12/23/24 THE UK OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NOTHERN IRELAND

GeographyBritain lies off the north-west coast of Europe across the English Channel. It consists of two large islands - Great Britain and Ireland - and about 5,000 smaller ones. Its neighbours are Ireland to west and France to south-east. Britain is a beautiful country with places of interests, attractive countryside and a temperate. The Highlands of Scotland are the highest mountains in Britain. The rivers are not very long but deep. The longest rivers are the Severn and the Thames. There are many important ports: London, Liverpool and Glasgow. The best known lakes are in the Lake District- Lake Windermere and in Scotland- Loch Lomond and Loch Ness. The highest mountains are Ben Nevis in Scotland (1342 m) and Snowdon in North Wales. In England there is the highest point Scafell Pike.

WeatherEngland is mostly rolling land. Its winters are mild and summers are not very hot, it rains a lot and the grass is greener than in Central Europe. In summer temperature is about 25 degrees and in winter temperature is about 5 degrees.

People+languagePopulation is about 57,000,000 people. The various origins, separate traditions and cultures explain many of the differences between England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland: differences in religion, the legal system, education and language. People living there are different nations. Everybody speaks English in the United Kingdom; it is not the same language. English has its own special accents and dialects.

Political systemThe official title for the union of England, Scotland and Wales is Great Britain. Great Britain and Northern Ireland form the United Kingdom, while the United Kingdom together with Canada, Australia and New Zealand and some other territories is the British Commonwealth of Nations.
Britain is parliamentary democracy with constitutional monarch as a head of State. Britain’s democratic system of government is long established and well tried, and has provided remarkable political stability, which owes much to the monarchy. Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state. The country is governed, in her name, by the Government, a body of ministers, who are responsible to Parliament.

The British system of government is the oldest parliamentary democracy in Europe. British parliament was formed in the eleventh century and, after the signing of the Magna Charta by King John in the year 1215, it came to power and became the main part in the system of government. In this way, England set up the base of democracy in the whole Europe.

The Queen appoints its leader as Prime Minister. A general election must be held every five years. Eighteen is the minimum voting age; candidates must be 21 and over. The are three main political parties in Britain- the Conservative Party, the Labour Party and the Liberal-Democratic Party. Britain is the member nearly all of important international organisations- the EU, NATO, OECD.

British flag and anthem- the flag of the UK is officially called the Union Flag and has existed in its present form since 1801.

Interesting places in Great BritainOxford and Cambridge old university towns
Stratford –upon- Avon birthplace of W. Shakespeare
Brighton, Bournemouth,
Portsmouth, Blackpool,
Sunderland, Scarborough southern holiday centres
Canterbury ancient city with majestic cathedral and archbishop
Dover, Folkestone a gateway, the Channel Tunnel
Hastings Norman castle
Edinburgh capital of Scotland, festivals
Windsor Castle a royal palace, the residence of British monarchs outside London
Bath Romans bath built 2000 years ago
Exeter the moorland, many national parks
Birmingham the geographical heart of England, the second largest city in Britain
York one of the country’s best preserved historic cities
Liverpool an important port, the city of Beatles
Lake District English glacier lakes, national park
Loch Lomond, Loch Ness lakes in Scotland
Hadrian’s Wall
Cornwall well-known for its beautiful landscape
Land’s End the southern peninsula of Cornwall

National economyThe main industries are steel, metals, vehicles, shipbuilding, shipping, banking, insurance, textiles, chemicals, electronics, aircraft, machinery, services and distilling+coalmining, iron, steel and textiles. The main agricultural products are corn, sugar, beef, fruit, and vegetables. Britain is rich in coal, tin, oil, gas, chalk and lead.