4.

MO
THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND

• It is situated to the west of Europe. It borders the Atlantic ocean in the west and the
North Sea in the North – east.
• The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland covers an area of about 244
000 square km.
• It consists of two large islands (Great Britain – divided into England, Scotland and Wales
and Ireland) and many smaller ones (e.g. the Isle of Wight, the Isle of Scilly, Anglesey,
The Hebrides, the Shetlands, the Channel Islands…)
• The main mountain regions are the Cambrians (Wales), the Pennines (the Backbone of
England), the Cheviot Hills (on the border between England and Scotland), the
Highlands of Scotland with the highest mountain Ben Nevis (1 342 m).
• The longest rivers are the Severn and the Thames. The Isles have moderate climate. It
is rainy and windy very often.
• Population: 60,000,000 people
• Different names: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or Great
Britain or just Britain
• Great Britain consists of Wales, Scotland, England and Northern Ireland (Ulster).
• The Commonwealth is the descendant of the British Empire, a worldwide system of
colonies; most of them are independent now. Colonies were source of raw materials and
cheap labour and they served as markets for manufactured goods. The first country to
attain self-government was Canada. In 1867. Later on also Australia, New Zealand,
Newfoundland, Ireland and the Union of South Africa became independent. These were
called as old Commonwealth countries. New commonwealth members are India, Pakistan
and The Isle of Fiji.
• Flag: 3 crosses (England, Scotland, and N. Ireland), Wales- it's own flag (Welsh dragon,
shows a red dragon on a green and white field), British flag is commonly known as the
Union Jack
• National anthem: God save the Queen
• Language: English, Welsh (parts of Wales), Scottish and Irish Gaelic (they aren’t official)
• Political system: constitutional monarchy, head of the state is British Queen (Elizabeth
II) but she has very little power
• Parliament:
• House of Lords – 745 members (consists of hereditary and life peers (only 92 of
them),2 archbishops and bishops as the Representatives of the Church of England)
• House of Commons- bigger power (there are 650 elected Members of Parliament-
MPs), every five years must be elected
• The Prime Minister - Downing street 10, London, the head of the Cabinet
• Religion: Anglican or Protestant
SCOTLAND
• The capital is Edinburgh; the biggest city is Glasgow.
• The Loch Ness - the monster is the biggest attraction.
• Loch Lomond - the largest lake
• Scottish Highlands - The highest mountain is Ben Nevis.
• Scotch whisky
• Gretna Green
• It used to be a part of Scotland. It is a small village; young people can get married at 16
without parents’ agreement.
• Hadrian Wall
• Was built by brave people, they attacked Romans, they protected Scotland.
ENGLAND
• SOUTHWEST:
• Plymouth:
• Home to many England’s seafarers including Sir Francis Drake (= the first
Englishman that sail around the world. He set out to attack the Spanish army
from here.).
• The Pilgrim Fathers sailed from here to America.
• Is the most famous spa in England. Natural springs are nearly 50 degrees hot.
Romans built it.
• Bath - There are the remains of the Roman bath built 2000 years ago. The
springs have curative purposes (léčebné účinky). The city is also a cultural
centre with theatre productions and festivals.

• Cornwall:
• The south-west country of England, is known for its beautiful landscape.

• Devon:
• Is the region of wild moors. The area became famous through Sir Arthur
Conan Doyle’s novel The Hound of the Baskervilles”.

• Stonehenge:
• It is situated on Salisbury Plain.
• The purpose of this construction is unknown – probably religious and
astronomical reasons. The ruins stand in the centre of a huge circle (98
meters in diameter). The circle is formed by a bank and a ditch. The ruins
consist of two stone circles and two horseshoes. In the centre there is an
Altar Stone.
• SOUTHEAST
• Dover:
• When you approach Britain by sea, the first sights to see are the White Cliffs
of Dover and Dover Castle. Dover Castle, which is one of the country largest
castles stands on the top of the cliffs. There is situated e.g. the Roman
Lighthouse which is still in use, Medieval Tunnels and Admiralty Look out
which gives a magnificent view of the harbour and the White Cliffs coastline.

• Hastings:
• Hastings is a seaside resort on the east-coast.
• It was the Normans who made the biggest impact on Hastings - and much of
what they built can still be seen today. The ruins of one of William the
Conqeror’s first English castles dominates Hastings.
• There are St Clement’s Caves, where is a very popular tourist attraction,
which is called Smuggler’s Adventure. You can see there how smugglers
lived. It is built because there were about 70 000 smugglers in Hastings in
the 17th century.

• Brighton:
• Not far along the coast lies Brighton a fashionable seaside resort and a spa.
• Its prosperity began with the building of the Royal Pavilion by King George
IV. in the 19th century.
• There is the Palace Pier in Brighton, which is similar to Hastings, Pier.

• Canterbury:
• Canterbury is the seat of the Archbishop.
• There is a cathedral built by people of faith. Thomas Becket was murdered
there in 12th century and he is also buried there.
• Canterbury Tales based on Geoffrey Chaucer’s classic are big attraction. You
can join pilgrims on their way from London to Canterbury and listen to their
stories, which are spoken by famous speakers. You listen to strange sounds
and smell different smells.

• Windsor:
• Home of kings and queens of Britain for over 900 years.
• There are unique treasures.
• It has been heavily damaged in 1992.
• Great Park- it used to be hunting forest, now it is famous for playing of polo.

• Portsmouth:
 • Traditional home of the Royal Navy.
• It has been an important port.
• There are historic ships, castles, forts, and museums. You can walk where
Captain Cook or Nelson once walked.

• Battle:
• As you know William the Conqeror defeated the Saxon King Harold in the
battle of Hastings in 1066.
• But it was not exactly in Hastings, it was in a small town which is situated
near H.
• That town is called Battle and after defeating Harold, W. the Conqeror had
an abbey built there to Harold’s memory.

• THE MIDLANDS
• Liverpool:
• Second largest port in GB. The dock (Albert docks) has been transformed
into International Garden Festival.
• It is famous for Industry, football horses and Beatles.
• Liver was a magic bird and it is a symbol of Liverpool.
• It is called the city of the Beatles. There is the Beatles museum and the
Beatles club.
• There is very old Liverpool Cathedral. Liverpool Cathedral is the largest
cathedral in Britain and the 5th largest in the world. (It is a protestant
cathedral, it was completed by Queen Elizabeth II.).

• Coventry:
• Home of Britain’s car industry.

• Manchester:
• Is a large industrial, commercial and financial centre of the UK.

• Oxford:
• There is the oldest university in England.
• Sir Christopher Wren or John Locke studied there.
• Oxford University consists of 38 independent colleges.
• The city is situated at the meeting of two rivers - The Thames and The
Cherwell.
• Stratford:
 • It is a small town with only 17 thousand inhabitants.
• In Holy Trinity Church you can see the grave of Shakespeare, his wife and
other members of his family.
• Not far there is the Royal Shakespeare Theatre where the Shakepeare’s plays
have been played.
• Shakespeare’s birthplace is the house where Shakespeare was born in 1564.
It has been a place of pilgrimage for over 250 years.
• New place (Nash’s House) - Shakespeare’s family home from 1597 until his
dead in 1616. It was pulled down in the 18th century because the owner
didn’t like the visitors. But the ruins can be still seen today.
• EAST ENGLAND
• Cambridge:
• A university town situated on the river Cam.
• University: 30 colleges, firstly only for men, since 1871 for women too.
• There is very famous bridge over the river called Bridge of Sighs. It's
wooden. There are no screws or nails. There are wooden Mathematical
Bridge and the Bridge of Sighs over the river.
• Microsoft are building their 1st European research centre there.
• WALES
• Wales is to the west of England.
• The Welsh are very proud of their language and culture.
• Welsh is one of the oldest living languages in Europe. It is spoken by 20% of the
population.
• King Edward I. started the tradition that the oldest son of the English King has the
title “Prince of Wales”.
• Cardiff, Newport and Swansea are the biggest industrial cities. The main
industries in Cardiff are coal and steel industries.
• Cardiff has been the official capital of Wales since 1955. It was an important
industrial city and a port, nowadays it is a commercial and administrative centre.
• You should visit the Castle, the Cathedral or the National Museum of Wales there.
• There is the village with the longest name in the world, in Wales.
• There are 3 National Parks in Wales - etc. Snowdonia, which covers about 2 sq
km. The highest mountain Snowdon is 1085 m.
• There is an annual competition in Wales, called eisteddfod. People recite poetry,
sing and dance.
• St. David is the patron saint of Wales.
• The symbols are a leek and a daffodil.
NORTHERN IRELAND
• Capital is Belfast.

HISTORY OF THE COUNTRY

• Britain draws it's name from one of the Celtic tribes - Brythons, who brought iron to
England.
• England was added to the Roman Empire in 43 AD.
• Christianity was brought to England in 4th century.
• In 1066 William the Conqueror defeated Saxon King Harold in a battle of Hastings.
• 1338-1453 Hundred Year’s War against France took place.
• A long civil war between the House of Lancaster and the House of York lasted 1455-1485
(It was called the war of roses).
• King Henry VIII. separated the Church of England from the authority of the Pope in 1543.
• A struggle between the Parliament and Stuart kings led to a bloody civil war (1642
-1649). Finally Oliver Cromwell established a republic and king Charles was beheaded.
• During 1WW and 2WW Britain suffered big economic losses and the USA became the
world’s leading power.
• Ireland became independent in 1921.

ECONOMICS
• GB has very rich coal deposits. GB has big deposits of oil and gas in North Sea. As to steel
GB is the 5th largest producer in the world.
• In aircraft industry GB takes up 2nd position.
• Great Britain is a highly developed country. The main industries are electrical, oil and
aircraft industries and textile production.
• It is one of the biggest shipbuilders (Newcastle).
• Important agricultural items are cattle, sheep, vegetables, fruit.
• Famous English people:
• I. Newton – mathematician, physicist
• J. Watt - a Scottish engineer who invented the steam engine
• G. Stevenson - constructed the first steam locomotive
• Ch. Darwin - biologist, founder of the theory of evolution
• A. Fleming – discovered penicillin, got the Nobel Prize