London is the capital city of England and the United Kingdom, the largest metrop olitan area in the

United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Un ion by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settl ement for two millennia, its history going back to its founding by the Romans, w ho called it Londinium. London's ancient core, the City of London, largely retai ns its square-mile mediaeval boundaries. Since at least the 19th century, the na me London has also referred to the metropolis developed around this core.London is a leading global city, with strengths in the arts, commerce, education, enter tainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, professional services, research a nd development, tourism and transport all contributing to its prominence. It is the world's leading financial centre alongside New York City and Tokyo. London h as been described as a world cultural capital. It has the third most internation al visitors in the world and London Heathrow is the world's busiest airport by n umber of international passengers. London's 43 universities form the largest con centration of higher education in Europe. London attracts over 14 million international visitors per year, making it the w orld's most visited city. London attracts 27 million overnight-stay visitors eve ry year. London is home to many museums, galleries, and other institutions, many of which are free of admission charges and are major tourist attractions as well as play ing a research role. The first of these to be established was the British Museum in Bloomsbury, in 1753. Originally containing antiquities, natural history spec imens and the national library, the museum now has 7 million artefacts from arou nd the globe. In 1824 the National Gallery was founded to house the British nati onal collection of Western paintings; this now occupies a prominent position in Trafalgar Square. In the latter half of the nineteenth century the locale of Sou th Kensington was developed as "Albertopolis", a cultural and scientific quarter . Three major national museums are located there: the Victoria and Albert Museum (for the applied arts), the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum. The national gallery of British art is at Tate Britain, originally established as an annexe of the National Gallery in 1897. The Tate Gallery, as it was formerly kn own, also became a major centre for modern art; in 2000 this collection moved to Tate Modern, a new gallery housed in the former Bankside Power Station. In 2009 the ten most-visited attractions in London were: British Museum, Nationa l Gallery, Tate Modern, Natural History Museum, London Eye, Science Museum, Towe r of London, National Maritime Museum, Victoria and Albert Museum, Madame Tussau ds.