Download
1 / 19
E N D
General facts about Great Britain
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, called the United Kingdom, GB or UK for short, is a state in Western Europe. It is made up of four countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It is a member of the European Union, the United Nations, the Commonwealth, NATO and the G8. It has the sixth largest economy in the world.
About 61 million people live in the UK. Most people in the UK speak English. There are five native languages other than English. They are Welsh in Wales, Gaelic and Scots in Scotland and Northern Ireland, Irish in Northern Ireland, and Cornish in Cornwall.
Between the 17th and mid 20th-centuries Britain was an important world power. It became a colonial empire that controlled large areas of Africa, Asia, North America and Oceania. Today this empire does not exist, although Britain retains links with some of its former empire. Some well-known cities in the UK are London, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, York and Glasgow.
The UK is a parliamentary democracy based on a constitutional and hereditary monarchy. The people of the United Kingdom vote for a members of Parliament to speak for them and to make laws for them. Queen Elizabeth II is the queen of the UK and is the head of state. Even though she is the head of state, she does not actually govern the country. The government, led by the Prime Minister, governs the country and decides policy. Today, the Prime Minister is David Cameron, who is the leader of the Conservative party.
William Shakespeare is perhaps the most famous English playwright. He wrote plays in the late 16th century including Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth. In the 19th century, Jane Austen and Charles Dickens were popular novelists. Twentieth century writers include the science fiction novelist H.G. Wells and J.R.R. Tolkien. The children's fantasy Harry Potter series is written by J.K. Rowling. Aldous Huxley was also from the United Kingdom.
Britain's most well known universities include the University of Cambridge and University of Oxford, as well as the London universities (University College London, the London School of Economics, King's College London and Imperial College London) which collectively form the 'Golden Triangle' of UK universities.
