Northern Ireland

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is situated in the north-western part Europe. This country is known as Great Britain. It is situated on the British Isles. Northern Ireland occupies the northern part of Ireland. It is situated on the separate island. The British Isles consist of two main islands: Great Britain and Ireland, and also about 5. 500 small islands. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is situated on the island Great Britain and on the northern part of the Ireland.

The territory of the country is 244 000 square kilometres. The population is over 56 million people. Great Britain is a parliamentary monarchy. The Queen Elizabeth II is formally at the head of the state since 1953. The Queen has almost no power in the country. Her powers are limited by the Parliament. In fact, the country is ruled by the Parliament. The British Parliament makes laws of the country. So the Queen reigns but doesn’t rule in the U.K.

The British Parliament consists of two Houses: the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The Queen appoints the Prime Minister of the country.

The island Great Britain consists of three parts: England, Scotland and Wales. England is situated in the southern and central part of Great Britain. It is the richest part of the country. Scotland is in the north of the island. Wales is in the west of the island.

Great Britain is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea in the west. It is washed by the English Channel in the south. It is washed by the North Sea in the east. The country borders on France through the English Channel in the south.

The surface of Great Britain is flat in England and Ireland. It is mountainous in Scotland and Wales.

The British Isles have many rivers but they are not very long. The Severn is the longest river in England. It flows into the Irish Sea. The Thames is the widest and the deepest river in Great Britain. London, the capital of Great Britain stands on it.

There are no high mountains on the islands. Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in Scotland. Snowdon is the highest mountain in Wales.

There are many beautiful lakes, but there are no great forests in the British Isles.

Great Britain is not very rich in mineral resources. It has some deposits of coal, iron ore, oil and gas. Great Britain is a highly developed industrial country. Its main branches of industry are: ship-building, coal-mining, textile, metallurgical and light industries. They grow some crops, fruits and vegetables in Great Britain.

The largest cities of the U.K are: London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Glasgow, Belfast, Edinburgh and Cardiff.

London is the capital of the U.K. It is the capital of England too. London is very big and important political, industrial, scientific and cultural centre of the country. There are many plants, factories, institutes, libraries, museums, art galleries, theatres and cinemas in London.

Cardiff is the capital of Wales. It is a big port.

Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland. It is not the largest city of Scotland. Glasgow is the largest city of Scotland. It is an industrial centre of Scotland.

Belfast is the capital of the Northern Ireland. It has a ship–building industry.

The largest cities of England are: Birmingham and Coventry. They are the big industrial centres of England.

Sheffield is a centre of the steel industry. Manchester is a centre of the textile industry. Liverpool is one of the big ports on the west.

Oxford and Cambridge are university towns. There are many students there.

Exercise 3. Answer the following questions: