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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Geography

The UK consists of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The many islands in this political group lie off the NW mainland of Europe and are surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east. France is only 35 km to the southeast across the English Channel.

The southern tip of England is roughly at the same latitude (52 degrees North) as Prague and the zero degree of longitude (Greenwich Meridian ) passes through London.

The UK covers an area of 244,820 sq km, only three times that of the Czech Republic. The physical geography is varied with the highest mountains in Wales and Scotland (Ben Nevis 1,343m). The eastern and southern parts of England are lower and high ground is referred to as hills, downs or heights (eg. The Chiltern Hills, The South Downs and the East Anglican Heights). The lowest point in the UK is minus 4 m in the drained Fens of East Anglia.

Climate

The weather is a main talking point among the British at first meeting. Its variability is due to the temperate maritime climate . Winters are milder than they would normally be for the latitude because of the warming effect of the North Atlantic drift (The Gulf Stream). Summers are occasionally hot but 50 per cent of the year the skies are cloudy and overcast .

The British flag known as the Union Jack represents the three kingdoms of the UK: England and Wales (the red cross of St George), Scotland (the diagonal white cross of St. Andrew) and Northern Ireland (the diagonal red cross of St Patrick). The crosses are on a blue background. The flag in its present form first appeared in 1801.

History

These islands have been

successively invaded from Scandinavia and the continent. The Romans had a big influence, but the one date that all children surely know is 1066. This is when William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy (France today), beat the English King Harold at Hastings and invaded Britain. French influence is still seen today particularly in the English language.

The following centuries were characterised by the growing power of the Crown and disputes with France over French territories. In 1485, a new dynasty, the Tudors, gained the throne . During the reign of Henry VIII the Anglican Church was founded and the reign of his daughter Elizabeth I was marked by overseas expansion

The Gothic St. Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh from the 12th century

as well as great cultural development. In 1536, Wales was joined to England by the Act of Union.

The power of the Parliament gradually grew and during the English Revolution (1649 − 1660) the monarchy was temporarily replaced with a series of republics and protectorates, led by Oliver Cromwell.

The 18th century saw Great Britain as a major colonial and industrial power; especially the long reign of Queen Victoria (ruled 1837 − 1901) is associated with the greatest expansion and economic growth. In 1707, Scotland was joined to England and the new unit was called Great Britain. Northern Ireland was merged with Great Britain in 1801.

Queen Elizabeth II was crowned in 1952 and Tony Blair became Prime Minister in 1997.

In the 19th century, Britain laid political claim to one quarter of the

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Total area: 244,820 sq km Population: 60,4 million Capital: London

A prehistoric megalithic complex of standing stones, Stonehenge (near Salisbury in Wiltshire), is believed to have had some religious or astronomical purpose.

The romantic countryside of Wales attracts many tourists every year.

vocabulary

to consist of [k@n”sIst] − skládat se z lie off the NW mainland of Europe − le�í severo− západnì od kontinentální Evropy tip [tIp] − konec roughly [“rVflI] − pøibli�nì latitude [“l&tItju:d] − zemìpisná šíøka longitude [“lQndZItju:d] − zemìpisná délka meridian [m@“rIdI@n] − poledník varied [“vE:rId] − rozmanitý is referred to as [rI”f@:d] − se nazývá drained [“dreInd] − vyschlý, vysušený a main talking point − hlavní téma hovoru variability is due to the temperate maritime climate [%vE:rI@“bIlIti dju: “tEmp(@)r@t “m&rItaIm “klaIm@t] − promìnlivost je zpùsobena mírným pøímoøským klimatem mild [maIld] − mírný drift [drIft] − proud overcast [@Uv@“kA:st] − zata�ený successively [s@k”sEsIvli] − postupnì to beat [bi:t] − porazit particularly [p@“tIkjUl@li] − zejména disputes… over [dI”spju:ts] − spory… o gained the throne [geInd Tr@Un] − usedla na trùn reign [reIn] − vláda, panování was marked by overseas expansion [“@Uv@si:z Ik”sp&nS(@)n] − se vyznaèovala expanzemi do zámoøí to join [dZOIn] − pøipojit to merge [m@:dZ] − spojit

decisions for the UK are made in London through the Parliament, consisting of the elected House of Commons and the un− elected House of Lords. Recently there has been a process called devolution. This means that Scotland now has its own parliament in Edinburgh and there is a National Assembly for Wales in Cardiff. The establishment of an Assembly for Northern Ireland in Belfast is still under discussion because of problems with the peace process.

earth’s surface in the form of the Commonwealth (the countries that used to be or in some cases still are a part of the British Empire). As a result, this small country continues to have political and financial influence abroad. The UK is a founding member of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation). Although since 1973 the UK has been a member of the European Union, the British people are not keen to change their currency to the Euro.

Political system

People

Queen Elizabeth II is head of the constitutional monarchy and the government is responsible to her for its decisions . She is also Head of the Protestant Church of England. Tony Blair is currently Prime Minister. Many

The population of the UK is more than 60 million, taking into account emigration and immigration. About 7 million live in London.

To live in Britain means that you could enjoy a very good standard of living with

life expectancy for men being nearly 76 years and 81 years for women. Unemployment is low (4.8%). On the negative side, 17% of the population is living below the poverty line .

laid political claim to one quarter of the earth’s surface [“kwO:t@ “s@:fIs] − si nárokovala politický vliv nad ètvrtinou zemì founding member [“faUndIN “mEmb@] − zakládající èlen

are not keen [ki:n] − nejsou naklonìni currency [“kVr(@)nsi] − mìna

government is responsible to her for its decisions [rI”spQnsIb(@)l] − vláda se jí zodpovídá ze svých rozhodnutí currently [“kVr(@)ntli] − momentálnì elected [I”lEktId] − volený assembly [@“sEmbli] − shromá�dìní is still under discussion − je stále pøedmìtem diskusí

Holidays

The UK doesn’t have special holidays apart from Christmas, New Year and Easter. There are single day ’ bank holidays ’ in May and August. Nigel Haward (Great Britain)

life expectancy [Ik”spEkt(@)nsi] − prùmìrná délka �ivota

unemployment [VnIm”plOIm(@)nt] − nezamìstnanost is living below the poverty line [“pQv@ti] − �ije pod hranicí chudoby bank holidays − státní svátek, den pracovního volna diagonal [daI”&g(@)n(@)l] − úhlopøíèný mural [“mjU@r@l] − nástìnný

Mural paintings are common in Belfast.