Great Britain is a group of islands off the Northwest coast of Europe. The largest island includes the countries of England, Scotland and Wales. Together with Northern Ireland they constitute the United Kingdom (UK). But they are often simply called Britain.
The total area of the UK is about 250 000 sq km. Regions of the United Kingdom are called counties.
After several centuries, the English finally took control of their neighbours. In 1536, an Act of Union brought England and Wales together. Finally, in 1707, England and Scotland were also politically unified and called Great Britain. Ireland was joined with Great Britain after the Act of Union on 1 January 1801 and the four countries became the United Kingdom. Recently Scotland has been granted its own parliament and Wales has the Welsh Assembly.
Despite its small size, Britain once conquered large areas of the world and today it is still a powerful and influential nation.
The UK is a constitutional monarchy. Queen Elizabeth II is Head of State and Church, while Tony Blair is Prime Minister and heads the Labour Party. Queen Elizabeth II is also the Queen of Canada, Australia or New Zealand.
The Union Flag is the national flag of the United Kingdom combining England and Wales, Scotland and Ireland – united under one Sovereign.
Today there are over 60 million inhabitants in the UK of which 6,9 million live in the capital city London. Britain has received large numbers of immigrants, especially during World War II. In the 1950s and 1960s, Afro-Caribbean and Asian people came to live and work in the UK. They make up about 5,7 percent of Britain’s population.
The United Kingdom is one of the largest economies in the European Union with energy-rich reserves of gas and oil under the North Sea. Alternative sources of energy such as wind power are being developed.
In the UK, the system of education is divided into three stages: Primary education is divided into infant schools and junior schools. Secondary education includes grammar schools designed for children to profit from an academic type of education. Most children remain till the age 18 to 19, especially if they want to go to university. The school leaving examination called “A” level. This exam is a university qualifying examination. After this, students go to universities and colleges or to work.
Football, rugby and cricket dominate sport in Britain. Although one of the most popular is fishing.
In the UK there is a lot of famous places. The famous English river is Thames, which is 215 miles long. The most beautiful lakes are Loch Lomond, Loch Katrine and Loch District, but most famous is the Loch Ness Lake in Scotland.
British mountains are low if compared to the Alps. The highest mountain in Great Britain is Ben Nevis in Scotland.
Stonehenge is one of the most famous prehistoric places in the world. This ancient circle of the stones stands in Southwest England. It is made with massive blocks of stone up to 4 metres high.
Oxford is home of the oldest university in England and well known is also Cambridge University.
The capital city of the UK is London. There are world’s known Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, St. Paul's Cathedral, Trafalgar Square or Tower Bridge.
Other exiting city is Edinburgh, which is well known for its castle and for the Edinburgh International Festival in August. The industrial part of the UK includes environs the city Manchester.
