sense.) However, this settlement became increasingly unsatisfactory over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, particularly following the enactment of Irish Home Rule and then subsequent waves of non-Christian immigration to the UK.

Several attempts were made to reform the position of the Lords Spiritual, with a proposal to abolish them as part of the Lords reforms of the 1960s failing in committee. In the 1990s, under the Liberal-Conservative coalition, Ferdinand Mount (as Lord President of the Council) took on personal responsibility for reforming the Lords Spiritual, leading to the Lords Spiritual (Reform) Act 1993. Coming into force on 1 January 1995, the act reserved at least 26 seats for the Lords Spiritual, with one being set aside for the Archbishop of Canterbury (as the most senior cleric in the United Kingdom) and the remainder being divided up proportionally between all religions which have over 250,000 adherents. In each case, the number of Lords Spiritual allocated to each religion is rounded up to at least 1. In practice this means that there are often more than 26 in total (for example, for the 2020-25 term there are 33, including the Archbishop of Canterbury). These are then refreshed every five years according to the latest data on religious beliefs. By convention, the Lords Spiritual do not take a party whip but otherwise take a full part in Lords’ affairs.

This arrangement has caused controversy, particularly for the inclusion of atheism/agnosticism as a recognised spiritual belief. The Electoral Commission recognised the British Humanist Association as the official voice of British atheists and agnostics in 1994 and the organisation traditionally organises a ballot of its members every five years to decide who should be their representatives. The Electoral Commission has also designated certain organisations as the official leadership for British Muslims (the Association of British Muslims), Hindus (the Hindu Council UK), Sikhs (the Sikh Federation), Jews (the Board of Deputies of British Jews - although by convention their appointee as Lord Spiritual has been held by the Chief Rabbi to the Commonwealth) and Buddhists (the Buddhist Society). This has periodically caused controversy and is reviewed before each re-allocation of seats.

British Religious Attitudes Survey, 2020
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Lords Spiritual 2020-25
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Can i say Firstly good work on the cricket, but secondly all that and not a Woman to be seen. Come on surely a few words on the Women's Game could have been included. Especially on the opening day of Englands OTL series with West Indies.......

Working on it...
 
Religion in the United Kingdom, and in the various nations that preceded it, has been dominated by various forms of Christianity for over 1,000 years but has grown more diverse over the course of the 20th century. Religious affiliations of British residents and citizens are recorded by regular surveys and published yearly as the British Religious Attitudes Survey.

According to the 2020 Religious Attitudes Survey, Christianity (taken together) is the majority religion, with just under two thirds of the population describing themselves as members of one Christian sect or another. The established Church of England has just over 34,000,000 members, representing around 47% of the nation. The memberships of the established churches of Scotland and Ireland (the Church of Scotland and Church of Ireland, respectively) are much smaller, with around 1.2 million and 0.5 million adherents, respectively. Catholicism is the second largest religion, with just over 10 million adherents nationwide, although nearly half of that comes from Ireland, where it is demographically the dominant religion. Other sects, such as Methodism and Baptism, are much smaller but retain certain regional strongholds.

After Christianity, Islam is the second most common religion, with just under 3 million members, of whom around 75% are of the Sunni sect. Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism (mostly Reform Judaism) and Buddhism then follow in terms of the number of adherents. Just over 250,000 people are members of other, smaller, religions and nearly 60,000 claim adherence to neopagan or wiccan beliefs. However, despite the numerical dominance of Christian sects, regular church attendance among self-described Christians is relatively low, at only 50%, whereas regular attendance at places of worship amongst Muslims, Hundus, Sikhs, Jews and Buddhists ranges from 75-90%.

After Christianity, however, the largest individual belief groups are those who do not state their religion (7%) or who declare themselves as being atheists, agnostics or otherwise having no religion (20%). These numbers increased rapidly over the course of the second half of the 20th century, peaking in the 1990s with just under a third of the country declaring themselves to be atheist or agnostic. However, numbers have declined since then due to a revival in religious feeling and have plateaued at around their present number in the past decade.

Religious figures have held political office in the United Kingdom and its predecessor states for many centuries. Bishops have sat in the House of Lords as Lords Spiritual since at least the 13th century. Since the Reformation, the position of Lords Spiritual came to be divided between archbishops and bishops of the Churches of England and Ireland. (The Church of Scotland does not have bishops in a traditional sense.) However, this settlement became increasingly unsatisfactory over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, particularly following the enactment of Irish Home Rule and then subsequent waves of non-Christian immigration to the UK.

Several attempts were made to reform the position of the Lords Spiritual, with a proposal to abolish them as part of the Lords reforms of the 1960s failing in committee. In the 1990s, under the Liberal-Conservative coalition, Ferdinand Mount (as Lord President of the Council) took on personal responsibility for reforming the Lords Spiritual, leading to the Lords Spiritual (Reform) Act 1993. Coming into force on 1 January 1995, the act reserved at least 26 seats for the Lords Spiritual, with one being set aside for the Archbishop of Canterbury (as the most senior cleric in the United Kingdom) and the remainder being divided up proportionally between all religions which have over 250,000 adherents. In each case, the number of Lords Spiritual allocated to each religion is rounded up to at least 1. In practice this means that there are often more than 26 in total (for example, for the 2020-25 term there are 33, including the Archbishop of Canterbury). These are then refreshed every five years according to the latest data on religious beliefs. By convention, the Lords Spiritual do not take a party whip but otherwise take a full part in Lords’ affairs.

This arrangement has caused controversy, particularly for the inclusion of atheism/agnosticism as a recognised spiritual belief. The Electoral Commission recognised the British Humanist Association as the official voice of British atheists and agnostics in 1994 and the organisation traditionally organises a ballot of its members every five years to decide who should be their representatives. The Electoral Commission has also designated certain organisations as the official leadership for British Muslims (the Association of British Muslims), Hindus (the Hindu Council UK), Sikhs (the Sikh Federation), Jews (the Board of Deputies of British Jews - although by convention their appointee as Lord Spiritual has been held by the Chief Rabbi to the Commonwealth) and Buddhists (the Buddhist Society). This has periodically caused controversy and is reviewed before each re-allocation of seats.

British Religious Attitudes Survey, 2020
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Lords Spiritual 2020-25
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Does the ban on Catholic clergy in political office not take place in this universe?
 
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