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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (usually shortened to the United Kingdom or UK) is the political name of the country which is made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The flag of the United Kingdom, known as the Union Jack, is made up of three crosses. The upright red cross is cross of St. George, the patron saint of England. The white diagonal cross is the cross of St. Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland. The red diagonal cross is the cross of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is an island state: it occupies the territory of the British Isles and is composed of some 5,500 islands, large and small. The two main islands are: Great Britain (in which are England, Wales and Scotland) to the east and Ireland (in which are Northern Ireland and the independent Republic of Ireland) to the west. They are separated by the Irish Sea.

The UK is situated off the northwest coast of Europe between the Atlantic Ocean on the north and northwest and the North Sea on the east and is separated from the European continent by the English channel (or la Manche) and the Strait of Dover (or Pas de Calais). The climate in the UK is usually described as cool, temperate and humid. The weather is very changeable.

The highest mountains are in Scotland and Wales: Ben Nevis is 1,343 meters and Snowdon is 1,085 meters. The longest rivers are the Severn (345 kilometers), flowing along the border between England and Wales, and the River Thames (346 kilometers), which flow eastward to the port of London.

The UK is one of the smaller countries (it is twice smaller than France or Spain), with an area of some 244,100 square kilometers. However, there are only nine other countries with more people, and London is the world’s seventh biggest city.

The largest cities of Great Britain are: London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Bristol, Leeds, and Edinburgh. The most important ports are: London, Liverpool, Southampton, Belfast, Glasgow and Cardiff.

The population of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is over 57 million people. The population lives mostly in towns and cities and their suburbs. The UK is inhabited by the English, the Scottish, the Welsh, and the Northern Irish, who constitute the British nation.

 


Date: 2015-12-24; view: 1385


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