Northern Ireland

England

England is the lagest part of the UK. Nearly 84 per cent of population of the UK lives in England, mainly in the major cities and metropolitan areas.

England shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west. It is closer to continental Europe than any other part of Britain. The Channel Tunnel directly links England to France.

England takes its name from the Angles, one of the Germanic tribes who settled in this territory during the 5th and 6th centuries. It used to be known as "Angla land", meaning "the land of the Angles".

The capital city of England is London. The Greater London is the biggest city in England, in the United Kingdom and one of the world’s largest cities. London was the historical centre of the British Empire.

Such cities as Manchester and Birmingham now rival for the second place in importance. Other big cities are concentrated mainly in central and northern England and they include Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Sheffield, Bristol, Coventry, Leicester, Nottingham and Hull.

England is a country of lowland, where no part of it is higher than 120 metres above the sea level.

The county of Lancashire is famous for its wide beaches where the tides are unusually high.

In England there is the most westerly point of Great Britain — "Land’s End".

The coastal scenery of southern England is famous for chalk hills and cliffs which stretch across the south and it is often called Albion.

Lake District (or Cumbria) in Northern England is very famous and its lakes, hills and valleys make it an excellent place for having rest.

The ruins of Hadrian’s Wall are also here. It is a stone wall built across the north of England by the order of the Roman Emperor Hadrian to defend the northern border of Britain from the Scottish tribes.

Of course, these might be London, Big Ben, Stonehenge, William Shakespeare, red double-decker buses, black taxi cabs, red postboxes and telephone boxes, tea, fish and chips, the Beatles, legend of Robin Hood, Wimbledon and, probably, David Beckham.

The territory of England is famous for the oldest British settlements. Traces of those times can be found in the south of England in the form of ancient monuments like Stonehenge.

Stonehenge is an enormous stone structure. The largest stones in this construction are 50 tones when the smallest weigh 5 tons. Ancient people began constructing Stonehenge thousands of years ago, and many generations of them took part in it.

William Shakespeare was a great playwright and a literary master of poetry. He was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England.

Wimbledon is the oldest of all major tennis tournaments. It started in 1877 in a small club and had only 22 male participants. Since 1905, for a professional tennis player, winning Wimbledon is the pinnacle of their career.

1960’s marked the beginning of a culture phenomenon known as the Beatlemania. The Beatles is an English rock’n’roll band from Liverpool. Its members were John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. These four men were born into working class to become the founding fathers of rock music. Not only their music was so popular, they also became trendsetters for harestyles and clothes. Some of their most popular songs are "Yesterday", "Let it Be", "Michelle".

England is also famous for an outstanding figure from remote past — Queen Boadicea ['bouəd|'siə]. This lady was a real warrior and is remembered for her courage. She fought against the Romans to keep England free. There is a bronze statue of her riding high in her chariot on the Thames embankment next to the Houses of Parliament in London.

The red rose is the national symbol or the emblem of England.

Every nation has its own Patron Saint who in times of great trouble is called upon to help save the country from its enemies. St. George isthe Patron Saint of England. St. George’s Day is celebrated on April 23rd and his flag,St. George’s cross, which is the national flag of England is flown all over England.

Scotland

Scotland is one of four parts of the GB. Scotland's area is more than half as big as England's. The main cities of the country are its capital Edinburgh and the main industrial center Glasgow.

Scottish towns look very different from English towns. Some words about Edinburgh. Edinburgh, capital of Scotland, is one of Britain’s most attractive cities. It’s a city for people who like to walk.

You are never far from green parks, gardens and hills - even in the main shopping streets. It’s a busy modern city, but its history is everywhere. At the top of the highest hill is located Edinburgh Castle. It was the home of Scotland’s royal family until 1603 when King James the 6th of Scotland became the king of England and moved to London. The road which begins at the castle and goes eastwards is called Royal Mile. At the other end of the Royal Mile is the Palace of Hollyroodhouse.

It was built by the Scottish king before Scotland and England were united to make Great Britain. Now it is a second home for the Queen or her children, who usually visit Edinburgh in the summer. When the royal family is not there you can visit the palace and see a lot of interesting things. There are nine hills in Edinburgh. They are long-dead volcanoes. From the tops of them you can see two bridges: the modern road bridges an the old rail bridges which has carried trains to the Highlands for more than a hundred years. The highlands of Scotland is mountainous and wild.

In the winter it’s white with snow but in the summer it becomes purple. Highlands are famous for the Scottish Olympics or the Highland games (it’s real name). These games are not only sporting competitions: music and different traditional games are very important too. While athletes throw the hammer at the one end of the arena, you can watch a dancing competition at the other end.

There is also a game for the strongest athletes - tossing the caber, which weights 60 kilos and is six metres long. These games are very popular in Highlands. Usually between the mountains are rivers and lakes. Scottish people like fishing very much, that’s why they say that Scottish rivers are good for two: fishing is one, the other is Scotch whisky. Whisky is made from water and barley. The method hasn’t changed for hundreds years. Scotch whisky is the best one. Scotland is also famous for it’s kilt, the most important part of national dress and bagpipes - the national instrument.

Wales

Wales is a country situated in the West of Britain. St. David is the patron saint of Wales. On the 1-st of March, St. David’s Day, patriotic Welsh people wear a leek or a daffodil, both symbols of Wales. The population of Wales is about three million. The area of Wales is 20,764 sq. km. Wales is agricultural; there are few cities there, rather small and unimportant. The west coast, mid Wales and North Wales are wild and beautiful. Wales has high mountains, including Mount Snowdon, the second highest mountain in Britain. Snowdon looks very peaceful and beautiful. Cardiff, the modern capital of Wales, has a Roman castle and a modern shopping centre. Cardiff is an industrial city, which also has a cathedral and a university. Every year, an international festival called Eisteddfod is held in the town of Llangollen. People come from all over the world to recite poetry, sing and dance in this colourful competition.

There are two national languages in Wales – the Welsh language, which is spoken widely, especially in the North of the country and English. Both these languages are taught in schools. There are also Welsh and british TV channels. Rugby is the national game of Wales. The rules of the game are quite difficult. A team consists of fifteen players. The game is played with an egg-shaped ball. There are three National Parks in Wales. These parks are protected by law because of their natural beauty, but some people live and work there. The flag of Wales, with its red dragon, is one of the oldest in the world. It was brought to Britain by the Romans. The Welsh call their country Cymru and themselves Cymry.

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland, also known as Ulster, is still a part of the United Kingdom. It is made up of six countries: Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry, Tyrone. One third of the population lives in and around the capital, Belfast. Belfast is also the most important port and commercial and industrial centre. Some parts of the territory, those that are not close to the capital, have remained mainly rural.

The Irish population is divided into two groups: the Protestants and the Catholics. The Protestants are of British origin. They are descendants of British settlers who came to Ireland in the XVIth and XVIIth centuries, during and after the Reformation. The Catholics are mostly natives of Ireland.

The Protestants were the majority and dominated the Catholics with strong discrimination. In 1968 the Catholics began the movement for equal civil rights.

The fightings between the two groups of the population continue to this day.

Northern Ireland has a strong cultural tradition: songs, dances, literature and festivals.

It has its own Art Council, and there are orchestras, theatres, ballet and opera companies.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16