Elizabeth Is Proclaimed Queen

Even before she became queen, Elizabeth served the government as a skilled ambassador. In 1948 she visited Paris and was acclaimed by the French people. In1951 she and her husband made a six-week tour of all the provinces of Canada and then flew to Washington, D.C., for a brief visit with President and Mrs. Harry S. Truman at Blair House.

The royal couple was in Kenya, on the first stage of a five-month tour to Australia and New Zealand, when George VI died on Feb. 6, 1952. Elizabeth automatically became queen. She and her husband immediately flew to London. On February 8 the queen took the oath of accession before the Privy Council.

The coronation took place on June 2, 1953. Elizabeth was crowned queen of Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and about 50 other lands.

In 1957 the queen conferred upon her husband the title prince of the United Kingdom. In 1958 she named Prince Charles, her oldest son, Prince of Wales. He was invested as the Prince of Wales in 1969. He married Lady Diana Spencer on July 29, 1981.

On Feb. 8, 1960, the queen announced that a new surname, Mountbatten-Windsor, would be borne by the third generation of her family. Occupants of the throne and heirs apparent remain Windsors.

Interesting Facts

No King or Queen has entered the House of Commons since 1642, when Charles l stormed in with his soldiers and tried to arrest five members of Parliament who were there.

The Houses of Parliament is also called the Palace of Westminster as it is and was a royal palace. The last monarch to live here, Henry VIII, moved out in 1512. Parliament has met in the Palace of Westminster since around 1550.

England is the only country in the UK not to have it's own separate parliament.

The Northern Ireland Assembly of 108 members was elected in June 1998. In May 1999 the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh and a Welsh Assembly in Cardiff were established.

Despite Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland having more control over their countries, the UK parliament in Westminster (London) retains responsibility for areas such as defence and foreign affairs. And they all have continued representation in the UK Parliament at Westminster in London.

	6. OXFORD STREET
	Oxford Street is world famous for having one of the largest densities of shops per square foot of any shopping area in the world. In excess of 300 shops trade along this near mile and a half long road and around 60,000 people work here. While traffic is restricted along its length, buses and taxis make it a busy road but together with the 4 tube stations found in this area they also make it one where public transport is easy to find. Constantly touted by the London Mayor for pedestrianisation this has yet to be put into action. Oxford Street runs from Marble Arch at its Western end to Tottenham Court Road (St Giles Circus) at its Eastern end. The HMV record store at 363 Oxford Street is the oldest record shop in the world. Oxford Street was originally part of a Roman highway which joined Hampshire with Colchester. It was in the late part of the eighteenth century and into the early nineteenth century that Oxford Street started to grow as a shopping area with some large retailers opening stores in this location. These days some 200 million visitors come to Oxford Street annually of which about 9 million are visitors from overseas. 60% of all visitors to London visit this shopping area. One of the highlights each year along Oxford Street are the Christmas lights. Each year in November a celebrity or bunch of celebrities are invited to flick the switch to turn on the themed lighting which hovers over the entire length of the road. A wonderful sight of an evening and adds to the festive feel and atmosphere of Christmas shopping.
Exploring Greenwich is a must for all tourists, now it's even better value than ever with FREE entrance to the National Maritime Museum and the Royal Observatory. From March to November, selected vessels (see timetable), cross the Meridian Line, passing the Millennium Dome then sailing through the Thames Flood Barrier. Your vessel then returns to Greenwich Pier.
Thames River Services provide river trips and passenger boat cruises from Westminster Pier, London to Greenwich Pier via The Tower of London and The Thames Barrier. Sightseeing tours arranged for groups, families and individuals. Regular daily departures.
7. Thames River Services are the original Westminster - Greenwich river cruise operator with over 50 years experience.We have now extended our trip to view the Thames Flood Barrier. Passengers can now cruise pass the Millennium Dome, view the Thames Barrier and then visit Greenwich. A visit to London is incomplete without a cruise along the Thames, either as an introduction to the many sights and scenes to be enjoyed during your stay or as a treasured memory of your visit. All year round, our boat service leaves regularly from Westminster Pier, passing historic and modern places of interest.

INDUSTRY

The United Kingdom is one of the most highly industrialized countries in the world. The industrial sector of the economy declined in relative importance after 1973, because of the worldwide economic slowdown; however, output rose in 1983 and 1984 and in 1985 was growing at an annual rate of 3%. Manufacturing accounted for 25.1% of GDP in 1985 and 22.3% in 1992. Since World War II, some traditional industries have markedly declined e.g., cotton textiles, steel, shipbuilding, locomotives and their place has been taken by newer industries, such as electronics, offshore oil and gas products, and synthetic fibers. In the chemicals industry, plastics and pharmaceuticals have registered the most significant growth. The United Kingdom had a total of 11 oil refineries in 2002, with a capacity of 1,784,000 barrels per day.

The pattern of ownership, organization, and control of industry is varied; public, private, and cooperative enterprises are all important. The public sector plays a significant role; however, since 1979 the government has sold off a number of companies and most manufacturing is conducted by private enterprise. Although the average firm is still fairly small, there has been a trend in recent years toward the creation of larger enterprises.

Metals, engineering, and allied industries including steel, nonferrous metals, vehicles, and machinery – employ nearly half of all workers in manufacturing. The United Kingdom's automotive industry produced 1,685,238 automobiles in 2001, a 7% decline from 2000. It also produced 14,682 heavy trucks in 2000, a 10% increase over 1999. Britain's aerospace industry is among the world's foremost. Rolls-Royce, which was privatized in 1987, is one of the principal aero-engine manufacturers in the world. British Aerospace, nationalized during 1978–80 but now privately owned again, manufactures civil aircraft, such military aircraft as the Harrier and the Hawk advanced trainer, and guided weapons, including the Rapier ground-to-air missile.

While the relative importance of the textile and clothing industries has declined considerably since World War II, the United Kingdom continues to produce high-quality woolen textiles. Certain smaller industries are noted for the quality of their craftsmanship – e.g., pottery, jewelry, goldware, and silverware. Other sectors are the cement industry (which focuses on the manufacture of Portland cement, a British invention); the rubber industry, the world's oldest; paper industries; and leather and footwear. The industrial sector's 25% share of GDP in 2000 continues to demonstrate the importance of industry to the development of the British economy. The industrial production growth rate declined in 2001, however, by 1,6%. Two factors leading to the decline in British industrial production in the early 2000s were the global recession that began in 2001, and the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the United Kingdom that year. In 2001, demand for telecommunications equipment fell, which led to large manufacturing job losses in this sector.

9. What are England's Natural resources?

Naural resources are things that occur naturally, and that are useful to us. They include fuels such as oil and natural gas, and materials such as iron ore, and timber. Natural resources may be renewable or non-renewable.Renewable resources are those that are replaced in nature at a rate close to their rate of use eg plants and animals. Nonrenewable resources exist in fixed amounts or are used up faster than they can be replaced in nature eg. fossil fuels. The most important natural in England are its energy resources which generate about 10 per cent income for our country.Natural resources: coal, petroleum, natural gas - found in the British sector of the North Sea, zinc tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, slate, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land.

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 962