Angličtina - British Isles
What are the British Isles ?
The British Isles are formed by two major islands of Great Britain and Ireland, and more than 5 000 small ones. The isles are washed off by the North Sea in the north, and east, by the Irish Sea and by Atlantic Ocean in the west. England and France are divided by the La Manche Channel.
What is the United Kingdom?
England, Scotland and Wales together with Northen Ireland form the country offcially known as United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or simply the UK.
What smaller islands are there ?
The islands off Northern Ireland include the Shetlands, the Orkneys and Hebrides. The isle of Anglesey off the Northwest coast of Wales, the isle of Wight off the southern coast of England. Achill and the Aran Islands off the western coast of Ireland. Isle of Man is one of the most important british islands. ( The Channel Islands are the only part of the UK where French is spoken, and they include the isles of Jersey, Guernsey and Alderney.
What is total area and geographical division ?
Its area is about 244,755 square miles. The island of Great Britain can be divided into two regions :
Lowland Britain and Highland Britain. Lowland Britain comprises southern ane eastern England. Highland comprises Scotland, Wales and Pennines – which are called the backbone of England.
The highest peak Ben Nevis(1,343m) is a part of the Scottish Highlands – in Grampians. The highest moutain in Wales is Snowdon (1,085m). The longest river is the Severn and longest lake is Loch Fyne
The most biggest British lake is Loch Neagh in Northern Ireland.
What is the climate in Britain like?
The climate in the UK is influenced by the Gulf Stream. The climate is mild and humid with average temperature ranging from 4 C in winter and 16 C in summer.
What are counties ?
The UK is divided into areas called counties. There are 39 of them in England, 34 in Scotland, 13 in Wales and 6 counties are to be found in Northern Ireland. The UK does not include the Isle of Man and Channel Islands. They have his own legislative, monetary and taxition systems. Each have their own parlimentand a Gonernor.
What is the British Commonwealth of Nations ?
The British Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary association of the Great Britain and its former colonies in Europe, Asia, Africa and America. It was founded in 1931 and has 49 members.
What political system is there in britain ?
Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy with the Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state. The British Parliment is one of the oldest in the world.
In Northern Ireland, the sovereign is represented by governor.
What does the British parliment consist… ?
The Parliment includes the sovereign, and two houses the House of Lords ( which is the Upper house) with hereditary members and lifetime pears, arcibiahops and bishops and Lord Cancellor is its head. And Lower House ( House of Commons ) with 650 alected and paid members (MPs). The Cabiet is responsible to Parliament.
What is the Scottish parliament like?
In 1999 Scotland elected its new national assembly(parliament). This is the first time in 300 years that Scotland has had its own parliament. Basted in Edinburgh.
What are the symbols of the country ?
The British national flag is called Union Jack and it si combination of St Gregore’s Cross ( symbolizing England), St Andrew’s Cross (Scotland) and St Patrick’s Cross (Ireland). Wales and Northern Ireland have their own flags. The national anthem is God Save the Queen !. St Gregor si the patron saint of England.
What religion do the British follow ?
The British are mostly protestant. The Curch of England has two provinces : Canterbury and York.
Priests in the Anglican Church are allowed to get married and since 1987, also women can serve as prieste. The leader of the Catholic Church in Britain si the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminister. The redbrick Westminister Cathedral is his seat.
What important international organizations has the UK ?
UK is member of NATO ( North Atlantic Treaty Organization) UNESCO and the European Union. They keep driving on the left, the use original currency and use old measuring units ( pints, miles, yards, pounds …) 1 míle = 1,609344 kilometru, 1 yard = 0,9144 metru, pinta 0, 956 litru.
Do you know any legends ?
There are many legends about King Arthur and The Kinghts of the Round Table or a more modern one about Robin Hood. Which robbed the rich and gave to the poor.
What do you know about inhabitants of the UK ?
The original inhabitants were the Celts. Nowadays there are the English, the Welsh, the Scots ant the Irish. The official language is English but many people in Wales and Scotland are biligual.
What do you know about early British history ?
The country was occupited about 3000 years ago by Celts. In 55 BC the Romans came to Britain, they build roads and forts throughout the land. They brought Christianity to britain. They called the country Britannia. In the 5th cantury the Germanic tribes came and settled in the south a east and pushed the Celts into the mountains of Wales and Scotland.
What do you know about battle of Hastings ?
One of most important kings was William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy. Who defeated King Harold in battle of Hastings.
What happend in the Middle Ages ?
In 1215 King John signed the Magna Carta. In the 13th century the parlimentary system diveloped.The War of Roses was a civil war between the House of Lancaster (red rose) and the House of York ( white rose). Next war was Hundred Year’s War in France.
What do you know about Henry VIII ?
Henry VIII was other famous sovereign, who was 17 when he become king. He had six wives. His first one, Catherine of Aragon, provided him with a daughter, Mary, but no male heir. Five subsequent marriges produced two children ,Elizabeth, who become an outstanding Queen of England and Edward.
What do you know about Marry I ?
Marry I was the first Queen Regnant ( that is, a queen reigining in her own right rather than a queen trough marriage to a king). An Act of Parliment in 1533 had declared her illegitimate and removed her from the succession to the throne. Her decision to marry the Spanish King Philip was unpopular and failed to bring her wat she had hoped for. When shi died, it was her sister Elizabeth who become Queen.
What do you know about Elizabeth I ?
The Elizabeth I was the Virgin Queen and daughter of Henry VIII. and Anne Boleyn. In 1588 Britain defeated the Spanish Armada and Sir Walter Raleigh founded the first English colony in North America, called it Virginia in honour of the Queen. Elizabeth died in 1603.
What events happend in modern British history?
In 1603, the Scottish King James VI become King of England and both countries were linked. From 1642 to 1649,there was a Civil War, and Oliver cromwell declared England a republic !
What was Queen Victoria like?
Another Queen was Victoria. She become Queen at the age of 18.In the beginning, she was much influenced by the Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne.She had a happy marriage with 9 children with her husband Prince Albert. Since 1856 the sovereign has awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest award for courage. In her lifetime, Victori had came to symbolize the contunuous and stable nature of Great Britain.
What the British economy like?
Britain lives by manufacture and trade. Its agricuture provides only half the food it needs. The other half of its food and most for the traditional raw materials fot its industries have to be imported.
Manchester is famous for cotton goods and corduroy cloth prodiction. In Glasgow there are shipyards, Coventry is famous for car industry ( jaguar cars). Another industrial town is Liverpool The southern part of England is called ,, green country‘‘ People grow cattle and sheep there. There are vineyards too.