Ob20-United Kingdom & Ireland

Univerzita Konštantína Filozofa v Nitre
Filozofická fakulta
Jazykové centrum

Martina Macúchová – Lenka Michelčíková

United Kingdom & Ireland
(important and interesting facts)

Nitra 2011

Univerzita Konštantína Filozofa v Nitre
Filozofická fakulta
Jazykové centrum

Vysokoškolské učebné texty

Martina Macúchová – Lenka Michelčíková

United Kingdom & Ireland
(important and interesting facts)

Nitra 2011

Posudzovatelia:

Doc. Olga Rudа, PhD.
PaedDr. Jana Waldnerová, PhD.

Vysokoškolské učebné texty vychádzajú v rámci riešenia projektu KEGA č. 084034UKF-4/2010: Nová koncepcia aditívneho modulu cudzojazyčného vzdelávania:
Historicko-kulturologické minimum pre nefilológov.

© Martina Macúchová -- Lenka Michelčíková 2011
ISBN 978-80-558-0027-1
EAN 9788055800271

CONTENTS
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ................................................. 7
1 General information ............................................................................................................. 9
The (hi)story of its name .................................................................................................... 9
National symbols and the four nations ............................................................................. 11
2 Geography ......................................................................................................................... 15
Land and climate .............................................................................................................. 15
England ............................................................................................................................. 17
London .............................................................................................................................. 20
Scotland ............................................................................................................................ 21
Wales ................................................................................................................................ 22
Northern Ireland ............................................................................................................... 23
3 History ............................................................................................................................... 29
Prehistoric Britain (5000 BC – c. 100 BC) ....................................................................... 29
The Roman period (43 – 410)........................................................................................... 29
The Germanic invasions (410 – 1066) ............................................................................. 31
The medieval period (1066 - 1485) .................................................................................. 32
The sixteenth century........................................................................................................ 35
Civil war, Restoration and Revolution ............................................................................. 36
The eighteenth century ..................................................................................................... 38
The nineteenth century ..................................................................................................... 39
The twentieth century ....................................................................................................... 41
4 Political system .................................................................................................................. 47
Monarchy .......................................................................................................................... 50
Government ...................................................................................................................... 53
Parliament ......................................................................................................................... 53
Party system ...................................................................................................................... 62
Foreign Relations .............................................................................................................. 63
Law and Justice ................................................................................................................ 63
The Republic of Ireland......................................................................................................... 69
1 General information ........................................................................................................... 71
The history of its name ..................................................................................................... 71

National symbols .............................................................................................................. 72
Irish culture and language................................................................................................. 73
Interesting facts about Ireland .......................................................................................... 77
2 Geography ......................................................................................................................... 83
Land and climate .............................................................................................................. 83
Coast ................................................................................................................................. 85
Islands ............................................................................................................................... 86
Mountains ......................................................................................................................... 86
Provinces .......................................................................................................................... 87
Dublin ............................................................................................................................... 94
3 History ............................................................................................................................... 99
Pre-history and medieval period ....................................................................................... 99
Norse Viking invasions .................................................................................................. 102
Norman and English invasions ....................................................................................... 102
Kingdom of Ireland ........................................................................................................ 104
Union with Great Britain ................................................................................................ 107
Partition .......................................................................................................................... 110
Northern Ireland ............................................................................................................. 110
4 Political system ................................................................................................................ 115
Irish expressions related to politics ................................................................................ 115
Republic and president ................................................................................................... 115
Government .................................................................................................................... 117
Parliament ....................................................................................................................... 118
Party system .................................................................................................................... 120
Foreign relations ............................................................................................................. 121
Law and justice ............................................................................................................... 122
Literature and resources .......................................................................................................... 127

INTRODUCTION
This textbook is intended for students, or for all those, who would like to discover
more about Britain and Ireland. It covers topics, as for example, geography, history,
political system, people, places and culture. This textbook combines two different
points of view. First, it presents information and facts the way native British and Irish
people see them. And second, it comments on some issues concerning the two
countries and their ways of life from an outer perspective.
The target groups are, in particular, students of Political science and European
studies but the texts may serve just as some additional material for all who want to
broaden their knowledge of the English language as well as the facts related to the
United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. In this way the textbook is divided into
two principal parts: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and
the Republic of Ireland.
Both parts of the textbook have the same structure and consist of four main chapters.
The first chapters give general information about the country and include important
and interesting facts from the field of etymology, culture, ethnology or mythology.
The subject matter of the following chapters is to introduce respectively geography,
history and political system of the countries.
Each chapter is followed by a checkpoint, where learners can verify their knowledge
in the form of a quiz and diverse range of exercises and creative activities. Also, at the
end of

the sections issues for discussion are provided, encouraging students to

comment freely on the topic. Moreover, ethnocultural specifics, national stereotypes
and some factual data are presented in the form of the authentic texts. Each chapter
is enriched by authentic photographic material, which illustrates the written text and
thus helps the students´ comprehension.

Authors

United Kingdom of Great Britain
and
Northern Ireland

1 General information
The (hi)story of its name
Geographically
speaking:
situated to the north-west of
continental Europe, there are
two large islands and hundreds
of much smaller ones. The
largest island is called Great
Britain. The other large one is
called Ireland.
Politically speaking: in this
geographical area, there are
two states. One of these
governs most of the island of
Ireland. This state is usually
called The Republic of
Ireland. It is also called by its
Irish
name
´Eire´,
or
informally by its nickname
´The
Emerald
Island´
(because of the lush greenery
of its countryside). Poets
sometimes refer to this country
as ´Erin´.
The other state has authority over the rest of the area – the whole of Great Britain,
the north-eastern area of Ireland and most of the smaller islands. Its official name is
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. But as this is
too long for practical purposes, it is usually known by a shorter name – United
Kingdom, UK, Britain, Great Britain (for example in international bank drafts they
use Great Britain Pounds). The normal everyday adjective, when talking about
something to do with the UK, is British.
The earliest known name of Great Britain is Albion, from Latin ´albus´ meaning
white – referring to the white chalk cliffs of Dover, which is the first view of Britain
from the continent. Albion is used by poets and songwriters to refer to England, or to
Scotland, or to Great Britain as a whole.

Britannia is the name that the Romans gave to their southern
province, which covered approximately the area of present-day
England and Wales. It is also the name given to the female
personification of Britain, always shown wearing a helmet and
holding a trident (the symbol of power over the sea). The figure
of Britannia has been on the reverse side of many British coins
for more that 300 years.
Another human representation of the country is the figure of
John Bull. He is a fictional character who is supposed to
personify Englishness and certain English virtues. He can be
compared to Uncle Sam in the USA. He appears in hundreds of
nineteenth century cartoons. Today, somebody dressed as him
often appears at football or rugby matches when England are
playing. His appearance is typical of an eighteenth century
country gentleman, evoking an idyllic rural past.
During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Great Britain
and Ireland were generally called The British Isles. But most
people in Ireland and some people in Britain regard this name as outdated because it
calls to mind the time when Ireland was politically dominated by Britain.
People often refer to Britain by another name. They call it England. But this is not
correct, and its use can make some people angry (namely Irish, Welsh, Scottish).
However, it cannot be denied that the dominant culture of Britain today is especially
English. The system of politics that is used in all four nations today is of English
origin, and English is the main language of all four nations. Many aspects of everyday
life are organized according to English custom and practice. English domination can
be detected in the way in which various aspects of British public life are described.
For example, when newspapers and the television talk about Anglo-American
relations, they are talking about relations between the governments of Britain and the
USA, and not just England and the USA. Another example can be that many English
people don´t bother to distinguish between Britain and England. They write English
next to nationality on forms when they are abroad. Nevertheless, when you are
talking to people from Britain, it is safest to use Britain when talking about where
they live and British as the adjective to describe their nationality. This way you will be
less likely to offend anyone. It should always be remembered that England does not
make up the whole of the UK.
Why is Britain ´Great´? The origin of the adjective ´great´ in the name Great
Britain was not a piece of advertising, although modern politicians sometimes try to
use it that way. It was first used to distinguish it from smaller area in France which is
called ´Brittany´ in modern English.

National symbols and the four nations
Culture and lifestyle varied enormously across the four nations. The dominant culture
of people in Ireland, Wales and highland Scotland was Celtic; that of people in
England and lowland Scotland was Germanic. This difference was reflected in the
language they spoke. People in the Celtic areas spoke Celtic languages; people in the
Germanic areas spoke Germanic dialects, including the one which has developed into
modern English. The nations also tended to have different economic, social and legal
systems, and they were independent of each other.
Today, these differences have become blurred, but they have not completely
disappeared. Although there is only one government for the whole of Britain, and
everybody gets the same passports regardless of where in Britain they live, many
aspects of government are organized separately and sometimes differently in the four
parts of the United Kingdom. Moreover, Welsh, Scottish and Irish people feel their
identity very strongly.
Some of the differences can be, for instance, tracked down when observing surnames.
The prefix ´Mac´ or ´Mc´ is Scottish or Irish. The prefix ´O´ is Irish. When
comparing first names, the Scottish name of ´John´ is ´Ian´ and its Irish form is
´Sean´, although all three names are now common throughout Britain.
Outside their own countries, there are also nicknames for Irish, Scottish and Welsh
men. For example, Scottish men are sometimes known and addressed as ´Jock´,
Irishmen are called ´Paddy´ or ´Mick´ and Welshmen as ´Dai´ or ´Taffy´. If the
person using one of these names is not a friend, and especially if it is used in the
plural (Micks), it can sound insulting.
There are also certain stereotypes of national character which are well-known in
Britain and in the rest of the world as well. The Irish are supposed to be great talkers,
the Scots have a reputation for being careful with money and the Welsh are
renowned for their singing ability. These can indicate some slight differences in the
value attached to certain kinds of behavior in these countries.
As to musical instruments, the harp is an emblem of both Wales and Ireland.
Bagpipes are regarded as distinctively Scottish, although a smaller type is also used
in traditional Irish music.

Identifying symbols of the four nations
Country

Flag

National
Animal

National
Plant

England
St. George´s
Cross

lion

Dragon of
Cadwallader

Patron
saint

Saint´s
day

white

St. George

23 April

red

St. David

1 March

blue

St.
Andrew

30
November

green

St. Patrick

17 March

Tudor rose

leek

Wales

Colour

red dragon
daffodil

Scotland

St. Andrew´s
Cross
thistle
unicorn
Lion
Rampant

Ireland

St. Patrick´s
Cross

none
shamrock

Republic of
Ireland

Identifying symbols of the United Kingdom
Country

Flag

National
Personification

United Kingdom

National
Animal(s)

lion
Union Jack
Britannia
bulldog

The Union flag
The Union flag, often known as the ´Union Jack´, is
the national flag of the United Kingdom. It is
a combination of the cross of St. George, the cross of
St. Andrew and the cross of St. Patrick.

Checkpoint
1) Quiz 1 Introduction Choose the correct answer.
1. What is the common internet domain address for Britain?
a) .br
b) .gb
c) .uk
2. Which of these is not an acceptable short name for the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland?
a) England
b) Great Britain
c) the United Kingdom
3. Which city is not in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
a) Belfast
b) Cardiff
c) Dublin
4. Which of the following figures is not associated with Britain?
a) Britannia
b) John Bull
c) Uncle Sam
5. Which of the four nation´s flags is not incorporated in the flag of the UK?
a) Ireland
b) Scotland
c) Wales
6. By what name is the UK flag often known?
a) The Britannia
b) Old Glory
c) The Union Jack
7. What proportion of the population of Britain lives in England?
a) more than 80%
b) about 60% c) less than 40%
8. A surname beginning with ´Mac´ or ´Mc´ is understood to be ...
a) ... Scottish or English
b) ... Scottish or Irish c) ... Scottish or Welsh
9. Historically and culturally speaking, which country may be divided into
´Lowland´ and ´Highland´?
a) England
b) Scotland
c) Wales
10. Of which country is St. David the patron saint?
a) England
b) Scotland
c) Wales

2 Geography
In terms of geography, the
United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland is a group
of islands, an archipelago. It is
situated to the northwest of
continental Europe. It consists of
two large islands – Great Britain
and Ireland, and it is surrounded
by over 1,000 smaller islands :
Isle of Wight, the Hebrides,
Orkneys,
Shetlands.
Great
Britain is the ninth largest island
in the world and the largest
European island. It is separated
from the continent by the North
Sea and English Channel,
bordered by the Atlantic Ocean
and Irish Sea. The island is
physically
connected
with
continental Europe via the
Channel Tunnel (the longest
undersea rail tunnel in the world,
35 min., 50,5 km, completed in
1993).
Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are crown dependencies and they are not
officially part of the UK. Each has complete internal self-government, including its
own parliament and its own tax system. Both are ruled by a Lieutenant Governor
appointed by the British government.

Land and climate
The first thing to note about the land and climate in Britain is that it lacks extremes.
Britain has mountains, but none of them are very high; it also has flat land, but you
cannot travel far without encountering hills; it has no really big rivers; it doesn´t
usually get very cold in winter or very hot in summer; it has no active volcanoes; and
an earth tremor which does no more than rattle teacups in a few houses.

Climate
The United Kingdom has a temperate, or mild, climate, with plentiful rainfall all year
round, so it can be characterized as humid as well. The prevailing wind is from the
south-west and bears frequent spells of mild and wet weather from the Atlantic
Ocean, although the eastern parts are mostly sheltered from this wind, as the
majority of the rain falls over the western regions the eastern parts are therefore the
driest. Atlantic currents, warmed by the Gulf Stream, bring mild winters; especially
in the west where winters are wet. Summers are warmest in the south-east of
England, being closest to the European mainland, and coolest in the north.
The climate in Britain is more or less the same as the north-western part of the
European mainland. Generally speaking, the further west you go, the more rain you
get. The mild winters mean that it usually snows in higher areas only. Sometimes, in
lower-lying parts a whole winter goes by without any snow at all. The winters are in
general slightly colder in the east of the country than they are in the west, while in
summer the south is warmer and sunnier than the north.
The main reason why Britain´s climate has got such a bad reputation is its
changeability. There is a saying that ´Britain doesn´t have a climate, it only has
weather´. It may not rain very much altogether, but you can never be sure of a dry
day; and there can be cool days in July and some quite warm in January.
Many people in Britain are more comfortable with the Fahrenheit scale of
measurement (F). To them, a temperature ´in the upper twenties´ means that it is
freezing and one ´in the low seventies´ is just pleasantly warm. If the thermometer
goes above 80°F (27° C), people behave as if they were in the Sahara and the
temperature makes front-page headline.
The biggest problem of Britain in terms of climate is a very real danger from the sea.
For one thing – global warming, which means rising sea levels everywhere, so that
low-lying coastal areas are threatened. Another danger comes from the Atlantic
waves which hit Britain´s north, west and south coasts and which are getting taller
and stronger. Finally, the east coast is actually sinking away, every year little bits and
pieces of it vanish into the North sea.
Land
Although the landscape of Britain is not so dramatic and it isn´t marked by high
mountains, or big rivers, it does not mean that it is boring. What makes it interesting
and appealing is its variety. The scenery changes noticeably over quite short
distances. It has often been remarked that a journey of 100 miles (160 kilometres)
can seem twice as far.

Generally speaking, the south and east of the country are comparatively low-lying,
consisting of either flat plains or gently rolling hills. Mountainous areas are found
only in the north and west.
Britain has a greater proportion of grassland than any other country in Europe
except Ireland. One distinctive human influence, especially common in southern
England, is the enclosure of fields with hedgerows. This feature also increases the
impression of variety. Although many hedgerows disappeared in the second half of
the twentieth century (farmers dug them up to increase the size of their fields), there
are still enough of them to support variety of bird life.

Much of the land is used for human habitation. The English and the Welsh don´t like
living in block of flats in city centres. They love countryside and privacy above all. As
a result, cities in England and Wales have been built outwards rather than upwards.
For example, the London area has about three times the population of the Athens
area, but it occupies about ten times the amount of land. Although most people live in
towns and cities, there are still found areas of completely open countryside.

England
England accounts for over half of the total area of the UK. Most of the country
consists of lowland terrain, with mountainous terrain north-west; including the
Cumbrian Mountains of the Lake District and the Pennines, so-called the backbone
of England. The main rivers are the Thames, Severn (the longest river in Great
Britain), the Humber, Tees, Tyne, Tweed, Avon, Exe and Mersey.

England is divided into nine regions: East Midlands, East
of England, Greater London, North East England, North
West England, South East England, South West England,
West Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber.

South East England
It covers the area surrounding the outer suburbs of London and has the reputation of
being ´commuter land´. This is the most densely populated area in the UK which
does not include a large city and millions of its inhabitants travel into London to work
every day.
The South East of England reads like a thrilling biography of the nation. Decisive
moments in Britain´s history have played themselves out in its fields, hills, cities and
towns. William the Conqueror´s victory at Hastings in 1066 changed England
forever. At Portsmouth lies HMS Victory, national hero Lord Nelson´s flagship at the
Battle of Trafalgar, another pivotal moment in Britain´s fortunes. The region is
famous for people and places that seem to define the very nature of the British.
Charles Dickens and Jane Austen, for example, lived here.
There´s Eton, the world´s famous school, which taught Prince William and Harry.
Some of the Britain´s most treasured heritage cities are here Oxford, Winchester,
Canterbury.

The county of Kent, which you pass through when travelling from
Dover or the channel tunnel to London, is known as ´the garden of
England´ because of many kinds of fruit and vegetables grown there.

South West England
The region of ´the West Country´, which corresponds to the modern South West
England, has an attractive image of rural beauty in British people´s minds. Farming
is more widespread here than it is in other regions.
The South West is tranquil,
romantic old England at its best.
A glass of locally brewed cider in
a cosy Cornish restaurant. Cream
teas (biscuits with jam and clotted
cream were created by monks of
Tavistock Abbey in Devon around
1,000 AD) on the harbour of
a Devon
fishing
village.
The
thatched cottages and green, green
hills of the Cotswolds and the countryside and its people have inspired iconic British
writers like Jane Austen, Thomas Hardy and Agatha Christie. You can also walk along
the cliffs of Land´s End at the ´toe´ of England.

The south-west peninsula, with its rocky coast, small bays, and wild moorlands such
as Exmoor and Dartmoor, is the most popular holiday area in Britain. The winters
are so mild in some parts of Cornwall that it is even possible to grow palm trees, and
the tourist industry has coined the phrase ´the Cornish Riviera´.
East of England
East Anglia, to the north-east of London, is also comparatively rural. The flatness of
the land in combination with dry climate makes it the main area in the country for
the growing of wheat and other arable crops.
There can be found fishing villages; breeze-fresh beaches; trim market towns and
honey-coloured Cambridge; home to one of the world´s oldest universities; and the
vast, rich fields of the Fens farming country.
The Midlands of England
Birmingham is Britain´s second largest city. During the Industrial Revolution,
Birmingham and the area to its north and west (sometimes known as the Black
Country) developed into the country´s major engineering centre, it is believed to be
the cradle of the Industrial Revolution. There are other industrial areas in the
Midlands, notably the towns between the Black Country and Manchester known as
´The Potteries´, because of producing china.
Although the Midlands do not have many positive associations in the minds of British
people, tourism has flourished in ´Shakespeare country´ and Nottingham has
successfully capitalized on the legend of Robin Hood.
Northern England
The Pennine mountains stretch across the Northern England like a backbone. On
either side, the large deposits of coal and iron ore enabled these areas to lead the
Industrial Revolution. On the western side, the Manchester area became, in the
nineteenth century, the world´s leading producer of cotton goods; on the eastern
side, towns such as Bradford and Leeds became the world´s leading producers of
woolen goods. In the minds of British people, the prototype of noisy, dirty factories is
found in this area.
In the north-western corner of the country there is ´the Lake District´. The district
comprises lakes (e.g. Windermere, Ullswater, and many others), beautiful falls, and
remarkable valleys. The Romantic poets, also called ´the Lake Poets´ lived here and

wrote about its beauty. It is the favourite destination of people who enjoy walking
holidays and the whole area is classified as a National Park, the largest in England.

London
London, the largest city in western Europe,
dominates Britain. It is home to the
headquarters of all government departments,
the country´s parliament, its major legal
institutions, and the monarch. It is the
country´s business and banking centre and
the centre of its transport network.
There´s so much to discover: more than
30,000 shops, world class galleries and museums, dramatic new landmark buildings
and an endless choice of restaurants, bars, clubs, and live music venues and of course
theatre.
London is also known by its nickname ´The Big Smoke´. The city was founded by the
Romans who called it Londinium. It has the oldest underground in the world and the
busiest airport Heathrow.
The original walled city of London was quite small. It is known colloquially today as
´the square mile´. It did not contain Parliament or the royal court, it was in
Westminster, another city outside London´s walls that these national institutions
met. Today, both cities are just two areas of central London. The square mile (also
known simply as ´the City´) is home to the country´s main financial organizations.
Two other well-known areas of London are the West End and the East End. The
former is known for its many theatres, cinemas and expensive shops. The latter is
known as the poorer residential area and it is the traditional home of the Cockney and
for centuries it has been home to successive waves of immigrant groups.
Other tourist attractions include: Lloyd´s building (a skyscraper, an insurance
institution, all services – lifts, pipes, are installed outside), Buckingham Palace (the
official residence of the British monarch), Trafalgar Square (with a statue of admiral
Nelson in the middle), Hyde Park, Madame Tussaud´s museum, London Eye.
Among world heritage sites, we can mention also Tower of London, Greenwich (The
Royal Greenwich Observatory, in the southwest of London, the point of the Prime
Meridian), Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey
(a Gothic church, a place of coronation and burial site for British monarchs, Poet´s
Corner is a place where famous poets and writers are buried, namely G. Chaucer, C.
Dickens, J. Austen, J.Milton, etc.).

Scotland
Scotland accounts for just under a third of the total area of
the UK and it includes nearly eight hundred islands, mostly
west and north of the mainland; notably the Hebrides,
Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands. Historically and
geographically, it can be divided into two distinctively
different regions; namely the Highlands to the north and
west and the Lowlands to the south and east. And there is
also the central plain called the Central Belt, or Central
Lowlands. The more rugged Highland region contains the
majority of Scotland's mountainous land, including Ben
Nevis which at 1,343 metres (4,406 ft) is the highest point
in the UK. There can be found mountains and deep valleys.
It is an area of spectacular natural beauty, which is not very
densely inhabited. Tourism is important in the local
economy, and so is the production of whisky.
Lowland areas, especially the narrow waist of land known as the Central Belt, are
flatter and home to most of the population including Glasgow, Scotland's largest
city, and Edinburgh, its capital and political centre. Southern Uplands consist of
small towns, quite far apart from each other, whose economy depends on sheep
farming. The exceedingly beautiful coastline is indented with lochs (particularly in
the north and west). Perhaps the most famous Scottish loch is Loch Ness, although
there are other large examples such as Loch Awe, Loch Lomond and Loch Tay.
Scotland´s glorious lochs, glens, mountains and
islands are totally inspiring.
As an old Scots saying has it, ‘guid gear comes
in sma’ bouk’ (good things come in small
packages). And despite its small size, Scotland
certainly has many treasures crammed into its
compact territory. There’s something for all
tastes. There’s turbulent history and fascinating
genealogy, castles and country pubs, canoeing
and caber-tossing, golfing and fishing and all-round good craic (lively conversation).
Although an integral part of Great Britain since 1707, Scotland has maintained a
separate and distinct identity throughout the last 300 years. For people living in
Scotland, there are constant reminders of their distinctiveness. First, several
important aspects of public life, such as education and the legal and welfare systems,
are organized separately, and differently, from the rest of Britain. Scotland even
prints its own banknotes, although these are the same currency as the rest of Britain.
Second, the Scottish way of speaking English is very distinctive. A modern form of the

dialect known as Scots is spoken in everyday life by most of the working classes in the
lowlands. It has many features which are different from other forms of English and
cannot usually be understood by English or Welsh people. Third, there are many
symbols of Scottishness which are well-known throughout Britain. The kilt, a skirt
with a tartan pattern worn by men, is one of very well-known symbols of
Scottishness.

Wales
The irregular-shaped peninsula that is
known as Wales accounts for less than a
tenth of the total area of the UK. Wales
may be small, but if one could roll out flat
all the mountains and hills, it would be
bigger than Texas. Most of Wales is
mountainous. The highest mountains in
Wales are in Snowdonia and include
Snowdon, which is the highest peak in
Wales. The area around Mount Snowdon
is very beautiful and it is the largest
National Park in Britain. In Wales you’re never far from a mountain or the sea, so it’s
no wonder walkers, cyclists, surfers and sailors love to come and visit. As you travel
south you will notice the landscape becomes much softer, though the hills remain of
course. In mid Wales there are the Cambrian Mountains and moving further south
The Brecon Beacons.
The Welsh coastline is one of the most attractive in the UK, it is very irregular, with
many bays. There are over 1,300 kilometres of coastline ranging from long flat sandy
beaches to towering cliffs. Cardigan Bay is a popular choice for tourists.
The main population and industrial areas are in South Wales, consisting of the
coastal cities of Cardiff, the capital city, Swansea and Newport.
Wales is said to be the castle capital of the world,
because it has about 400 castles, of which over 100
are still standing, either as ruins or as restored
buildings. The rest have returned to nature, and
today consist of ditches, mounds and earthworks,
often in commanding positions. They can be find all
over the country.
The people of Wales do not have as many reminders of their Welshness in everyday
life. The organization of public life is similar to that of England and there are not so
many well-known symbols of Welshness. However, there is one single highly

important symbol of Welsh identity – the Welsh language. Everybody in Wales can
speak English, but it is not everybody´s first language. For about 20% of the
population, the mother tongue is Welsh. For these people, Welsh identity obviously
means more than just living in the region known as Wales. Moreover, in comparison
to the other small minority languages of Europe, Welsh is in a strong position. There
are many newspapers in Welsh and a Welsh TV channel, and all public notices and
signs are written in both Welsh and English.

Northern Ireland
It is the smallest of the four countries making up the United Kingdom.
A characteristic feature of Northern Ireland is the greenness of its countryside and
the cloudy skies above. The country consists mainly of low, flat plains which include
fertile fields and pasturelands. The centrepiece of Northern Ireland's geography is
Lough Neagh, at 151 square miles (391 km2) the largest freshwater lake both on the
island of Ireland and in the British Isles. The largest river in the area is the River
Bann. There are substantial uplands in the Sperrin Mountains (an extension of the
Caledonian fold mountains) with extensive gold deposits, granite Mourne Mountains
and basalt Antrim Plateau.
With the exception of Belfast, which is famous
for the manufacture of linen and is still
a shipbuilding city, this region is largely
agricultural. It has several areas of spectacular
natural beauty. One of these is the Giant´s
Causeway on its north coast, so-called because
the rocks in the area look like enormous
stepping stones.
The valley of the River Lagan is dominated by Belfast, whose metropolitan area
includes over a third of the population of Northern Ireland, with heavy urbanisation
and industrialisation.
Northern Ireland is polarized society where most people are born into, and stay in,
one or other of the two communities for the whole of their lives. On one side of the
divide are people whose ancestors came from lowland Scotland or England. They are
Protestant and want Northern Ireland to remain part of the UK. On the other side are
people whose ancestors were native Irish. They are Catholic and would like Northern
Ireland to become part of the Irish Republic. Although the two communities live side
by side, their lives are segregated. They live in different housing estates, listen to
different radio and television programmes, register with different doctors and read
different newspapers. Their children go to different schools. The extremes of these
hard-line attitudes are gradually softening.

Northern Ireland was for many years the site of a violent and bitter ethno-political
conflict—the Troubles—which was caused by divisions between nationalists, who are
predominantly Roman Catholic, and unionists, who are predominantly Protestant,
which has been the most prevalent religion. Unionists want Northern Ireland to
remain as a part of the United Kingdom, while nationalists wish for it to be politically
united with the rest of Ireland, independent of British rule. However, it should be
noted that they apply to a lesser extent among middle-classes.

Checkpoint
1) Quiz 2 Geography Answer the questions in this short quiz:
1. In world terms, Britain has ________ summers and cool winters.
a) hot
b) warm
c) cool
2. Which of these does Britain not have?
a) floods
b) earth tremors
c) active volcanoes
3. If you read in a scene from a novel set in Britain that the temperature was ´in the
mid eighties´, what is the weather like?
a) hot
b) neither hot nor cold
c) impossible – it must be science fiction
4. Which is the least densely populated country in Britain?
a) England
b) Scotland
c) Wales
5. Generally speaking, which part of Britain gets the most rain in a year?
a) the east
b) the south
c) the west
6. Which form of alternative energy is most used in Britain?
a) solar power
b) water power
c) wind power
7. London is larger than any other city in Britain. About how much larger?
a) twice as large
b) four times larger
c) six times larger
8. Where in England is Birmingham?
a) the midlands
b) the north
c) the south

9. Where in England is Manchester?
a) the midlands
b) the north
c) the south
10. What is the largest city in Scotland?
a) Aberdeen
b) Edinburgh
c) Glasgow
11. London is very cosmopolitan. What proportion of the population of London was
born outside Britain?
a) less than 10%
b) about 20%
c) more than 30%
12. Which of the following cities is not in England?
a) Cardiff
b) Leeds
c) Newcastle

Activities
1) British words and phrases
Find the word or phrase which is used to mean or describe:
1
2
3
4

the edges of hills facing out to sea on the south coast of England
areas of land where there are no towns or cities, the opposite of ´urban´
a combination of smoke and fog
the fact that temperatures around the world are rising
2) North to south
Put the following in order from north to south

1
2
3
4
5
6

Hadrian´s Wall
Land´s End
The Pennines
The Athens of the north
The Black Country
The Highlands

3) Fill in the gaps in this text with words and phrases from the list

briefcases
heavy industry
move around

poorest
honest
plain speaking

the city
houses
polite

factory
sandwiches
sweat

It is part of English folklore that the north and south of the country are
irredeemably different from each other. The north is full of poor but ................
workers; the south is full of rich softies who live off the ................ of the
northerners. In the south of England all the men wear bowler hats and suits
and carry ................ on the train to work in ................ every day. In the north,
they all wear workman´s overalls and cycle to work in the local ................
carrying ................ . In the south, they are ................, but a bit soft and
hypocritical. In the north they are ................ and hard, suspicious of strangers
but actually very friendly. These two stereotypes are well-known in England.
But they cannot be completely true. After all, most of the ................ in the
north has closed down. In any case, people in Britain ................ a lot in their
lifetimes, so that lots of people in the south of England must be northerners
and vice-versa. Nevertheless, it is true that ................ cost much more in the
south than they do in the north. But even here the picture is complicated. Ten
of the ................ areas in the country are actually in London.

Talking point
•

Does the capital city of your country stand in the same relation to the rest of
the country as London does to Britain?

•

Are the different stereotype reputations of north and south in England similar
to those in your own country?

3 History
Prehistoric Britain (5000 BC – c. 100 BC)
Thousands of years ago, Great Britain was joined to Europe and was covered with ice.
About 15,000 years ago, the weather became warmer. The ice melted and the sea level
rose. Great Britain became an island about 8,000 years ago.
The first men and women came to Britain over two and a half million years ago. They
were hunters and gatherers of food who used simple stone tools and weapons. For
people in Britain, the chief significance of the prehistoric period is its sense of
mystery.
Stonehenge was built on Salisbury Plain some
time between 5,000 and 4,300 years ago. It is one
of the most famous and mysterious archaeological
sites in the world. One of its mysteries is how it
was ever built at all with the technology of the time
(as some of the stones come from over 200 miles
away Wales). Another is its purpose. It appears to
function as a kind of astronomical clock and we
know it was used by the Druids for ceremonies
marking the passing of the seasons.
Iron Age
Two thousand years ago there was an Iron Age Celtic culture throughout the northwest European islands. It seems that the Celts had intermingled with the people who
were already there; we know that religious sites that had been built long before their
arrival continued to be used in Celtic times.
The Celts were the most powerful people in central and northern Europe. They were
farmers and lived in small village groups in the centre of their arable fields. They were
also warlike people. They built villages and hill forts, and used iron weapons and
tools. The Celts fought against the people of Britain and other Celtic tribes. Celtic
people called Britons settled in Britain. Celts called Gaels lived in Ireland.

The Roman period (43 – 410)
The Roman province of Britannia covered most of present-day England
and Wales, where the Romans imposed their own way of life and culture,

making use of existing Celtic aristocracy to govern and encouraging to adopt Roman
dress and the Latin language. They never went to Ireland and exerted an influence,
without actually governing there, over only the southern part of Scotland. The
division of the Celts into those who experienced Roman rule (the Britons in England
and Wales) and those who did not (the Gaels in Ireland and Scotland) explains the
emergence of two distinct branches of the Celtic group of languages.
The remarkable thing about Romans is that, despite their long occupation of Britain
(Britain was part of the Roman Empire for almost 400 years!), they left very little
behind. To many other parts of Europe they left a system of law and administration
which forms the basis of the modern system and a language which developed into the
modern Romance family of languages. In Britain, they left neither. Moreover, most of
their villas, baths and temples, their impressive network of roads, and the cities they
founded, including Londinium (London), were soon destroyed or fell into disrepair.
Almost the only lasting reminders of their presence are place names like Chester,
Lancaster and Gloucester, which include variants of the Latin word castra (a
military) camp.
Hadrian´s Wall was built by the Romans in the second
century across the northern border of their province of
Britannia in order to protect it from attacks by the Scots and
Picts. It nearly copies the present English-Scottish border.
Key events of this period:
55 BC After conquering Gaul (modern France and Belgium), Julius Caesar crossed
the Channel with two legions (about 10,000 men) probably to explore the land
and send a warning to the British allies of Gaulish tribes. Another reason for
doing so might have been looking for riches - land, slaves, and most of all,
iron, lead, zinc, copper, silver and gold. This is the first ´date´ in popular
British history.
AD 43 The Romans come and stay.
61
Queen Boudicca (or Boadicea) of the Iceni tribe leads a bloody revolt against
the Roman occupation. But she is defeated and killed by the Romans. There is
a statue of her, made in the nineteenth century, outside the Houses of
Parliament, which has helped to keep her memory alive.
410 The Romans leave Britain because their homes in Italy were being attacked by
fierce tribes and every soldier was needed.

The Germanic invasions (410 – 1066)
Anglo-Saxon Britain (410 – 793)
During the fifth century, a number of tribes from the European
mainland invaded and settled in large numbers. When the Roman
army left Britain about AD 410, there was no strong army to defend
Britain, and tribes called the Angle, Saxon, and Jute (the AngloSaxons) invaded. They left their homelands in northern Germany,
Denmark and northern Holland and rowed across the North Sea in wooden boats.
These Anglo-Saxons soon had the south-east of the country in their grasp. In the
west, their advance was temporarily halted by an army of (Celtic) Britons under the
command of the legendary King Arthur. Nevertheless, by the end of the sixth century,
the Anglo-Saxons and their way of life predominated in nearly all of present-day
England. Celtic culture and language survived only in present-day Scotland, Wales
and Cornwall.
King Arthur is a wonderful example of the distortions of popular history. In folklore
and myth, he is a great English hero, and he and his Knights of the Round Table are
regarded as the perfect example of medieval nobility and chivalry. In fact, he lived
long before medieval times and was a Romanized Celt trying to hold back the
advances of the Anglo-Saxons – the very people who became ´the English´!
The Anglo-Saxons had little use for towns and cities. But they had a great effect on
the countryside, where they introduced new farming methods and founded the
thousands of self-sufficient villages which formed the basis of English society for the
next thousand years.
When they came to Britain, Anglo-Saxons were pagan. During the sixth and seventh
centuries, Christianity spread throughout Britain from two different directions. By
the time, it was introduced into the south of England by the Roman missionary
Augustine of Canterbury, it had already been introduced into Scotland and northern
England from Ireland, which had become Christian more than 150 years earlier (by
St. Patrick). Although Roman Christianity eventually took over everywhere, the Celtic
model persisted in Scotland and Ireland for several hundred years.
Vikings (793 - 1066)
Britain experienced another wave of Germanic invasions in the
eight century. These invaders, known as Vikings, Norsemen or
Danes, came from Scandinavia. In the ninth century, they
conquered and settled the islands around Scotland and some
coastal regions of Ireland. Their conquest of England was
halted when they were defeated by King Alfred of the Saxon

kingdom of Wessex, better known as Alfred the Great.
The cultural differences between Anglo-Saxons and Danes were comparatively small.
They led roughly the same way of life and spoke different varieties of the same
Germanic language. Moreover, the Danes soon converted to Christianity. The
similarities made political unification easier, and by the end of the tenth century,
England was a united kingdom – Kingdom of England – with a Germanic culture
throughout. Most of Scotland was also united by this time in a (Celtic) Gaelic
kingdom – Kingdom of Scotland.
Key events of this period:
432
597

973

St. Patrick is captured by pirates and taken to Ireland as a slave. He converts
Ireland to Christianity.
Augustine of Canterbury arrives in Britain and establishes his headquarters at
Canterbury. He is considered the ´Apostle to the English´ and a founder of the
English Church.
Edgar, a grandson of Alfred the Great, becomes king of nearly all of presentday England and for the first time the name ´England´ is used.

The medieval period (1066 - 1485)
Normans
The successful Norman invasion of England (1066) brought Britain into the
mainstream of western European culture. Throughout this period, the
English kings also owned land on the continent and were often at war with
the French kings, most notably in Hundred Years´ War (1337-1453).
The Norman soldiers who had invaded were given the ownership of land and of the
people living on it. A strict feudal system was imposed. Great nobles, or barons, were
responsible directly to the king; lesser lords, each owning a village, were directly
responsible to a baron. Under them were the peasants, tied by a strict system of
mutual duties and obligations to the local lord, and forbidden to travel without his
permission. The peasants were the English-speaking Saxons. The lords and barons
were the French-speaking Normans. This was the start of the English class system.
The system of strong government which the Normans introduced made the AngloNorman kingdom the most powerful political force in Britain and Ireland. As a result,
the authority of the English monarch gradually extended to other parts of these
islands in the next 250 years. By the end of the thirteenth century, a large part of
eastern Ireland was controlled by Anglo-Norman lords in the name of their king and
the whole of Wales was under his direct rule. This was when the custom of naming
the monarch´s eldest son the ´Prince of Wales´ began. Scotland managed to remain

politically independent in the medieval period, but was obliged to fight occasional
wars to do so.
Prince of Wales
With the range of principalities that existed in Wales until the middle ages, it was rare
that any one leader could argue to have united the nation under one banner and
become a Prince of Wales in its entirety.
It was only during Edward I's reign that Wales became a unified area under one
monarch. But, it was an English monarch. Edward, the scourge of Wales and the
builder of many of castles used to subdue the population, imposed his infant son,
Prince Edward, on the Welsh as their new prince in 1301. According to legend, the
king had promised the Welsh that he would name ´a prince born in Wales, who did
not speak a word of English´ and then produced his infant son to their surprise (and
presumable chagrin). Edward II certainly was born at Caernarfon (Welsh castle)
while his father was campaigning in Wales, and like all infants, could not at the time
speak English or any other language. Since then, only one domestic warlord, Owain
Glyndwr has had a claim to the title, and was proclaimed as such in 1400. His defeat
in 1409 marked the end of domestic princes for good and, since then, the eldest son
of the reigning monarch has been made Prince of Wales. (Daughters of the reigning
monarch do not become Princess of Wales, as it is only given to a male heir.) The title
isn't automatic, however. It has to be created each time by the reigning monarch and as such is not an hereditary title.
Medieval culture
The cultural story of this period is different. In the 250 years after the Norman
Conquest, it was a Germanic language – Middle English – and not the Norman
(French) language, which had become the dominant one in all classes of society in
England. Furthermore, it was the Anglo-Saxon concept of common law, and not
Roman law, which formed the basis of the legal system.
Despite English rule, northern and central Wales was never settled in great numbers
by Saxons or Normans. As a result, the (Celtic) Welsh language and culture remained
strong. The Anglo-Norman lords of Ireland remained loyal to the English king, but
they mostly adopted the Gaelic language and customs.
Despite the political independence of Scotland, in the lowland (southern) part of the
country, they gradually switched to English language and customs. Many AngloSaxon aristocrats had fled there after the Norman conquest. In addition, the Celtic
kings saw that the adoption of an Anglo-Norman style of government would
streghthen royal power. By the end of this period, a cultural split had developed
between the lowlands, where the way of life and language was similar to that in

England, and the highlands, where Gaelic culture and language prevailed, and where,
due to the mountainous terrain, the authority of the Scottish king was hard to
enforce.
It was in this period that Parliament began its gradual evolution into the democratic
body which it is today. The word ´parliament´, which comes from the French word
´parler´ (to speak), was first used in England in the thirteenth century to describe an
assembly of nobles called together by the king.
In the middle of the fourteenth century the Black Death – a plague – killed about
a third of the population of Great Britain. It periodically reappeared for another 300
years. The shortage of labour which it caused, and the increasing importance of trade
and towns, weakened the traditional ties between lord and peasants. At a higher level
of feadal structure, the power of the great barons was greatly weakened by infighting.
Plantagenet dynasty (1154 – 1485)
The dynasty produced such varied characters as the energetic Henry II, arguably
one of England's greatest monarchs and his legendary son, Richard the Lionheart,
who led the Third Crusade against Saladin into the Holy Land. The highly aesthetic
Henry III and his son, the indomitable Edward I, who conquered Wales and became
known as the Hammer of the Scots for his campaigns into that country, where he
fought William Wallace and Robert the Bruce, the most famous of Scotland's sons,
and Henry V, the conqueror of France, who bequeathed the diadems of both
countries to his pious and ineffectual son, Henry VI.
The later Plantagenets became divided into the Houses of Lancaster and York which
descended through different sons of King Edward III. The Yorkist King Richard
III was the last of his house.
The Wars of the Roses (1455–1485)
The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic civil wars for the throne of
England fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House
of Plantagenet: the Houses of Lancaster and York. They were fought in
several sporadic episodes between 1455 and 1485, although there was related fighting
both before and after this period. The nobles were divided into two groups, one
supporting the House of Lancaster, whose symbol was a red rose, the other the House
of York, whose symbol was a white rose. Three decades of almost continual war ended
in 1485, when Henry Tudor (Lancastrian) defeated and killed Richard III
(Yorkist) at the Battle of Boswort Field. Henry Tudor married Edward IV's daughter
Elizabeth of York to unite the two houses. The House of Tudor subsequently ruled
England and Wales for 117 years.

Key events of this period:
1066 The Battle of Hastings. This is the most famous date in English history. On 14
October of that year, an invading army from Normandy defeated the English.
The battle was close and extremely bloody. At the end, most of the best
warriors in England were dead, including their leader, King Harold. He was
defeated with a lucky shot of the Norman leader, Duke William of Normandy.
On Christmas day that year, Duke William of Normandy, was crowned king of
England. He is known in popular history as ´William the Conqueror´ and the
date is remembered as the last time that England was successfully invaded.
1086 King William´s officials complete the Domesday Book, a very detailed, villageby-village record of the people and their possessions throughout his kingdom.
1170 The murder of Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury, by soldiers of
King Henry II. Becket becomes a popular martyr and his grave is visited by
pilgrims for hundreds of years. The Canterbury Tales, written by Geoffrey
Chaucer in the fourteenth century, recounts the stories told by a fictional
group of pilgrims on their way to Canterbury.
1215 An alliance of aristocracy, church and merchants force King John to agree to
the Magna Carta, a document in which the king agrees to follow certain rules
of government. In fact, neither John nor his successors entirely followed them,
but the Magna Carta is remembered as the first time a monarch agreed in
writing to abide formal procedures.
1284 The Statute of Wales puts the whole of the country under the control of the
English monarch.
1328 After several years of war between the Scottish and English kingdoms,
Scotland is recognized as an independent kingdom.

The sixteenth century
Both these developments – the plague and Wars of Roses – allowed English
monarchs to increase their power. The Tudor dynasty (1485-1603) established
a system of government departments staffed by professionals who depended for their
position of the monarch. The feudal aristocracy was no longer needed for
implementing government policy. Of the traditional two Houses of Parliament, the
Lords and the Commons, it was now more important for monarchs to get the
agreement of the Commons for their policies because that was where the newly
powerful merchants and landowners were represented.
The immediate cause of the rise of Protestantism in England was political and
personal rather than doctrinal. The King Henry VIII wanted a divorce, which the
Pope would not give him. Also, by making himself head of the Church of England,
independent of Rome, all church lands came under his control and gave him a large
new source of income. It was therefore patriotism that had caused Protestantism to
become the majority religion in England. It took a form known as Anglicanism.

In the lowlands of Scotland, it took a more idealistic form. Calvinism, with its strict
insistence on simplicity and its dislike of ritual and celebration became the dominant
religion. It is from this date that the stereotype image of the dour, thrifty Scottish
developed. However, the highlands remained Catholic. There, Protestantism was
identified with the English, who at that time were making further attempts to control
the whole of the country.
Increasing European exploration of America meant that England was closer to the
geographical centre of western civilization instead of being, as previously, on the edge
of it. It was in the last quarter of this adventurous and optimistic century that
Shakespeare began writing his famous plays, giving voice the modern form of
English.
Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry VIII, was the first of three long-reigning
queens in British history (the other two are Queen Victoria and Queen
Elizabeth II). During her reign she established a reasonable degree of
internal stability. She never married and she became known as ´the
virgin queen´. The area which later became the state of Virginia in the
USA was named after her.
Key events of this period:
1580 Sir Francis Drake completes the first voyage round the world by an
Englishman.
1605 The Gunpowder Plot. Guy Fawkes and other Roman Catholic conspirators fail
in attempt to blow up Parliament and James I. Guy Fawkes Night, also known
as Guy Fawkes Day and Bonfire Night, is an annual commemoration of this
event observed on 5 November. Celebrating the fact that King James I had
survived the attempt on his life, people lit bonfires.

Civil war, Restoration and Revolution
When the Scottish King James VI inherited the English throne as James I in 1603,
both kingdoms were ruled by a single monarch, which was known as the ´Union of
the Crowns´. He became the first English king of the Stuart dynasty.
In the seventeenth century, the link between religion and politics became intense. At
the start of the century, some people tried to kill the king because he wasn´t Catholic
enough. By the end of the century, another king had been killed, partly because he
seemed too Catholic, and yet another had been forced into exile for the same reason.
This was the context in which, during the century, Parliament established its
supremacy over the monarchy. Anger grew in the country at the way the Stuart

monarchs raised money without getting the agreement of the House of Commons
first. In addition, ideological Protestantism, especially Puritanism, had grown in
England. Puritans regarded the luxurious lifestyle of the king and his followers as
immoral. They were also anti-Catholic and suspicious of the apparent sympathy
towards Catholicism of the Stuart monarchs.
The conflict between King and Parliament reached its climax and the English Civil
War (1642-1651) began. The war can be described as a series of armed conflicts and
political machinations between Parliamentarians (Roundheads) and Royalists
(Cavaliers). The war culminated in the execution of the king in 1649, the overthrow
of the monarchy, and the establishment of a republic known as the Commonwealth of
England (1649–53). The Civil War ended with the Parliamentary victory at the Battle
of Worcester on 3 September 1651. James´s son, Charles I, became the first monarch
in Europe to be executed after a formal trial for crimes against his people. Charles II,
the son of Charles I was exiled. In 1653, the leader of the parliamentary army, Oliver
Cromwell, seized power and declared himself ´Lord Protector´ of a republic, or a
Protectorate (1653–59) with a military government which, after he had brutally
crushed resistance in Ireland, effectively encompassed all of Britain and Ireland.
Cromwell ruled until his death in 1658, when he was succeeded by his son Richard.
The new Lord Protector had little interest in governing; he soon resigned.
But by the time Cromwell died, he, his system of government, and the puritan ethics
that went with it (theatres and other forms of amusement had been banned) had
become so unpopular that the executed king´s son was asked to return and become
King Charles II.
However, the conflict between monarch and Parliament soon re-emerged in the reign
of Charles II´s brother, James II. Again, religion was its focus. James tried to give
full rights to Catholics, and to promote them in his government. The ´Glorious
Revolution (1688)´ (glorious because it was bloodless) followed, in which Prince
William of Orange, ruler of the Netherlands, and his Stuart wife Mary accepted
Parliament´s invitation to become king and queen. Parliament immediately drew up
a Bill of Rights, which limited some of the monarch´s powers.
Key events of this period:
1642 The Civil War begins.
1649 The tradition of monarchy was broken by the republican Commonwealth
- 1660 of England
1660 The Restoration of the monarchy and the Anglican religion.
1666 The Great Fire of London destroys most of the city´s old wooden buildings. It
also destroys plague, which never reappears.

The eighteenth century
In 1707, the Act of Union was passed. Under this agreement, the Scottish parliament
was dissolved and some of its members joined the English and Welsh parliament in
London and the former two kingdoms became one ´United Kingdom of Great
Britain´. However, Scotland retained its own system of law, more similar to
continental European system and it does so to this day.
Politically, the eighteenth century was stable. Monarch and Parliament got on quite
well together. One reason for this was that the monarch´s favourite politicians were
able to control the election and voting habits of a large number of MPs in the House
of Commons.
Within Parliament, two opponent groups were formed. One group, the Whigs, were
the political descendants of the parliamentarians. They supported the Protestant
values of hard work and thrift. The other group, the Tories, had a greater respect for
the idea of the monarchy and the importance of the Anglican Church. This was the
beginning of the party system in Britain.
The monarchs of the eighteenth century were Hanoverian Germans with interests on
the European continent. The first of them, George I, could not even speak English.
Perhaps this situation encouraged the habit whereby the monarch appointed one
principal, or prime, minister from the ranks of Parliament to head his government. It
was also during this century that the system of an annual budget drawn up by the
monarch´s Treasury officials for the approval of Parliament was established.
The only part of Britain to change radically as a result of political forces in this
century was the highlands of Scotland. This area twice supported failed attempts to
put a (Catholic) Stuart monarch back on the throne. After the second attempt, many
inhabitants of the highlands were killed or sent away from Britain and the wearing of
highland dress – the tartan kilt – was banned. The Celtic way of life was effectively
destroyed.
Industrial revolution
In England, the growth of the industrial mode of production, together with advances
in agriculture, caused the greatest changes in the pattern of everyday life since the
Germanic invasions. Areas of common land, which had been used by everybody in
a village for the grazing of animals, disappeared as landowners incorporated them
into their increasingly large and more efficient farms. (There remain some pieces of
common land in Britain today, used mainly as parks. They are often called ´the
common´.) Millions moved from rural areas into new towns and cities. Most of these
were in the north of England, where the raw materials for industry were available. In
this way, the north, which had previously been economically backward, became the

industrial heartland of the country. In the south of England, London came to
dominate, not as an industrial centre, but as a business and trading centre.
Key events of this period:
1707 The Act of Settlement 1701 excluded Roman Catholics, or those married to
Catholics, from succession to the English throne.
1788 The first settlers (convicts and soldiers) arrive in Australia.
1800 The separate Irish parliament is closed and the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland is formed.
1805 A British fleet under the command of Admiral Nelson defeats Napoleon´s
French fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar. Nelson´s Column in Trafalgar Square in
London commemorates this national hero, who died during the battle.
1829 Robert Peel, a government minister, organizes the first modern police force.
The police are still sometimes known today as ´bobbies´.
Catholics and non-Anglican Protestants are given the right to hold government
posts and become MPs.

The nineteenth century
Not long before this century began, Britain lost its most important colonies (North
American ones) in a war of independence. At the start of the century, it was locked in
a war with France, during which an invasion of the country was a real possibility.
Soon after the end of the century, it controlled the biggest empire the world had ever
seen.
One section of this empire was Ireland. During this century, it was in fact part of the
UK itself, and it was during this century that British culture and way of life came to
predominate in Ireland. In the 1840s, the potato crop failed two years in a row and
there was a terrible famine. Millions of peasants, those with Gaelic language and
customs, either died or emigrated. By the end of the century, almost the whole of the
remaining population had switched to English as their first language.
Another part of the empire was made up of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand,
where British settlers had become the majority population. Another was India, an
enormous country with the culture more ancient than Britain´s. Tens of thousands of
British civil servants and troops were used to govern it. At the head of this
administration was a viceroy (governor) whose position within the country was
similar to the monarch´s in Britain itself. Large parts of Africa also belonged to the
empire. Except for South Africa, where there was some British settlement, most of
Britain´s African colonies started as trading bases on the coast, and were only
incorporated into the empire at the end of the century. As well as these areas, the
empire included numerous smaller areas and islands. Some, such as those in the

Caribbean, were the result of earlier British settlement, but most were included
because of their strategic position along trading routes.
There were great changes in social structure. Most people now lived in towns and
cities. They no longer depended on country landowners for their living but rather on
the owners of industries. These owners and the growing middle class of professionals
and tradesmen held the real power in the country. Along with their power went a set
of values which emphasized hard work, thrift, religious observance, the family, an
awareness of one´s duty, absolute honesty in public life, and extreme respectability in
sexual matters. This is the set of values which are now called Victorian.
Queen Victoria
She reigned from 1837-1901 and she became a popular symbol of
Britain´s success in the world (although the modern powerlessness
of the monarch was confirmed). As a hard-working, religious
mother of ten children, devoted to her husband, Prince Albert, she
was regarded as the personification of contemporary morals. The
idea that the monarch should set an example to the people in such
matters was unknown before this time and has created problems for
the monarchy since then.
Reforms in public life – these included not only political reforms, but also reforms
which recognized some human rights. Slavery and the laws against people on the
basis of religion were abolished, and laws were made to protect workers from some of
the worst excesses of the industrial mode of production. Public services such as the
post and police were created.
Key events of this period:
1833 The first law regulating factory working conditions limits the number of hours
that children are allowed to work.
Slavery is made illegal.
1886 After much debate, an atheist is allowed to sit in the House of Commons.
1914 Great Britain declares war on Germany.

The British Empire at its peak (1919)

The twentieth century
Around the beginning of the twentieth century, Britain ceased to be the world´s
richest country. The first 20 years of the century were a period of extremism in
Britain. The Suffragettes, the women demanding the right to vote, were prepared to
damage property and even die for their beliefs; some sections of the army appeared
ready to disobey the government over its policies concerning Ulster in Ireland; and
the governments introduction of new taxation was opposed so absolutely by the
House of Lords that even Parliament seemed to have uncertain future. By the 1920,
most of these issues had been resolved and the rather un-British climate of
extremism died out.
It was from the start of the twentieth century that the urban working class (the
majority of the population) finally began to make its voice heard. In Parliament, the
Labour party gradually replaced the Liberals (the descendants of the Whigs) as the
main opposition to the Conservatives (the descendants of the Tories). In addition,
trade unions managed to organize themselves.
The creation of Northern Ireland
By the beginning of the twentieth century, most people in Ireland wanted either
internal self-government (known as ´home rule´) or complete independence from
Britain. However, the one million Protestants in the province of Ulster in the north of

the country were violently opposed to it. They did not want to belong to a country
dominated by Catholics. They formed less than a quarter of the total Irish population,
but in six of the nine counties of Ulster they were in a 65% majority. In the south,
support for complete independence had grown as a result of the British government´s
savage repression of the ´Easter Rising´ in 1916. War followed. The eventual result
was that in 1922, the south became independent from Britain. The six counties,
however, remained within the United Kingdom as the British province of Northern
Ireland.
Key events of this period:
1916
1918
1939
1949
1953
1973
1993
1994
1997
2005
2007

The ´Easter Rising´ in Ireland.
The right to vote is extended to women.
Britain declares war on Germany.
Ireland becomes a republic.
Coronation of Elizabeth II.
Britain joins the European Economic Community.
IRA bombs Warrington
The channel tunnel opens.
First Harry Potter book is published
Fox hunting banned in the UK
British troops leave Northern Ireland

Checkpoint
1) Quiz 3 History Choose the correct answer.
1

What is Stonehenge?
a) a royal castle
b) a prehistoric monument
c) a historic document

2 What was Magna Carta?
a) a royal castle
b) a prehistoric monument
c) a historic document
3 Where is Hadrian´s Wall?
a) in London
b) in Edinburgh
c) on the English-Scottish border
4 Which of these place names is of partly Roman origin?
a) Birmingham
b) Leeds
c) Manchester
5 Which people settled in large numbers in Britain?
a) the Anglo-Saxons
b) the Normans
c) the Romans
6 In which century was there a single parliament for the whole of Britain and
Ireland?
a) the seventeenth
b) the eighteenth
c) the nineteenth

7 In which century did England and Scotland first have the same monarch?
a) the seventeenth
b) the eighteenth
c) the nineteenth
d) the twentieth
8 In which century did England and Scotland first have the same parliament?
a) the seventeenth

b) the eighteenth
c) the nineteenth
d) the twentieth
9 Which century saw the greatest extent of the British Empire?
a) the seventeenth
b) the eighteenth
c) the nineteenth
d) the twentieth
2) Quiz 4 British monarchs
You will need to use some monarchs more than once.
Alfred
Arthur
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

Charles I
Elizabeth I

Henry II
Henry VIII

John
Victoria

Who is famous for having six wives?
Who was executed after a normal trial?
Who is the longest-reigning monarch in British history so far?
Whose soldiers murdered the Archbishop of Canterbury?
Who was forced to sign Magna Carta?
Who is famous for never being married?
Who is famous because of Camelot and the Knights of the Round Table?
Who is often known as ´the Great´?
Who was the first head of the Church of England?

Activities
1) Put the following sentences into the correct order to complete the
paragraph.
BRITAIN´S DNA MAP
Modern genetic science throws up some worrying questions. But it is at least
producing one very valuable finding. It is showing that national and ethnic
differences have very little to do with race and much more to do with culture instead.
1 Then, the Romans conquered it and stayed for nearly four centuries.
2 This is why in modern times we talk about England on the one hand and the
´Celtic nations´ of Scotland, Wales and Ireland on the other.
3 And yet all these successive invasions appear to have made little difference to
the modern gene pool.
4 In 1066, England was invaded again, this time by the Normans from France.

5 Moreover, it turns out that the vast majority of people in Britain and Ireland
have maternal genes dating back at least 10,000 years.
6 In the next five centuries, first the Anglo-Saxons and then the Vikings arrived.
7 Research has found, for example, that around 60% of all men in southern
England are directly descended from Celts.
8 Around 700 BC, we are told, Britain was invaded by the Celts, who displaced
the indigenous people.
9 The story goes that, during this time of Germanic invasions, the native Celts
were all either killed or driven north and west.
10 Take the story of Britain, for instance, which can seem like one of repeated
mass killings and mass migrations.
The conclusion we must draw from these findings is that history is often less bloody
than we assume it to be and that earlier people in Britain were not killed or displaced.
Instead, most of them were assimilated into newly dominant culture.

Talking point
•

At present there is discussion in Britain about the idea of establishing a
´national day´ (which Britain never had). National days usually
commemorate some important event in a country´s history. Which event in
British history do you think is most worthy of such commemoration?

4 Political system
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a constitutional
monarchy. That is, it is a country governed by a king or queen who accepts the advice
of a parliament. Second, it is a unitary state, as it unites four different countries.
Finally, it is also a parliamentary democracy. That is, it is a country whose
government is controlled by a parliament elected by the people. In other words, the
basic system is not so different from anywhere else in Europe. The highest positions
in the government are filled by members of the directly elected parliament. In Britain,
as in many European countries, the official head of state, whether a monarch or
a president, has little real power.
However, there are features of the British political system which make it different
from other countries. Most notably, Britain is almost alone among modern states in
that it does not have a constitution. Of course, there are rules, regulations, principles
and procedures for the running of the country, but there is no single written
document which can be appealed to as the highest law of the land. Instead, the
principles and procedures by which the country is governed and from people´s rights
are derived, come from a number of different sources. Some of them are written
down in laws agreed by Parliament – in the Acts of Parliament, some have been
spoken and then written down (judgements made in a court) and some have never
been written down at all. For example, there is no written law in Britain that says
anything about who can be the Prime Minister or what the powers of the Prime
Minister are, even though that person is probably the most powerful person in the
country. Instead, these things have been established, and are constantly being
modified, by custom and practice.
The British ´constitution´ was influenced and is based primarily on these set of laws
and principles under which the United Kingdom is governed:
Magna Carta, originally issued in the year 1215 and reissued later in the 13th
century in modified versions, which included the most direct challenges to the
monarch's authority to date. In 1215 the King John of England was forced to sign an
agreement known as Magna Carta (the Great Charter), which required him to
proclaim certain liberties, and accept that his will was not arbitrary. This document
was an important symbol of political freedom. The King promised the right to a fair
and legal trial to all ´freemen´, he promised to keep the church free and unharmed
and from that time on, no future king was allowed to impose new taxes without the
consent of the barons. By the charter the King's absolute power was considerably
limited and Magna Carta was the first document forced onto an English King by a
group of his subjects, the feudal barons, in an attempt to limit his powers by law and
protect their privileges. It has been described as the greatest constitutional document

of all times – the foundation of the freedom of the individual against the arbitrary
authority of the despot.
The Petition of Right (1628) is a major English constitutional document that sets
out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. It is a
statement of civil liberties sent by the English Parliament to Charles I. Refusal by
Parliament to finance the king's unpopular foreign policy had caused his government
to exact forced loans and to quarter troops in subjects´ houses as an economy
measure. Arbitrary arrest and imprisonment for opposing these policies had
produced in Parliament a violent hostility to Charles and George Villiers, 1st duke of
Buckingham. The Petition of Right, initiated by Sir Edward Coke, was based upon
earlier statutes and charters and asserted four principles: no taxes may be levied
without consent of Parliament; no subject may be imprisoned without cause shown
(reaffirmation of the right of habeas corpus); no soldiers may be quartered upon the
citizenry; martial law may not be used in time of peace. In return for his acceptance,
Charles was granted subsidies. Although the petition was of importance as a
safeguard of civil liberties, its spirit was soon violated by Charles, who continued to
collect tonnage and poundage duties without Parliament's authorization and to
prosecute citizens in an arbitrary manner.
The Habeas Corpus Act (1679) is an Act of
the Parliament of England passed during the
reign of King Charles II. Literally, ´habeas
corpus´ means ´you may have the body´ (if
legal procedures are satisfied). They are the
opening Latin words of the writ in medieval
times. It was originally a device to bring a
prisoner into court, but it became used to fight
against arbitrary detention by the authorities. It is issued by a judge. It does not
determine guilt or innocence, merely whether the person is legally imprisoned. If the
charge is considered to be valid, the person must submit to trial. If not, the person
goes free. Though rarely used nowadays, it can theoretically be demanded by anyone
who believes they are unlawfully detained.
Bill of Rights (1689) lays down limits on the powers of sovereign and sets out the
rights of Parliament and rules for freedom of speech in Parliament, the requirement
to regular elections to Parliament and the right to petition the monarch without fear
of retribution. It reestablished the liberty of Protestants to have arms for their
defence within the rule of law, and condemned James II of England for´causing
several good subjects being Protestants to be disarmed at the same time when papists
were both armed and employed contrary to law´. These ideas about rights reflected
those of the political thinker John Locke and they quickly became popular in
England. It is one of the four great historic documents which regulate the relations
between the Crown and the people, the others being: the Magna Carta, the Petition of

Right and the Act of Settlement. It sets out certain constitutional requirements of the
Crown to seek the consent of the people, as represented in Parliament. It is one of the
main constitutional laws governing the succession to the throne of the United
Kingdom and to the thrones of those other Commonwealth realms, by willing
deference to the Act as a British statute or as a patriated part of the particular realm's
constitution.
The Bill of Rights was an historic statute that emerged from the “Glorious
Revolution” of 1688-89, which culminated in the exile of King James II and the
accession to the throne of William of Orange and Mary. Its intentions were: to depose
James II for misgovernment; to determine the succession to the Throne; to curb
future arbitrary behaviour of the monarch; and to guarantee parliament’s powers vis
a vis the Crown, thereby establishing a constitutional monarchy.
Whatever the intention at the time, some of the main articles are still regarded as of
considerable relevance today, particularly those affecting parliament which required
that:
• Parliament should be frequently summoned and that there should be free
elections (articles 13 and 8);
• Members and Peers should be able to speak and act freely in Parliament
(article 9);
• No armies should be raised in peacetime and no taxes levied, without the
authority of parliament (articles 4 and 6);
• Laws should not be dispensed with or suspended without the consent of
parliament (articles 1 and 2).
One further article is also considered as having modern significance:
• That excessive bail ought not to be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor
cruel and unusual punishments inflicted (article 10)
The Bill of Rights incorporated the Declaration of Rights and consisted of:
-

a declaration by the Commons and the Lords commencing with a list of the
misdeeds of James II

-

13 “articles” defining the limitations of the Crown and confirming the rights of
Parliament and the individual

-

a lengthy passage confirming the accession of William and Mary to the Throne
and providing for the succession on their decease

-

a short section on non-obstante dispensations

Act of Settlement (1701) is an act of the Parliament of England that was passed in
1701 to settle the succession to the English throne on the Electress Sophia of Hanover
(a granddaughter of James I) and her Protestant heirs, to secure the Protestant
succession to the throne, and to strengthen the guarantees for ensuring
parliamentary system of government.

The Act also laid down the conditions under which alone the Crown could be held. No
Roman Catholic, nor anyone married to a Roman Catholic, could hold the English
Crown. The Sovereign now had to swear to maintain the Church of England (and
after 1707, the Church of Scotland).
Two examples of members of the current Royal family being removed from the line of
succession are that of The Earl of St. Andrews and HRH Prince Michael of Kent, who
both lost the right of succession to the throne through marriage to Roman Catholics.
Any children of these marriages remain in the succession provided that they are in
communion with the Church of England.
The Act of Settlement not only addressed the dynastic and religious aspects of
succession, it also further restricted the powers and prerogatives of the Crown.
Under the Act, parliamentary consent had to be given for the Sovereign to engage in
war or leave the country, and judges were to hold office on good conduct and not at
royal pleasure - thus establishing judicial independence.

Monarchy
The appearance
The position of the monarch in Britain, according to the evidence of written law, is
that king or queen has almost absolute power. Every autumn, at the state opening of
Parliament, the Queen makes a speech. In it, she says what ´my government´ intends
to do in the coming year. As far as the law is concerned, she can choose anybody she
likes to run the government for her. There are no restrictions on who she picks as her
Prime Minister. The same is true for her choices of people to fill some hundred other
ministerial positions. And if she gets fed up with her ministers, she can just dismiss
them. Officially speaking, they are all ´servants of the Crown´, not of the country or
the people. She also appears to have great power over Parliament. It is she who
summons a parliament and she who dissolves it. In addition, nothing that Parliament
has decided can become law until she has given it the royal assent. Similarly, it is the
Queen who embodies the law in the courts. It all seems very undemocratic.
The reality
In practice, of course, the reality is very different. In fact, the Queen cannot just
choose anyone to be Prime Minister. She has to choose someone who will command
majority support in the House of Commons. This is because the law says that her
government can only collect taxes with the agreement of the Commons. In practice,
the person she chooses is the leader of the strongest party of the Commons. Similarly,
it is really the Prime Minister who decides who the other government ministers are
going to be, although officially the Prime Minister simply advises the monarch who to
choose. And it is the same story with Parliament. Again, the Prime Minister will talk
about requesting a dissolution of Parliament, but it would normally be impossible for
the monarch to refuse this request. Similarly, while in theory the Queen could refuse

the royal assent to a bill passed by Parliament, no monarch has actually done so since
the year 1708. Indeed, the royal assent is so automatic that the Queen doesn´t even
bother to give it in person. Somebody else signs the document for her. So in reality,
monarch has almost no power at all.
It might be concluded from this that a monarch reigns, but does not rule. Queen
Elizabeth II is the head of the country as well as of fifteen other independent
Commonwealth countries, which form British Commonwealth of Nations. The queen
is the official head of executive, legislative and courts, army and Church.
The full royal title of the Queen is: Queen Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God
Queen of this Realm and of Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the
Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith. The monarchy is hereditary, the succession
passing automatically to the oldest male child, or in the absence of males, to the
oldest female offspring of the monarch.
The role of the monarch
Three roles are often mentioned. First, the monarch is the personal embodiment of
the government of the country and guarantees its stability. Second, it is argued that
the monarch is a possible final check on a government that is becoming dictatorial.
Third, the monarch has a very practical role to play. By being a figurehead and
representative of the country, she or he can perform the ceremonial duties which
heads of the state often have to spend their time on. This way, the real government
has more time to get on with the actual job of running the country.
However, all these advantages are hypothetical. It cannot be proved that only
a monarch can provide them. Other modern democracies managed perfectly well
without one. The real importance of the British monarchy is probably less to do with
the system of government and more to do with social psychology and economics, as it
attracts many tourists visiting the country. On the other hand, the one aspect of the
monarchy about which most people feel consistently negative is how much it costs.
The monarchy gives British people a symbol of continuity. Concerning the future of
the monarchy, most people are either vaguely in favour, or they just don´t care one
way or another. It is true that during the last two decades of the twentieth century,
there was a general cooling of enthusiasm about the monarchy. The Queen herself
remained popular, but various marital problems in her family lowered the prestige of
royalty in many people´s eyes. Although the vast majority of people are in favour of
the monarchy, they believe that Britain will not have one 100 years from now.
The royal family
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, this was the title of the mother of Queen
Elizabeth II. She died at the age of 101 in 2002. Her tours of bombed areas of London

during the Second World War with her husband, King George VI, made her popular
with the British people and she remained popular until her death.
Queen Elizabeth II was born in
1926 and became Queen in 1952.
She is widely respected for the way
in which she performs her duties
and is generally popular.
Prince Philip, The Duke of
Edinburgh,
married
Queen
Elizabeth II. His outspoken
opinions on certain matters have
sometimes been embarrassing to
the royal family.
Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales is, as the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II
and Prince Philip, heir to the throne.
Princess Diana, The Princess of Wales, married Prince Charles in 1981. The
couple separated in 1992 and later divorced. Diana died in a car accident in 1997.
During her lifetime, she was a glamorous figure and the public loved her. They felt
able to identify with her in a way that they could not with other ´royals´. She was, in
fact, the first Englishwoman ever to marry an heir to the throne.
Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall married Prince Charles in 2005. Her long
relationship with Charles is widely believed to have been a major cause of his
separation from Diana. For this reason, she is not very popular with the public.
Princess Anne, also known as The Princess Royal, is the Queen´s daughter. She
separated from her husband after they had one son and one daughter. She married
again. She is widely respected for her charity work.
Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, is the Queen´s second son. He is separated
from his wife, Sarah Ferguson (Fergie). They have two daughters.
Prince Edward is the Queen´s youngest son. He and his wife are the Earl and
Countess of Wessex.
Prince William, The Duke of Cambridge, is the eldest son of Charles and Diana
and therefore the next in line to the throne after his father. He is married to
Catherine, The Duchess of Cambridge. He and his brother Prince Henry of
Wales, like Charles and Andrew before them, have both embarked on military
careers.

Government
In its narrow sense, government refers to the most powerful of the ministers, namely,
the Prime Minister and the other members of the cabinet, who exercise executive
power. There are usually about twenty people in the cabinet. Most of them are the
heads of the government departments. Members of the government are usually
known as ministers. Unlike much of western Europe, Britain normally has ´singleparty government´. That is, all members of the government belong to the same
political party. Most heads of government departments have their title ´Secretary of
State´, for example Secretary of State for the Environment. The cabinet meets once
a week and takes decisions about new policies, the implementation of existing
policies and the running of the various government departments.
The Prime Minister
The position of a British Prime Minister (PM) is in
direct contrast to that of the monarch. While the
Queen appears to have a lot of power but in reality
has very little, the PM appears not to have much
power but in reality has a very great deal. The
traditional phrase describes the position of the PM
within the cabinet as primus inter pares (Latin for
´first among equals´). But in fact the other ministers
are not nearly as powerful. No. 10 Downing Street is
the official residence of the Prime Minister.

Parliament
The activities of Parliament in Britain are more or less the same as

those of the parliament in any western democracy. It has legislative
power, which means it makes laws, gives authority for the government
to raise and spend money, keeps a close eye on government activities
and discusses these activities.

The crowned portcullis is the emblem of the Houses of Parliament The portcullis was
originally the badge of various English noble families from the 14th century. It went
on to be adopted by the kings of the Tudor dynasty in the 16th century, under whom
the Palace of Westminster became the regular meeting place of Parliament. The
crown was added to make the badge a specifically royal symbol.

The British Parliament works in a large building called the Palace of Westminster
(popularly known as the Houses of Parliament). This contains offices, committee
rooms, restaurants, bars, libraries, and even some places of residence. It also contains
two larger rooms. One of these is where the House of Lords holds its meetings. The
other is where the House of Commons holds its meetings. The British Parliament is
divided into these two ´houses´, or chambers, it means it is bicameral and its
members belong to one or other of them. However, only members of the Commons
are known as MPs (Members of Parliament). The Commons is by far the more
important of the two.
House of Commons
Seating arrangements in the
House of Commons tell us a lot
about what is distinctive about
the British Parliament. There
are just two rows of benches
facing each other. On the left of
the picture, there are the
government benches, where the
MPs of the governing party is.
On the right, there are the
opposition
benches.
This
physical division is emphasized
by the table on the floor of the
House between the two rows of
benches. The Speakers Chair is
also here. The Commons has no
special place for people to stand
when they are speaking. MPs
simply stand up and speak from
wherever they are sitting.
Moreover, there are no desks.
This makes it easy for the MPs
to drift in and drift out of the
room. The room itself is very
small. In fact, there isn´t enough room for all the MPs. There are about 650 of them,
but there is seating for fewer than 400. The ancient habits are preserved today in the
many detailed rules and customs of procedure which all new MPs have to learn. The
most noticeable of these is the rule that forbids MPs to address one another by name.
The Speaker is the person who chairs and controls discussion in the House, decides
which MP is going to speak next and makes sure that the rules of procedure are
followed. It is a very important position. In fact, the Speaker is, officially, the second

most important ´commoner´ (non-aristocrat) in the kingdom after the Prime
Minister. Hundreds of years ago, it was the Speaker´s job to communicate the
decisions of the Commons to the king (that is where the title Speaker comes from).
Because the king was often very displeased with what the Commons had decided, this
was not a pleasant task. As a result, nobody wanted the job. They had to be forced to
take it. These days, the position is a much safer one, but the tradition of dragging an
unwilling Speaker to the chair has remained. MPs in the House always address the
Speaker as ´Mr Speaker´ or ´Madame Speaker´. Once a new speaker has been
appointed, he or she agrees to give up all party politics and normally remains in the
job for as long as he or she wants it.
The following extracts are taken from the brochures and materials from the
Parliament:

An example of the Agenda in the House of Commons:

The House of Lords
The second British chamber is
called the House of Lords, which
has no real power and only limited
influence. Although the Lords can
delay a bill, they cannot stop it
becoming law, even if they
continue to refuse it. Its role,
therefore, is a consultative one. In
the Lords, bills can be discussed in
more detail than the busy
Commons have time for, and in
this
way
irregularities
and
inconsistencies in these proposals
can be avoided before they become
law. The Lords can also act as
a check on any governments which
are becoming too dictatorial.
The House of Lords' chamber is
similar to that of the Commons,
but at the end of the chamber there is the royal throne from which the Queen reads
her speech at the Opening of Parliament.
The members of the Lords are aristocrats. In fact, only a very small proportion of
them are there by hereditary right. In 1958, a law was passed which made it possible
to award life peerages. These gave people entitlement to sit in the Lords, but not the
children of these people. By the end of the twentieth century, so many life peers had
been appointed that it was common for them to form a majority over the hereditary
peers. In 1999, the number of aristocrats with the right to sit in the Lords was limited
to 92 (about 15% of the total members). The value of the Lords lies in the fact that its
members do not depend on party politics for their positions. Because they are there
for life, they do not have to worry about losing their positions. This means they can
take decisions independently. The House was presided over by the Lord Chancellor,
but with the passage of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the post of Lord Speaker
was created, a position to which a peer is elected by the House and subsequently
appointed by the Crown. The two main types of lords are The Lord Temporal (life
peers and hereditary peers) and The Lord Spiritual (26 most senior bishops of the
Church of England).

Party system
Britain is normally described as having a ´two-party system´. This is because
members of just two parties normally occupy more than 85% of all of the seats in the
House of Commons and one of them controls the government.
During the eighteenth century, MPs tended to divide into two camps, those who
actually supported the government of the time and those who actually did not. During
the nineteenth century, it became the habit that the party which did not control the
government presented itself as an alternative government. This idea of an alternative
government has received legal recognition. The leader of the second biggest party in
Parliament receives the title ´Leader of Her Majesty´s Opposition´, and even gets an
extra salary for this role. He or she chooses a ´shadow cabinet´, thereby presenting
the image of a team ready to fill the shoes of the government at a moment´s notice.
Conservative party developed from the group of
MPs known as the Tories in the early nineteenth
century and is still often known informally by that
name. It is a party of right of centre and it stands for
hierarchical authority and minimal government
interference in the economy, it likes to reduce
income tax and gives high priority to national
defence and internal law and order.
Labour party was formed at the beginning of the
twentieth century from an alliance of trade unionists
and intellectuals. They are of left of centre and they
stand for equality of opportunities, for the weaker
people in society and more government involvement
in the economy; they are more concerned to provide
full social services that to keep income tax low.
Liberal Democrats were formed in the late 1980s
from a union of the Liberals, who developed from
the Whigs in the early nineteenth century, and from
the Social Democrats. They can be regarded as
centre or slightly left of centre. They put more
emphasis on the environment than other parties,
they believe in giving greater powers to local
government and in reform of the electoral system.

There exist some smaller parties, but it is very difficult for them to challenge the
dominance of the bigger ones. If any of them seem to have some good ideas, these are
adopted by one of the big parties, who try to appeal to as large a section of the
population as possible.
General elections are called by the monarch when the prime minister so advises. The
Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949 require that a new election must be called within five
years of the previous general election.

Foreign Relations
The United Kingdom is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council,
a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, G7, G8, G20, NATO, the OECD, the
WTO, the Council of Europe, the OSCE, and is a member state of the European
Union. The UK has a ´Special Relationship´ with the United States and a close
partnership with France – the ´Entente cordiale´ – and shares nuclear weapons
technology with both countries.

Law and Justice
The United Kingdom does not have a single legal system. Today, there are three
distinct systems of law; English law, Northern Ireland law and Scots law. Recent
constitutional changes saw a new Supreme Court of the United Kingdom come into
being in October 2009 to replace the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords. The
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, including the same members as the
Supreme Court, is the highest court of appeal for several independent
Commonwealth countries, the British Overseas Territories, and the Crown
Dependencies.
Both English law, which applies in England and Wales, and Northern Ireland law are
based on common-law principles. The essence of common law is that the law is
developed by judges in courts, applying statute, precedent and common sense to the
facts before them to give explanatory judgements of the relevant legal principles,
which are reported and binding in future similar cases. The courts of England and
Wales are headed by the Senior Courts of England and Wales, consisting of the Court
of Appeal, the High Court of Justice (for civil cases) and the Crown Court (for
criminal cases). The Supreme Court is the highest court in the land for both criminal
and civil appeal cases in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland and any decision it
makes is binding on every other court in the same jurisdiction, often having a
persuasive effect in other jurisdictions.
Scots law applies in Scotland, a hybrid system based on both common-law and civillaw principles. The chief courts are the Court of Session, for civil cases, and the High
Court of Justiciary, for criminal cases. The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom
serves as the highest court of appeal for civil cases under Scots law. Sheriff courts

deal with most civil and criminal cases including conducting criminal trials with a
jury, known as sheriff solemn court, or with a sheriff and no jury, known as sheriff
summary Court. The Scots legal system is unique in having three possible verdicts for
a criminal trial: ´guilty´, ´not guilty´ and ´not proven´. Both ´not guilty´ and ´not
proven´ result in an acquittal with no possibility of retrial.

Checkpoint
1) Quiz 5 Political system Choose the correct answer.
1

Which of these does not apply to the British political system?
a) constitutional monarchy
b) parliamentary democracy
c) presidential democracy

2 In which respect is Britain most unusual among twenty-first century states? It
does not have:
a) a written constitution
b) a monarch
c) a president
3 Where does the British parliament meet?
a) Downing Street
b) Buckingham Palace
c) the Palace of Westminster
4 Which of these political parties is sometimes known as ´the Tories´?
a) Conservative
b) Labour
c) Liberal Democrat
5 Who does the monarch normally choose as Prime Minister?
a) anybody he or she likes
b) the leader of parliament
c) the leader of the strongest party
6 Who is presently next in line to be the monarch in Britain?
a) Prince Charles
b) Prince Philip
c) Prince William
7 Who presently has the title ´Prince of Wales´?
a) Prince Charles
b) Prince Philip
c) Prince William
8 How many political parties normally form the government in Britain?
a) one
b) two
c) three

9 What phrase is commonly used to denote the Prime Minister, his or her closest
advisers, and the cabinet office?
a) Downing Street
b) Westminster
c) Whitehall
10 When we refer to MPs, who exactly are we talking about?
a) members of the House of Commons
b) members of the House of Lords
c) both
11 By what name is the Palace of Westminster generally known?
a) The House of Commons
b) The House of Lords
c) The Houses of Parliament
12 Which pronoun must an MP never use when speaking in Parliament?
a) I
b) you
c) she
13 For which institution are general elections held in Britain?
a) the cabinet
b) The House of Commons
c) The House of Lords

Activities
1) Put the following sentences into the correct order to complete the
paragraph.
The law in England works by precedent as much as by the statute book. As a result,
old laws do not get officially repealed, they just fall out of use.
1
2
3
4
5
6

That´s illegal.
Take Christmas for instance.
Even some churchgoers take part in this festival of mass lawbreaking.
And that´s not the only way Britons can fall foul of the law at the table.
On Christmas Day, some 30 million people sit down to a meal of turkey.
A law of 1551 (never repealed – just like others) says you must attend church
on foot.

7 A law dating from 1588 is quite clear about the matter – the only bird that may
be eaten on that day is goose.
8 This means that, from the point of view of the letter of the law, millions of
people in Britain routinely break the law.
9 During the reign of the Puritans in the seventeenth century, both Christmas
puddings (of which the British consume some 12 million over the festive
period) and mince pie (250 million), being emblems of gluttony, were banned.
2) Now find the words or phrases in this text which mean:
1
2
3
4

what has been done (or not done) before in similar circumstances
taken away or abolished
break the law without intending to
greed with regard to food and drink

Talking point
•

Would you advise the British people to get rid of their monarchy?

•

A British Prime Minister has no status in law which puts him or her above
other politicians. So why are modern British PMs so powerful?

The Republic of Ireland

1 General information
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest
island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth. To its east it is separated
from Great Britain by the Irish Sea. Politically, the island is divided between the
Republic of Ireland, which covers just under five-sixths of the island, and Northern
Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom, which covers the remainder and is located in
the northeast of the island. The Republic of Ireland consists of four provinces (Ulster,
Munster, Leinster, Connaught) and 26 counties.

Area

84,421 km2

Coastline

2,797 km

Highest

1,038 m

elevation
Highest point

Carrauntoohil

Largest city

Dublin

and capital
Population

6,197,100 (as of 2008)

Density

73.4 /km2

Ethnic groups

Irish, Ulster Scotts,
Irish travellers
(Irish Gypsies)

The history of its name

English: Ireland
Irish: Éire
nicknames: The Emerald Isle, The Island of Saints and Scholars
The earliest written records of Ireland come from classical Greco-Roman
geographers. Ptolemy refers to Ireland as Mikra Brettania (Lesser Britain), in
contrast to the larger island, which he called Megale Brettania (Great Britain). In his

later work, Ptolemy refers to Ireland as Iwernia and to Great Britain as Albion. These
"new" names were likely to have been the Celtic names for the islands at the time. The
earlier names, in contrast, were likely to have been coined before direct contact with
local peoples were made. The Romans would later refer to Ireland by this name too in
its Latinised form, Hibernia, or Scotia (Latin hibernus meaning wintry).

National symbols

The arm of Ireland is described as a gold harp with silver strings
on a blue background. These arms have long been Ireland's heraldic
emblem. It is also used on the Presidential Standard. The harp, of
the small portable type played by Celtic minstrels, is the oldest
official symbol of Ireland. Through not as recognizable as the
shamrock, the harp is widely used. It appears on Irish coins, the
presidential flag, state seals, uniforms, and official documents. But
the harp is most often associated with Guinness, which adopted the
harp as its trademark in 1862.

The shamrock is undoubtedly the most identifiable symbol of
Ireland. Shamrock comes from the Irish Gaelic word Seamrog, a
word that refers to the plant's three leaves. Legend has it that
during a religious debate with the Druid priests, St. Patrick plucked
a shamrock to demonstrate the mysteries of the Christian Trinity three leaves held together by a single stem. Whether or not this
story is true, the shamrock is regarded as the national plant of
Ireland and always worn on St. Patrick's Day.

The Irish tricolor flag made its debut in 1848. It was based on
the French tricolor; however, the colors were altogether Irish. One
outside band was made green, the color that had long been used as
a symbol of the Catholic majority. The other outside band, a stripe
of orange, was chosen to represent the Protestant minority. And the
middle band of white represented their unity.

National anthem Amhrán na bhFiann (composed in 1907,
with words by Peadar Kearney and music by Kearney and Patrick
Heeney):

Irish Gaelic

English

Phonetic version

Amhrán na bhFiann

The Soldiers' Song

Arawn Naveen

Sinne Fianna Fáil,
atá faoi gheall ag Éirinn,
Buíon dár slua
thar toinn do ráinig
chughainn,
Faoi mhóid bheith saor
Seantír ár sinsear feasta,
Ní fhágfar faoin tíorán ná
faoin tráill.
Anocht a théam sa bhearna
baoil,
Le gean ar Ghaeil, chun báis
nó saoil,
Le gunna scréach faoi
lámhach na bpiléar,
Seo libh canaig amhrán na
bhfiann

Soldiers are we,
whose lives are pledged
to Ireland,
Some have come
from a land beyond the
wave,
Sworn to be free,
no more our ancient
sireland,
Shall shelter the despot
or the slave.
Tonight we man the
"bearna baoil",
In Erin’s cause, come
woe or weal,
’Mid cannon’s roar and
rifles’ peal,
We’ll chant a soldier's
song

Shin-na fee-in-na fall
A-taw fwee yal eg Erin
Bween daur slew
Harr teen du rawnig cooin
Fwaw vode veh sair
Shann-tier awr shinshir
fawsta
Nee awg-fur fween teer-awn
naw fween trawl
A nukt a hay-un sa varna
vwail
Lay g'yan air gwale cunn
bawsh no sale
Le gunna schrake, fay law
vock na bill air
Shuh liv con-ig arawn
naveen

Irish culture and language
Irish culture has had a significant influence on other cultures in the field of literature,
science, music, drama and mythology.
Irish Language (Irish Gaelic):
-

spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people (mainly in Gaeltacht
area of western and southern Ireland)

-

a second language of a larger proportion of the population

-

considered to be an important part of the island's culture and heritage

-

it enjoys constitutional status as the national and first official language of the
Republic of Ireland

-

an official language of the European Union

Sample vocabulary of Irish language:

baile (bahl-yeh) – village, hamlet, town
beann, ben (ben) – peak, summit (of a hill)
carrick, carrig (kerik) – stone, rock
donagh, donough (dunn-uh) – church (building)
lough (loch) – lake, sea bay
sliabh, slieve (sch-lief) – forest
cárta phoist (kawr-thah fwishth) - post card
sráid (sraw-ij) - street
bóthar (boh-thahr) - road
cathair (kah-hirr) - city
Éire or Éireann (ay-reh or ay-run) - Ireland
Eoraip (yohr-up) – Europe
Dia dhuit (dia gwitch)- hello
Slán (s-lon) – good-bye
Go raibh maith agat (go rev ma agot) – thank you
Le do thoil (le d hol) – please
Sláinte! (s-lantche) – Cheers!
Gam pardún (gam par-dun) – sorry

The Tuatha Dé Danann (thoo'a-haw day dah'-nawn) – race of people in Irish
mythology, thought to derive from the pre-Christian deities, represented as mortal
kings, queens and heroes of the distant past. There are also many famous Irish
mythological creatures:

Banshee

Banshees are believed by some to be spirts of nature or pre-Christian Gaelic deities.
They are commonly called "fallen angels". In English, they are described as a "fairy"
or "fairy woman".
The Banshee is also said to be tasked with the job of warning selected members of
ancient Irish families of the time of their death. According to tradition, the banshee
was only said to cry for four major families but this list seems to have been extended
due to marriage. Apparently in terms of clothing, she either wears a grey, hooded
cloak or a grave robe meant for the unshriven dead. Those who where not allowed to
find "absolution".
Banshee usually come in three of many forms, the first being a young woman, the
second being a rich middle-aged lady or matron, and the third being of a fragile old
woman. Another being, the bean-nighe (washing woman). In this form, she is
apparently seen washing the bloodstains out of the fated person clothes.
Rarely seen but heard, her mourning call is often given at night when someone is
about to die. In 1437, Scottish King James I is said to have been approached by one
such being. There have been numerous reports of same thing happening to members
of the royal court and other high-profile members of Irish society.

Leprechaun

Leprechaun is a type of male faerie said to inhabit the island of Ireland. They are a
class of "faerie folk" associated in Irish mythology and folklore, as with all faeries,
with the Tuatha Dé Danann and other quasi-historical races said to have inhabited
Ireland before the arrival of the Celts.
Leprechauns usually take the form of old men who enjoy partaking in mischief. Their
trade is that of a cobbler or shoemaker. They are said to be very rich, having many
treasure crocks buried during war-time. According to legend, if anyone keeps an eye
fixed upon one, he cannot escape, but the moment the eye is withdrawn he vanishes.

Dobhar-Chu
The dobhar-chu (dobhar-chú, dobarcu, dobhar-choin, doyarchu - water hound,
master otter) is an old Irish cryptic creature that resembled either a sort of otter, a
dog/fish hybrid or a serpentine creature. Though in all transformations it is
commonly described with fur with protective properties such as an otter. In terms of
colour it can range from white to brown or black. The dobhar-chu is said to reside in
lakes but with the capability of walking on land quite fast. It was known not to
hesitate to attack humans for food.

Dullahan
The dullahan is a type of Irish fairy categorised in the unseelie court (malicious and
evilly-inclined fairies). Its head is permanently separated from its body, which it
carries under its arm. It will always arrive riding a black horse and sometimes come
accompanied with a wagon cobbled together out of skeletons. Either of these modes
of transport will travel with speed so fast the sparks given off could set alight the
roadside growth. Its rotted face is rumoured to have huge eyes and a very wide grin.

Grant
Grant is a Celtic creature that for some reason usually comes under fairies. They are
small horses that stand on their hind legs looking for danger. If they see danger they
emit a piercing cry to warn other Grants. They can only be found in very dense forest
and are very shy.
In England, Grant is described to be a yearling foal with sparkling eyes. He prances
about the street of the villages at midday or sun down, often capering on his hind
legs. All the dogs are after him. His presence is a warning of danger and those who
see him are sure their houses will catch fire, or other misfortune will occur.

Merrow
Merrow is the Gaelic equivalent to a mermaid, or merman of other cultures. Like
popular belief they have a human torso and a fish tail. Their personalities are gentle,
modest, benevolent, even affectionate.
The merrow are capable of inter-marrying with humans and are sometimes reported
to come ashore and live among humans for years, though most return back to their
home beneath the sea. Merrow-maidens as reputed for luring handsome young men
to follow them beneath the waves where they live in an enchanted state. Merrows are
said to wear a special hat called cohuleen druith (pron.: cohuleen dree, the magical
hood or cap, red and covered with feathers, that is worn by merrows in order to
survive under water), and if they lose it, they cannot return to the water. She has soft
white webs between her fingers and is often seen with a comb parting he long green
hair to either side.

Interesting facts about Ireland




Ballygally Castle in County Antrim, currently a hotel owned by a major chain,
is allegedly one of the most haunted places in the country. Lady Isobel
Shaw, whose husband built the castle in 1625, is said to knock on doors at
night and then disappear. While alive, Ms. Shaw was locked in her room by her
husband and starved, until she leapt to her death from a window.




A village known as "Dun Bleisce" recently won the right to change it's name
back to an old-time local favorite. The town will now be called "Fort of the
Harlot," as it was in the distant past.




The longest place name in Ireland is Muckanaghederdauhaulia, in County
Galway.




The original Guinness Brewery in Dublin has a 9,000 year lease on it's
property, at a perpetual rate of 45 Irish pounds per year.




The "Oscar" statuette handed out at the Academy Awards was designed by
Cedric Gibbons, who was born in Dublin in 1823. Gibbons emigrated to the
US, and was considered MGM’s top set designer from the twenties right on
through the fifties, working on over 1,500 films. Besides designing the coveted
prize, Mr. Gibbons managed to win a dozen of them himself.




Couples in Ireland could marry legally on St. Brigid's Day (February 1st) in
Teltown, County Meath, as recently as the 1920’s by simply walking
towards each other. If the marriage failed, they could "divorce'" by walking
away from each other at the same spot, on St. Brigid’s day the following year.
The custom was a holdover from old Irish Brehon laws, which allowed
temporary marriage contracts.




One of the most popular radio shows in rural Ireland is still the weekly
broadcast of local obituaries.




The last witch in Ireland was supposedly Dame Alice Kytler, born in
Kilkenny in 1280. All four of her husbands died, and she was accused of
poisoning them. Today you can dine at Kytler's Inn in Kilkenny, which
operates in her old home.




The first Irish Constitution was signed at Dublin’s Shelbourne Hotel. The
Shelbourne was a favorite spot for sophisticated travelers to stay or dine.




Montgomery Street in Dublin was once the largest red light district in all
of Europe, with over 1600 prostitutes plying their trade.




The Newgrange passage tomb in County Meath was constructed around
3200 BC, making it more than 600 years older than the Giza Pyramids in
Egypt, and 1,000 years older than Stonehenge.




In olden days, a pig was often allowed to live in the house with the family on an
Irish farm. He (or she) was commonly referred to as "the gentleman who
pays the rent."




In 1859, Irish scientist John Tyndall was the first to correctly explain why
the sky is blue. The explanation may surprise you. The sun puts out a full
spectrum of light colors – but your eyes are most sensitive to blue and
red/purple colors. Molecules in the air scatter the sun’s blue light faster than
they scatter its red light. A day-time sky without clouds looks blue because the
sun is close to you, and relatively little of the blue light has been scattered. You
see red and orange colors at sunset because the light must travel a greater
distance to you, and all the blue light has been refracted away from your line of
sight by the time the sun’s light hits you – not because of dust or other
particles in the air as is widely believed.




Historians believe St. Patrick’s real name was "Maewyn Succat."




“Gulliver’s Travels” writer Jonathan Swift is buried in St. Patrick's Cathedral
in Dublin.




Ireland was once densely forested, but was practically denuded of tree
cover in the 17th century.




Kilkenny-born architect James Hoban designed the original White House in
Washington after winning a competition sponsored by President George
Washington and Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson in 1792. When the White

House was burned by the British during the war of 1812, Hoban was called in
to oversee a three-year-long restoration of the building.



Medieval laws in Ireland allowed a man to divorce his wife if she damaged his
honor through infidelity, thieving or “making a mess of everything.”




Aran Island sweaters have a variety of "family weaves." These were
developed because when a fisherman drowned, his sweater would often be the
only thing washed up on shore. The distinctive weave would tell a family their
loved one had been lost.




Ireland’s 15 principal railway stations are named after the leaders of the
1916 uprising.

Checkpoint
1) Combine Irish writers and their famous books:

Bram Stocker

Ulysses

Jonathan Swift

The Picture of Dorian Gray

James Joyce

Dracula

Oscar Wilde

Waiting for Godot

Samuel Beckett

The Great Gatsby

W.B.Yeats

Gulliver´s Travels

F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Chronicles of Narnia

C.S.Lewis

The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman

G.B. Shaw

The Tower

Laurence Sterne

Pygmalion

2) Combine Irish actors and their famous films:

Pierce Brosnan

Grey´s Anatomy

Daniel Day-Lewis

Harry Potter, The Count of Monte Christo, Gladiator,

Patrick Dempsey

Harry Potter, Beowulf, Troy, Cold Mountain

Colin Farrell

Con Air, Scarlett, Far and Away, Perfect Witness

Richard Harris

Lawrence of Arabia, Troy, The Last Emperor, Caligula

Brendan Gleeson

Nine, Gangs of New York

Liam Neeson

Robin Hood BBC series

Peter O´Toole

Minority Report, Hart´s War, Daredevil

Jonas Armstrong

James Bond, Thomas Crown Affair

Colm Meaney

Kinsey, Star Wars, Rob Roy, Schindler´s List

3) Combine Irish singers and their famous songs:

Bono Vox

The Celts

Chris de Burgh

Nothing Compares to You

Nicky Byrne (Westlife)

Too Hard to Say Goodbye

Enya

Got My Mind Set on You

George Harrison

folk songs

Bruce Springsteen

The Lady in Red

Shinead O´Connor

Falling Slowly

Glen Hansard

With or Without You

Ronan Keating (Boyzone)

The Streets of Philadelphia

Paddy Reilly

When You Say Nothing At All

4) What is the closest meaning of the following words (choose the
correct one):

wintry:

rainy

windy

frosty

arms:

sign

blazon

image

to pluck:

tear off

rescue

return

stem:

flower

leaf

stalk

absolution:

forgiveness

forbearance

permission

cobbler:

tailor

shoemaker

smith

crock:

pot

plate

cutlery

mischief:

waggery

gratefulness

modesty

5) Find the names of towns, cities or villages in Ireland that contain
any of the following words. What is the meaning of the words?

baile (bally)

beann (ben)

carrick (carrig)

donagh

lough

sliabh (slieve)

2 Geography

Land and climate
Most of the island is a central plain, ringed by low mountains in the west and south
and by lowlands in the east. The Shannon river, the longest river in the British Isles,
goes through one fifth of the country. It forms many important lakes. The sea-coast is
wild and beautiful. One of its most exciting features are the Cliffs of Moher in County
Clare. The cliffs rise 120 meters above the Atlantic Ocean at Hag's Head, and reach
their maximum height of 214 meters just north of O'Brien's Tower, eight kilometres
away. The views from the cliffs attract close to one million visitors per year. On a clear
day, the Aran Islands are visible in Galway Bay, as are the valleys and hills of
Connemara. Another famous natural feasture is the Giant Causeway, on the coast of
County Antrin in Northern Ireland. The causeway was created some 60 million years
ago due to volcanic activity and cooling of molten basaltic lava that poured out with
it. The crystals have since broken by weathering due to ice age and Atlantic tides.
Each column is upto 2 meter high.

The climate is temperate, with mild winters and cool summers. Heavy rainfall in all
seasons encourages green vegetation, hence the name The Emerald Isle. Most of the
soil is rich and fertile, suitable for farming and cattle raising, but in some areas
insufficient drainage has caused the building up of layers of peat – a spongy matter
which was dried and used as fuel by the people in the past, and is still used in
horticulture to lighten dense soil.

Cliffs of Moher.

Thick woodlands covered the island until the 17th century. Today, it is one of the
most deforested areas in Europe. There are twenty-six extant mammal species native
to Ireland (types of bat, red deer, otter, badger, mouse, hedgehog, red squirrel, seal).

Coast
The coast of Ireland on the north and on the west is bold and rocky. Like the west
coast of Scotland, it is much indented, because it is exposed to the full force of the
Atlantic waves. The east coast of Ireland is mostly low and sandy, with here and
there a head-land (cape). East Cape Howth Head commands the entrance to Dublin
Bay. It presents splendid sea cliffs nearly the whole way round. Wicklow Head is a
rocky cape.

East Cape Howth Head

North Coast in Ireland: Lough Foyle is the estuary of the river Foyle. At Moville, on
its northern shore, steamers from Glasgow to America make their last call before
crossing the Atlantic.
Bantry Bay, on the west coast, is one of the finest harbours in Europe. This inlet,
and also Kenmare Bay and Dingle Bay, stretch far into the land, and are enclosed by
lofty mountains. The Shannon mouth receives the water of the largest river-basin in
Ireland. Limerick is its chief port. Galway Bay and Clew Bay have herring-fisheries,
and are studded with islands. Sligo Bay contains the greatest oyster-beds on the Irish
coast. In this bay three ships of the Spanish Armada, sent by Philip of Spain against
Queen Elizabeth, were stranded in 1588.

Dingle Bay.

On the south coast many of the inlets are called harbours. Chief of these are
Waterford Harbour and Cork Harbour. Cork Harbour is in some respects the most
important inlet in Ireland. It is a wide and deep land-locked basin, large enough to
hold the whole British navy. American steamers call at Queenstown, in Cork Harbour,
in order to take in and give out the mails.

Cobh harbour

Modern day post card from Cobh, shows a sister
and 2 brothers with one pointing to America.
Cobh (Queenstown) was and is a major Irish port
that has the history of emigrant migration, the
last port of call for the Titanic and a calling port of
the Lusitania.

Islands
Land of Ireland, like Scotland, has broken and rugged coasts on the west; but unlike
Scotland, she has few islands and none of any size or importance. Rathlin, or Rachlin
Island, off the coast of County Antrim, is famous as the refuge of King Robert the
Bruce when he was driven from Scotland for a time in 1306 and 1307. North Isles of
Arran, off the north-west coast of County Donegal, are famous for their cliffs and
caves.

Mountains
Munster: The most mountainous part of Ireland is the south-west of Munster. The
Macgillicuddy Reeks, in County Kerry, contain the highest summits in the whole
island. Carrauntoohil, the highest of all, is 1038 metres above the sea-level. The
famous and beautiful Lakes of Killarney are in the midst of these mountains.
Leinster: The Wicklow Mountains, on the east coast, contain beautiful scenery. The
moors on the hill-tops are bleak and lonely; but the lower slopes are richly wooded,
and in the midst of the hills there are lovely valleys and sparkling streams.

Connaught: The west coast of Connaught is very mountainous. Mount Nephin and
other lofty peaks are within sight of the Atlantic. Croagh Patrick rises from the
seashore. It is so perfectly shaped that it appears the same from whatever side it is
seen. It is said that this is the place from which St. Patrick drove all the reptiles of
Ireland into the sea. In the west of Galway there is a wild and rugged region called
Connemara.

Provinces
Connaught
Its shores, which are much broken, are washed by the Atlantic Ocean. A great part of
its surface is wild and rugged. It contains five counties.
County Leitrim touches the coast at Donegal Bay. It is almost cut into two parts by
Lough Alien, a widening of the river Shannon. It is a mountainous county, containing
many high peaks. Carrick-on-Shannon, the county town, is a busy river-port, with a
large trade in grain and dairy produce. It is the only town of any size in the county.
County Sligo lies south of Donegal Bay. It contains many beautiful lakes. Sligo, on
Sligo Bay, is the county town. It has considerable trade, and exports cattle. Here are
the ruins of Sligo Abbey. The country around the Atlantic coast is very beautiful.
County Mayo is a large county, forming the western shoulder of Ireland. The chief
coast features are Achil Head, on Achil Island, and Clew Bay. Among the mountains
of Mayo are Croagh Patrick and Mount Nephin, both of which are near the coast. The
lakes of Mayo have never been counted, they are so many in number. Lough Conn is
one of the largest and finest in Ireland. Castlebar, on the river Castlebar, is the county
town. Westport, on Clew Bay, is a sea-side watering-place. A mountain stream runs
through the middle of the town to the bay. Ballina, on the Moy, has a corn and
provision trade.
County Roscommon is on the whole a level county, and includes some of the finest
and richest grazing lands in Ireland. It contains numerous lakes, among which arc
Loughs Allen and Ree. Roscommon, the county town, lies inland. It has a fine old
abbey and the ruins of a Norman castle. It has a large cattle trade. Boyle makes flax
and trades in provisions.
County Galway lies round Galway Bay. It is washed by the Atlantic, and has a most
rugged coast, broken into every form of bay, inlet, creek, island, peninsula, and
headland. The chief features are Slyne Head, Galway Bay, and South Arran Isles. On
the west are the Connemara Mountains. The Twelve Pins are a number of conical
peaks near each other. The chief river is the Shannon, and the largest lakes are
Loughs Comb, Mask, and Derg. Galway is the county town, and the chief town in

Connaught. It is well situated for commerce, but has not yet taken a high position as a
sea-port. It may, however, at some future time become a leading place for vessels
crossing the Atlantic. Galway has one of the Queen’s Colleges, of which there are
three in Ireland – Galway, Belfast, and Cork. Ballinasloe has the largest horse, sheep,
and cattle fairs in Ireland.

Leinster
It is the largest province in Ireland, comprises the south-east portion of the country.
It contains the most extensive bog in the island, called the Bog of Allen. There are
twelve counties in Leinster.
County Longford is mostly flat, with a good deal of bog-land. Longford, the county
town, trades in flax and provisions, and is the chief business centre between Dublin
and Sligo. Oliver Goldsmith, the poet, author of the Deserted Village, was born at
Pallas in this county.
County West Meath contains no mountains, and much of the level part is bog-land.
The chief lake is Lough Bee, in the valley of the Shannon. Mullingar, the county town,
has cattle and wool markets. Athlone is a military station, and the headquarters for
the west of Ireland.
County Meath has only seven miles of coast line. The surface is nearly level, and the
chief river is the Boyne. This county contains a great many old buildings, the remains
of former greatness. Trim is the county town. It is a very old place, and has the ruins
of a fine castle and other buildings. Near Trim, the Duke of Wellington was born in
1769. Navan is a market town. Six miles south-east of Navan is Tara, the residence of
the ancient kings of Ireland.
County Louth is the smallest county in Ireland. Dundalk is the county town, it
exports grain, provisions, and cattle. Drogheda also exports farm produce. Near it
was fought the battle of the Boyne, when William III, Prince of Orange, defeated
James II in 1690. Garlingford has an oyster-fishery.
County Dublin is a small county whose coast is much broken, forming Howth Head
and Dublin Bay. Off Howth lies a pretty little island called Ireland’s Eye. At
Balbriggan the sands are so good, and the shore so beautiful, as to be called the Velvet
Strand. The river Liffey flows through the middle of the county into Dublin Bay.
Dublin, the county town, is the chief town in Leinster, and the capital and chief seaport of Ireland. It stands on the river Liffey, and lies west of Liverpool, across the
Irish Sea. It is a handsome city, and few places of the same size have so many fine
public buildings. Here is the residence of the Viceroy; and it contains the university
and Trinity College founded by Queen Elizabeth in 1592.

County Wicklow lies on the shore of the Irish Sea. Except at Bray Head and Wicklow
Head, the coast is low and has few harbours. The surface of the county is a mass of
mountains, having less level land than that of any other county in Ireland. The
Wicklow Mountains are thrown together in groups, separated by long narrow valleys.
The rivers are small, and of no importance. Wicklow is the county town. It has lead
and copper mines. Bray is the finest watering-place in Ireland. Arklow has a herringfishery.
County Kildare lies inland. In the north and north-west there are portions of the Bog
of Allen. The river Boyne rises in the north-west of the county, and the Liffey passes
through it on its way to Dublin Bay. In the west the Barrow forms part of its
boundary. Athy, the county town, has a grain market. Naas (Nace) was in old times
one of the religious centres of Ireland, and the ruins of a grand church still remain.
Near the town is the Curragh, the most perfect racecourse in the British Islands. It is
a plain covered with grass like velvet; and always green. Near the northern border of
the county is Maynooth, with its ruined castle, and a college for the education of
Roman Catholic priests.
County Offaly (originally King’s County, named after Philip of Spain, the husband of
Mary, Queen of England), lies between Kildare and the Shannon. Bogs and marshes,
large and small, extend in every direction. The Slieve Bloom Mountains are on the
south-west borders. The Shannon, the Boyne, and the Barrow, are the chief rivers.
Tullamore, on the Tullamore river, is the county town. It is a business centre, and has
a distillery. Philipstown was named after King Philip of Spain. At Parsonstown, Lord
Rosse erected what for many years was the largest telescope in the world. On the
banks of the Shannon is the burying place of the ancient kings of Ireland. To this spot
came many kings and chiefs to spend the last years of their lives in prayer and
religious worship. It contains the ruins of many churches, and many other curious
relics of the past.
Laois (originally Queen’s county, named after Mary, Queen of England, the wife of
Philip of Spain), is south east of Offaly. The Slieve Bloom Mountains separate the two
counties. The Barrow, and the Blackwater which flows into it, are the chief rivers.
Maryborough, named after Queen Mary of England, is the county town.
Mountmellick makes woollens and leather.
County Kilkenny is hilly in the north and flat in the south. The river Nore crosses
the county. Kilkenny, the county town, is regarded as the inland capital of Ireland. It
has marble works, and from early times it has been a place of importance. It is one of
the most beautiful and interesting towns in Ireland. It contains Kilkenny Castle, a
round tower, and many other fine ruins. Callan has the ruins of a fine abbey.
County Carlow forms part of the great plain of Ireland. Mount Leinster, on the
eastern borders, is 796 metres high. The Barrow, on the west, and the Slauey, on the

east, are the chief rivers. Carlow is the county town. Here is a Roman Catholic
cathedral, a college, and an old castle. Bagenalstown has large corn and flour mills.
County Wexford is in the south-east corner of Ireland. The coast is low and for the
most part sandy. In the south-east it forms Wexford Harbour and Cam sore Point, the
nearest part of Ireland to Wales (St. David’s Head). The chief rivers are the Barrow
and the Slaney. Wexford, the county town, is an active sea-port on a fine inlet called
Wexford Harbour. It has ship-building docks, and a large export trade in cattle, dairy
produce, and timber. Near Enniscorthy (twelve miles from Wexford) the battle of
Vinegar Hill was fought in 1798.

Munster
The province comprises the whole of the south-west of Ireland. The entire coast is
washed by the Atlantic, which enters the land by long narrow opening’s like those on
the west coast of Scotland. This province contains six counties.
County Clare is surrounded by water – the Atlantic, the Shannon, and Lough Derg –
except for about forty miles on its northern borders. The coast on the Atlantic is one
long line of cliffs, some of which stand up like pillars in the sea. There are also a great
many sea caves, and at one part two natural rock bridges span the waves. The
grandest part of the coast is the Cliffs of Moher, which form a rocky wall for four
miles, broken into most curious forms, and tunneled by the constant action of the
waves. Black Head on the north, and Loop Head on the south, are the chief
headlands. Ennis, the county town, has the ruins of a fine old abbey. Kilrush is a
watering-place. Kilkee, on the shore of a lovely inlet of the Atlantic, is one of the finest
watering-places in Ireland. Killaloe has slate and marble quarries.
County Limerick lies between Kerry and Tipperary. The centre of the county is a
great plain almost surrounded by mountains. It consists of the finest land in Ireland,
and part of it is so rich that it is called the “Golden Vale“. Limerick, the county town,
is the fourth city in Ireland and a large seaport. Bacon is one of the chief exports. The
treaty of Limerick in 1691 made William III master of Ireland. Rathkeale and
Newcastle are market towns. Three miles from Limerick there are the ruins of an old
priory, once a great seat of learning, where 1,500 monks studied at one time. This
county abounds with the ruins of castles, abbeys, churches, and other buildings,
showing that at one time this part of the country was a great centre of religious life,
and the home of princes and clergy of high rank.
County Tipperary – its centre is a plain, through which, flows the river Suir. The
Golden Vale of Limerick is a part of this plain. The Slieve Bloom Mountains are on
the north-east border, and the Knockmele-down Mountains in the south. The Galty
Mountains, one of the finest ranges in the country, lie on the Limerick border. The
Shannon and the Suir are the chief rivers. Clonmel, the county town, has large

exports of provisions and farm produce, Carrick-on-Suir, a market-town and riverport, exports farm produce. Cashel is famous for its Rock, on the summit of which are
the ruins of a cathedral and a castle. This town was once the capital of the province of
Munster. Thurles is a busy town, with castle and church ruins in the neighbourhood.
Tipperary town trades in butter and corn.
County Waterford lies on the south coast of Ireland. It is a small, mountainous
county, with a rocky and dangerous coast, forming Waterford Harbour, Dungarvan
Bay, Youghal (Yawl) Harbour. The chief rivers are the Blackwater and the Suir.
Waterford is the county town and has a splendid quay. It exports provisions and farm
produce. Dungarvan is a fishing town. Lismore is an ancient town, with its castle on a
cliff overhanging the Blackwater and the Suir.
County Cork is the largest Irish county. The coast is broken up into countless bays
and inlets, broken rocks, rugged headlands and sandy beaches. The chief coast
features are Cork Harbour, Kinsale Harbour, Cape Clear Island, Mizen Head, and
Bantry Bay. Cork is a mountainous county, the most rugged part being in the west.
The chief rivers are the Lee, the Bandon, and the Blackwater. Cork, the county town,
is the chief town in Munster, and the third city in Ireland. It has large exports of
grain, cattle, dairy produce, and provisions. It has one of the finest natural harbours
in the world, and forms a threat naval station on the banks of the river Lee. The
principal quays are at Cobh (Queenstown), on Great Island, formerly called the Cove
of Cork. Built on the sloping shore of the island, the streets rise in tiers from the
water’s edge. Cobh was named after Queen Victoria. It is a place of call for American
steamers. Fernloy has a large trade in corn, a salmon fishery, and a large tannery.
Kinsale is an important fishing station. Bandon is a corn and provision trade. Youghal
was at one time the residence of Sir Walter Raleigh, where he first introduced the
cultivation of the potato - now one of the principal articles of food in Ireland.
County Kerry is pierced by deep bays or inlets, which cut the land into long and
narrow peninsulas. No words can describe the bold, wild, rugged, and much indented
coast, against which the great Atlantic waves are for ever beating. The Shannon
mouth, Tralee Bay, Dingle Bay, and Kenmare Bay, are the chief openings. There are
many capes and bold headlands, but the chief is Dunmore Head, the most westerly
point of Ireland. Of the many islands off this coast we can only mention Valentia.
Kerry has the highest mountains in Ireland, and here are also the most tremendous
precipices and the finest valleys. Carrauntoohil, a grand peak of Macgillicuddy Reeks,
is the highest point. The Gap of Dunloe, a great ravine, cuts right across this
mountain chain. But the glory of Kerry is not its high mountains, its beautiful valleys,
or its noble coast. County Kerry has some of the most beautiful lakes in the world.
Here, overhung by giant mountains, lie the Lakes of Killarney, three in number, their
shores and islands well wooded, and their scenery full of softness, freshness, and
beauty. Tralee, the county town, exports grain. Killarney is famous for its scenery.
Dingle is a fishing town.

Ulster
Ulster comprises the northern part of Ireland, and is bounded by the sea on three
sides. It is the most prosperous province of Ireland, because it is the one in which
both farming’ and manufactures flourish most. Many of the inhabitants are
descendants of Scotsmen who settled there in the reign of James I. A great deal of flax
is grown in Ulster and active linen manufactures are carried on. Ulster is composed of
nine counties. Six of these (almost 57% of Ulster) make up Northern Ireland: Antrim,
Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry and Tyrone. Three counties (about 43% of
Ulster) are in the Republic of Ireland: Donegal, Monaghan and Cavan.

Republic of Ireland:
County Donegal lies on the north-west coast, and is washed by the Atlantic Ocean.
Its shores are broken into bays, headlands, cliffs, and islands. The chief are Lough
Foyle, Malin Head, Lough Swilly, North Arran Isles, and Donegal Bay. The county is a
region of mountains and long valleys, with a large extent of bog and waste land. The
county is famous for its mountain lakes, which lie in the midst of splendid scenery.
Lifford, the county town, on the Foyle, is a small and unimportant place.
Ballyshannon, at the mouth of the Erne, where the river forms a fine cascade over a
ledge of rocks, has a salmon-fishery. Donegal exports farm produce. It has ruins of an
old castle and also of a monastery. Moville is a port for American steamers.
County Monaghan has the Slieve Bloom Mountains which extend into this county.
It contains no rivers of importance. Monaghan, the county town, is a market town,
and has a Roman Catholic cathedral. Clones has two spade manufactories and several
large corn-mills.
County Cavan is of great length, stretching almost across Ireland from east to west.
Some parts of the county are mountainous, rugged, bleak, and boggy. The Shannon
rises in the north-west corner. Chief Towns: Cavan, the county town, lies in a hollow
overtopped by grassy hills. Belturbet has a large distillery. By means of the Leister
Canal, barges can pass here on their way from Lough Neagh to Lough Erne.

Northern Ireland:
The chief rivers of county Derry are the Bann on the east, and the Foyle on the west.
Lough Neagh forms part of the boundary in the south-east. Thus it will be seen that
the county has a salt-water lough (inlet) on one border, and a fresh-water lough (lake)
on another border. Derry, the county town, was in ancient times the seat of the
monastery from which St. Columba sailed to Scotland in 563 AD. In modern times
the town is famous for its siege, in 1689, by the forces of James II. It is now a place of
large trade and exports provisions. Coleraine is noted for its salmon-fishery.

County Antrim, on the north-east coast, washed by the North Channel, is that part
of Ireland nearest to Scotland. From shore to shore the distance is only about twelve
miles. The coast of Antrim is broken into a number of fine cliffs, part of which form
the famous Giants’ Causeway. On the coast are Kathlin Island, Fair Head, and Belfast
Lough. The surface is high and rugged, with mountains running down to the sea,
forming grand scenery. Lough Neagh borders the south-west of the county and the
river Bann forms the western boundary. Carrickfergus, the county town, makes
linens. Here William III landed before the battle of the Boyne. Larne has a line of
steamers that run to Stranraer in Scotland (Wigtownshire). Portrush is a wateringplace and the nearest town to Giants Causeway. Antrim is a small town and gives its
name to the county. The chief town in Ulster is Belfast, the largest city in Northern
Ireland, and the great seat of the Irish linen trade. Its foremost rank as a
manufacturing town has earned for it the name of “the Manchester of Ireland.” It is
also a port. Ballymena and Lisburn are both engaged in the linen trade.
County Tyrone is a large inland county. The northern and southern parts are
mountainous, but the most of the county has gentle hills, fruitful valleys, pretty glens,
and small plains. Part of its eastern boundary is formed by Lough Neagh, the largest
lake in Ireland. Omagh, the county town, makes linen and pottery. Strabane has a
salmon-fishery. Dungannon is the centre of the richest coal-field in Ireland.
County Fermanagh forms a trough, in the bottom of which lies the great chain of
lakes formed by the river Erne. The lakes stretch through nearly the whole length of
the county, and divide it into two almost equal parts. There are a great many islands
in these lakes; it is said that they number 365. One of these islands, Devenish, was for
ages one of Ireland’s chief seats of religion and learning. Enniskillen, built on an
island in the river, is the county town. It is a military station, and the only place of
any size in the county.
County Armagh´s northern border is Lough Neagh. A detached mountain Slieve
Gullion standing in the midst of a level country, commands one of the widest views to
be seen in Ireland . Near the top there is a small deep lake, famous in Irish fairy
stories. Armagh is the county town. It was a great seat of learning in early times, and
has a fine cathedral, built on the supposed site of St. Patrick’s church. It is a see, or
seat of an archbishop. Limestone quarries near the city yield good marble. Lurgan
and Portadown are engaged in the linen trade.
County Down has the Mourne Mountains, which extend for about fifteen miles
across the south-east of the county, rise direct from the sea-shore. The chief rivers are
the Bann and the Lagan. Downpatrick, the county town, derives its name from St.
Patrick, who was buried here in 493. Newry has a large export of provisions and
cattle, to Liverpool and Glasgow. Donaghadce is the nearest port to Scotland, being
only twenty one miles from Portpatrick in Wigtownshire. Newtonards is engaged in
the weaving of muslins.

Dublin
Dublin – meaning „Dark Pool“ – is the largest city and the capital with more than one
million inhabitants. Infamous for its trendy, funky nightlife and of course its special
brew - Guinness, Dublin is one of Europe's top tourist destinations and its popularity
is still rising. Travellers love the Irish craic (fun), its literary heritage, its atmospheric
pubs, nightlife, museums and clean beaches. Weatherwise, the sun comes out in July
and August and the streets are alive with cafés and blooms. But if you don't mind a
spot of rain, Dublin offers year round festivals and sporting events. Dublin is divided
by the river Liffey separating Northsiders from Southsiders connected by the
O'Connel Bridge. The area is often thought of as the spiritual heart of the city. One of
the joys of Dublin is that it is a wonderfully compact city and easily to get around on
foot.
Dublin´s top 10:
1) Spire of Dublin or, officially titled “Monument of Light”, is one of Dublin's
newest monuments. It is a 121.2 metres conical spire made of stainless steel and
is located on O'Connell Street. It replaces Nelson's Pillar and is intended to mark
Dublin's place in the 21st century. The spire was designed by Ian Ritchie
Architects, who sought an “elegant and dynamic simplicity bridging art and
technology”. During the day it maintains its steel look, but at dusk the monument
appears to merge into the sky. The base of the monument is lit and the top is
illuminated to provide a beacon in the night sky across the city.
2) St. Patrick's Cathedral was built in 1192 by John Comyn, the first AngloNorman Bishop of Dublin. The present building was constructed between 1200
and 1270. Gradually the cathedral fell into disrepair, but was eventually restored
between 1860 and 1900. St. Patrick's Cathedral is not only a museum, but also a
church with services held every day of the year.
3) Phoenix Park is a place for the whole family. Young and old may take a rest and
watch the beautiful scenery. With its 1,760 acres, Phoenix Park is considered to
be the largest municipal park in the world. Dublin Zoo is located directly in the
centre of the Park and has become home to many species.
4) Trinity College is the oldest University in Ireland, founded in 1592. The Old
Library was built between 1712 and 1732 and houses the Book of Kells, a 9th
Century manuscript of the gospels.
5) Guinness Storehouse gives you the opportunity to discover the story behind
the famous Irish beer. A must see place for any visit to the capital. 250 years of
brewing history - from Arthur Guinness and the first shipment of his beer in 1769
to the modern brewing methods. At the end of the tour you will have the
opportunity to taste a complimentary pint in the Gravity Bar and enjoy a 360degree view of Dublin.

6) The Christ Church Cathedral is Dublin's oldest building and was founded by
the Norse King Sitric around 1030. The city's history is obviously linked with
Christ Church as the medieval Irish Parliament met within the church and it is
also the place where King Edward VI of England was crowned.
7) Dublin Castle is a major tourist attraction. Based in Dublin city centre right
between of the River Liffey and its tributary the Poddle. All historic buildings
have been restored and may be visited - from the Medieval Tower to the Chester
Beatty Library. The castles State Apartments today host Heads of State,
Presidents and leaders of business, industry and government.
8) „The Kitchen”, owned by U2, is one of Dublin's finest nightclubs. It is
considered to be one of the best nightclubs in the world and has won the
prestigious "Best Venue" Award at the Smirnoff Dance Awards. The Kitchen has
developed a strong and loyal following.
9) The Dundrum Town Centre is a shopping paradise for everyone. With bestknown brands and lesser-known brands it offers everything from clothes to
jewellery and tour agencies.
10) Stephen´s Green. As the old song goes: "Dublin can be heaven, with coffee at
eleven, and a stroll in Stephen's Green", the latter being the most stylish square in
all of Dublin and as such is a must-see. Is comprises a 27-acre Georgian square
blessed with fine lawns, flowers and waterfalls and surrounded by terraced
houses. All this right in the centre of the city.

Dublin city centre map

Checkpoint
1) For the three similar words choose the correct meaning:
extinct

extant

extend

- to stretch or spread out to greater or fullest length
- still in existence; not destroyed, lost
- no longer existing or living

2) Vocabulary: which topic do the following words belong to?
abbey badger bog brewery cape castle cathedral cattle cave church cliff college copper corn
dairying distillery estuary flax flour glen grain grazing head hedgehog herring inlet lead
leather marble marsh mill monastery mouth muslin otter oyster peak peat peninsula pillar
pottery precipice quarrying reptile salmon seal slate slope spire squirrel stream summit
tannery tide timber tower valley wool

animal

industry

product of industry

raw material

architecture

land / mountains

water (sea / rivers)

3) Try to explain/describe what the following expressions mean:

weathering:
drainage:
rugged country:
racecourse:
watering-place:

4) Combine the words from the two columns so that they make sense.

molten

mountain

indented

lava

bold

vessel

lofty

engine

stranded

slope

steam

coastline

3 History
Pre-history and medieval period
Mesolithic stone age inhabitants arrived some time after 8,000 BC. First settlers
came by foot to Ireland from Scandinavia via Scotland (Britain was at that times
connected with the continent) and than across the slim stripe of sea. Agriculture
followed with the Neolithic Age around 4,500 to 4,000 BC when sheep, goats, cattle
and cereals were imported from the Iberian peninsula (now: Spain, Portugal). Wheat
and barley were the principal crops.
The Bronze Age began around 2,500 BC, with technology changing people's everyday
lives during this period through innovations such as the wheel, harnessing oxen,
weaving textiles, brewing alcohol, and skillful metalworking, which produced new
weapons and tools, along with fine gold decoration and jewellery, such as brooches
and torcs. Ireland in the Late Bronze Age was part of a maritime trading-networked
culture called the Atlantic Bronze Age that also included Britain, France, Spain and
Portugal where Celtic languages developed. Druids and poets of Ireland were telling
stories and legends in a common language, that has clearly originated as a specific
Irish kind of Celtic language.
The Iron Age in Ireland is traditionally associated with people known as the Celts.
The Celts were commonly thought to have colonised Ireland in a series of invasions
between the 8th and 1st centuries BC. The Gaels, the last wave of Celts, were said to
have divided the island into five or more kingdoms after conquering it. However,
some favour a theory that emphasises the diffusion of culture from overseas as
opposed to a military colonisation.
Ptolemy records sixteen tribes inhabiting every part of Ireland in 100 AD. The
relationship between the Roman Empire and the tribes of ancient Ireland is unclear.
However, a number of finds of Roman coins have been found, for example at New
Grange (part of a complex of monuments built along a bend of the River Boyne).
Ireland continued as a patchwork of rival tribes but, beginning in the 7th century AD,
a concept of national kingship gradually became articulated through the concept of a
High King of Ireland. Medieval Irish literature portrays an almost unbroken sequence
of High Kings stretching back thousands of years but modern historians believe the
scheme was constructed in the 8th century to justify the status of powerful political
groupings by projecting the origins of their rule into the remote past. The High King
was said to preside over the patchwork of provincial kingdoms that together formed
Ireland. Each of these kingdoms had their own kings but were at least nominally
subject to the High King. The High King was drawn from the ranks of the provincial

kings and ruled also the royal kingdom of Meath (medieval kingdom of middle
Ireland), with a ceremonial capital at the Hill of Tara.

Newgrange was constructed over 5,000 years ago.
It was an ancient temple and a passage tomb, a
place of astrological, spiritual, religious and
ceremonial importance. retained at the base by 97
kerbstones, some of which are richly decorated
with megalithic art. The 19 metre long inner
passage leads to a cruciform chamber with a
corbelled roof. The amount of time and labour
invested in construction of Newgrange suggests a
well-organized society with specialised groups
responsible for different aspects of construction.

The Hill of Tara, known as Temair in gaeilge, was
once the ancient seat of power in Ireland – 142
kings are said to have reigned there in prehistoric
and historic times. In ancient Irish religion and
mythology Temair was the sacred place of
dwelling for the gods, and was the entrance to the
other world. Saint Patrick is said to have come to
Tara to confront the ancient religion of the pagans
at its most powerful site. One interpretation of the
name Tara says that it means a "place of great
prospect" and indeed on a clear day it is claimed
that features in half the counties of Ireland can be
seen from atop Tara. In the distance to the
northwest can be seen the brilliant white quartz
front of Newgrange and further north lies the Hill
of Slane, where according to legend St. Patrick lit
his Pascal fire prior to his visit to Tara in 433 AD.

The concept only became a political reality in the Viking Age and even then was not a
consistent one. However, Ireland did have a unifying rule of law: the early written
judicial system, the Brehon Laws (accumulated decisions of the judges), administered
by a professional class of jurists known as the brehons.
In 431 AD Bishop Palladius arrived in Ireland on a mission from Pope Celestine I to
minister to the Irish "already believing in Christ." The Chronicle of Ireland records
that Saint Patrick, Ireland's best known patron saint, arrived the following year.
Patrick´s mission brought an extraordinary victory: Ireland was the only westEuropean country where Christianity was adopted by pagans in a peaceful way
without torturing the Christians. The older Druid tradition collapsed in the face of the
new religion. Irish Christian scholars excelled in the study of Latin and Greek

learning and Christian theology. In the monastic culture that followed the
Christianisation of Ireland, Latin and Greek learning was preserved in Ireland during
the Early Middle Ages in contrast to elsewhere in Europe, where the Dark Ages
followed the decline of the Roman Empire.

When Patrick was about 16, he was captured from
Wales by Irish raiders and taken as a slave to Ireland
(Celts sometimes made raids to the ares of Roman
Britain to capture the loot and slaves to lower the lack
of working force), where he lived for six years before
escaping and returning to his family. After entering the
Church, he returned to Ireland as an ordained bishop
in the north and west of the island, but little is known
about the places where he worked. By the seventh
century, he had come to be revered as the patron saint
of Ireland.

A Druid was a member of the priestly class. The only
evidence of them is a few descriptions left by Greek
and Roman authors, and stories created by later
medieval Irish writers. They were one of the two most
important social groups in the region (alongside the
equities, or nobles), and were responsible for
organising worship and sacrifices, divination, and
judicial procedure.

The arts of manuscript illumination, metalworking and sculpture flourished and
produced treasures such as the Book of Kells (an illuminated manuscript Gospel book
in Latin, containing the four Gospels of the New Testament together with various
prefatory texts and tables created by Celtic monks ca. 800 or slightly earlier), ornate
jewellery and the many carved stone crosses that still dot the island today. A mission
founded in 563 on Iona by the Irish monk Saint Columba (or Colmcille) began a
tradition of Irish missionary work that spread Christianity and learning to Scotland,
England and the Frankish Empire on Continental Europe after the fall of Rome.
These missions continued until the late middle ages, establishing monasteries and
centres of learning, producing scholars such as Sedulius Scottus and Johannes
Eriugena and exerting much influence in Europe.

Norse Viking invasions
From the 9th century, waves of Viking raiders from Scandinavia plundered Irish
monasteries (places where treasures, relics and pieces of art were held) and towns
and the security of Irish society was endangered. Multi-storey rounded watchtowers
were built, many of them still exist. The raids added to a pattern of raiding and
endemic warfare that was already deep-seated in Ireland. As a positive perspective of
the period - the Vikings also were involved in establishing most of the major coastal
settlements in Ireland: Dublin, Limerick, Cork, Wexford, Waterford and others.
These firstly served as trade colonies. Development in seamanship, armament and
metal processing were also the by-results. At last, Vikings were defeated in the Battle
of Clontarf in 1014 by the High King Brian Boru.

Battle of Clontarf, Hugh Frazer, 1826

Norman and English invasions
In 1152, the wife of Tiernan O´Rourke, one of Irish Kings, was captured by Tiernan´s
rival Dermot Mac Murrough, the king of Leinster (south-east Ireland). It is said that
the lady was not an involuntary captive, but nevertheless, O´Rourke got his wife in a
few months back. Angry and not willing to forgive his rival he went to revenge and
Dermot Mac Murrough was forced to leave, firstly to England and than to France,
where he united forces with Richard de Clare (2nd earl of Pembroke). On 1 May 1169,
an expedition of Cambro (Welsh)-Norman knights with an army of about six hundred
landed in present-day County Wexford. It was led by Richard de Clare, called
Strongbow due to his prowess as an archer. The invasion coincided with a period of
renewed Norman expansion.

Tiernan O´Rourke

The house of Tiernan O´Rourke

Richard de Clare, marrying Dermot´s
daughter Eva

In 1166, Dermot Mac Murrough had fled to Anjou, France and sought the assistance
of the Angevin king, Henry II, in recapturing his kingdom. In 1171, Henry arrived in
Ireland in order to review the general progress of the expedition. He wanted to reexert royal authority over the invasion which was expanding beyond his control.
Henry successfully re-imposed his authority over Strongbow and the CambroNorman warlords and persuaded many of the Irish kings to accept him as their
overlord, an arrangement confirmed in the 1175 Treaty of Windsor (signed between
King Henry II of England and the High King of Ireland, Rory O'Connor. The accord,
overall, left Rory with a kingdom consisting of Ireland outside the provincial
kingdoms of Leinster, Meath, Dublin and County Waterford, as long as he paid
tribute to Henry II, and owed fealty to him).

In 1172, the pope Alexander III encouraged Henry to advance the integration of the
Irish Church with Rome. Henry was authorised to impose a tithe of one penny per
hearth as an annual contribution. This church levy, called Peter's Pence, is still extant
in Ireland as a voluntary donation. In turn, Henry accepted the title of Lord of Ireland
which Henry conferred on his younger son, John Lackland, in 1185. This defined the
Irish state as the Lordship of Ireland. When Henry's successor died unexpectedly in
1199, John inherited the crown of England and retained the Lordship of Ireland.
Over the century that followed, Norman feudal law gradually replaced the Gaelic
Brehon Law so that by the late 13th century the Norman-Irish had established a
feudal system throughout much of Ireland. Norman settlements were characterised
by the establishment of baronies, manors, towns and the seeds of the modern county
system. A version of the Magna Carta (the Great Charter of Ireland), substituting
Dublin for London and Irish Church for Church of England, was published in 1216
and the Parliament of Ireland was founded in 1297.
However, from the mid-14th century, after the Black Death, Norman settlements in
Ireland went into a period of decline. The Norman rulers and the Gaelic Irish elites
intermarried and the areas under Norman rule became Gaelicised. In some parts, a
hybrid Hiberno (Irish)-Norman culture emerged. In response, the Irish parliament
passed the Statutes of Kilkenny in 1367. These were a set of laws designed to prevent
the assimilation of the Normans into Irish society by prohibiting mixed marriages
and requiring English subjects in Ireland to speak English (not Gaelic), follow English
customs and abide by English law. However, by the end of the 15th century central
English authority in Ireland had all but disappeared and a renewed Irish culture and
language, albeit with Norman influences, was dominant again. English Crown control
remained relatively unshaken in an amorphous foothold around Dublin known as
The Pale (part of Ireland that was directly under the control of the English
government in the late Middle Ages), the Irish Parliamentary legislation was subject
to the approval of the English Parliament. However, in larger parts of Ireland the
English did not get ahead and the monasteries remained the seats of Catholic Church
and people kept on speaking Gaelic.

Kingdom of Ireland
The title of King of Ireland was re-created in 1542 by Henry VIII, then King of
England, of the Tudor dynasty. He was the first English king to adopt such a title.
English rule of law was reinforced and expanded in Ireland during the latter part of
the 16th century leading to the Tudor conquest of Ireland.
A near complete conquest was achieved by the turn of the 17th century, following the
Nine Years' War (took place in Ireland from 1594 to 1603. It was fought between the
forces of Irish chieftains Hugh O'Neill of Tír Eoghain, Hugh Roe O'Donnell of Tír
Chonaill and their allies, against English rule in Ireland. The war was fought in all

parts of the country, but mainly in the northern province of Ulster. It ended in defeat
for the Irish chieftains, which led to their exile. The war against O'Neill and his allies
was the largest conflict fought by England in the Elizabethan era) and the Flight of
the Earls (14 September 1607, when Hugh Ó Neill, Rory Ó Donnell and about ninety
followers left Ireland for mainland Europe).

Henry VIII becomes King of Ireland

Hugh O'Neill

Hugh Roe (Red) O'Donnell

This control was further consolidated during the wars and conflicts of the 17th
century, which witnessed English and Scottish colonisation in the Plantations of
Ireland (confiscation of land by the English crown and the colonisation of this land
with settlers from England and the Scottish Lowlands, which has forever turned the
Ulster county into an area different from the rest of Ireland. Since than the saying “to
hell or to Connaught” became popular), the Wars of the Three Kingdoms
(intertwined series of conflicts that took place in England, Ireland, and Scotland
between 1639 and 1651 after these three countries had come under the "Personal
Rule" of the same monarch. The English Civil War has become the best-known of
these conflicts) and the Williamite War (conflict between Catholic King James II and
Protestant King William of Orange over who would be King of England, Scotland and
Ireland). Irish losses during the Wars of the three Kingdoms are estimated to include
20,000 battlefield casualties. 200,000 civilians are estimated to have died as a result
of a combination of war-related famine, displacement, guerilla activity and pestilence
over the duration of the war. A further 50,000 were sent to slavery in the West Indies.
Some estimations say that as much as half of the pre-war population of Ireland may
have died as a result of the conflict.
The religious struggles of the 17th century left a deep sectarian division in Ireland.
Religious allegiance now determined the perception in law of loyalty to the Irish King
and Parliament. After the passing of the Test Act 1672 (a series of English penal laws
that served as a religious test for public office and imposed various civil disabilities on
Roman Catholics and Nonconformists – those who refused to follow the governance
of the Church of England. The principle was that none but persons professing the

Established Church were eligible for public employment, and the severe penalties
pronounced against recusants, whether Catholic or Nonconformist, were affirmations
of this principle), Roman Catholics and nonconforming Protestant Dissenters were
barred from sitting as members in the Irish Parliament. Under the emerging penal
laws Irish Roman Catholics and Dissenters were increasingly deprived of various and
sundry civil rights even to the ownership of hereditary property. Additional regressive
punitive legislation followed 1703, 1709 and 1728. This completed a comprehensive
systemic effort to materially disadvantage Roman Catholics and Protestant
Dissenters, while enriching a new ruling class of Anglican conformists. The new
Anglo-Irish ruling class became known as the Protestant Ascendancy.
An extraordinary climatic shock known as the "Great Frost" (extraordinarily cold
winters) struck Ireland and the rest of Europe between December 1739 and
September 1741, after a decade of relatively mild winters. The winters destroyed
stored crops of potatoes and other staples and the poor summers severely damaged
harvests. This resulted in the famine of 1740. An estimated 250,000 people (about
one in eight of the population) died from the ensuing pestilence and disease. The
Irish government halted export of corn and kept the army in quarters but did little
more. Local gentry and charitable organisations provided relief but could do little to
prevent the ensuing mortality.

The Great Frost on the Thames

In the aftermath of the famine, an increase in industrial production and a surge in
trade brought a succession of construction booms. The population soared in the latter
part of this century and the architectural legacy of Georgian Ireland was built. In
1782, Poynings' Law was repealed, giving Ireland virtual legislative independence
from Great Britain for the first time since the Norman invasion. The British
government, however, still retained the right to nominate the government of Ireland
without the consent of the Irish parliament.

In 1798, members of the Protestant Dissenter tradition (mainly Presbyterian) made
common cause with Roman Catholics in a republican rebellion inspired and led by
the Society of United Irishmen, with the aim of creating an independent Ireland.
Despite assistance from France the rebellion was put down by British and Irish
government and yeomanry forces. In 1800, the British and Irish parliaments both
passed Acts of Union that, with effect from 1 January 1801, merged the Kingdom of
Ireland and the Kingdom of Great Britain to create a United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland.

Union with Great Britain
The passage of the Act in the Irish Parliament was ultimately achieved with
substantial majorities, having failed on the first attempt in 1799. This was achieved
through a considerable degree of bribery, with funding provided by the British Secret
Service Office, and the awarding of peerages, places and honours to secure votes.
Thus, Ireland became part of an extended United Kingdom, ruled directly by a united
parliament at Westminster in London.
The Great Famine of the 1840s caused the deaths of one million Irish people and over
a million more emigrated to escape it. The first indications were recorded in 1845,
when it was discovered that potatoes in the farms of south-east Ireland were infested
by smut. By the end of the decade, half of all immigration to the United States was
from Ireland (mainly Boston and New York). Mass emigration became deeply
entrenched and the population continued to decline until the mid-20th century.

The museum caption of this
photo reads: „One of the
poignant scenes from the famine
as police evict tenants from their
modest home.“

Starving family during the Great
Famine

Ellis island immigrants, cca
1918

Immediately prior to the famine the population was recorded as 8.2 million by the
1841 census. The population has never returned to this level since. The population
continued to fall until 1961 and it was not until the 2006 census that the last county
of Ireland (County Leitrim) to record a rise in population since 1841 did so.
The 19th and early 20th centuries saw the rise of modern Irish nationalism, primarily
among the Roman Catholic population. The pre-eminent Irish political figure after
the Union was Daniel O'Connell. He was elected as Member of Parliament for Ennis
(county town of Clare in Ireland) in a surprise result and despite being unable to take
his seat as a Roman Catholic. O'Connell spearheaded a vigorous campaign that was
taken up by the Prime Minister, the Irish-born soldier and statesman, the Duke of
Wellington. Steering the Catholic Relief Bill through Parliament, aided by future
prime minister Robert Peel, Wellington prevailed upon a reluctant George IV to sign
the Bill and proclaim it into law. George's father had opposed the plan of the earlier
Prime Minister, Pitt the Younger, to introduce such a bill following the Union of 1801,
fearing Catholic Emancipation to be in conflict with the Act of Settlement 1701.
A subsequent campaign, led by O'Connell, for the repeal of the Act of Union failed.
Later in the century, Charles Stewart Parnell and others campaigned for autonomy
within the Union, or "Home Rule". Unionists, especially those located in Ulster, were
strongly opposed to Home Rule, which they thought would be dominated by Catholic
interests. After several attempts to pass a Home Rule bill through parliament, it
looked certain that one would finally pass in 1914. To prevent this from happening,
the Ulster Volunteers were formed in 1913 under the leadership of Edward Carson.
Parnell along with Michael Davitt declared the so called Land War (1879-1882) with
masses of people to take part. In county Mayo there was an incident after the
landlord refused to cooperate with reformers. The Land League (reformers and their
followers) isolated him from the surrounding world so precisely, that his name,
Charles Boycott, came into English language as a general notion meaning “to
ostracise”.

The former house of Charles Boycott on Achill
Island. The house has been modernised and
renovated since Boycott's time.

Formation of Ulster Volunteers was followed in 1914 by the establishment of the Irish
Volunteers, whose aim was to ensure that the Home Rule Bill (an act intended to
provide self-government for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland) was passed. The Act was passed but with the "temporary" exclusion of the six
counties of Ulster that would become Northern Ireland. Before it could be
implemented, however, the Act was suspended for the duration of the First World
War. The Irish Volunteers split into two groups. The majority, approximately 175,000
in number, under John Redmond, took the name National Volunteers and supported
Irish involvement in the war. A minority, approximately 13,000, retained the Irish
Volunteers name, and opposed Ireland's involvement in the war.
The failed Easter Rising of 1916 was carried out by the latter group in alliance with a
smaller socialist militia, the Irish Citizen Army. The British response, executing
fifteen leaders of the Rising over a period of ten days and imprisoning or interning
more than a thousand people, turned the mood of the country in favour of the rebels.
The pro-independence republican party, Sinn Féin (“ourselves” or “we ourselves”),
received overwhelming endorsement in the general election of 1918, and in 1919
proclaimed an Irish Republic, setting up its own parliament (Dáil Éireann) and
government. British authorities attempted to extinguish this challenge, sparking a
guerilla war from 1919 to July 1921 which ended in a truce.
In 1921, the Anglo-Irish Treaty was concluded between the British Government and
representatives of the First Dáil (First Parliament). It gave all of Ireland complete
independence in their home affairs and practical independence for foreign policy.
However, an oath of allegiance to the British Crown had to be exercised, and
Northern Ireland was given an opt-out clause, which it exercised immediately as
expected. Disagreements over these provisions led to a split in the nationalist
movement and a subsequent civil war between the new government of the Irish Free
State and those opposed to the treaty, led by Éamon de Valera. The civil war officially
ended in May 1923 when de Valera issued a cease-fire order.

Éamon de Valera,
commander in Easter
Uprising, born in New
York to an Irish mother
and Spanish father.

Sinn Fein

Partition
During its first decade the newly formed Irish Free State was governed by the victors
of the civil war. When de Valera achieved power, he took advantage of the Statute of
Westminster and political circumstances to build upon inroads to greater sovereignty
made by the previous government. The oath was abolished and in 1937 a new
constitution was adopted. This completed a process of gradual separation from the
British Empire that governments had pursued since independence. However, it was
not until 1949 that the state was declared, officially, to be the Republic of Ireland.
The state was neutral during World War II, but offered clandestine assistance to the
Allies, particularly in the potential defence of Northern Ireland. Despite being
neutral, approximately 50,000 volunteers from independent Ireland joined the
British forces during the war, four being awarded Victoria Crosses.
German Intelligence was also active in Ireland, with both the Abwehr (the German
military intelligence service) and the SD (the Sicherheitsdienst, the intelligence
service of the SS) sending agents there. German intelligence operations effectively
ended in September 1941 when An Garda Síochána (police force of Ireland) made
arrests on the basis of surveillance carried out on the key diplomatic legations in
Ireland, including the United States. To the authorities counter-intelligence was more
than mere luxury, but a fundamental line of defence. With a regular army of only
slightly over seven thousand men at the start of the war, and with limited supplies of
modern weapons, the state would have had great difficulty in defending itself from
invasion from either side of the conflict.
Large-scale emigration marked the 1950s and 1980s, but beginning in 1987 the
economy improved, and the 1990s saw the beginning of substantial economic growth.
This period of growth became known as the Celtic Tiger. The Republic's real GDP
grew by an average of 9.6% per annum between 1995 and 1999 and in 2000 Ireland
was the sixth-richest country in the world in terms of GDP per capita. Social changes
followed quickly on the heels of economic prosperity ranging from the
“modernisation” of the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin to the decline in authority
of the Catholic Church. The financial crisis of 2008–2010 dramatically ended this
period of boom. GDP fell by 3% in 2008, by nearly 8% in 2009 and 1% in 2010, the
worst year since records began (although earnings by foreign-owned businesses
continued to grow).

Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland was created as a division of the United Kingdom by the Government
of Ireland Act 1920 and until 1972 it was a self-governing jurisdiction within the
United Kingdom with its own parliament and prime minister. Northern Ireland, as

part of the United Kingdom, was not neutral during the Second World War and
Belfast suffered four bombing raids in 1941.
Although Northern Ireland was largely spared the strife of the civil war, in decades
that followed partition there were sporadic episodes of inter-communal violence.
Nationalists, mainly Roman Catholic, wanted to unite Ireland as an independent
republic, whereas unionists, mainly Protestant, wanted Northern Ireland to remain in
the United Kingdom.
In the late 1960s, nationalist grievances were aired publicly in mass civil rights
protests, which were often confronted by loyalist counter-protests. The government's
reaction to confrontations was seen to be one-sided and heavy-handed in favour of
unionists. Law and order broke down as unrest and inter-communal violence
increased. The Northern Ireland government requested the British Army to aid the
police, who were exhausted after several nights of serious rioting. In 1969, the
paramilitary Provisional IRA, which favoured the creation of a united Ireland,
emerged from a split in the Irish Republican Army and began a campaign against
what it called the "British occupation of the six counties". Other groups, on both the
unionist side and the nationalist side, participated in violence and a period known as
the Troubles began.

The Troubles

Over 3,600 deaths resulted over the subsequent three decades of conflict. Owing to
the civil unrest during the Troubles, the British government suspended home rule in
1972 and imposed direct rule. There were several ultimately unsuccessful attempts to
end the Troubles politically. In 1998, following a ceasefire by the Provisional IRA and
multi-party talks, the Belfast Agreement was concluded as a treaty between the
United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, annexing the text agreed in the multiparty talks. The substance of the Agreement (often referred to as the Good Friday
Agreement) was later endorsed by referendums in both parts of Ireland. The
Agreement restored self-government to Northern Ireland on the basis of powersharing in a regional Executive. The Executive is jointly headed by a First Minister
and deputy First Minister drawn from the unionist and nationalist parties. Violence
had decreased greatly after the Provisional IRA and loyalist ceasefires in 1994 and in

2005 the Provisional IRA announced the end of its armed campaign and an
independent commission supervised its disarmament and that of other nationalist
and unionist paramilitary organisations. The Assembly and power-sharing Executive
were suspended several times but were restored again in 2007. In that year the
British government officially ended its military support of the police in Northern
Ireland (Operation Banner) and began withdrawing troops.

Checkpoint
1) Explain the following facts connected to Irish history.

a Druid
Hill of Tara
Brehon Laws
to hell or to Connaught saying
Sinn Féin
Celtic Tiger
The Troubles
IRA

2) What was the importance of the acts or treaties? Combine them
with the correct year.

1175

Test Act

1367

Treaty of Windsor

1672

Statutes of Kilkenny

3) Quiz

1. Where did the first settlers of Ireland come from?
2. Who was the first Christian missionary to come to Ireland?
3. Who began the tradition of Irish missionary work?
4. Where did St. Patrick come from?
5. Who were the two most famous medieval scholars?
6. Who was the vanquisher of the Vikings (where and when)?
7. What was the nickname of Richard de Clare (what was the origin of the
nickname)?
8. Which „foreigner“ firstly adopted the title „King of Ireland“?

9. What were the results of the Great Frost?
10. How the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was formed?
11. What were the results of the Great Famine?
12. Who were some of the important people fighting for Irish emancipation in the
early 20th century?
Daniel ........... Charles Stewart .............. Michael ............ Éamon .............
13. How did the term „boycott“ originate?
14. When did Ireland became independent from the UK?
15. When was the state of Ireland definitely declared as the Republic of Ireland?

4 Political system
Irish expressions related to politics



























Taoiseach (tee-shuck) – prime minister
Tánaiste (taw-nish-tuh) – deputy prime minister
Oireachtas (o-rock-tas) – parliament
Dáil Éireann (doil ay-run) – lower house, House of Representatives
Seanad Éireann (shan-ad ay-run) – upper house, Senate
Ceann Comhairle (kyan ko-r lyu) – chairman, speaker of the lower house
Cathaoirleach (ka hear lyukh ) – chairman, speaker of the upper house
TD(s), Teachta Dala (ty-och-ta daw-la) – member of Dáil - lower house
Seanadóir (shan-ador) – senator, member of the upper house
Bunreacht na hÉireann (bunracht n-ay-run) – Irish constitution
Fianna Fail (fien f-ol) – translated as soldiers of destiny or warriors of Fál
("Fál" being a legendary name for Ireland), political party
Fine Gael (fin g-el) – meaning Family or Tribe of the Irish, political party
Sinn Féin (shin fein) - meaning ourselves or we ourselves, political party

Republic and president
Administrative divisions:
26 counties; Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Kildare,
Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan,
Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow
note: Cavan, Donegal, and Monaghan are part of Ulster Province
Independence:
6 December 1921 (from UK by treaty)
Constitution:
adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite; effective 29 December 1937
Ireland is a sovereign, independent, representative democratic state with a
parliamentary system of government. The president, who serves as head of state in a
largely ceremonial role (real political power being vested in the indirectly elected
Taoiseach – prime minister), is elected for a 7-year term and can be re-elected only
once. President is the head of the state.
In keeping with the state's parliamentary system of government the President
exercises a mainly ceremonial role but does possess certain specific powers. The

presidency is open to all Irish citizens who are at least 35. They are directly elected by
secret ballot under the alternative vote. A candidate may be nominated for election as
President by no fewer than 20 members of the Oireachtas or by four or more of
Ireland's 34 County and City Councils. A retiring President may nominate themselves
as a candidate for re-election. If only one valid candidate is nominated for election,
for example if there is consensus among the political parties to nominate a single
candidate, it is unnecessary to proceed to a ballot and that candidate is deemed
elected.

The president of Ireland's residence in the Phoenix Park, Dublin.

The current president is Michael D. Higgins (elected in October 2011, Labour Party).
He is a successor to Mary McAleese (1997-2011), who was serving her two terms after
having succeeded President Mary Robinson - the first instance worldwide where one
woman has followed another as an elected head of state. In carrying out certain
constitutional powers and functions, the president is aided by the Council of State, an
advisory body. On the Taoiseach's (prime minister's) advice, the president also
dissolves the Oireachtas (Parliament).
In carrying out certain of their constitutional functions, the President is aided by the
Council of State (a body established by the Constitution of Ireland to advise the
President of Ireland in the exercise of many of his or her discretionary, reserve
powers. There is no Vice-President in Ireland). If for any reason the President is
unable to carry out his/her functions, or if the Office of President is vacant, the duties
of the President are carried out by the Presidential Commission (the collective vicepresidency consisting of three members: Chief Justice – President of the Supreme
Court; Ceann Comhairle – Presiding officer, chairman, of Dáil Éireann; Cathaoirleach
– Chairman of Seanad Éireann).

Government
head of government:
prime minister Enda Kenny (appointed on 9 March 2011)
deputy prime minister Eamon Gilmore (appointed in March 2011)
cabinet:
appointed by the president with previous nomination by the prime minister and
approval of the lower house of parliament
elections:
prime minister nominated by the lower house of parliament and appointed by the
president
note:
government coalition – Fine Gael and Labour (they won 113 out of 166 seats in the
House of Representatives)

Irish government buildings

Executive power is exercised by the government. Article 28 of the Constitution states
that the Government may consist of no more than 15 cabinet ministers, inclusive of
the Taoiseach (prime minister) and Tánaiste (deputy prime minister). The prime
minister (Taoiseach) is appointed by the President after being elected by the Dáil
(lower house of Parliament) as the leader of the political party, or coalition of parties,
which wins the most seats in the national elections, held approximately every 5 years
(unless called earlier). Executive power is vested in a cabinet whose ministers are
nominated by the Taoiseach, approved by the Dail and appointed by the President.
The Government must enjoy the confidence of Dáil Éireann and, in the event that
they cease to enjoy the support of the lower house, the Taoiseach must either resign
or request the President to dissolve the Dáil, in which case a general election follows.

Local government is by-elected county councils and in the cities of Dublin, Cork,
Limerick, and Waterfor by county borough corporations. In practice, however,
authority remains with the central government.

Parliament
Legislative power is vested in the Oireachtas. Article 15 of the Constitution of Ireland
established the Oireachtas as the national parliament of Ireland. The Oireachtas
consists of the President of Ireland and two elected houses: Dáil Éireann (the House
of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (the Senate). As the Oireachtas also consists
of the President, the official title of the two law making houses is the Houses of the
Oireachtas. The Dáil is by far the dominant House of the legislature. The President
may not veto bills passed by the Oireachtas, but may refer them to the Supreme Court
of Ireland for a ruling on whether they comply with the constitution.

Leinsterhouse - seat of the Houses of the Oireachtas.

Parliament (Oireachtas) consists of
•

the Senate or Seanad Eireann (Seanad): 60 seats – 11 are nominated by the
prime minister, six elected by the graduates of certain Irish universities ( 3 University of Dublin, 3 - National University of Ireland), 43 elected from five
special panels of nominees (known as Vocational Panels) by an electorate
consisting of TDs (member of Dáil Éireann), senators and local councillors.
Members serve five-year terms.

•

the House of Representatives or Dail Eireann (Dail): 166 seats; members are
elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve
five-year terms

Election results (held in 2007 and 2011) - seats for the parties:

Political Affiliation

2007

2011

Christian Solidarity

0

0

Fianna Fáil excl. Ceann Comhairle

77

19

Fine Gael

51

76

Fís Nua

n/a

0

Green Party

6

0

Labour Party

20

37

Sinn Féin

4

14

United Left Alliance

n/a

5

People Before Profit Alliance

0

2

Socialist Workers Party

0

0

Socialist Party

0

2

Workers & Unemployed Action Group

0

1

Workers Party of Ireland

0

0

Independent Candidates

5

14

New Vision Independent Candidates

n/a

1

Ceann Comh

1

1

airle

1

1

Progressive Democrats

2

n/a

Confirmed Seats

166

166

NOTES: The 2007 results are for the 2007 General Election alone, and do not allow for subsequent byelections which saw seat changes between affiliations.

Dáil Éireann
Members of the Dáil are directly elected at least once in every five years under the
single transferable vote form of proportional representation from multi-seat
constituencies. Membership of the house is open to all Irish citizens who are at least
21 and permanently resident in the State. The electorate consists of all Irish and
British citizens resident in Ireland over the age of 18. Members of the Dáil are known
as Teachta Dála or TDs. Currently there are has 166 TDs, of which one, the Ceann
Comhairle (Chairman), is automatically returned at an election. The Taoiseach,
Tánaiste and the Minister for Finance must be members of the Dáil. All other
members of the Government must be members of the Dáil, however up to two
members may be members of the Seanad. The Dáil is the only House which can
introduce and amend money bills (i.e. financial and tax legislation). Since the early
1990s no single party has had a majority in Dáil Éireann, so that coalition
governments have been the norm.
Seanad Éireann
The Senate is a largely advisory body. It consists of sixty members called Senators
(seanadóirí). An election for the Seanad must take place no later than 90 days after a
general election for the members of the Dáil. Eleven Senators are nominated by the
Taoiseach while a further six are elected by certain national universities. The
remaining 43 are elected from special vocational panels of candidates, the electorate
for which consists of the 60 members of the outgoing Senate, the 166 TDs of the
incoming Dáil and the 883 elected members of 5 city and 29 county councils. The
Senate has the power to delay legislative proposals and is allowed 90 days to consider
and amend bills sent to it by the Dáil (excluding money bills). The Senate is only
allowed 21 days to consider money bills sent to it by the Dáil. The Senate cannot
amend money bills but can make recommendations to the Dáil on such bills.

Party system
While there are a number of political parties in the state, the political landscape has
been dominated for decades by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. They both grew out of
Ireland's bitter 1922-23 civil war. They are historically opposed and competing
entities, which both occupy the traditional centre ground. From the 1930s until 2011
they were the largest and second largest parties respectively.
Fianna Fail (The Republican Party, a centrist political party) was formed by those
who opposed the 1921 treaty that partitioned the island. Although treaty opponents
lost the civil war, Fianna Fail soon became Ireland's largest political party. The May
2007 national elections brought the Fianna Fail party back to power in a coalition
government for an unprecedented third five-year term. Historically Fianna Fáil has
been seen as to the left of Fine Gael and to the right of the Labour Party and is

generally seen as a classic "catch all" populist party- representing a broad range of
people from all social classes with the belief in the coincidence of economic growth
and social progress.
Fine Gael, representative of the pro-treaty forces, remains the country's secondlargest party. Fine Gael describes itself as a "party of the progressive centre"
conforming strongly to the ideals of Christian democracy and compassionate
centrism, and is often seen as being moderate on social issues but conservative as
regards economics. The party lists its core values as equality of opportunity, fiscal
rectitude, free enterprise and reward, individual rights and responsibilities.
The Labour Party (social-democracy, founded in 1912), historically the state's third
political party has only ever been in power when in coalition with either of the two
main parties. In 2011 there was a major political realignment in Ireland, with Fine
Gael becoming the largest party, Labour the second, and Fianna Fáil dropping to
third following a collapse in support.
Sinn Fein (founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith) took its current form in 1970 after a
split within the party. The party has historically been associated with the Provisional
IRA. Sinn Féin is currently the second-largest party in the Northern Ireland
Assembly. Sinn Féin is considered a democratic socialist or left-wing party. The party
pledges support for minority rights, migrants' rights, and eradicating poverty.
The Progressive Democrats, Labour, Socialist Party, The Worker´s Party and the
Green Party are the other significant parties.

Foreign relations
Ireland's foreign relations are substantially influenced by its membership of the
European Union, although bilateral relations with the United States and United
Kingdom are also important to the country. It is one of the groups of smaller nations
in the EU, and has traditionally followed a non-aligned foreign policy.
Military neutrality
Ireland tends towards independence in foreign policy, thus it is not a member of
NATO and has a longstanding policy of military neutrality. This policy has helped the
Irish Defence Forces to be successful in their contributions to UN peace-keeping
missions since 1960 (in the Congo Crisis) and subsequently in Cyprus, Lebanon,
Iran/Iraq Border, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ethiopia and Eritrea, Liberia, East Timor,
Darfur and Chad. Irish Defence Forces do not deploy in Missions.

International organisation participation
The Republic is member of the Australia Group, BIS (Bank of International
Settlements), CE (Council of Europe), Celtic League, EBRD (European Bank for
reconstruction and Development), EIB (European Investment Bank), EMU
(Economic and Monetary Union of the EU), ESA, FAO (Food and Agriculture
Organisation), ICC (International Chamber of Commerce), ICCt (International
Criminal Court), ICRM (Red Cross), ILO (International Labour Organisation), IMF
(International Monetary Fund), Interpol, OECD, OSCE (Oragnisation for Security
and Co-operation in Europe), Paris Club, PFP (Partnership for Peace), UN, UNESCO,
UNHCR, UNTSO, WEU (Western European Union - observer), WHO, WTO and
others.

Law and justice
Supreme Court:
judges appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and cabinet
Legal system:
based on English common law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Ireland is a common law jurisdiction: common law is a type of law developed by
judges through decisions of courts and similar tribunals rather than through
legislative statutes or executive branch action. A "common law system" is a legal
system that gives great precedential weight to common law, on the principle that it is
unfair to treat similar facts differently on different occasions.
The state operates under the Constitution of Ireland (Bunreacht na hÉireann) which
was adopted in 1937 by means of a plebiscite. The constitution falls within the liberal
democratic tradition. It defines the organs of government and guarantees certain
fundamental rights. The Constitution can only be amended by means of a
referendum. Important constitutional referendums have concerned issues such as
abortion, the status of the Catholic Church, divorce, and the European Union.
The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The judiciary
consists of the Supreme Court, the High Court and other lower courts established by
law. The head of the judiciary is the Chief Justice who presides over the Supreme
Court. Judges are appointed by the president on nomination by the government and
can be removed from office only for misbehavior or incapacity and then only by
resolution of both houses of Parliament. The ultimate court of appeal is the Supreme
Court, consisting of the chief justice and five other justices. The Supreme Court also

can decide upon the constitutionality of legislative acts if the president asks for an
opinion. Both the Supreme Court and the High Court have the power of judicial
review and may declare to be invalid both laws and acts of the state which are
repugnant to the constitution.

Dublin´s The Four Courts (main courts building) on the quays of the Liffey

Checkpoint
1) Quiz – choose the correct answer:

1. How many provinces does Ireland consist of?
a) 3

b) 4

c) 5

2. How many counties does Ireland consist of?
a) 22

b) 26 c) 28

3. When the Irish constitution was adopted?
a) 1917

b) 1927

c)1937

4. How long is the president elected for?
a) 5 years

b) 6 years

c) 7 years

5. How old should an applicant be in order to become a president?
a) 21 years

b) 30 years

c) 35 years

6. Who helps the president with carrying out certain constitutional powers and
functions?
a) Council of State

b) Vice-president

c) Presidential Commission

7. The Irish government can consist of more than 15 cabinet ministers:
a) yes

b) no c) only if the Oireachtas approves so

8. Normall, the general elections are held every:
a)4

b) 5

c) 6 years

9. The president may veto the bills passed by Oireachtas:
a) yes

b) no c) only if there was a referendum

10. Do universities have the right to vote for Oireachtas?
a) yes – Senate

b) yes – Dáil

c) yes – both

d) no - never

11. How many TDs are there in Dáil?
a) 116

b) 160

c) 166

12. Which parties does the coalition after 2011 general elections consist of?
a) Fine Gael + Labour party
b) Fianna Fáil + Labour party
c) Sinn Féin + Labour party

13. Ireland participates in .... . Which is wrong?
a) EU, OECD, NATO, IMF
b) EU, OECD, Paris club, IMF
c) EU, OECD, Paris club, IBRD
14. The constitution can be amended by the means of:
a) 3/5 majority of the Oireachtas
b) 2/3 majority of the Oireachtas
c) referendum
15. Which is the court of the final appeal?
a) Supreme Court

b) High Court

c) Court of Final Appeal

2) Correct the sentences:

1. In keeping with the state's parliamentary system of government the President
exercises an important role and possesses great political powers.

2. A candidate may be nominated for election as President by no fewer than 10
members of the Oireachtas or by 10 or more of Ireland's 34 County and City
Councils.

3. A retiring President may nominate themselves as a candidate for re-election
twice.

4. President Mary McAleese was serving her two terms after having succeeded
President Mary Robinson - the first instance in Europe where one woman has
followed another as an elected head of state.

5. The Presidential Commission consists of three members: Tánaiste – deputy
prime minister; Ceann Comhairle – chairman of Dáil Éireann; Cathaoirleach –
Chairman of Seanad Éireann.

6. The prime minister (Taoiseach) is appointed by the President after being elected
by the Seanad (upper house of Parliament) as the leader of the political party, or
coalition of parties, which wins the most seats.

7. Local government is by-elected county councils and in the cities of Dublin, Cork,
Limerick, and Belfast by county borough corporations.

8. The Oireachtas consists of the Chief Justice and two elected houses: Dáil Éireann
and Seanad Éireann.

9. The electorate for general elections consists of all Irish, Scottish and British
citizens resident in Ireland over the age of 18.

10. The Senate has the power to delay legislative proposals and is allowed 90 days to
consider and amend bills sent to it by the Dáil (including money bills).

11. Fianna Fail is an elitist party.

12. Fine Gael remains the country's first-largest party.

13. The Labour Party has only once been in power without being in coalition with
either of the two main parties.

14. Sinn Fein is currently the second-largest party in the Republic of Ireland
Assembly.

15. A "common law system" is a legal system that gives great weight to every unique
case on the principle that every case has to be treated differently, regarding the
conditions and circumstances.

16. Important constitutional referendums have concerned issues such as abortion,
the status of the Catholic Church, euthanasia, divorce, and the European Union.

Literature and resources
BERNSTEIN, Ken; ORAM, Hugh;
2002. ISBN 80-85840-85-5.

DOODY, Sinéad: Irsko. Bučovice: RO-TO-M,

BRENDLOVÁ, Světla: Reálie anglicky hovoriacich krajín. Bratislava: Fraus, 1999.
ISBN 80-88844-39-8.
GARWOOD, Christopher; GARDANI, Guglielmo; PERIS, Edda: Aspects of Britain
and the USA. Oxford: OUP, 1992. ISBN 0-19-454245-9.
KOCOUREK, Milan: Britské obrázky (aneb album z Albionu). Praha: Ottovo
nakladatelství, 2008. ISBN 978-80-7360-715-9.
Kolektív autorov: Wazzup? Slovník slangu a hovorovej angličtiny. Bratislava:
Lingea, 2008. ISBN 978-80-89323-19-7.
MOKRESOVÁ, Eliška: British and American Life and Institutions. Ostrava: Impex,
1994. ISBN 80-901756-2-7.
O´DRISCOLL, James: Britain for learners of English. Oxford: OUP, 2009. ISBN
978-0-19-4306447.
O´DRISCOLL, James: Britain for learners of English, workbook. Oxford: OUP,
2009. ISBN 978-0-19-4306478.
SZÁNTÓ, György Tibor: Dejiny Anglicka. Bratislava: Kalligram, 1996. ISBN 80-7149131-4.
TICHÁ, Věra: Jak se žije a myslí po anglicku (aneb Co jste možná v učebnici
nenašli). Dubicko: INFOA, 2000. ISBN 80-7240-137-8.
WITTICH, John: London Bus-Top Tourist. Wilmslow: Sigma Press, 1997. ISBN 185058-430-3.

Web sources

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland:
British Parliament

http://www.parliament.uk/

Directgov

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/index.htm

BBC history

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/

The British Monarchy

http://www.royal.gov.uk/

Visit Britain

http://www.visitbritain.com/en/EN/

The Republic of Ireland:
Irish Parliament

http://www.oireachtas.ie/parliament/

Irish Government

http://www.gov.ie

Irish President

http://www.president.ie

Discover Ireland

http://www.discoverireland.com

Ireland

http://www.ireland.com

Lonely Planet – Ireland

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/ireland

Visit Ireland

http://www.visitireland.com

Martina Macúchová – Lenka Michelčíková
United Kingdom & Ireland (important and interesting facts)

Vydavateľ:

Univerzita Konštantína Filozofa v Nitre
Filozofická fakulta
Posudzovatelia:
Doc. Olga Ruda, PhD.
PaedDr. Jana Waldnerová, PhD.
Technický redaktor: Mgr. Ondrej Zrubec
Autor obálky:
Mgr. Ondrej Zrubec
Vydanie:
prvé
Rok vydania:
2011
Náklad:
100 kusov
Rozsah:
130 s. (5,58 AH)

ISBN 978-80-558-0027-1