2. Great britain.

(1) THE OFFICIAL NAME. The official name of the country is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or U.K. for short.

(2) GEOGRAPHICAL SITUATION. The country is made up of many islands (about 5,000 in all) situated off the north-western shores of Europe and collectively called the British isles. The islands are washed by the Atlantic Ocean, the Irish Sea, the North Sea, and the English Channel, which separates the British Isles from the mainland of Europe. The two largest islands are called Great Britain, which is the home of three countries: England, Scotland and Wales, and Ireland, on which North Ireland and the Irish Republic, or Eire, are situated.

(3) TERRITORY. The territory of the U.K. is about 244 thousand square kilometres. In size, it is twice as small as France or Spain, one and a half time smaller than Poland and Germany, and only by one fifth larger than Belarus.

(4) LANDSCAPE. There are many mountains in the country, but they are not very high. They are mostly in the North and the West of Great Britain, while its centre and the Southwest is a lowland country. The highest mountain, Ben Nevis, which is in Scotland,

is 1,343 metre high.

(5) RIVERS AND LAKES. There are many rivers in the British Isles but they are not very long. The longest river is the Severn, which is 350 kilometres long, and the largest and deepest river is the Thames.

The British Isles have many beautiful lakes. They are mostly in Scotland and Northwest England. The English Lake District, also termed the Lake Country, Lakeland or the Lakes, has always been a favourite area for relaxation.

(6) FORESTS. Woodlands occupy about 7 per cent of the whole territory of Great Britain, and of all the woodlands about half are in England, 40 per cent in Scotland, and 10 per cent in Wales.

(7) CLIMATE. The climate is mild and wet. Summers are cool and winters are mild due to the influence of the Atlantic Ocean and the warm water of the Gulf Stream. The average temperature for January is about 4 C above zero, while for June it is about 16 -17 C. All parts of the British Isles get a lot of rain in all seasons.

(8) POPULATION. Great Britain is a densely populated country. Over 56 million people live there, four fifths of which are Englishmen, while the others are mostly Scots, Welshmen and Irishmen. Eighty percent of the population live in town.

(9) LANGUAGE. The official language is English. But in everyday life many people in Scotland, Wells and Northern Ireland speak their national languages or dialects.

(10) CITIES AND TOWNS. The greatest town, sea port and airport of the country is London, which is the capital of the U.K., its political, economic, commercial and cultural centre. The second city after London in Britain is Birmingham, or Brum for short. It is the chief metal- and car- producing city of Great Britain. Liverpool is the largest seaport on the west coast of England. Glasgow and Newcastle are also large seaports and big shipbuilding centre. Manchester is a big centre of textile and cotton industry and a large seaport too.

(11) MINERAL WEALTH. The country is not very rich in mineral resources. The strong industrial position of Great Britain is based chiefly on the abundant sources of coal and iron ore available for industrial development.

(12) ECONOMY. Great Britain ranks fourth in industrial output among the leading industrial powers of the world (after USA, Germany and Japan). The most developed branches of national economy are metal industry, engineering, fishing, live-stock

breeding, commerce, and service industries. Some industries, notably the transportation, coal mining, steel production and power industries are partly or wholly

Nationalised, or are under governmental control.

About one third of the industrial products of the country is Exported in exchange for fuel, industrial raw materials and food stuffs, which are the main items of British imports. As to the main items of British exports, they are cars, ships and boats, aircrafts, machine-tools, textiles, cotton goods, woolens, and the so-called invisibles, which are mainly international travel, shipping, tourism and financial services.

(13) STATE SYSTEM. Great Britain is a limited monarchy with a so-called unwritten constitution, consisting of a body of statuses, customs, and juridical precedents.

Executive power is vested nominally in the Crown, but practically, in a committee of ministers called the Cabinet. The Prime Minister, the leader of the majority party in the House of Commons, is head of the Ministry.

The Parliament consists of the House of Commons, which is elected directly by the people, and the House of Lords. The 630 members of the House of Commons are elected every five years. The 1000 members of the House of Lords hold their seats by hereditary

rights.

(14) POLITICAL PARTIES. the two largest political parties of Great Britain are the Labour Party and the Conservative Party. The Labour Party is moderately socialist, favouring Nationalisation of the means of production. The Conservative Party favours the principle of free enterprise with minimal state regulation.