1. The Stuarts

Seminar 1
2. Geographical position
3. Climate
4. Seas, rivers, lakes
5. England
6. Scotland
7. Northern Ireland

The Stuarts
Charles the 1st
Charles the 2nd
James the 2nd
William the 3rd of Orange (Оранский) with Mary the 2nd (spouses)
Ann (daughter of James the 2nd; Mary’s sister)
George the 1st (Hannover Dynasty)

The Stuarts were successful than The Tudors. They quarreled with Parliament (?). One of the Stuarts was executed (Charles the1st), another was driven from the throne (Charles the 2nd), then last Stuart, queen Ann died in 1714. The Monarchy was no longer powerful as it had been in the Tudors time.
The first Stuart had faced the alternative to give up absolute power and cooperate with new gentlemen in bourgeoisie (буржуазия) or to support reactionary noblemen (пэры или аристократы). He preferred to struggle against the Puritans that are represented the new ideology.
James the 1st (he established the first colonies on the territory of America – the James Town) and later his son Charles the 1st were in constant conflict with the Parliament. More than once Charles the 1st dissolved (распускал) the Parliament, but had to recall it again because he needed money. In 1628 in return for money the Parliament wanted Charles the 1st to sign the document known as the Petition of Right which would give the Parliament the right to control State Money, The National Budget and The Law. Charles realized that the Petition was putting an end to the king’s divine right (исключительное право). He dissolved the Parliament again and between 1629-1640 Charles ruled without the Parliament. In 1642 Charles tried to arrest 5 members of the Parliament (MP). Although he was unsuccessful it convenience the Parliament that it had good reason to fear where the Parliament’s influence was stronger, locked its gates against the king and moved to Nottingham where the Civil War had started.
Several MPs had commanded the Parliament’s army during the Civil War. The strongest of them was a Gentlemen Former, named Oliver Cromwell. He had created a new army the First Regular Force from which the British army of today developed. Instead of country people and gentry (the class of people next below the nobility in position and birth - нетитулованное мелкопоместное дворянство), Cromwell’s captured the king in 1645 but they didn’t know what to do with him. They could bring either Charles back to the throne and allow him to rule or remove him and create a new political system. On the 31(?) of January of 1645 the king was beheaded (обезглавлен).
From 1649 till 1660 Britain was Republic. Cromwell and his supports created a government which was far more civil than Charles had been. They had got read of the Monarchy and House of Lords. In 1663 Britain was government by Cromwell alone. He became Lord Protector and had much more power than king Charles had had. But his efforts to rule thought the armies were very unpopular, and his idea of using the army as a Main Law and Order in the kingdom has remained unpopular ever since. His other innovations were unpopular too. People were forbidden to celebrate Christmas and Easter.
Cromwell died in 1658. He was succeeded by his son Richard, but Richard was a poor leader and could control neither the army nor Parliament. Nobody governed the country.
In 1660 Charles the 2nd was invited to return to his kingdom. The Republic was over with the Restoration of the Monarchy. Parliament became as weak as it had been at the time of Charles the 1st.
The opposition to the Charles the 2nd was nicknamed Whigs. By the opposition in Parliament the supporters of the king were nicknamed the Tories. The two parties: Whigs and the Tories became of the basis of the two-party Parliament system of government.


The land geographical position and territory
The UK is an island country. It occupied the territory of the British isles and it composed of some 5500 isles. The total area of the country is 94,217 miles2 or 244,02 kl2. The UK is a small country. It’s twice smaller than France or Spain.
The two main islands are: Great Britain in which are England, Scotland and Wales to the East and Ireland in which are Northern Ireland and Independent Republic of Ireland in the West. They are separated by the Irish Sea.
The UK is situated in the North West Coast of Europe between the Atlantic Ocean on the north and The North Sea in the East. It separated from the European continent by the the English Channel (La Manche) and the Strait of Dover (Pas de Calais) (Дуверский пролив).
Geographically the islands of GB is subdivided into two main regions: Lowland and Highland compares Eastern and Southern England. Highland consists of Scotland, most of Wales, the Pennines and the Lake District (Озёрский край). The highest mountains are Ben Nevis (1,343 m) in Scotland and Snowdon (1,085 m) in Wales.
The longest rivers in the UK are the Severn (3,54 km) flowing along the border between England and Wales, tributaries (притоки) of which include the Avon famed by Shakespeare, and the Thames which flows East-West to the port of London.
There are many lakes in GB. In the North West side of the Pennines lies the Lake District – the beautiful lakes which gave its name association with the history of English literature and especially with the name William Wordsworth, the founder of the Lake School of Poets.
The largest cities are London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Bristol, Leeds and Edinburgh.


Climate
Britain is as far North as Siberia. For example, Edinburgh is 56o North of the equator. The same latitude (широта) as Moscow. Yet, its climate is generally mild and tempered because of the Gulf Stream (a warm ocean wind) which brings warm from the Gulf of Mexico (Мексиканский залив).
The climate in the UK is usually described as cool, tempered and humid (влажный). To say the truth, London is drier then continent cities such as Hamburg. Its weather may be unpredictable, but it’s not particularly wet.
The Northern Mountains have much more rain and snow. The Southern part of England and Wales is a little warmer, sunnier and less misty.
During a normal summer the temperature sometimes rises above 25 degrees in the South. Winter temperature below 5 degrees are rearly. It seldom snows heavily in winters. January and February are usually the coldest months; July and August are warmest.
3 main features of GB climate: mild, humid and changeable. That means that it’s never too hot or cold, too wet or too dry. This humid and mild climate is good for plants.
In the British homes there has been no central heating. The fireplaces are often used. Many schools and universities have no central heating eighter and the floors are made from stone.


Seas, rivers, lakes.
The Seas
Great Britain is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the north, north-west and south-west. From the European continent it is separated by the North Sea, the Straight Dover (Pas de Calais) and the English Channel (La Manche – a French name meaning «a sleeve»). The North Sea and the English Channel are often called the «Narrow Seas». On the west Great Britain is separated from Ireland by the Irish Sea, the North Channel and St. George’s Channel. The most important sea routes pass through the English Channel and the North Sera linking Europe with America.
Great Britain is very irregularly shaped, being deeply indented by numerous gulfs of the sea. Owing to the numerous bays and inlets no point in Great Britain is as much as 75 miles (121 km) from the sea.
The seas surrounding the Great Britain are rather shallow – less than 91 metres because the islands lie on the continental shelf. The shallow waters are important because they provide excellent fishing grounds as well as breeding grounds foe fish.
The original connection of the British Isles with the continent can be further proved by the fact that the chalk ridge which ends in the cliffs of Dover reappears on the coast of France opposite, and the position and quality of the coal layers beneath the chalk in Kent have very much in common with those in northern France.
Still further proof of the continental origin of British Isles are the remains of elephants and extinct species of other animals and plants found in Britain. They help to establish the dates when the British Isles became separated from the continent. The remains of elephants prove that the English Channel was formed after these animals had reached the continent. Obviously, in the Ice age the first human inhabitants of Britain were able to migrate from the continent on foot long before man learned boatmaking.
Rivers
The rivers of Britain are very short. Their direction and character are determined by the position of the mountains. Most of the rivers flow in the eastward direction since the west coast is mountainous.
Due to the humid climate the water-level is always high. The rivers seldom freeze in winter, most of them remain ice-free but they are not navigable for ocean ships.
The most important rivers are the Severn (354 km), the Thames (346 km), the Trent, the Aire, the Ouse, the Clyde, the Tweed, the Tyne, the Tay, the Eden.
The Tay is the longest river in Scotland (118 miles). Part of border between Scotland and England is along the lower reaches of the Tweed, near which the woolen fabric bearing the same name is produced. The Severn flows along the border between England and Wales. One of its tributaries is the Avon with its Stratford, glorified by Shakespeare. The swiftest flowing river in the British Isles is the Spey flowing across the southern Highlands of Scotland.
Lakes
British lakes are rather small and remote with no outlets, so they afford limited economical possibilities in the system of navigable waterways. The largest of them are Lough-Neagh in north-east Ireland, Lough Lomond near Glasgow and Lough-Ness near Inverness in Scotland.
Lakeland or the Lake District is in the Pennine system in the north-west of England. The sixteen major long the north-west of England. The sixteen major long and narrow lakes lie snugly among the steep slopes of Highlands near Scotland. This remarkable place is known through the world for its beautiful deep lakes, its plunging waterfalls and emerald meadows. It is outstanding for walking, climbing, sailing and boating.
This district is also known for its association with the history of English literature and in the first place with the name of William Wordsworth the founder of the Lake School of poets. His home and Lakeland scenes still inspire great poetry.


England
England consists of 4 parts which make up the UK. England is a large occupied of the territory (131,000 km2) is the most industrial and most densely populated (густо населенная) part of the UK. Its population is over 47 mln people. The capital of England is London.
England is a hightly developed industrial part of the country. Historically England is divided into several economic regions: the South is industrial and agricultural region, central England or Midlands, Yorkshire and Northern England.
Heavy machinery, electronics and shipbuilding are developed in London. Nottingham, Bristol, Manchester, New Castle and others.
The wool industry is centered in Leeds and Bradford. Food processing is developed in Liverpool. Midlands make farming lands.
Nottingham is connected with the name of legendary hero Robin Hood. Stradford is upon Avon is Shakespeare birthplace. Canterbury is situated in Kent is a cathedral city, the cradle of Christian people gloried by Geoffrey Chaucer.
Another historic place in the South is Hastings. It’s a popular resound (отголосок) it’s famous by the battle of Hastings in 1066 (начало нормандского правления).
One of the monuments situated in the South West is Stone Henge.
Wales lies West of the English Lowland. This part of the UK is rather small, its territory is 26,760 km2. The capital of Wales is Cardiff. The population of Wales is over 3 mln people.


Scotland
Scotland is the most Northern part of the GB. Its total area is 78,800 km2. The Cheviot Hills marks the border (границу) between England and Scotland.
Scotland takes up 1/3rd of the territory of the British isles. Its population is not very big – a little over 6 mln people. The capital is Edinburgh.
Scotland is a country of hills, lakes and rivers. The highest mountain pic is Ben Nevis. There are many rivers but they are not long. The longest and the most important river is the Clyde.
Scottish lakes are called “lochs” (озёра) because of they are long and the most narrow. The longest and the most beautiful river is Lomond. The famous Scottish loch is Loch Ness because of the monster.
Shipbuilding is one of the most important industries. Other are iron steel, heavy and light engineering and coal-mining.
The main urban (городские) centers are Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee.


Northern Ireland
It’s the smallest component of the UK – 14,121 km2.
It occupied North East of Ireland. The population is 1,5 mln people. The capital is Belfast. The largest river is Shannon. The climate is oceanic. Economy has three main industries: agriculture, textiles, shipbuilding.
The land territorial position and the name of the country, its history
The UK has a quite this official name since 1922. The formation of the UK took centuries and involved a lot of arm struggle. The union if England and Wales dates 1301 when Edward’s the 1st son was announced prince of Wales, but only in 1485 a welsh prince Henry Tudor (Henry the 7th) became king of England. And it was his son Henry the 7th who formally united Wales in 1535. The day of the 1st Act of Union. The Union of England and Scotland dates on 1603 when king of Scotland James the 6th inherited the prawn of kingdom after the death of childless Elizabeth the 1st of England. Thou, England and Scotland were ruled by the same monarch but they remained separate the same kingdom with their own Parliament. Scotl and Eng joined in the Act of Union in 1707. Island used to be oldest colony and its conquer started as early as 12th century. In 1125 king Henry the 6th of Eng was made king of all isles by the Pope of Rome.
Thou, numerous rebellious were up and down from time to time. Irish Legislature and Parliament were abolished (отменены) by the Act of Union in 1801. In the same year a new national flag Union Jack (1801) was established. And the country’s official name became the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, but in 1821 26 Irish countries went through of the UK and Ireland forming the Irish 4 State remained to republic of Island in 1949. Only 6 northern countries remained under making it the United Kingdom if GB and Northern Ireland, but it’s on officially called the UK of GB or Britain or England, it’s also referred to an old and romantic name Albion(related to Latin «albus» - «white» (in allusion (указание на) to the white cliffs (утёсы) of Dover).