Lecture 1 «The history and culture of Great Britain»
Great Britain is located to the north-west (на северо западе) of the continental Europe, on the British Isles. The Island of GB and the Island of Ireland are the largest. The islands of Great Britain consist of: -England, the state`s historical proper -Wales, conquered by England under the reign of Edward 1 in the 13th century - Scotland attached to England be Treaty of Union in 1707 The Island of Ireland is shared by: - Northern Ireland- a part of the UK - the republic of Ireland, founded in 1632

GEOGRAPHY
Britain is relatively small (half of the size of France); 20 % smaller than Italy. Twice the size of New York. It’s less than 1000km from the southern coast of England to the extreme north of the Scottish mainland and under 500km.
The British Isles are separated from continental Europe by the English Channel with the Strait of Dover, in the east- by the North sea, in the west- by the Atlantic Ocean. The term GB was used for the 1st time in the 17th c. under the reign of king James VI of Scotland. The UK of GB merged with the kingdom of Ireland under the act of union. Over which the monarch of GB ruled. In 1922, 26 of Ireland’s thirty two countries left to form a separate Irish Free state.
There are 5500 smaller islands form the British political and administrative union.
The islands are: the Isle of Anglesey, the Isle of Wight, the Hebrides, the Shetland Islands.
The Isle of Man and the Channel of Islands are not part of the United Kingdom. They are self governing Crown Dependencies possessing their own administrative structures, legal systems.
The UK is responsible for their defense and international relations and can interfere if good administration is not maintained.
The Commonwealth is an intergovernmental organization of the countries and territories.(54 members)
¼ of the world population
Among them are Australia, Malta, Canada, Barbados, Grenada, the Bahamas.
The British Queen has been head of the commonwealth since 1952. 16 commonwealth realms(UK, Canada, New Zealand)
Promote democracy, good governance, human rights, the rule of lan, individual liberty, egalitarianism, free trade, multilateralism, and world peace.
Parliamentary (restricted, constitutional) monarchy.
Queen is officially head of the legislative, executive, and juridical branches of power. But she has little direct power. Elizabeth II Windsor has been queen of GB since 1952. Elizabeth the second, by Grace of God, of the UK of GB and NI and of her other realms and territories Queen, head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith.

The Parliament is located in Westminster.
The legislative power is represented by Parliament that has three parts: the Queen, the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
The main functions of Parliament: - to pass laws - to vote on financial bills - To discuss the government’s administrative policies (foreign affairs, the state of agriculture) - To debate important political issues of the day - Duration-5 years

Members of the House of Lords are: the Lords Spiritual(representatives of established church: Anglican archbishops, the Bishops of Durham, London, Winchester ) and the Lords Temporal(hereditary peers).
The House is presided are by the Lord Chancellor.

Members of the House of Commons are elected by the voters of 650 constituencies.
It`s presided over by Speaker, chosen by The MPs, he must abandoned party politics until retirement to the house of Lords.
His functions- interpret the rules and orders, protect the House against any abuse of procedure, control the voting system, to announce the final results.
The Benches in the House are colored green.

The executive power is represented by Her Majestry`s government.
It`s headed by the Prime-Minister (PM). The majority of the ministers are from the majority party in the Commons, although the Lords are also represented in the Government.
The Prime Minister or leader of the government is also MP and the First Lord of the Treasury. The PM is advised by a cabinet of about 20 other ministers.
10 Downing Street, where the cabinet of Minister usually meets once a week- here is the office of Prime-Minister

RELIGION
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England. There is also the Catholic Church and the Presbyterian church Christian- 71,6% Muslim- 2,7% Hindu 1% Other 1,6% Unspecified or none 23,1

POPULATION
59 million- in Britain, and 49 million of it- in England, Wales – 2,9, Scotland – 5,1, NI – 1,7m
The official language is English, but there are to be found various regional and local dialects and accents.
Cockney accent in London
In Scotland- Scottish Gaelic, a language of ancient Celtic origin is spoken.
In Ireland- Irish Gaelic
Cornish is spoken in the peninsula of Cornwall

Flag of the UK
The Union Jack. The flag has been used throughout the former British Empire.
The flag of England – a red cross with a white background known as St George cross
In 1606- the first Flag is appeared
In 1801- it was changed (because Ireland was united to GB)
The flag of Scotland- a white saltire with a blue background, known as the Saltire or saint Andrew cross.

National Emblems
The red rose – England
The thistle (чертополох) – Scotland
Leek (лук порей)– Wales
The shamrock (трилистник) – Ireland The Robin Redbreast – the national bird of the UK