First there are the historic counties, which date as far back as the mid-Saxon period. Some, like Westmorland, no longer exist in an administrative sense.

Lord Heseltine has admitted he ripped up England’s historic counties after taking a light aircraft flight across the country and redrawing lines on a map. As local government minister under ...

Stockton Councillor Ross Patterson's passionate campaign struck a chord with councillors, one of whom said: 'We never know where we live' ...

For some, the historic counties of England represent the authentic divisions of the land. Others fervently press for the creation of an English parliament for the first time in centuries.

Eric Pickles, the Communities Secretary, has pledged to resurrect historic county names that stopped being used nearly 40 years ago as part of an effort to champion the “tapestry” of England.

He added: "There's 41 historic counties of England. They go back to the Middle Ages and the monarchy used them to run the country. In 1889 each of these counties was given a council that covered the ...