Historical immigration to Great Britain

Historical immigration (and invasion of) Great Britain concerns the inward movement of people, cultural and ethnic groups into the island of Great Britain before Irish independence in 1922. Immigration after Irish independence is dealt with by the article Immigration to the United Kingdom since Irish independence.

Modern humans first arrived in Great Britain during the Palaeolithic era, but until the invasion of the Romans (1st century BC) there was no historical record. With the fall of the Roman Empire, Anglo-Saxons (c. 5th century AD) and Vikings (8th century AD) invaded and migrated to Great Britain. In 1066, the Normans successfully took control of England and, in subsequent years, there was some small-scale migration. In the 19th century, immigration by people outside Europe began on a small scale as people arrived from the British colonies. This has increased greatly since 1945-the table below demonstrates this near 500% increase in the rate of migration to the UK.

DNA provides a direct record of the effects of immigration on the population. Studies of DNA suggest that the biological influence on Britain of immigration from the Norman conquests up till the 20th century was small; The native population's genetics was marked more by stability than change.

For the settlement of Great Britain before the arrival of the Romans see the article Prehistoric settlement of Great Britain and Ireland

The first Roman invasion of Great Britain was led by Julius Caesar in 55 BC; the second, a year later in 54 BC. The Romans had many supporters among the Celtic tribal leaders, who agreed to pay tribute to Rome in return for Roman protection. The Romans returned in AD 43, led by the Emperor Claudius, this time establishing control, and establishing the province of Britannia. Initially an oppressive rule, gradually the new leaders gained a firmer hold on their new territory which at one point stretched from the south coast of England to Wales and as far away as southern Scotland.

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