1、l The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Irelandl Full name （Official Name）:The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (U.K)l Geographical name：The British Isles, Great Britain and Englandl Nick name ： John Bulll The Union Flag(米字旗) also known as the “Union Jack ”l The Nation
2、al Anthem-God Save the Queen (King)l The National Flower-Rosel Erithacus rubecula / Robin（知更鸟） Redbreast (红襟鸟)l British Isles Great Britain England (S) - The largest (60% & 85%) &most developed / Capital-London Scotland (N) - The second largest (30% & 1/3) / Capital-Edinburgh Wales (SW) - The smalle
3、st of the three (9% & 5%)/ Capital-Cardiff Ireland Northern Ireland-Capital-Belfastl Position：Be Situated in Northwestern Europe, lying to the north of France and the west of Netherlands and Denmark.Be separated from the rest of Europe by the English Channel in the south and the North Sea in the eas
4、t l Geographic Features : The Highland Zone in the north and westThe Lowland Zone in the south and southeastThe dividing line runs from the mouth of the River Exe埃克斯河 in the southwest to near the mouth of River Tees蒂斯河 in the northeastl The Highland Zone:a) The Highlands of Scotland Ben Nevis本尼维斯山 ,
5、 the highest mountain in Britain, stands in North Scotland b) The Central Lowlands (Middle Valley) of Scotland Edinburghc) The Southern Uplandsd) The Pennies奔宁山脉 The Backbone of Englande) The Lake District of Cambria The home of Lake Poets 湖畔诗人, Three English poets-Robert Southey, Samuel Coleridge,
6、William Wordsworthf) The Welsh Massif 高地 The Lowland Zonel Climate and Weather1. Maritime climate海洋性 （Moderated by the Atlantic Ocean）2. Changeable weather3. More than one half of the days are cloudy. More rainy days, less sunny days. More fogs & smog in winter.l Inland WaterThe largest river-the Se
7、vern River塞汶河 (empties into the Bristol Strait布里斯托尔海峡）The second largest river & most important river-the Thames River泰晤士河（London is situated on it）Clyde River克莱德河-in ScotlandLake District-most important lakesl People A population of 59.6million (2001)Urban areas-90%Rural areas-10%l Invaders Contrib
8、utionIberians ?Celts/Gaels Scottish and Irish race and cultureBritons Welsh race and cultureRomans. Latin alphabet and civilizationAnglo-Saxons English race and languageDanes Some peculiarities of dialect in North and East EnglandNorman Final unification of England. Great administrative progress. (F
9、rench-speaking) Foundation of aristocracy贵族 l English people (P11)Welsh - WelshScottish - Gaelic languageIrish - Gaelic language & Irishl CharacterExclusivenessConservativenessPolitenessLove of PrivacyStiff Upper LipSense of Humor (self-deprecating) Official language-English Indo-European language f
10、amily The development of English 1. Old English (5th-12th century) 2. Middle English (12th-15th centuries) After the Norman Conquest in 1066 3. Modern English (15th century-now)l ReligionThe British law protests religious freedomMajority believe Christianity基督教The first Christian church was establis
11、hed at Canterbury in 597The state has two established churches: the Church of England( the Anglican Church)英国国教/圣公会The Church of Scotlandl The British Governmentl The seat of the British government is in the Houses of Parliament, officially the New Palace of Westminster. (built in the mid-19th centu
12、ry)l It is the founder of the system known as the constitutional monarchy君主立宪制.（the head of the state is a monarch with limited powers. The monarch reigns, but not rule.）l The real power of government is invested with Parliament and elective officials. l It is a unitary country with its government c
13、omposed of 3 tires-the central government (the monarch, Parliament, the cabinet), the county government, and the district government.l Basic Structure of UK Central Government： Monarch (non-political) n Legislature-Parliament House of Commons (political)下院 House of Lords (semi-political)上院n Executiv
14、e Prime Minister& Cabinet (political) Ministers& Civil service (non-political)n Judiciary (no-political) Supreme Court Court of Appeall Monarch (Sovereign, Crown)n Head of state, Armed forces Judiciary Established Churchn Hereditaryn Reign but not rulen Not be a Roman Catholic or marry a Roman Catho
15、licn On the death of a monarch, The oldest male heirn The national day-the birthday of the Sovereignl Queens duties1. Opening each new session of Parliament2. Dissolving Parliament before a general election3. Approving Orders and Proclamations through the Privy council枢密院4. A living symbol of nation
16、al unityl Buckingham Palace：The official London residence of the Britain sovereign. (open during August and September)l The Queens husband can get the title known as Duke of Edinburghl The first son of the Queen, whose title is Prince of Walesl Parliament：A place for argument and debateParliament is
17、 the highest legislative authority in the United Kingdom the institution responsible for making and repealing UK lawAnd it is also responsible for checking the work of the Government.l Functions of Parliament ：1. To provide (by voting for taxation) the means of carrying on the work of government2. T
18、o check government policy and administration, including proposals for expenditure支出3. To debate the major issues of the day4. To pass lawsl Components of The Parliament：1. The monarch (King or Queen)2. The House of Lords (Upper House)3. The House of Commons (Lower House)Each parliament is five years
19、 which is divided into five sessions, each lasting one year.l The House of Lords：They are not elected, but appointedThey are only representing themselves not populationIt exercises the supreme judicial powerIt stands for the Aristocratic nobility贵族It composes of the lords temporal世俗的, the lords spir
20、itual神职人员（26 church leaders）, the law lords高级法官.The full membership is 660.The person who presides over the debate of the house is known as Lord Chancellorl Currently there are 4 types of Lords: Life Peers(当世贵族、后封贵族) / Law Lords（chief judges) / Bishops(主教) / Hereditary peers(世袭贵族) l What do the Hous
21、e of Lords do?Making Laws / Checking the Government / Providing independent expertise专门知识/Carrying out judicial workl The house of Commons (Lower House)：1. The source of real political power2. The House of commons consists of 659 Members of Parliament (MPs) who are democratically elected by voters (
22、the electorate) to each represent an area of the UK known as a constituency选民 or seat.3. The chairman who conducts debates in the Lower House is officially called Speaker, who is elected by the Commons4. The party that won the majority of seats in the House of Commons will form the government.5. A s
23、ession of Parliament lasts for 5 years unless the prime minister dissolves Parliament.6. The political party which wins the most seats in the House of Commons at general election is known as the government party and its leader becomes the Prime Minister. The second largest party is known as the Offi
24、cial. Opposition and its leader is the Leader of the Opposition. All other parties are known as opposition parties在野党(shadow cabinet) even though some of them will support the governing party.7. Theoretically the two Houses are equally important. But the upper house does not exercise the dominant co
25、nstitutional influence.8. The upper house has no power to prevent the passing of legislation or bills approved by the House of Commons.9. The work of Lords is largely complementary to that of the Commons: hold debates, put questions to ministers, make proposals, examine and revise bills.l The Govern
26、ment & The Cabinet：Parliamentary government 议会政体Responsible to parliamentCannot govern without the support of the majority of parliamentNo. 10 Downing Streetl The Cabinet：Members of the Cabinet are senior ministers chosen by the Prime Minister. Heads of government departments and senior figures such
27、 as the Lord Chancellor will be included in the Cabinet. There is no set number for the size of the cabinet but it must be large enough to include all senior ministers yet small enough to allow for constructive discussion.The Prime Minister lives and works in official residence, NO.10 Downing Street
28、The Cabinet: appointed by PMThe Cabinet Ministers: 15-20 Shadow Cabinet: oppositionsCollective responsibility: the Cabinet acting unanimously全体一致的 as a single unitMinisterial responsibility: the ministers responsible for the work of their own department and answerable负责 to parliament about it（mista
29、kes-resignation辞职） Cabinet “reshuffles”改组：PM reassigning responsibilities or dropping membersl Civil Servants：Government employees. Permanent, well-educated elite精英，dominated by Oxbridge(75%) & politically neutrall Three-tier system: Central government./County government (45)./District governmentl L
30、ocal government:County郡 level：education and social service (full-time specialist officials)District councils区自治会: rubbish collection, disposal (full-time specialist officials)Community or parish councils行政堂区委员会:may affect decisionsCouncilors议员:local council members（3years）Major: the chairman of a ci
31、ty councill Politics and Lawl Political Parties：A two-party systemThe two major parties：the Conservative Party & the Labor PartyThe minor partyl In the 1800s the Whigs merged结合 with other parties interested in social reform to form the Liberal Party自由党. The Tories took on the additional name of the
32、Conservative Party保守党 in the 1830s in order to appeal to呼吁 a broader electorate选区. The Liberal Party evolved into发展为 the Liberal Democrat Party自由民主党, the third most popular party in Britain.l The Labor Party：Created by the growing trade union工会 movement at the end of 19th century.The newest party an
33、d one of the two biggest partyA socialist party社会党 (high taxes)They believe a society should be relatively equal in economic terms, and the part of the role government is to act as “redistributive重新分配 agent”Also they see the government as the right body to provide a range of public services availabl
34、e to all, such as health, education and public transportation.l The Conservative Party：Spend most time in power (1979-1997)Protect the individuals right to acquire wealth and to spend it how they choose, and so favoring economic policies which businessmen prefer, such as low taxes.l The Liberal Demo
35、crats：The 3rd biggest partyA party of the “middle”, occupying the ideological意识形态的 ground between the two main parties.Comparatively flexible灵活 and pragmatics in their balance of the individual and the social.Emphasizing the need to make government more democratic民主 and accountable有责任.l What is a ge
36、neral election?The election of all Members of Parliament (MPs) for each constituency (local area) is called a general election.l General elections have to take place at least every 5 years and are called by the Prime Minister (the leader of the Government).l Justice and the Law：There is no single sy
37、stem in the United Kingdom.The English law comprises three elements:Acts of Parliament,Common law习惯法,The European Union lawl The court system Civil branch民事 criminal branch刑事 Supreme Court最高法院 Court of Appeal上诉法院 Court of Appeal High court高等法院 Crown court County court Magistrates court地方法庭l Police F
38、orceBobby” “peeler”The police service for the United Kingdom is organized and controlled on a local basis. There are 43 police forces in England and Wales, 8 in Scotland and 1 in Northern Ireland.Scotland Yard苏格兰场（伦敦警察厅）or New Scotland Yard, is the headquarters of the London Metropolitan Police Serv
39、ice, responsible for policing Greater London.l National Economy and CitiesBy the 1880s, the British economy was dominant in the world, producing one third of the worlds manufactured goods, half its coal and iron, and half its cotton.But by 1900, the UK has been overtaken by both the United States an
40、d Germany.The second industrial revolution in the United States meant the US had begun to challenge Britains role as the leader of the global economy.The extensive war efforts of both World Wars in the 20th century and the dismantlement of the British Empire also weakened the UK economy in global te
41、rms, and by that time Britain had been superseded by the United States as the chief player in the global economy.From 1945 until the present, the story of the UK economy is usually thought of as one of decline.l North Sea oil and gas supply most of the UKs energy needsl London is the worlds largest
42、financial center with the London Stock Exchange, the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange, and the Lloyds of London insurance market all based in the city of London.l London has the largest concentration of foreign bank branches in the world, with HSBC汇丰银行 and Barclays巴克莱 Bank
43、 relocating their head offices there.l The bank of England, the central bank of UK.l Cultural and Social Lifel Traditionally speaking, the British culture has a reputation for its requirement of decency and civility in doing things.l British society is considered to be divided into three main groups
44、 of classes:1. the Upper Class people with incomes from rents and property payments 2. the Middle Class those who were educated and dealt with paper in business or in a profession 3. the Lower or Working Class those who did manual labour 体力劳动l The Upper Class： The upper landed class-nobility & arist
45、ocracy The lower upper class-knights, squires, gentry & country gentlemenl The Middle ClassRelied on their knowledge and skills to make money, placed great emphasis on freedom an的the education of their children.l The British families patternsthe parents and married children live close together but i
46、n separate houses the parents and married children live further apartnuclear family two adults and their unmarried childrenl Typical British family：It consists of a married couple. Neither of them has been married before. They have two or three children of their won. The husband works full-time but the wife probably does not. The wife does most of the housework although the husband may help occasionally. Lastly, all its members are happy.l According to the British law, no one is allowed to marry
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