SUPPLEMANTARY MATERIAL

1. Officially United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, by name Great Britain or Britain island nation located off the northwestern coast of mainland Europe. It comprises four geographic and historical parts—England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom contains most of the area and population of the British Isles—the geographic term for the group of islands that includes Great Britain, Ireland, and several smaller islands. Together, England, Wales, and Scotland constitute Great Britain, the larger of the two principal islands, while Northern Ireland and the republic of Ireland constitute the second largest island, Ireland. England, occupying most of southern Great Britain, includes the Isles of Scilly off the southwest coast and the Isle of Wight off the southern coast. Scotland, occupying northern Great Britain, includes the Orkney and Shetland islands off the northern coast and the Hebrides off the northwestern coast. Wales lies west of England and includes the island of Anglesey to the northwest.

Apart from the land border with the Irish republic, the United Kingdom is surrounded by sea. To the south of England and between the United Kingdom and France is the English Channel. The North Sea lies to the east. To the west of Wales and northern England and to the southeast of Northern Ireland, the Irish Sea separates Great Britain from Ireland, while southwestern England, the northwestern coast of Northern Ireland, and western Scotland face the Atlantic Ocean. At its widest the United Kingdom is 300 miles (500 km) across. From the northern tip of Scotland to the southern coast of England, it is about 600 miles (1,000 km). No part is more than 75 miles (120 km) from the sea. The national capital is London, situated on the tidal River Thames in southeastern England.

The names United Kingdom, Great Britain, and England are often confused, even by U.K. inhabitants. England is just one country within the kingdom. Great Britain comprises England, Wales, and Scotland, while the United Kingdom also includes Northern Ireland (although the name Britain is sometimes used to refer to the United Kingdom as a whole). Wales and England were unified politically, administratively, and legally by the Acts of Union of 1536 and 1542, although Wales had been under effective English rule since the 13th century. In 1707 Scotland joined England and Wales in forming a single Parliament for Great Britain, but the three countries had shared a monarch since 1603. Northern Ireland came under British control during the 17th century and, along with the rest of Ireland, was formally joined to Great Britain by the Act of Union of 1800. When the republic of Ireland gained independence in 1922, Northern Ireland remained a part of the United Kingdom.

The political system of the United Kingdom has provided stability and consistency since the 19th century through a structure that has evolved rather than been designed. The national central government, based in London, devolved some responsibilities in 1999 to the newly created Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, and Northern Ireland Assembly and delegates other responsibilities to local governments. The national government is a parliamentary democracy under the aegis of the monarchy, which links the executive, legislature, judiciary, armed forces, and Church of England. Although in practice deferring almost all powers to the parliamentary government, the monarch and the royal family are a source of unity and national spirit. In Parliament the House of Lords consists mainly of appointed peers, while members of the House of Commons are elected from single-member constituencies by winning a plurality of votes.

On the world stage today the United Kingdom is perhaps best seen as a middle-sized, middle-ranking industrial country whose political and cultural links with other areas of the world are mostly a legacy of its large former empire. The United Kingdom is part of the European Union, and it retains links with parts of its former empire through the Commonwealth. It also benefits from historical and cultural links with the United States and is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). This diversity of interests, together with a network of international relations, means that the United Kingdom is not easily identified as part of a specific geographic bloc among the Western industrialized nations.

Economically the United Kingdom has benefited since the 1970s from production of oil and gas from deposits in the North Sea. London has remained a leading world financial centre, whose time zone allows it to bridge the gap between trading in Tokyo and New York City. The United Kingdom's traditional strength in manufacturing, however, has declined, with employment in manufacturing falling in absolute terms. This process has undoubtedly contributed to a social and economic gap between the economically challenged industrialized north and the more prosperous service-oriented south.

Socially the United Kingdom suffers from pockets of poverty, with some inner-city areas among the most impoverished in Europe. Urban poverty exists even in London, one of Europe's richest cities. The growth in the population of ethnic minorities from former colonies has enriched the nation's cultural fabric but contributed to social tensions, which occasionally result in violence. In contrast, home ownership is widespread and, while the state provides free schooling, so-called public schools thrive. (Despite their name, these are exclusive private-sector schools that charge fees.) With some exceptions, notably curbs on public servants, freedom of expression exists, and the United Kingdom is renowned for the strength of its arts.

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 768