A PDF map that shows the counties and unitary authorities in the United Kingdom as at 1 April 2023. (File Size - 583 KB)

Counties were formerly administrative units across the whole UK. Due to various administrative restructurings however, the only administrative areas still referred to as counties are the nonmetropolitan (shire) counties of England. The English metropolitan counties, although no longer administrative units, are also used for statistical purposes.

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https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/products/boundary-line#technical

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Source:

https://osdatahub.os.uk/downloads/open/BoundaryLine

Licence:

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

The current counties of England are defined by the ceremonial counties, a collective name for the county areas to which are appointed a Lord Lieutenant. The office of Lord Lieutenant was created in the reign of Henry VIII. The Lord Lieutenant is the chief officer of the county and representative of the Crown. Whenever the Queen visits an area she will be accompanied by the Lord Lieutenant of that area. Legally the ceremonial counties are defined by the Lieutenancies Act 1997 as ‘Counties and areas for the purposes of the lieutenancies in Great Britain’ with reference to the areas used for local government.

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https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/products/boundary-line#technical

​

Source:

https://osdatahub.os.uk/downloads/open/BoundaryLine

Licence:

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

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A PDF map that shows the counties in England and Wales as at 31 December 1961. (File Size - 2.6 MB)

This file contains the digital vector boundaries for Counties and Unitary Authorities, in the United Kingdom, as at December 2024.The boundaries available are: (BGC) Generalised (20m) - clipped to the coastline (Mean High Water mark).Contains both Ordnance Survey and ONS Intellectual Property Rights.REST URL of Feature Access Service – https://services1.arcgis.com/ESMARspQHYMw9BZ9/arcgis/rest/services/Counties_and_Unitary_Authorities_December_2024_Boundaries_UK_BGC/FeatureServerREST URL of WFS Server –https://dservices1.arcgis.com/ESMARspQHYMw9BZ9/arcgis/services/Counties_and_Unitary_Authorities_December_2024_Boundaries_UK_BGC/WFSServer?service=wfs&request=getcapabilitiesREST URL of Map Server –https://services1.arcgis.com/ESMARspQHYMw9BZ9/arcgis/rest/services/Counties_and_Unitary_Authorities_December_2024_Boundaries_UK_BGC/MapServer

The index shows the availability of county series geological maps, 1:10560 scale. The maps themselves were produced on OS County Series sheets between approximately 1860 and 1960. The list indicates whether the map has been revised or re-surveyed and gives details of any later versions that have been produced. It is advisable to discuss your requirements before ordering or travelling to view these maps.

A PDF map that shows the counties and unitary authorities in the United Kingdom as at 31 December 2017. (File Size - 7 MB)

A PDF map shows the Regions and their constituent counties, metropolitan counties, Greater London authority and unitary authorities in England, council areas in Scotland, unitary authorities in Wales and district council areas in Northern Ireland as at April 2011. (File Size - 638 KB).

🇬🇧 영국

This file contains the digital vector boundaries for Counties and Unitary Authorities in the United Kingdom, as at December 2019. The boundaries available are: (BUC) Ultra Generalised (500m) - clipped to the coastline (Mean High Water mark). Contains both Ordnance Survey and ONS Intellectual Property Rights. Download File SizesUltra Generalised (500m) - clipped to the coastline (200 KB)Units for the following fields:St_length = metresSt_area = metres2REST URL of ArcGIS for INSPIRE View Service https://ons-inspire.esriuk.com/arcgis/rest/services/Administrative_Boundaries/Counties_and_Unitary_Authorities_December_2019_Boundaries_UK_BUC2/MapServer/exts/InspireView REST URL of ArcGIS for INSPIRE Feature Download Service https://ons-inspire.esriuk.com/arcgis/rest/services/Administrative_Boundaries/Counties_and_Unitary_Authorities_December_2019_Boundaries_UK_BUC2/MapServer/exts/InspireFeatureDownload REST URL of Feature Access Service https://ons-inspire.esriuk.com/arcgis/rest/services/Administrative_Boundaries/Counties_and_Unitary_Authorities_December_2019_Boundaries_UK_BUC2/FeatureServer

A PDF map that shows the counties and unitary authorities in the United Kingdom as at 31 December 2015. (File Size - 503 KB)

A PDF map that shows the local authority districts, counties and unitary authorities in the United Kingdom as at December 2012. The map has been created to show the United Kingdom from counties down to local authority districts. (File Size - 7 MB)

A PDF map that shows the regions and their constituent counties and unitary authorities in the United Kingdom as at 31 December 2015. (File Size - 635 KB)

A PDF map that shows the local authority districts, counties and unitary authorities in the United Kingdom as at December 2022. The map has been created to show the United Kingdom from country level down to local authority district level. (File Size - 521 KB)

Boundary_line_ceremonial_counties_region

Counties dataset generated from the 2019 National Statutory Boundary dataset. Ungeneralised.

The division into counties based on the model used in the English system, was introduced gradually by English settlers from the late 12th century onwards. These land divisions were formed following the Norman invasion of Ireland in imitation of the counties then in use as units of local government in the Kingdom of England. The older term "shire" was historically equivalent to "county". The principal function of the county was to impose royal control in the areas of taxation, security and the administration of justice at local level. Following a survey under the 1825 Boundary Survey Act, an extensive series of maps of Ireland was created by the Irish division of the Ordnance Survey for taxation purposes. These maps both documented and standardised the boundaries of the thirty two counties of Ireland.

Coordinate Reference System: Irish Transverse Mercator.

This dataset is provided by Tailte Éireann – National Mapping Division

1:1,000,000 raster map showing the County boundaries of Northern Ireland. A raster map is a static image displayed on screen which is suitable as background mapping. 1:1 000,000 Raster is smallest scale OSNI raster product giving an excellent overview of Northern Ireland. Published here for OpenData. By download or use of this dataset you agree to abide by the Open Government Data Licence.Please Note for Open Data NI Users: Esri Rest API is not Broken, it will not open on its own in a Web Browser but can be copied and used in Desktop and Webmaps

For much of the Geological Survey's existence, the County Series of maps were the standard large-scale maps on which geological mapping was undertaken. These maps are based on the Ordnance Survey County (or six-inch to the mile) series of maps. These maps were cut up to be used in the field to record geological observations, and on return to the office, the geology was transferred to a complete County Series map, which after approval was known as a 'standard' (England / Wales) or 'clean copy' (Scotland). This dataset contains the 'standard' or 'clean copy' County Series maps held by BGS. Geological maps represent a geologist's compiled interpretation of the geology of an area. A geologist will consider the data available at the time, including measurements and observations collected during field campaigns, as well as their knowledge of geological processes and the geological context to create a model of the geology of an area. This model is then fitted to a topographic basemap and drawn up at the appropriate scale, with generalization if necessary, to create a geological map, which is a representation of the geological model. Explanatory notes and vertical and horizontal cross sections may be published with the map. Geological maps may be created to show various aspects of the geology, or themes. The most common map themes held by BGS are solid (later referred to as bedrock) and drift (later referred to as superficial). These maps are hard-copy paper records stored in the National Geoscience Data Centre (NGDC) and are delivered as digital scans through the BGS website.

The division into counties based on the model used in the English system, was introduced gradually by English settlers from the late 12th century onwards. These land divisions were formed following the Norman invasion of Ireland in imitation of the counties then in use as units of local government in the Kingdom of England. The older term "shire" was historically equivalent to "county". The principal function of the county was to impose royal control in the areas of taxation, security and the administration of justice at local level. Following a survey under the 1825 Boundary Survey Act, an extensive series of maps of Ireland was created by the Irish division of the Tailte Éireann for taxation purposes. These maps both documented and standardised the boundaries of the thirty two counties of Ireland.Coordinate Reference System: Irish Transverse Mercator.This dataset is provided by Tailte Éireann