Lincolnshire
| Lincolnshire | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Country | England |
| Borders | Cambridgeshire Leicestershire Norfolk Northamptonshire Nottinghamshire Rutland Yorkshire |
| Population | 1,038,510 |
Lincolnshire is a county on the east coast of England between the Wash, to the south and east of which lies East Anglia, and the Humber Estuary, north of which lies Yorkshire. For statistical purposes, the county lies mostly within the East Midlands, but the northern areas near the Humber are part of Yorkshire and the Humber. It is named for Lincoln, a cathedral city with Roman roots, which serves as the county town.
Lincolnshire borders with Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire, Yorkshire, Norfolk, Rutland, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire. The county is around 2,687 square miles in area, making it the second largest county in England after neighbouring Yorkshire, and has a population of just over 1 million.
It has an extensive North Sea coastline with many popular beaches. Principal towns and cities include Lincoln, Gainsborough, Skegness, Boston, and Grantham. The county has three subdivisions; Lindsey in the north, Holland in the south east, and Kesteven in the south west.
Most of Lincolnshire is low-lying and relatively flat, its highest point being only 551 feet above sea level, and for that reason is mostly given over to agriculture. Part of the county, especially around the Wash in the southeast, lies below sea level and is at severe risk from flooding if sea defences are breached.
Lincolnshire folk are popularly known as 'Yellowbellies,' a term thought to originate from the yellow facings on the uniform of the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment, which existed from 1685 to 1960. Being largely agrarian, with few urban centers, the county is very conservative politically and culturally; it is completely represented by the Conservative Party in Parliament, and its residents voted in favor of Brexit by a two-to-one margin in 2016.
Administration
The county lends its name to Lincolnshire County Council which, despite covering much of the county, excludes some of its more populated areas. These are located close to the Humber, in the north of the county's northern subdivision Lindsey, and are covered by two councils: North Lincolnshire Council and North East Lincolnshire Council. Together, these three council areas form a county for the purposes of lieutenancy called Lincolnshire, which is similar to (but not identical with) the county proper Lincolnshire.
Region
Lincolnshire is an area where the exact boundaries between the North, Midlands and South of England become somewhat burred; for statistical purposes, much of the county is in the East Midlands, although the far north of Lindsey (the area covered by the council areas North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire) is a part of Yorkshire and the Humber.
