THE NAME

• Geographically speaking:

GREAT BRITAIN is the name of the islands lying off the north-west coast of Europe.

• It's separated from the continent by The North Sea and by the English Channel

• The North Channel, Irish Sea, St George's Channel and Celtic Sea separate the island from the island of Ireland to its west.

• The island is physically connected with continental Europe via the Channel Tunnel.

• Politically speaking:

GREAT BRITAIN is the largest island of THE UNITED KINDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORDEN IRELAND.

• Politically Great Britain refers to England, Scotland and Wales. The Great Britain also includes a number of outlying islands such as the Isle of Wight, Anglesey, the Isles of Scilly, the Hebrides and the island groups of Orkney and Shetland.

• It does not include the Isle of Man and The Channel Islands which are not part of the UK.

SHORT HISTORY

The UK - name from 1801 (the flag start to be use)

• England and Wales - 1282

1536 - 1543 Act of Union

• Scotland - 1603

1707 Act of Union

• Northern Ireland - 1155

1801 Act of Union

1920 Government of Ireland Act

1922 Free Irish State

GEOGRAPHY

• The Strait of Dover - is the strait at the narrowest part of the English Channel. It's width, 33,3 km (20 miles), represents the smallest distance between France and Great Britain.

• English Channel - is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about 560 km (350 mi) long.

• Area - 240 000 km²

• Under 1 000 km from south coast to the extreme north

• About 500 km across in the widest part

• Land's End is the extreme south-westward point of Great Britain, situated in western Cornwall.

• John o' Groats is the extreme northern point of mainland Scotland, in north-eastern Caithness.

CLIMATE The climate of the UK varies, but is generally temperate. In general, the south is warmer and drier than the north. More than 50% of the days are overcast. The winters are in general slight colder in the east. In summer the south is warmer and sunnier than the north.

POPULATION The population in the UK is about 59 mln. England - 84% (mainly in London, south-east parts of England and in the Midlands) Scotland - 8,5% (mainly in the Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee) Wales - 5% (mainly in Cardiff, Swansea and Newport) Northern Ireland - 3% (mainly in Belfast)

IDENTYFYING SYMBOLS OF THE FOUR NATION

	ENGLAND Flag: St. George's Cross Plant: Rose Colour: White Patron Saint: St. George Saint's Day: 23 April
	WALES Flag: Dragon of Cadwallader Plant: Leek/ Daffodil Colour: Red Patron Saint: St. David Saint's Day: 1 March
	SCOTLAND Flag: St. Andrew's Cross Plant: Thistle Colour: Blue Patron Saint: St. Andrew Saint's Day: 30 November
	IRELAND Flag: St. Patrick's Cross Plant: Shamrock Colour: Green Patron Saint: St. Patrick Saint's Day: 13 March

The Union flag, often know as the `Union Jack' is the national flag of the
UK. It is a combination of the cross of St. George, the cross of St. Andrew and the cross of St. Patrick.

ISLES

The Isle of Man - is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is represented by a Lieutenant Governor. The island is not part of the United Kingdom, but its foreign relations and defence are the responsibility of the UK Government. Although the United Kingdom does not usually interfere in the island's domestic matters, its "good government" is ultimately the responsibility of the Crown.

The Channel Islands - are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are not part of the United Kingdom.

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