Great Britain

Great Britain

The full name of Great Britain is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It consists of the following parts: England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. It is situated on the British Isles which lie to the West of the continent of Europe. The total area of the British Isles is about 120.000 square miles (240.000 square klms). It is about half the size of France.

Britain is comparatively small but there is hardly a country in the world where such a variety of scenery can be found. There are mountains, flat fields, the "Black Country" (important industrial district, the center of the district is Birmingham) and glorious moors.

Great Britain is separated from European continent by the North Sea and the English Channel. It is washed on the western coast by the Atlantic Ocean and by the Irish Sea, the latter separates England from Ireland.

The seas round the British Isles are shallow. Shallow water is warmer than deep water and helps to keep the shores from extreme cold. It is the home of millions of fish,

There are many rivers in Britain: the Thames, the Mersey, the Severn, the Сlуde and others but they are not very long. Most of them are of no great value as water-ways. The Thames is not the longest but the most important river. It is navigable all the year round.

The warm currents in the Atlantic Ocean influence the climate of Great Britain. The winters are not cold, while summers are seldom hot. In winter temperature doesn't fall below 3-4 degrees, the usual temperature is about zero. There are often fogs in autumn and winter. The fogs of London, often made severe by mixture with city smoke (smog) are famous all over the world.

According to the census held in 2001 the population of Great Britain is about 59500 mln people.

Great Britain is a highly developed industrial country. Most of its industries are concerned with the production of iron and steel goods, textiles and chemicals. There are many industrial cities in Great Britain, such as London, its capital, Bristol, Birmingham, Liverpool, Sheffield and others.

There are also many university towns in it, the oldest and most famous among them are Oxford and Cambridge.

The disadvantage of Great Britain is that it possesses very little of the raw materials necessary for its industry, therefore it has to import many of them.

Great Britain had many colonies. In the middle of the 20 century they were granted independence beginning with India in 1947. Most of the former colonies became members of Commonwealth of Nations with Great Britain at the head.

Britain is a constitutional monarchy without a written constitution. In law, the Queen is the head of the state. But in practice she acts only on the advice of her ministers. She reigns but she does not rule. About 20 representatives of the ruling party form the Cabinet of Ministers that governs the country. The Prime Minister is the head of the Cabinet. The Cabinet is accountable to Parliament for its work. Parliament is the highest Legislative organ of the country. There are two chambers in the British Parliament: the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The House of Lords has 850 members. The membership in the House of Lords is hereditary. The House of Commons consists of 630 members who are elected.

For the last 150 years a two-party system has existed in Britain. Since 1945 either the Conservative (Tory) Party, whose origins go back to the 18th century, or the Labour Partv, which appeared in the last decade of the 19th century, has held power.