THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the official name of the country. It consists of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (or Ulster). Great Britain, in its turn, is divided into England, Scotland and Wales. Each part is made of counties.

The British Isles is the geographical name of all the islands which lie off the north-west coast of the European continent. The biggest island is Great Britain. It is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the north, by the Irish Sea in the West and is separated from the European continent by the North Sea and the English Channel.

The Thames, the Severn, the Clyde, the Trent, the Mersey are the chief rivers of the country. The most beautiful lakes like Loch Lomond and Loch Katrine are in Scotland. The most well-known mountains and chains are the Pennine Chain, the Northern Highlands which contain Ben Nevis, the highest point of the British Isles.

Great Britain is a highly developed industrial country. The older fields of industry are ship-building, coal-mining, textile and the newer ones are electrical engineering, electronics, aircraft, automobile industries.

The largest cities are London, the capital of the UK, Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Edinburgh and Cardiff.

The formation of UK took centuries. During 1.000 years there were many invasions. The Romans who had come from Italy gave the country its name. The Angles, Saxons and Jutes came from Germany. The Vikings arrived from Denmark and Norway. The Normans invaded Britain from France. The population of UK is 57 mln people now.

The UK is the constitutional monarchy. The legislative body is the Parliament which consists of two Houses: the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The executive body is the Сabinet of Ministers which is the government. It is headed by the Prime Minister. The head of the state is a king or a queen since 1952. In general the queen reigns but doesn’t rule.

Britain has a temperate climate due to the influence of Gulf Stream. The weather is very changeable and it is the favourite topic for conversation in Britain.

This is the key of the kingdom.

In that kingdom there is a city.

In that city there is a town.

In that town there is a street.

In that street there is a lane.

In that lane there is a yard.

In that yard there is a house.

In that house there is a room.

In that room there is a bed.

On that bed there is a basket.

In that basket there are some flowers.

Flowers in a basket,

Basket on the bed,

Bed in the room,

Room in the house,

House in the yard,

Yard in the lane,

Lane in the street,

Street in the town,

Town in the city,

City in the kingdom.

Of that kingdom this is the key.