I. Name and constituents
1.Full name
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
2.Constituents
(1)The Island of Great Britain: England, Scotland and Wales
(2)Northern Ireland
II. Effects of its imperial past
1.Establishment of the commonwealth
Commonwealth is a voluntary organization with members mainly being former colonies of the British Empire.
2.Formation of a multiracial society
Due to immigration from some Commonwealth countries in the 1950s and 1960s, most commonly from India, Pakistan and countries of the Caribbean, Britain now has a population of which 1 in 20 are of non-European ethnicity.
III. Differences in society
1.Race difference
A multiracial society with a majority of Christians, many Muslims and others.
2.Class difference
The class structure of UK society is relatively obvious. (Lives of a white-collar worker and a blue-collar worker are very different.)
3.Region difference
(1)Between highland and lowland Scots
(2)Between northern and southern England
(3)The capital London itself dominant in Britain in all sorts of ways:
◆It is the largest city located in the south of the country.
◆It is the cultural and business center and the headquarters of the vast majority of Britain’s big companies.
◆It is not only the financial center of the nation, but also one of the three major international financial centers in the world.
IV. Introduction to England
1.Physical features
(1)Largest of the 4 nations with largest population
(2)A Dominance of UK in culture and economy
(3)Capital: London, dominant in government, finance and culture
2.History of invasions
(1)Roman invasion (43 AD-AD 5th C)
①England and Wales became a part of the Roman Empire.
②Hadrian Wall was built by the Romans in 122 to defend their domain. The Wall covered a line roughly equivalent to the contemporary boundary between England and Scotland.
(2)Anglo-Saxon’s invasion (AD 5th C-1066)
①Eastern and Southern Britain were invaded by Angles and Saxons (the forefathers of the English, the founders of England).
②The legend of King Arthur was based on this period:
◆It is said that he was the king of England in the 5th century and united the British and drove the Saxons back with his magical sword, Excalibur.
◆He created Round Table, which gave knights equal precedence and showed knights’ demand for a more democratic system.
◆His real existence is in doubt but he is the central figure of many legends.
(3)Viking invasion (Late AD 8th C-AD 10th C)
①Northern and Eastern England as well as Scotland were conquered by raiders from Scandinavia, the ferocious Vikings.
②King Alfred the Great, won in the south of England against the Vikings and ruled this area.
(4)Norman invasion (1066)
①William the Conqueror defeated King Harold at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, and built the Tower of London.
②Legend of Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a Saxon nobleman. As he could no longer put up with oppressions from the Normans, he became an outlaw and hid himself with his ban of “merry men” in the forest. From this secret place, he went out to rob from the rich to give to the poor.
(5)Next few hundred years following the Norman invasion
①Establishment of the Church of England
Henry VIII’s divorce case, which was not permitted by the pope of Roman Catholic Church, led to its broke up with England. Henry VIII then established the Church of England and claimed himself the leader. This is called the Religious Reformation. His daughter Elisabeth I consolidated the status of the Church of England.
②Various parts of the British Isle were joined together under English rule.
③Power gradually transferred from the monarch to the parliament.
◆1649, Charles I was executed, for he attempted to overthrow Parliament. Then England was ruled by parliament’s leader, Oliver Cromwell for 11 years.
◆1660, Charles II restored the monarchy.
◆Further conflicts between parliament and the king led to removal of the Scottish house of Stuart in 1688.
◆Bill of Rights was passed in 1689 and finally established parliament’s dominance over the throne.
V. Introduction to Scotland
1. Physical features
(1)Second largest of the 4 nations both in population and in size
(2)Most rugged part of UK
①In the north—the Highlands mountains and lakes
②In the south—the Southern Uplands
③In the middle—the lowland zone with 3/4 of the population
(3)Capital: Edinburgh, east coast, famous for its beauty
(4)Largest city: Glasgow, in the west of Lowland zone, together with Edinburgh, has famous universities dating back to the 15th century.
2.History
(1)Viking raids
Experienced Viking raids in the 9th century
(2)Northern Ireland Invasion
Around the AD 6th C, people from Northern Ireland invaded the South-west.
①People in the South-west were called Scots and gave the modern country of Scotland its name.
②The original Scottish Celts, called the Picts were left with the non-productive highland zone, where in addition to English, some people speak the old Celtic language—Gaelic.
③The division between highland and lowland Scotland remains a cultural divide today.
(3)The Battle of Bannockburn
Time: 24th June, 1314
Heroes: Scots under the leadership of Robert Bruce vs the English army
Result: Scots were victorious, leading to 300 years of full independence
(4)Union with England
①In 1603, James VI of Scotland took the throne, called James the First of England, uniting the two thrones. But Scotland maintained its separate political identity.
②In 1707, under the reign of Queen Anne, English and Scottish Parliaments were united.
③Scotland sends 72 representatives to the London Parliament. In 1922, only 3 were from the Scottish Nationalist Party, wanting an independent Scotland; 49 were from the Labor Party, wanting to set up a regional parliament for Scotland to manage its own internal affairs within the UK.
④The Scotland Act of 1998 provided for the establishment of the Scottish Parliament and Executive.
3.Retaining strong Scottish identity
(1)Scotland has a great tradition of innovation in arts, philosophy and science.
(2)The best sum up of Scotland’s position lies in Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous novel Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Scotland was superficially fully integrated into the UK, but concealed beneath this is a still-strong Scottish identity.
VI. Introduction to Wales
1.Physical features
(1)Smallest on the British mainland, but larger than Northern Ireland
(2)Close to central England; hilly and rugged
(3)Rich coal deposits attract foreign investment from abroad, especially Japan and U.S.
(4)Capital: Cardiff, on the south coast
(5)Retain its own language; 19% population speaking Gaelic
(6)Retain a powerful sense of difference from England
2. A history features campaigns for the independence from UK
(1)In 1267, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, forced the English to acknowledge him as Prince of Wales by a military campaign, and unified Wales as an independent nation.
(2)After Llywelyn died, the English King Edward I set about conquering Wales and succeeded. Edward named his son the Prince of Wales, a title held by the first son of the Monarchy ever since, trying to bring Wales into the British nation.
(3)In 1400, Owain Glyndwr led an unsuccessful rising against the English.
(4)Llywelyn and Glyndwr are legendary heroes of Welsh Nationalism since their brief campaigns are the only times in history when Wales existed as a unified and independent nation.
(5)In 1536, Wales was brought legally, administratively and politically into the UK by an act of the British Parliament.
(6)Wales sends 38 representatives to the London Parliament. 4 are from the Party of Wales (Plaid Cymru), which campaigns for an independent Wales.
| I. 全称和组成
1．全称
大不列颠及北爱尔兰联合王国
2．组成部分
(1)大不列颠岛：英格兰、苏格兰和威尔士
(2)北爱尔兰
II. 殖民时期的影响
1．促成英联邦的成立
英联邦是一个以自愿加入为基础的组织，成员国为前大英帝国殖民地。
2．形成多种族国家
由于20世纪五、六十年代鼓励英联邦国家向英国移民，英国人口的二十分之一是非欧洲血统。
III. 社会差异
1．种族差异
多种族社会，基督教徒占主导，还有许多穆斯林教徒和其他。
2．阶级差异
英国社会的阶级差异相对别国较为明显。（白领雇员和蓝领工人的生活相差很大。）
3．地区差异
(1)苏格兰高低和低地
(2)英格兰南部和北部
(3)首都伦敦在各方面均占主导地位：
◆伦敦是英国南部最大城市。
◆英国文化和商业中心，许多大型公司的部 设在伦敦。
◆不仅是英国的金融中心，也是世界三大金 融中心之一。
IV. 英格兰
1．自然特征
(1)地域最广、人口最多
(2)文化和经济发展之重
(3)首府伦敦是政治、经济和文化中心。
2．入侵史
(1)罗马入侵时期(公元43年到5世纪)
①英格兰和威尔士成为罗马的一部分。
②122年，罗马国王建立哈德良长城。这样做是为了防止皮特人入侵。
(2)央格鲁撒克逊入侵时期(5世纪-1066年)
①大不列颠东部和南部被侵，央格鲁撒克逊人被称为英格兰人的祖先。
②亚瑟王的传奇以此为背景:
◆据说他是公元5世纪时期英格兰的国王，并且曾拿着他著名的神剑带领英格兰人击退撒克逊人的入侵。
◆圆桌的发明人，他发明圆桌供自己
的骑士聚谈，这反映了平等和民主。
◆是许多传奇故事的中心人物。
(3)怀京入侵(八世纪末到十世纪)
①怀京人来自斯堪的纳维亚半岛，入侵了英格兰东北部和苏格兰。
②阿尔弗雷德大帝生活在这个时期，他积极而有效的对抗了怀京人，保留了英格兰南部的主权。
(4)诺曼入侵(1066)
①1066年诺曼底公爵征服者爱德华在哈斯汀打败英王哈罗德，并修建伦敦塔。
②罗宾汉的传奇以此为背景。他原是撒克逊贵族。由于不能忍受诺曼人的压迫而退居丛林，劫富济贫。
(5)诺曼征服后期
①英格兰国教成立。
亨利八世因离婚请求未受罗马教皇批准而与其决裂，成立英格兰国教，这就是著名的宗教改革。亨利八世的女儿伊丽莎白一世巩固了英格兰国教的地位。
②这一时期不列颠岛的大部分地区都被英王收服。
③权利开始由国王向议会转移。
◆1649年，查理一世被送上断头台，议会领袖克伦威尔统治英国11年。
◆1660年查理二世复辟斯图亚特王朝。
◆1688年斯图亚特王朝完结。
◆1689年通过权利法案，议会得到权利。
V. 苏格兰
1．自然特征
(1)人口和面积在英国的四个组成部分中均列第二。
(2)地表崎岖
①北部为高地和湖泊
②南部为高地
③中部为低地，3/4的人口聚集于此
(3)首府：爱丁堡
(4)最大城市：格拉斯哥
2．历史
(1)怀京入侵
9世纪被怀京人入侵。
(2)北爱尔兰入侵
6世纪北爱尔兰入侵苏格兰西南
①苏格兰西南部居民被称为苏格兰人，苏格兰的名字也源于此。
②苏格兰原始居民凯尔特人被迫移居北部高地，称为皮克特人，他们说英语和凯尔特语。
③苏格兰高低和低地之间的差异即源于此。
(3)班诺克本之战
①时间：1314年6月24日
②人物：罗伯特·布鲁斯领导的苏格兰人、英格兰军队
③结果：苏格兰赢得战争，维持独立300年之久。
(4)同英格兰的统一
①1603年，苏格兰国王詹姆斯六世成为英格兰国王，即詹姆斯一世，两国达成形式上的统一，但苏格兰仍保有政治独立。
②1707年英格兰和苏格兰议会合并。
③苏格兰赴伦敦议会的代表有72人，其中大部分成员来自工党，希望建立苏格兰地区议会，很少一部分主张苏格兰独立。
④1998年苏格兰法案通过，成立了苏格兰议会。
3．民族特征
(1)苏格兰在艺术、哲学和科学领域历来具有独创性。
(2)罗伯特·路易斯的小说《化身博士》中的一段话最好的诠释了苏格兰的民族立场：表面看来，苏格兰是完全属于英国的，但隐藏其中的是苏格兰强烈的民族意识。
VI. 威尔士
1．自然特征
(1)不列颠岛最小的一部分，但面积大于北爱尔兰
(2)靠近英国中部，多山而且地表崎岖
(3)煤矿资源丰富，引来大量外资
(4)首府：卡迪夫
(5)保留民族语言威尔士语，19%的威尔士人说这种语言
(6)对英格兰怀有强烈的区别感
2．历史(一系列为独立于英国而作的努力)
(1)1267年，卢埃林·阿普·格鲁菲德通过军事行动迫使英国皇室封其为威尔士王子，并承认威尔士独立。
(2)卢埃林死后，英王爱德华一世占领威尔士，并将其长子封为威尔士王子。如今这个称号仍是皇室长子的封号。
(3)1400年欧文·格林道瓦尔领导的威尔士起义以失败告终。
(4)卢埃林和格林道瓦尔被威尔士人奉为传奇式的民主英雄，因为他们的起义时期是威尔士唯一作为独立国家存在的时期。
(5)1536年，威尔士正式成为英国的一部分。
(6)威尔士在伦敦议会的席位为38个，其中只有四名来自威尔士党，威尔士党主张威尔士拥有更大的自治权，同时同英格兰保持紧密联系。
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