Great Britain

The British Isles are a group of islands lying off the north - west coast of the continent of Europe. The British Isles consist of two large islands and many smaller ones. The two large islands are Great Brit­ain and Ireland. The Northern part of Ireland and Great Britain form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Great "Britain is the largest island and includes England, Scotland and Wales and it is 1/30 (one-thirtieth) of the size of Europe.

The population of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is almost 56 million. The main nationalities are the English, the Scots, the Welsh and the Irish. These four nationalities have their own language and culture.

Great Britain is a highly developed industrial country. In the 19^lh century it stood the first in the world and was the biggest colonial power. But after World War 2 it lost its prestige as well as its colo­nies. The industrial centers of Great Britain are London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Sheffield and others. London, the capital, is one of the most important industrial centers. Lots of things such as planes and cars, food and clothes are made in and around London.

As to its political system it is a parliamentary monarchy. It means that there is the King or the Queen and Parliament. The power of the Queen is limited by Parliament which includes 2 Houses - the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The House of Commons is an assembly elected once in five years. There are 630 members in this House. The Members of the House of Commons receive a salary for their parliamentary work. The Members of the House of Commons" belong to different political parties. The Members of the House of Lords are not elected by the population. The seats in the House of Lords are hereditary. In the House of Lords there are more than 800 peers. The House of Lords is presided over by the Lord Chancellor. The national flag of the country is called the Union Jack.

Great Britain is a country of strong attraction for tourists, especially in spring and summer. The charm of it lies in its variety of scenery: the finest combination of sea and highland, the valley of South Wales, the smiling orchards of Kent, the lakes of Scotland, its fields and woods and parks - everything is quiet and green. They say, "England is green throughout". Englishmen like their parks and gardens and trees best of all. The art of gardening has a very old tradition in England. Their parks are pieces of country left in the middle of town, but you must know that the English country is already park-like.

There are many jokes about the English climate. One of them is that there is no climate in England, only weather. And it is true that there is no time of the year when we can really count on its being fine or rainy, warm or cold.

London

London is the capital of Great Britain, its political, economic and commercial center. It is one of the largest cities in the world and the largest city in Europe. Its population is about 8 million.

The city is very old. It has more than 20 centuries old history. Tradi­tionally it is divided into several parts, the City, Westminster, the West End and the East End. They are very different from each other.

The City is the oldest part of London, its financial and business centre. Numerous banks, offices and firms are concentrated here, in­cluding the Bank of England, the Stock Exchange. The Bank of Eng­land is not only the centre of English trade, but of the world trade as well. Only about five thousand live permanently in the City today but nearly a million works there. In the day-time the streets of the City are crowded but late at night they are deserted. Two masterpieces are situated within the City: St. Paul's Cathedral and the Tower of Lon­don. The Tower of London was built in the 15^th century. It was used as a fortress, a royal palace and a prison. Now it is a museum. St. Paul's Cathedral was built in the 17^th century by Christopher Wren. St. Paul's Cathedral is a beautiful sight standing out above the other buildings.

Westminster, with its Palace and Abbey, is the aristocratic offi­cial part of London. Westminster Abbey is regarded as the centre of the Westminster area. In this lovely building we can learn much about events of long ago. Most of the kings and queens of England since William the Conqueror have been crowned here. Many great men have been honored by burial in Westminster Abbey, and the church is full of memorials to kings, queens, statesmen, writers, scientists and explorers, all of whom have played a part in shaping Britain's history. There are many old buildings in the Westminster area, including Buckingham Palace where the Queen lives and the Houses of Parlia­ment along the north of the Thames. The clock Tower of the Houses of Parliament is famous for its big hour bell known as "Big Ben".

The West End is the richest and the most beautiful part of Lon­don. The finest theatres, cinemas and concert halls, the large muse­ums, the most luxurious hotels, the largest department stores, and the most famous shops, parks and houses are situated there. The name "West End" came to be associated with wealth, luxury, and goods of high quality. English aristocracy lives in this district.

Trafalgar Square is the geographical centre of London; it was named in the memory of Admiral Nelson's victory in the battle of Trafalgar in 1805. The tall Nelson's Column stands in the middle of the square. Op­posite the Nelson monument is the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. They contain the finest art collections of the world.

The Thames is a natural boundary between the West End and the East End of London. Working class of London is centered in the East End. This is a vast area running eastwards from the City. This area is populated by workers, dockers and small craftsmen. There are not many places of interest there. The Londoners who live in the East End are not rich and their houses are seldom built by great architects.

Like many large cities London differs from the rest of the coun­try, it is very cosmopolitan. According to the survey of 1980 137 dif­ferent languages were spoken in the homes just in one district.