Read the text with a dictionary and do the exercises that follow it.

Study the following vocabulary before reading the texts:

B.C. (Before Christ) – до нашей эры

A.D. (Anno Domini) – нашей эры

In the early days of history (50 B.C. – 450 A.D.) England was known as Britain. The name “Britain” comes from the name of a Celtic tribe known as the Britons that arrived from Central Europe after 800 B.C. At that time there were no big towns on the British Isles. People lived in small villages along the rivers or near the sea. The Britons caught fish, grew wheat and had many pigs, cows and sheep in the meadows near the rivers and on the sides of the mountains.

In 55 B.C. the Romans with Julius Caesar at the head invaded the British Isles and forced the population to pay tribute.

The Romans kept their armies in Britain. They built roads and had the country under control. They protected themselves from the attacks of the Britons by the walls which they built across Britain. You can see the Roman walls in Britain even now.

The Romans left the country only in the second half of the 5^th century A.D. The Roman armies were called back to Italy where they defended the country from barbaric peoples. Roman culture and civilization had a positive influence on the development of the country.

The Britons couldn’t keep their land free for a long time. The Germanic tribes from Western Europe – the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes – attacked the coasts of Britain and after long wars with the Britons settled on the British Isles. The Angles got most of the land and became the strongest tribe. The Britons went to the mountains in the west of the Isles and settled there. This part of Britain is called Wales now. As time went on the 2 peoples – the Angles and the Saxons – grew into one and were called Anglo-Saxons. They called their speech English, and their country England – that is, the Land of the English.

The Anglo-Saxons formed many kingdoms – Kent, Essexs, Wessex, which now are counties of Great Britain. These kingdoms were at war with one another. The strongest kings took the land from the smaller kingdoms.

In the 9^th century the Danes who came from Denmark and the Northmen who came from Scandinavia attacked England. For 200 years the English people were at war with them. The Danes wanted to rule the country and after many battles took the crown from the English. They held it for 24 years. It was Alfred the Great who defeated the Danes making them sign a peace agreement.

The last of the invaders who came to Britain were the Normans from Normandy (France). In 1066 the Normans won the victory and William, Duke of Normandy, was crowned king of England and called William the Conqueror. The invaders spoke French, and it was the language of the upper classes and the government for the next 3 centuries. The power of the state grew and little by little England began to spread its power: first on Wales, then on Scotland and later on Ireland. The union of England, Wales and Scotland became known as Great Britain.

Ireland was England’s first colony. Later the southern part of Ireland became a Free State after a long and bitter struggle. The Northern Ireland remains part of the UK till now.

As Great Britain was situated on the crossways of sea routes it helped Britain to become “the mistress of the seas”. In the 17^th century large territories in India, Australia, America and Africa became dependent on the British Empire. Some colonies were self-governing or dominions such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Others like India, Africa and the West Indies were ruled by a governor appointed from Britain.

At the end of the 19^th century Britain began to lose industrial supremacy to the United States and Germany. The population of the colonies began to struggle against the British colonists. In the 20^th century such countries as Afghanistan, Egypt, India, Burma, Pakistan and many colonies in Africa became independent from the British Empire. The last country who got its independence was Australia.

Exercises

1. Read the text and arrange the following statements in correct order:

– the fall of the British Empire;

– the English kingdoms;

– the Romans times;

– England under Normans;

– the Britons.

2. Answer the questions on the text:

1. Where did the name “Britain” come from?

2. How long did the Romans stay in Britain?

3. Who made French the official language in Britain?

4. What British colonies do you know?

5. Why did the UK lose its colonies?

5. What country has got its independence from the UK recently?

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