The Making of Great Britain
England and Wales
In 1543, during the Tudor times, England and Wales were united as one country. Scotland and Ireland remained separate kingdoms, with their own parliaments and laws until the much later.
England and Scotland
In 1603 England and Scotland shared the same king. King James VI of Scotland became also James I of England.
James I was very keen to be King of Great Britain, and from 1606 Scots were officially called English citizens. However, it wasn't until 1652, that the two countries were united together through force by Oliver Cromwell. The Scots had never accepted this action.
Kingdom of Great Britain
In 1707 the Act of Union meant that Scotland lost her Parliament and her independence and became part of a new country to be called 'Kingdom of Great Britain'. Since the union of 1707, the entire island has been one political unit, firstly as the Kingdom of Great Britain, later as part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and then as the present United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Since the formation of this unified state, the adjective British has come to refer to things associated with the United Kingdom generally such as citizenship, and not just the island of Great Britain.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
In 1801 a second Act of Union was passed, creating yet another new country, the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland'.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
The Anglo-Irish treaty of 1921 removed mainland Ireland from the UK. Six northern Irish counties (Northern Ireland) remained part of the UK.
'Union Jack' was officially acknowledged as an alternative name for the Union Flag by the Admiralty and Parliament in the early 20th century. The term 'jack' refers to the flag that is flown from the bowsprit of a ship, often denoting nationality. The Union Flag is commonly known as the Union Jack, although the exact origin of the name is unclear. One explanation is that it gets its name from the "jackstaff" of naval vessels from which the original Union Flag was flown.
Seminar 3(2 hours)
Theme: Traditions, customs, Public, Holidays and Food of Great Britain.
Test Questions.
Bank Holidays.
Pubs and Clubs.
Traditional British Food and Drink.
National Icons (“a cup of tea”; “Gin” (Mother’s Ruin); “thatched cottages”; “Sir Toby Belch – toby jug”; “the Routemaster”; “hackney carriage”; “King Arthur”; “Robin Hood”; “Loch Ness”; “Irn Bru”; “tartan”; “plaid”; “Llanfair PG”; “Scotch”; “Walsh love spoon”; “leeks and Walsh cuisine”; “Walsh castles”; “Britain’s smallest house”).
Problems for class discussion.
Describe the pub, a traditional, ‘peculiarity English institution’.
Describe the way most people in Britain spend their weekend.
Discuss the Briton’s love of his own garden and his countryside position.
What do traditional English breakfast and Sunday dinner consist of?
Practical assignments.
Write essays on the following subject: What is an Englishman? Or my image of Briton’s character.
Study the most popular National British Icons at the website: http://cultureonline.gov.uk/projects/icons.asp