Cumbria is a
non-metropolitan county in North West England.Cumbria's largest settlement and
county town is Carlisle and the only other major urban area is
Barrow-in-Furness on the south-western tip of the county which has a population
just slightly smaller than Carlisle. The county of Cumbria consists of six
districts (Allerdale, Barrow-in-Furness, Carlisle, Copeland, Eden and South
Lakeland), and in 2008 had a population of just under half a million. Cumbria
is one of the most sparsely populated counties in the United Kingdom, with 73.4
people per sq km (190/sq mi).
Cumbria, the third largest ceremonial county in England by
area, is bounded to the north by the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and
Galloway and Scottish Borders, to the west by the Irish Sea, to the south by
Lancashire, to the southeast by North Yorkshire, and to the east by County
Durham and Northumberland.
Cumbria is predominantly rural and contains the Lake
District and Lake District National Park, considered one of England's most
outstanding areas of natural beauty, serving as inspiration for artists,
writers, and musicians. Much of Cumbria is mountainous, and it contains every
peak in England over 900 metres (3,000 ft) above sea level, with Scafell Pike
at 978 metres (3,209 ft) being the highest point of England. An upland,
coastal, and rural area, Cumbria's history is characterised by invasions,
migration, and settlement, as well as battles and skirmishes between the
English and Scottish. Historic sites in Cumbria include Carlisle Castle,
Furness Abbey, and Hadrian's Wall, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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