Part 2. Three Branches of Government.

Great Britain

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the UK) is the official name of the British Kingdom. It occupies most of the territory of the British Isles and consists of four countries. They are England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Their capitals are London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.

The UK is situated off the west coast of Europe between the Atlantic Ocean on the north-west and the North Sea on the east. It is separated from the European continent by the English Channel. The narrowest part of the English Channel is called the Strait of Dover. The total area of Great Britain is over 244,000 square kilometres.

The UK is an island state: it is made up of two large islands and several much smaller ones. The two main islands are Great Britain to the east and Ireland to the west. They are separated by the Irish Sea. Geographically, the island of Great Britain is subdivided into two main regions — Lowland Britain and Highland Britain. Low­land Britain comprises southern and eastern England. Highland Britain consists of Scotland, most of Wales, the Pennines, and the Lake District. The Mountains are not very high. The highest mountain is Ben Nevis in Scotland (1343m). England is separated from Scotland by the Cheviot Hills, running from east to west.

There are a lot of rivers in Great Britain, but they are not very long. The Severn is the longest river, while the Thames is the deepest and the most important one. The chief river in Scotland is the Clyde. Great Britain has many beautiful lakes. The best known of them is long narrow Loch Ness, legendary home of the famous monster. On the north-west side of the Pennine system lies the Lake District, containing beautiful lakes.

The largest cities of Great Britain are London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Cardiff and Belfast.

The population of the United Kingdom is over 57 million people. English is the official language. But some people speak Gaelic in western Scotland, and Welsh - in parts of northern and central Wales.

The different parts of Britain have their own emblems. The red rose is the national emblem of England. The thistle is the national emblem of Scotland. The daffodils and the leek are the emblems of Wales. And the shamrock is the national emblem of Ireland.

The flag of the United Kingdom is known as the Union Jack. It is made up of three crosses: the cross of St. George (the patron saint of England), the cross of St. Andrew (the patron saint of Scotland) and the cross of St. Patrick (the patron saint of Ireland).

British Climate

The climate of Great Britain is more or less the same as that of the north-western part of the European mainland. The popular belief that it rains all the time in Britain is simply not true. In fact, London gets no more rain in a year than most other European cities. The amount of rain that falls on a town in Britain depends on where it is. Generally speaking, the further west you go, the more rain you get.

The climate of Great Britain is mild and temperate due to the influence of the Gulf Stream. That means that it is never too hot or too cold. Snow is a regular feature of the higher areas only. Occasionally, in lower-lying parts winter can be without snow at all.

Usually the temperature is between 5 below zero and 23 above zero. The driest period is from. March to June and the wettest months are from October to January. It seldom snows heavily in winter, frost is rare. January and February are usually the coldest months; July and August are the warmest ones. Sometimes the wind brings whirlwinds or hurricanes. Droughts are rare.

The lack of extremes is the reason why, on the few occasions when it gets very hot or very frosty, the country seems to be totally unprepared for it. A bit of snow and a few days of frost and the trains stop working and the roads are blocked. If the temperature goes above 27 °C, people behave as if they were in Sahara and the temperature makes front-page-headlines. But these things happen so rarely that it is not worth organising life to be ready for them.

The bad reputation of Britain's climate is due to its changeability. There is a saying that Britain doesn't have a climate, it only has weather. But English weather is never the same two days running. One day it rains, the next day it may be sunny and then it maybe cold again, H may not rain very much altogether, but you can never be sure of a dry day. There can be cool days in July and some quite warm days in January.

So, we may say that the British climate has three main features: it is mild, humid, and changeable. This humid and mild climate is good for plants and flowers. That's why Great Britain is such a green country, with long rich grass for the cattle and sheep, and beautiful lawns in the gardens.

National Stereotypes

There are certain stereotypes of national character which are well known in Britain. For instance, the Irish are supposed to be great talkers, the Scots have a reputation for being careful with money, the Welsh are renowned for their singing abilities, and the English are considered to be reserved. These characteristics are, of course, only caricatures and are not reliable description of individual people from these countries.

British people give a relatively high value to the everyday personal contacts. Some writers on Britain have talked about the British desire 'to belong', and it is certainly true that the pub, or the working man's club, or the numerous other clubs devoted to various sports and pastimes play a very important part in many people's lives. Many people make their social contacts through work and, partly as a result of this, the profession is also important aspect of their sense of identity. British people try to appear as if they belong to as high class as possible, though nobody wants to be thought of as 'snobbish'.

The British have few living traditions and are too individualistic to have the same everyday habits as each other. They are rather proud of being different. However, this does not mean that they like change. They don't. They may not behave in traditional ways, but they like symbols of tradition and stability. The British are rather conservative and their conservatism can combine with their individualism. Why should they change just to be like everyone else? Indeed, as far as they are concerned, not being like everyone else is a good reason not to change. Their driving on the left-hand side of the road is a good example to this. Systems of measurement are another example. The British government has been trying for many years to get British people to use the same scales that are used nearly everywhere else in the world. But everybody in Britain still shops in pounds and ounces.

The modern British are not really chauvinistic. Open hostility to people from other countries is very rare. If there is any chauvinism at all, it expresses itself through ignorance. Most British people know remarkably little about Europe and who lives there. The popular image of Europe seems to be that it is something to do with the French.

It is probably true that the British, especially the English, are more reserved than the people of many other countries. They find it comparatively difficult to indicate friendship by open displays of affection. For example, it is not the convention to kiss when meeting a friend. Instead, friendship is symbolised by behaving as casually as possible.

The British are comparatively uninterested in clothes. They spend a lower proportion of their income on clothing than people in most European countries do. Many people buy second-hands clothes and are not at all embarrassed to admit this. Of course, when people are 'on duty', they have to obey some quite rigid rules. A male bank employee, for example, is expected to wear a suit with a tie at work. But on Sundays the British like to «dress down». They can't wait to take off their respectable working clothes and slip into something really scruffy. In fact, the British are probably more tolerant of' strange' clothing than people in most other countries.

The English people are great pet lovers. Practically every family has a dog or a cat, or both. They have special dog shops selling food, clothes and other things for dogs. There are dog ' hairdressing saloons and dog cemeteries. Millions of families have 'bird-tables' in their gardens. Perhaps, this overall concern for animals is part of the British love for nature.

The British are always talking about the weather. Unlike many others, this stereotype is actually true to life. But constant remarks about the weather at chance meetings are not the result of polite conventions. They are not obligatory. Rather, they are the result of the fact that, on the one hand, to ask personal questions would be rude while, at the same time, silence would also be rude. The weather is a very convenient topic with which to 'fill the gap'.

British Educational System

The basic features of the British educational system are the following: 1) education is compulsory from 5 to 16; 2) the academic year usually begins in September and runs to early July; it has 3 terms, divided by the Christmas and Easter holidays. In addition, all schools have a 'half-term holiday', lasting a few days or a week, in the middle of each term; 3) compulsory education is free of charge, but parents may spend money on educating their children If they want to; 4) there are three stages of education. Children move from the First stage (primary) to the second stage (secondary) at around the age of eleven or twelve. The third stage is’ further' education at university or college.

In 19KX, for the first lime in British history, a National Curriculum was introduced. The National Curriculum tells pupils which subjects they they have to study, what they must learn and when they have to take assessment tests.

At the age of 5children go to infant school which is the first stage of primary education. From 7 to 11 they attend junior schools, the second stage of primary education. In primary school children are taught the so-called 3R's: reading, writing and arithmetic.

At the age of 11 children enter the secondary school. There are three types of state secondary schools in Britain. They are: grammar schools (for the most intelligent children), modern schools (for the less intelligent children) and comprehensive schools (for children of all abilities). Grammar schools lead towards higher education, and the others give general or vocational education to prepare students for employment or for further technical education. The regular secondary schools offer 7 years of schooling, with students from 11 to 18 years of age. The last two years (16—18) may be spent in a separate sixth form college, which concentrates on career training.

Between the ages of 14 and 16, pupils study for their GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) exams. Pupils must take English Language, Maths, and Science for GCSE, as well as half GCSE in a foreign language and Technology. In addition, they must also be taught Physical Education, Religious Education and Sex Education, although they do not take exams in these subjects.

Those who get good GCSE grades can stay at their school for another two years, if it has a sixth form and teaches the desired subjects, and then take 'A' level (Advanced Level) exams. Otherwise they have to leave their school and go to a sixth-form college or college of further education. Further education colleges have strong ties with commerce and industry and offer courses in engineering, cooking or hairdressing.

The GCE Advanced (A) level is normally taken after a further two years of study. Good 'A' level results in at least 2 subjects are necessary to get a place at a university. Universities choose their students after interviews. There are about 100 universities in Britain. The most famous of them are Oxford and Cambridge Universities.

About seven per cent of students go to private schools, where parents have to pay for their children. The most expensive private schools are called public schools. Most of these are single-sex boarding schools and students can live there during term-time.

British Holidays

There are fewer public holidays in Great Britain than in other European countries. They are: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, May Day, Spring Bank Holiday and Summer Bank Holiday. Public holidays in GB are called bank holidays, because banks, offices and shops are closed.

The most popular holiday is Christmas. It is celebrated on the 25th of December. Every year the people of Norway give the city of London a present. It's a big Christmas tree and it stands in Trafalgar Square. Central streets are beautifully decorated. The British send Christmas cards to greet each other. Most houses are decorated with holly and there is usually a Christmas tree in the corner of one of the rooms. Children hang their stockings on their beds hoping that Father Christmas will come with toys and sweets. Christmas is a family holiday. The family usually meets for a traditional dinner of turkey and Christmas pudding. Everyone gives and receives presents.

December the 26th is Boxing Day, which takes its name from the old custom of giving workers an annual present in Christmas boxes. Today this is the time to visit friends and relatives, or to sit in front of the TV.

New Year's Day is less popular in Britain than Christmas. But in Scotland, Hogmanay is the biggest festival of the year. After midnight people go 'first-footing'. They call at friends' houses, trying to be the first person through the door after midnight. The appearance of the first-footer is associated with luck that will be in the next year. The luckiest type of the first-footer is a tall, dark man.

Easter is also a religious holiday and is celebrated in spring. Most people go to church services on that day and give each other chocolate Easter eggs. On Easter Monday people make a one-day trip to the seaside or go to a football match or horse racing.

Besides public holidays there are festivals, such as Pancake Day, April Fool's Day, Halloween, Guy Fawkes Night, St. Valentine's Day and others.

Guy Fawkes Night, or more commonly, Bonfire Night, is a very popular festival. It goes back to the days of King James I when Guy Fawkes tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament. But he was discovered and arrested. Since that time, on the 5th of November, people burn the dummy of Guy Fawkes, made of straw, on a bonfire. On the 14th of February people celebrate St. Valentine's Day by sending a card to the one they love. Usually you don't sign your name. The person who receives the card has to guess who sent it.

These holidays are not days off. But they help to keep many traditions, which the British have always been famous for.

American People

America is a friendly country. People easily start talking with each other. When Americans meet people for the first time they usually shake hands. When they meet friends or relatives they haven't seen for a long time they usually kiss them. You can easily spot Americans abroad by their confident manners which come from their sense of individual freedom — their first value and belief.

America is a nation of risk-takers. The first Americans left the known of the Old World for the unknown of the New. They lived a hard life, and they had to be tough and self-reliant. So, self-reliance is usually the second national trait and moral value:

The first immigrants often faced difficult problems which needed new solutions. So they soon learned to experiment that led to another American trait, a sense of optimism. Most Americans are sure that every problem has a solution: a difficult problem can be solved at once; an impossible one may take a little longer.

The third national value is material wealth. Most Americans believe that wealth is a reward for hard work. And of course, they believe in the American Dream 'from rags to riches'. Americans are optimistic and persistent. 'If at first you don't succeed, try, try again' is their favourite saying.

Americans are always on the move. Moving about from place to place is such a common practice that most Americans take it for granted that they-may live in four or five cities during their lifetime. American people love speed. They like to cook in microwave ovens, they prefer making phone calls to writing letters, and they like to travel by air rather than bus or train.

Americans are patriots. They are proud of their flag and display it in many places. National holidays such as Thanksgiving and In­dependence Day greatly contribute to this feeling. There is of course no typical American, but a certain stereotype does exist. In my opinion, Americans are open-hearted, straightforward, cheer­ful, relaxed and tough.

American System of Education

Americans have always believed in education, but in a special American way. The schools' first job was to turn millions of foreign children into Americans. Since they came from dozens of different countries, this was not easy. Schools had to teach the children to speak English, to love their new country, and to learn how to live in it. American schools were the 'melting pot' in which the differences were forgotten. They were the ladder up which the poor could climb to a better life. Getting started on a successful career was the main aim. Most American parents still care less for book-learning than for a practical education that will help their child to find a job.

The 'right to education' has also meant that school system must provide for the needs of exceptional students, for example the blind, the deaf, and the persons with other physical or emotional handicaps. It is not at all unusual for school districts to provide instruction for children who are confined to the wards of hospitals or criminal justice facilities.

But perhaps most important of all is that American education never stops. If an elderly person wants to learn Italian art, or chess, he or she can go to the nearest college and take a course in it. And millions of people are doing just that.

However, many Americans are worried about their public schools. They see serious problems of violence and failure. They see too many children who never learn to write properly and too few college graduates who can speak a foreign language. The absence of national curriculum makes it difficult for children to transfer to new classrooms when their family moves from one city to another.

In recent years a Department of Education has been organized in Washington, D.C., but its function is still sharply limited. Perhaps in the future there will be a greater demand for the construction of a national curricular framework. And if this demand develops, the American system will experience a major transformation.

Nevertheless, we shouldn't forget the great successes of American education. Its best universities are among the best anywhere. American philosophers and economists are world-famous, and American scientists win more than their share of Nobel prizes.

American Holidays

The population in the USA is made up of people of different nationalities. Centuries ago they brought with them their native celebrations. Some holidays, which are marked in the United States were originated in America.

One of the greatest holidays is Independence Day. On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was signed. It proclaimed independence of the thirteen British colonies from Great Britain. July 4th has become the greatest holiday since. In the past this day was marked with big parades and fireworks, but now it is celebrated more quietly. Cities and towns are decorated with flags on that day, there are parades in some places, but most people just go on picnics to the countryside.

Thanksgiving Day is marked on the fourth Thursday of November. On this day Americans honour the memory of the first settlers. It also marks the end of the harvest season. It is a long­standing tradition to make a festive meal with a fried turkey on this day.

Christmas is a religious holiday, which symbolizes the birth of Jesus Christ. By this day people decorate fir-trees with toys. Children wait for Santa Claus who comes to every house and brings them presents. Before going to bed, children leave their shoes to find in them what they want most of all the next morning. Some people, especially young people, like to celebrate it in restaurants and pubs, but most people prefer to stay at home with their family on this day.

Washington's Birthday is marked on February 22nd. George Washington led the American Army to victory in the War for Independence. Later he was elected President of the United States and was in office for 8 years (1789-1797). The national capital of the USA, a state and several towns are named after George Washington.

Lincoln's Birthday is celebrated every year on February 12th. Abraham Lincoln was President during the Civil War (1861— 1865). He led the fight to keep the nation together and to free the slaves. His life ended tragically. He was killed in the theatre during the performance soon after the victory of the North. In honour of this great man a beautiful memorial has been built in Washington, D.C.

On New Year's Day people see the old year off and the New Year in. Most people stay up all night, even children. At midnight many people go outside and shout 'Happy New Year!' Some people set off fireworks and blow automobile horns which are heard everywhere. Everybody exchanges presents and good wishes. Offices, factories, banks and stores do not work on this day. In New York, a lot of people gather in Times Square, and watch the 'Big Apple' fall. It is a moving picture of an apple on the side of the big building in Times Square. Every New Year's Eve during the last few seconds before the midnight it starts to 'fall down' the building, and when it gets to the bottom it's the start of the New Year.

Labour Day is celebrated on the first Monday in September. On this day workers make a public show with marches, meetings, etc. It also marks the beginning of the school year and the end of summer.

GEOGRAPHICAL SURVEY

Part 1. Geographical Position.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and North­ern Ireland is situated on the British Isles — a large group of islands lying off the north-western coast of Europe and separated from the continent by the English Channel and the Strait of Dover in the south and the North Sea in the east.

The British Isles consist of two large islands — Great Britain and Ireland — separated by the Irish Sea, and a lot of small islands, the main of which are the Isle of Wight in the English Channel, Anglesea and the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea, the Hebrides — a group of islands off the north-western coast of Scotland, and two groups of islands lying to the north of Scotland: the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands.

Historically the territory of the United Kingdom is divided into four parts: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The total area of the United Kingdom is 244 square kilometres.

Part 2. Nature.

Great Britain is situated in the temperate zone of Europe. The nature of Great Britain is greatly affected by the sea: there is no place situated more than 100-120 km from the seashore, in the northern parts only 40-60 km.

The territory of Great Britain can be divided into three natural regions:

1) Scotland with highland and upland relief and coniferous and mixed forests;

2) Wales and mountainous England with upland considerably cut by ravines and valleys and covered with meadows, moorland and cultivated farmland, with patches of broadleaf forest;

3) South-east England with plain landscape, fertile soils, the predominance of cultivated farmland, with patches of broadleaf forest.

Part 3. Coasts.

The coastline of Great Britain is greatly indented, especially in the west and north-west where the moun­tains come close to the coast. The coasts of Scotland, as well as the coasts of the Hebrides, the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands, are cut by numer­ous fiords. In the south and east the land gradually slopes down towards the sea, and the coasts are sandy and gentle, here and there interrupted by the ends of hill-ranges, which form low cliffs.

Part 4. Relief.

The general slope of the land is from north-west to south-east.

The mountains cover the greater part of northern, western and middle Great Britain. They can be divided into the following groups:

1) The Highlands of Scotland occupy most of the land to the north-west of a line drawn from Glasgow to Aberdeen. Two parts of the Highlands - the

North-western Highlands and the Grampians — are separated by a narrow valley, through which runs the Caledonian Canal. At the south-western end of the Highlands rises Ben Nevis, 1343 m, the highest mountain of the British Isles.

2) The Central Plain of Scotland separates the Highlands from the Southern Uplands of Scotland. The Southern Uplands and the Pennines, which stretch in the north-south direction across the north­ern and middle parts of England, form a practically continuous group.

3) Nearly the whole of Wales is occupied by the Cumbrians. The highest peak of the Cumbrians is Snowdon, 1085 m.

The south-eastern part of England is lowland, in­terrupted in places by low chalk ridges.

GEOGRAPHICAL SURVEY

Climate.

Great Britain enjoys the humid and mild marine West-Coast climate with warm winters and cool summers and a lot of rainfall throughout the year.

The prevailing winds blow from the south-west. As these winds blow from the ocean, they are mild in winter and cool in summer, and are heavily charged with moisture at all times. As they approach the mountainous areas near the west coasts, they rise up the mountain slopes. Their temperature drops, which causes condensation of moisture in the form of rain. Therefore the wettest parts of Britain are those areas where high mountains lie near the west coast: the westsrn Highlands of Scotland, the Lake District and North Wales. The eastern part of Britain is said to be in the rain-shadow, as the winds lose most of their moisture in their passage over the highlands of the west.

All parts of the British Isles receive rain at any time of the year. Still autumn and winter are the wettest seasons, except in the Thames district, where most rain falls in the summer half of the year. Oxford, for example, has 29 per cent of its rain in summer and only 22 per cent in winter.

As to temperature, Great Britain has warmer winters than any other district in the same latitude. It is due in large measure to the prevalence of mild south-west winds. Another factor is the Gulf Stream, which flows from the Gulf of Mexico and brings much warmth from the equatorial regions to north-western Europe.

Inland Waters.

The rivers of Britain are short; their direction and character are determined by the position of the moun­tains.

Most of the rivers flow in the eastward direction since the west coast is mountainous.

Due to the humid climate and abundant rainfall, the water level in the rivers is always high. The riv­ers seldom freeze in winter, most of them remain ice-free. Many of the rivers are joined together by ca­nals. This system of rivers and canals provides a good means of cheap inland water transport.

British rivers are not navigable for ocean ships, but they form deep estuaries, and strong tides pene­trating into them prevent the formation of deltas. Most of the large ports of Great Britain are situated in the estuaries.

The most important rivers are the Severn, flow­ing from the Cumbrian Mountains in Wales into the Bristol Channel, the Thames, flowing across the plains of south-eastern England and emptying into the North Sea, the Tyne and the Trent, flowing from the eastern slopes of the Pennines to the North Sea, the Mersey, flowing down the western slopes of the Pennines and emptying into the Irish Sea at Liv­erpool, and the Clyde in Scotland, which flows west across the Southern Uplands and on which the port of Glasgow is situated.

Owing to the fact that British lakes are rather small and have no outlets, they afford limited economic possibilities in the system of navigable waterways. But most of them, especially those situated in the counties of Cumberland, Westmorland and north Lancashire, are famous for their unique beauty and picturesque surroundings. Famous is the English Lake District, occupying a comparatively small area. It is a place of steep ridges and deep valleys, smooth slopes and deep lakes, ravines, waterfalls and green meadows. The Lake District is one of the most popular holiday districts in Great Britain.

GEOGRAPHICAL SURVEY

Vegetation.

In the mountainous regions of Great Britain the vegetation is represented by coniferous and mixed forests with the predominance of pine, oak and birch. Many parts of highland Britain have only thin, poor soils. As a result, there are large stretches of moorland in the Highlands of Scotland, the Pennines, the Lake District, the mountains of Wales and in some parts of north-east and south-west England. In most of these areas the farmers have cultivated only the valley lands and the plains where the soils are deeper and richer.

With its mild climate and varied soils, Britain has a rich natural vegetation. When the islands were first settled, oak forests probably covered the greater part of the lowland. In the course of the centuries, nearly all the forests have been cut down, and now woodlands occupy only about 7 per cent of the surface of the country. The greatest density of woodland occurs in the north and east of Scotland, in some parts of south-east England and on the Welsh border. The most common trees are oak, beech, ash and elm, and in Scotland also pine and birch.

Midland Britain appears to be well wooded be­cause of the numerous hedges and isolated trees. Hedges are a typical feature of countryside land­scape in England. Farming land is divided into fields by hedges or stone walls. Most of countryside Eng­land is agricultural land, about a third of which is arable, and the rest is pasture and meadow.

Animal Life.

The animal life of the British Isles is now much poorer than it was a few centuries ago. With the disappearance of forests, many forest animals, in­cluding the wolf, the bear, the boar, the deer and the Irish elk, have become practically extinct. There are foxes in most rural areas, and otters are found along many rivers and streams. Of smaller animals there are mice, rats, hedgehogs, moles, squirrels, hares, rabbits and weasels.

There are a lot of birds, including many song-birds. Blackbirds, sparrows and starlings are probably most common. There are many sea-birds, which nest round the coasts and often fly far inland in search of food or shelter in rough weather.

Mineral Resources.

Great Britain is rich in coal. There are rich coal basins in Northumberland, Lancashire, Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, South Wales, North Wales and near Glasgow.

Among other mineral resources, iron ores found alongside coal layers are of primary importance, but the iron content of most of the ores is very low.

There are tin and copper mines in Cornwall and Devonshire, copper and lead mines in England.

Lead and silver ores are also mined in Derbyshire and Cumberland and Lancashire.

GEOGRAPHICAL SURVEY

Economy.

The United Kingdom was the first country in the world which became highly industrialized. Dur­ing the rapid industrialization of the 19^th century,

one of the most important factors was that coal deposits were situated near the ground surface, which made mining easy. Coal mining is one of the most developed industries in Great Britain. The big­gest coal and iron mines are in the north-east of England, near Newcastle, in Lancashire and York­shire; in Scotland near Glasgow; in Wales near Cardiff and Bristol.

Until recent times, Britain's heavy industry was mainly concentrated in the centre of England and in the London region. Such towns as Birmingham, Cov­entry and Sheffield produced heavy machines, rail­way carriages and motor-cars. In the 20^th century new branches of industry have appeared: electronics, radio, chemical industry and others.

Of great importance for Britain is ship-building industry. It is concentrated in London, Glasgow, Newcastle, Liverpool and Belfast.

Great Britain produces a lot of wool, and woollen industry is developed in Yorkshire. British woollen products are exported to many countries.

Sea-ports play a great role in the life of the coun­try. London, Liverpool and Glasgow are the biggest English ports, from which big liners go to all parts of the world. Great Britain exports industrial prod­ucts to other countries and imports food and some other products.

Sheep-farming, cattle-farming and dairy-farming are also important branches of Great Britain's econ­omy. Chicken farms produce a great number of chick­ens and eggs for the population.

The south of England is often called the "Garden of England", because there are many gardens and orchards there. In the orchards people grow apples, pears, cherries, plums and other fruits, and there are also large plantations of different berries.

COMPOSITION OF THE COUNTRY

The territory of the United Kingdom of Great Brit­ain and Northern Ireland is historically divided into four parts:

1) England; 2) Scotland; 3) Wales; 4) Northern Ireland.

Part 1. England.

Of the four countries which make up the United Kingdom, England is the largest. It occupies an area of 131,8 thousand sq. km.

England borders on Scotland in the north. In the east it is washed by the North Sea. In the south it is separated from the continent by the English Chan­nel. In the west it borders on Wales and is washed by the Bristol Channel and by the Irish Sea.

The highest part of England is in the west, from where the land gradually slopes down to the east.

The Atlantic Ocean washes the rocky and broken west coast of England, Wales and Scotland and is gradually wearing it away, leaving caves and sandy beaches. On the east coast the land is low and sandy.

The rivers flowing to the east and emptying into the North Sea form deep estuaries well protected from the sea. The greatest port of the country Lon­don is conveniently situated in the Thames estu­ary.

The white chalk cliffs of the south coast washed by the English Channel can be seen from many miles out at sea.

As concerns the relief, England can be divided into: Northern England mostly taken up by the low Pen­nine Mountains, the Central Plain, lowland South­east England, and hilly South-west England.

Part 2. Scotland.

Scotland is the most northern of the countries that constitute the United Kingdom. It occupies an area of 78,8 thousand sq. km.

Scotland is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the north and west and by the North Sea in the east.

The coastline of Scotland is greatly indented. In many places deep fiords penetrate very far inland.

Geographically the territory of Scotland can be divided into three regions: the Northern Highlands, the Central Lowlands and the Southern Uplands.

The Highlands are the highest mountains in the British Isles. Their average height does not exceed 457 m above sea level, though some peaks are much higher, rising over a thousand metres. Ben Nevis, the highest peak in the British Isles, reaches the height of 1343 m.

The Lowlands are the cradle of the Scottish na­tion. They are densely populated.

The Southern Uplands seldom rise over 579 m above sea level. It is one of the most sparsely populated districts in Great Britain.

COMPOSITION OF THE COUNTRY

Part 3. Wales.

Wales is a peninsula washed by the sea on three sides: the Bristol Channel in the south, the St. George's Channel in the west, and the Irish Sea in the north. Its territory is 20,8 thousand sq. km.

Geographically Wales may be considered part of highland Britain, the Cumbrian Mountains occupy­ing most of the land. It is an area of high mountains, deep valleys, waterfalls and lakes.

Wales is a region of heavy rainfall brought by the prevailing west winds from the Atlantic Ocean. The valleys are sheltered by the high mountains from cold east winds. The climate is rather mild.

Wales has never been densely populated. The Welsh have kept their own language, but English is spoken in town as well.

Part 4. Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland occupies the north-eastern part of Ireland, which is separated from the island of Great Britain by the North Channel. In the south-west Northern Ireland borders on the Irish Republic (Eire).

Almost all the area of Northern Ireland is a plain of volcanic origin, deepening in the centre to form the largest lake of the British Isles, Lough Neagh.

The greatly indented coastline of Northern Ireland is abundant in rocks and cliffs.

Northern Ireland has a typical oceanic climate with mild damp winters (the mean temperature in Janu­ary is +4, +5) and cool rainy summers (the mean temperature in July is +14, +15).

Forests are rather scarce, moors and meadows prevail.

Northern Ireland is mostly an agrarian district. On small farms they grow crops, especially oats, vegetables and potatoes. Large areas are taken up by meadows, where cattle graze. On the river banks and on the coasts the population is engaged in fishing.

POLITICAL SYSTEM

Great Britain is a parliamentary monarchy. Official­ly the head of the state is the king or queen. The power of the monarch is not absolute but constitutional. The monarch acts only on the advice of the ministers.

The hereditary principle upon which the monar­chy is founded is strictly observed. The now reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth, II is a descendant of the Saxon king Egbert.

The monarch, be it king or queen, is the head of the executive body, an integral part of the legisla­ture, the head of the judicial body, the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the crown, the head of the Established Church of England¹ and the head of the British Commonwealth of Nations.

Part 1. The Constitution.

Practically speaking, there is no written constitu­tion in Great Britain. The term "English Constitu­tion" means the leading principles, conventions and laws, many of which have been existing for centu­ries, though they have undergone modifications and extensions in agreement with the advance of civiliza­tion. These principles are expressed in such docu­ments of major importance as Magna Carta, a fa­mous document in English history agreed upon in 1215 by King John and the barons, which set cer­tain limits on royal power and which was later re­garded as a law stating basic civil rights; Habeas Corpus Act, a law passed in 1679, which guarantees to a person arrested the right to appear in court of justice so that the jury should decide whether he is guilty or not guilty; The Bill of Rights, an act of Parliament passed in 1689, which confirmed certain rights of the people; the laws deciding the succession of the royal family, and a number of constitutional acts, separate laws and agreements.

POLITICAL SYSTEM

Political Parties.

The two main political parties of Great Britain are the Conservative Party¹ and the Labour Party.

The Conservative Party (otherwise called the Tory Party) is right-wing, tending to be opposed to great and sudden changes in the established order of soci­ety. It is against state control of industry.

The Labour Party, sometimes called the Socialists, has a close association with the Trade Unions, al­though it is now not as left-wing as it used to be. It has many supporters, especially among working-class and middle-class people.

THE EARLY DAYS OF BRITAIN

Around 10,000 BC Britain was peopled by small groups of hunters and fishers. They fol­lowed herds of deer, which provided them with food and clothing.

In the course of time, different groups of peo­ple kept arriving in Britain, bringing their cus­toms and skills. The Romans, who occupied Brit­ain in the 1^st century, brought the skills of reading and writing. The written word was im­portant for spreading ideas and culture.

ANCIENT BRITONS

Part 2. Who were the Britons?

About 500-600 BC new people — the Celts — appeared in Britain. They were tall, strong people with long red or sandy hair, armed with iron swords and knives which were much stronger than the bronze weapons used by the native population. They crossed the English Channel from the territory of the present-day France. The Romans called these people Britons and the island — Britannia. In the course of centuries the Britons partly killed the native popu­lation, partly mixed with it.

The Britons were skilful workers. They made things out of iron, bronze, tin, clay and wood, and decorated them with beautifully drawn lines and pat­terns². They made money out of gold and silver. They began to make roads, along which they travelled about the country, buying and selling things.

There were some good and rather big houses in Britain, which had many rooms and corridors. The richer Britons lived in these big houses. When they had feasts in their houses, they sat round low tables. There were no forks or spoons. They took big pieces of meat in their fingers and tore them apart, or cut them with their knives. They drank from big cups made of earthenware or silver.

Not all parts of Britain were civilized. In the moun­tains and forests of the west and north there were people who did not know the use of iron and did not use money. They had no real houses, but still lived in caves. The parts in the south-east of Britain were most civilized, because they were nearest to the con­tinent, from which people got new knowledge.

ANCIENT BRITONS

Their Religion.

The Britons were polytheistic, that is they believed in many gods. They believed that different gods lived in the thickest and darkest parts of the forests. Some plants, such as the mistletoe and the oak-tree, were considered sacred. Some historians think that the Britons were governed by a class of priests called Druids who had great power over them. Stonehenge was the temple of the Druids, just as it had been the temple of the primitive men before. The Druids were cruel men and their ways of worshipping their gods were cruel too. They often declared that a god was angry, and to get the god's pardon the people had to offer up sacrifices of human beings. The Druids put men into huge baskets and burned them in the pres­ence of the people.

The Britons often fought among themselves. The remains of forts built by the Britons can be seen in different parts of the country. From time to time the Britons had feasts and entertainments. During a feast a minstrel usually sang songs about brave deeds of famous warriors. After the minstrel's songs his listeners began to boast of their own brave deeds. And when they had drunk too much, they began quarrelling and fighting, and usually some men were killed.

The Coming of the Romans.

In the year 55 BC the great Roman general Ju­lius Caesar sailed to Britain with about 12,000 soldiers in eighty ships. When they were near the coast, they saw the Britons armed with spears and swords, ready to fight them. Still the Roman sol­diers landed and fought with the Britons. They won the battle, but did not stay long and soon depart­ed. In the following year Julius Caesar came to Britain again. This time, after fighting the Brit­ons on the shore, the Romans marched north-west where London stands today. The British attacked them in chariots and on foot, but the Romans had better arms and armour, and were much better trained. The Britons could not stop them.

Having stayed in Britain some time, the Romans left again and did not appear on the British shores for about a hundred years. Then, in the year 43 AD, the Roman Emperor Claudius sent a general with 40,000 men to conquer Britain all over again. The British fought bravely, but could not hold back the trained Roman ar­my. Soon the whole of the south of Britain was conquered.

The Romans were very practical people, and the first thing they did in Britain was to make and forti­fy the ports where they landed their soldiers and sup­plies. The Roman ports were very well built, with stone quays and warehouses. There were big cranes, which lifted the cargo from the ships' holds, and many carts transported goods along the great Roman roads which ran in long straight lines to different parts of the country.

ANCIENT BRITONS

The Revolt of Queen Boadicea.

Although the Romans had occupied Britain, there were many British men and women hidden away in the great forests and swamps who refused to submit. These men were fierce fighters, and they often came out of their hiding places and attacked small Roman forts or outposts. Then, when the Romans brought up reinforcements, they disappeared into the forests where the Romans could not find them.

Some of the Brit­ish tribes were more warlike than others, and one of these was the tribe of the Iceni, who lived in what is now Nor­folk. In those days this part of England was covered with swamps, and the Roman soldiers had never completely conquered it.

Less than twenty years after the Roman invasion, the men of the Iceni tribe revolted head­ed by their warlike Queen Boadicea. The Roman army was far away fighting in North Wales, when Boadicea, with 100,000 fighting men, destroyed first the Roman town of Colchester, and then, soon afterwards, the towns of London and St Albans. These towns were all burned to the ground, and all the people were cruelly killed.

The Roman Governor of Britain at that time was a famous soldier named Suetonius. When the news of the revolt of the Ice­ni reached him, he was in the middle of a campaign against the men of Wales. In spite of it he decid­ed that he must march across Eng­land and attack Boa­dicea and the Iceni as soon as possible.

He had about 10,000 trained Ro­man soldiers with him, and although Boadicea had ten times that number, Suetonius had no doubt that the train­ing and discipline of the Roman army would give him the victory.

Suetonius placed his men on the slope of a hill, protected by woods on both sides. The British thought that the Romans were trapped, and they crowded in the woods to attack them. At the right moment, when Boadicea's men were so crowded together that they could not use their arms, the Romans attacked, and the British were completely beaten.

Great Britain

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the UK) is the official name of the British Kingdom. It occupies most of the territory of the British Isles and consists of four countries. They are England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Their capitals are London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.

The UK is situated off the west coast of Europe between the Atlantic Ocean on the north-west and the North Sea on the east. It is separated from the European continent by the English Channel. The narrowest part of the English Channel is called the Strait of Dover. The total area of Great Britain is over 244,000 square kilometres.

The UK is an island state: it is made up of two large islands and several much smaller ones. The two main islands are Great Britain to the east and Ireland to the west. They are separated by the Irish Sea. Geographically, the island of Great Britain is subdivided into two main regions — Lowland Britain and Highland Britain. Low­land Britain comprises southern and eastern England. Highland Britain consists of Scotland, most of Wales, the Pennines, and the Lake District. The Mountains are not very high. The highest mountain is Ben Nevis in Scotland (1343m). England is separated from Scotland by the Cheviot Hills, running from east to west.

There are a lot of rivers in Great Britain, but they are not very long. The Severn is the longest river, while the Thames is the deepest and the most important one. The chief river in Scotland is the Clyde. Great Britain has many beautiful lakes. The best known of them is long narrow Loch Ness, legendary home of the famous monster. On the north-west side of the Pennine system lies the Lake District, containing beautiful lakes.

The largest cities of Great Britain are London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Cardiff and Belfast.

The population of the United Kingdom is over 57 million people. English is the official language. But some people speak Gaelic in western Scotland, and Welsh - in parts of northern and central Wales.

The different parts of Britain have their own emblems. The red rose is the national emblem of England. The thistle is the national emblem of Scotland. The daffodils and the leek are the emblems of Wales. And the shamrock is the national emblem of Ireland.

The flag of the United Kingdom is known as the Union Jack. It is made up of three crosses: the cross of St. George (the patron saint of England), the cross of St. Andrew (the patron saint of Scotland) and the cross of St. Patrick (the patron saint of Ireland).

British Climate

The climate of Great Britain is more or less the same as that of the north-western part of the European mainland. The popular belief that it rains all the time in Britain is simply not true. In fact, London gets no more rain in a year than most other European cities. The amount of rain that falls on a town in Britain depends on where it is. Generally speaking, the further west you go, the more rain you get.

The climate of Great Britain is mild and temperate due to the influence of the Gulf Stream. That means that it is never too hot or too cold. Snow is a regular feature of the higher areas only. Occasionally, in lower-lying parts winter can be without snow at all.

Usually the temperature is between 5 below zero and 23 above zero. The driest period is from. March to June and the wettest months are from October to January. It seldom snows heavily in winter, frost is rare. January and February are usually the coldest months; July and August are the warmest ones. Sometimes the wind brings whirlwinds or hurricanes. Droughts are rare.

The lack of extremes is the reason why, on the few occasions when it gets very hot or very frosty, the country seems to be totally unprepared for it. A bit of snow and a few days of frost and the trains stop working and the roads are blocked. If the temperature goes above 27 °C, people behave as if they were in Sahara and the temperature makes front-page-headlines. But these things happen so rarely that it is not worth organising life to be ready for them.

The bad reputation of Britain's climate is due to its changeability. There is a saying that Britain doesn't have a climate, it only has weather. But English weather is never the same two days running. One day it rains, the next day it may be sunny and then it maybe cold again, H may not rain very much altogether, but you can never be sure of a dry day. There can be cool days in July and some quite warm days in January.

So, we may say that the British climate has three main features: it is mild, humid, and changeable. This humid and mild climate is good for plants and flowers. That's why Great Britain is such a green country, with long rich grass for the cattle and sheep, and beautiful lawns in the gardens.

National Stereotypes

There are certain stereotypes of national character which are well known in Britain. For instance, the Irish are supposed to be great talkers, the Scots have a reputation for being careful with money, the Welsh are renowned for their singing abilities, and the English are considered to be reserved. These characteristics are, of course, only caricatures and are not reliable description of individual people from these countries.

British people give a relatively high value to the everyday personal contacts. Some writers on Britain have talked about the British desire 'to belong', and it is certainly true that the pub, or the working man's club, or the numerous other clubs devoted to various sports and pastimes play a very important part in many people's lives. Many people make their social contacts through work and, partly as a result of this, the profession is also important aspect of their sense of identity. British people try to appear as if they belong to as high class as possible, though nobody wants to be thought of as 'snobbish'.

The British have few living traditions and are too individualistic to have the same everyday habits as each other. They are rather proud of being different. However, this does not mean that they like change. They don't. They may not behave in traditional ways, but they like symbols of tradition and stability. The British are rather conservative and their conservatism can combine with their individualism. Why should they change just to be like everyone else? Indeed, as far as they are concerned, not being like everyone else is a good reason not to change. Their driving on the left-hand side of the road is a good example to this. Systems of measurement are another example. The British government has been trying for many years to get British people to use the same scales that are used nearly everywhere else in the world. But everybody in Britain still shops in pounds and ounces.

The modern British are not really chauvinistic. Open hostility to people from other countries is very rare. If there is any chauvinism at all, it expresses itself through ignorance. Most British people know remarkably little about Europe and who lives there. The popular image of Europe seems to be that it is something to do with the French.

It is probably true that the British, especially the English, are more reserved than the people of many other countries. They find it comparatively difficult to indicate friendship by open displays of affection. For example, it is not the convention to kiss when meeting a friend. Instead, friendship is symbolised by behaving as casually as possible.

The British are comparatively uninterested in clothes. They spend a lower proportion of their income on clothing than people in most European countries do. Many people buy second-hands clothes and are not at all embarrassed to admit this. Of course, when people are 'on duty', they have to obey some quite rigid rules. A male bank employee, for example, is expected to wear a suit with a tie at work. But on Sundays the British like to «dress down». They can't wait to take off their respectable working clothes and slip into something really scruffy. In fact, the British are probably more tolerant of' strange' clothing than people in most other countries.

The English people are great pet lovers. Practically every family has a dog or a cat, or both. They have special dog shops selling food, clothes and other things for dogs. There are dog ' hairdressing saloons and dog cemeteries. Millions of families have 'bird-tables' in their gardens. Perhaps, this overall concern for animals is part of the British love for nature.

The British are always talking about the weather. Unlike many others, this stereotype is actually true to life. But constant remarks about the weather at chance meetings are not the result of polite conventions. They are not obligatory. Rather, they are the result of the fact that, on the one hand, to ask personal questions would be rude while, at the same time, silence would also be rude. The weather is a very convenient topic with which to 'fill the gap'.

British Educational System

The basic features of the British educational system are the following: 1) education is compulsory from 5 to 16; 2) the academic year usually begins in September and runs to early July; it has 3 terms, divided by the Christmas and Easter holidays. In addition, all schools have a 'half-term holiday', lasting a few days or a week, in the middle of each term; 3) compulsory education is free of charge, but parents may spend money on educating their children If they want to; 4) there are three stages of education. Children move from the First stage (primary) to the second stage (secondary) at around the age of eleven or twelve. The third stage is’ further' education at university or college.

In 19KX, for the first lime in British history, a National Curriculum was introduced. The National Curriculum tells pupils which subjects they they have to study, what they must learn and when they have to take assessment tests.

At the age of 5children go to infant school which is the first stage of primary education. From 7 to 11 they attend junior schools, the second stage of primary education. In primary school children are taught the so-called 3R's: reading, writing and arithmetic.

At the age of 11 children enter the secondary school. There are three types of state secondary schools in Britain. They are: grammar schools (for the most intelligent children), modern schools (for the less intelligent children) and comprehensive schools (for children of all abilities). Grammar schools lead towards higher education, and the others give general or vocational education to prepare students for employment or for further technical education. The regular secondary schools offer 7 years of schooling, with students from 11 to 18 years of age. The last two years (16—18) may be spent in a separate sixth form college, which concentrates on career training.

Between the ages of 14 and 16, pupils study for their GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) exams. Pupils must take English Language, Maths, and Science for GCSE, as well as half GCSE in a foreign language and Technology. In addition, they must also be taught Physical Education, Religious Education and Sex Education, although they do not take exams in these subjects.

Those who get good GCSE grades can stay at their school for another two years, if it has a sixth f