Winston Churchill, giving his famous 'V' sign

The United Kingdom has an uncodified constitution, the Constitution of the United Kingdom, consisting mostly of a collection of disparate written sources, including statutes, judge-made case law, and international treaties. As there is no technical difference between ordinary statutes and "constitutional law," the UK Parliament can perform "constitutional reform" simply by passing Acts of Parliament and thus has the political power to change or abolish almost any written or unwritten element of the constitution. However, no Parliament can pass laws that future Parliaments cannot change.[186]

Major British constitutional documents include; Magna Carta (foundation of the "great writ" Habeas corpus — safeguarding individual freedom against arbitrary state action), the Bill of Rights 1689 (one provision granting freedom of speech in Parliament), Petition of Right, Habeas Corpus Act 1679 and Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949.[187] A separate but similar document, the Claim of Right Act, applies in Scotland. The jurist Albert Venn Dicey wrote that the British Habeas Corpus Acts "declare no principle and define no rights, but they are for practical purposes worth a hundred constitutional articles guaranteeing individual liberty".[188] A strong advocate of the "unwritten constitution", Dicey highlighted that English rights were embedded in the general English common law of personal liberty, and "the institutions and manners of the nation".[189] Important British political figures include; Emmeline Pankhurst, leader of the suffragettes which helped win women the right to vote,[190] William Wilberforce, leading abolitionist,[191] Robert Peel, founded the Conservative party and is also credited with the creation of the modern police force.[192] Britain took a leading role in the movement to abolish slavery worldwide, and in 1839 the world's oldest international human rights organisation, Anti-Slavery International, was formed in Britain, which worked to outlaw slavery in other countries.[193] The world's largest human rights organisation, Amnesty International, was founded by Peter Benenson in London in 1961.[194]

[edit]Cuisine

Sunday roast consisting of roast beef, roast potatoes, vegetables and Yorkshire pudding

Fish and chips, a popular take-away food of the United Kingdom.

Main article: British cuisine

See also: English cuisine, Irish cuisine, Scottish cuisine, and Welsh cuisine

British cuisine is the specific set of cooking traditions and practices associated with the United Kingdom. Historically, British cuisine means "unfussy dishes made with quality local ingredients, matched with simple sauces to accentuate flavour, rather than disguise it."[195] British cuisine has traditionally been limited in its international recognition to the full breakfast and the Christmas dinner.[196] However, Celtic agriculture and animal breeding produced a wide variety of foodstuffs for indigenous Celts. Anglo-Saxon England developed meat and savoury herb stewing techniques before the practice became common in Europe. The Norman conquest introduced exotic spices into Great Britain in the Middle Ages.[196] The British Empire facilitated a knowledge of India's elaborate food tradition of "strong, penetrating spices and herbs".[196]

The first recipe for ice cream was published in Mrs. Mary Eales's Receipts in London 1718.[197] The 18th-century English aristocrat John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich is most renowned for the claim to have originated the modern concept of the sandwich which was named after him. It is said that he ordered his valet to bring him meat tucked between two pieces of bread, and because Montagu also happened to be the Fourth Earl of Sandwich, others began to order "the same as Sandwich!".[198] In 1767, Joseph Priestley invented carbonated water (also known as soda water), the major and defining component of most soft drinks.[199][200]

Traditional British tea and scones. Tea is the most popular beverage in the UK.[201]

Christmas pudding has its origins in medieval England.[202]

Each country within the United Kingdom has its own specialities. Traditional examples of English cuisine include the Sunday roast; featuring a roasted joint, usually beef, lamb or chicken, served with assorted boiled vegetables, Yorkshire pudding and gravy.[203] Other prominent meals include fish and chips and the full English breakfast—consisting of bacon, grilled tomatoes, fried bread, black pudding, baked beans, fried mushrooms, sausages and eggs. The first chips fried in Britain were at Oldham's Tommyfield Market in 1860, and on the site a blue plaque marks the origin of the fish and chip shop and fast food industries in Britain.[204] Various meat pies are consumed such as steak and kidney pie, shepherd's pie, cottage pie, Cornish pasty and pork pie, the later of which is consumed cold.[203]

A quintissential British custom, afternoon tea is a small meal snack typically eaten between 4pm and 6pm. The most popular drink in Britain, tea became more widely drunk due to Catherine of Braganza, and is traditionally accompanied with sandwiches, scones, cakes or pastries (such as Battenberg cake, fruit cake or Victoria sponge).[205][206] Sausages are commonly eaten, either as bangers and mash or toad in the hole. Lancashire hotpot is a well known stew. Some of the most popular cheeses are Cheddar and Wensleydale. Sweet British dishes include scones, apple pie, mince pies, spotted dick, Eccles cakes, pancakes, sponge cake, Battenberg cake, Jaffa cakes, Victoria sponge, trifle, custard, and sticky toffee pudding. The public house is an important aspect of British culture,[45] and alcoholic drinks include wines and English beers such as bitter, mild, stout, and brown ale.[207] Scottish cuisine includes Arbroath Smokie and Haggis; Irish cuisine features the Ulster fry and Irish Stew and Welsh cuisine is noted for Welsh rarebit. Whisky dates back to Ireland and Scotland in the Middle Ages, with each producing their own unique brand, Irish Whiskey and Scotch Whisky.[208][209] On Christmas Day, goose was initially served at dinner, however since appearing in Christmas tables in England in the late 16th century, the turkey has become more popular, with Christmas pudding served for dessert.[202][210] The 16th century English navigator William Strickland is credited with introducing the turkey into England, and his family coat of arms showing a turkey cock as the family crest, is one of the earliest known pictures of a turkey.[211] Since being invented in London in the 1840s, Christmas crackers are an integral part of Christmas celebrations, often pulled before or after dinner, or at parties.[212] A stick of rock (a hard cylindrical stick-shaped boiled sugar) is a traditional British seaside sweet, commonly sold at seaside resorts throughout the UK such as Brighton, Portrush and Blackpool.[213]

[edit]Sport

Main article: Sport in the United Kingdom

Date: 2015-01-29; view: 1068