Notes (4)

The United Kingdom

The United Kingdom is very small- about the size of Oregon. It lies just northwest of the continent of Europe. Four regions make up this country- England, Wales and Scotland (located on the island of Great Britain) and Northern Ireland, which shares a different island with the Republic of Ireland.

The English Channel is the most prominent waterway into The UK. If you entered the UK from here, you’d find yourself looking out over a large, lush valley with many patchwork fields and farms visible. However, if you continued onward, you’d find large industrial cities such as London and Birmingham. This is a good reminder that the south and east of Great Britain are very urban and contain the most crowded areas in the UK.

To the west and north, you will find the three southernmost regions of the UK- Wales, England and Scotland. These regions are made up of lush highlands- low mountain ranges and many moors- treeless, vast valleys known for their damp and lush grounds. Water is never far away and is almost always visible; as northwestern England houses the beautiful blue and clear waters of the Lake District.

A lowland in the middle of Scotland is home to two of Scotland’s largest and most important industrial cities- Glasgow and Edinburgh. These two cities are full of life and hold most of Scotland’s population. They are filled with large farmlands and a LOT of industrial buildings and factories. Belfast is the region’s main city and port.

The UK has very mild weather, despite the fact that it lies as far north if not FARTHER north in some areas than Canada. What is the reason for this? The North Atlantic Current carries the warm waters from the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico to Great Britain. The wind blowing over these warm waters cools England in the summer and heats in during the winter- a perfect system, really.

While these winds give great climate, they aren’t all good. They also give very rainy weather- which while it is great for the agriculture, sucks for tourism. If ever you should travel to England, bring a raincoat and umbrella- the skies are over-cast and cloud-filled for more than half the year.

The Economy of the United Kingdom

Resources and Manufacturing

More than 200 years ago, scientists and inventors alike caused the Industrial Revolution. They invented fuel-powered machinery and put it to work in factories, which led to mass-production of goods... so many goods that the UK didn’t know what to do with it.  The revolution helped to make the UK the leading economic influence during the 1800’s. While the country’s influence significantly fell in the 1900’s, it is back up and currently the 6^th most influential economic country in the world.

The UK’s biggest export and resource is natural fuels and energy resources. They export oil and natural gas, which is pumped from underneath the North Sea. They also have a lot of coal. This natural energy powers the country, but a majority of it is also gets exported to other countries in trade.

The machinery, ships, and cars used to be the UK’s main exports. However, stiff competition from other countries led to an industrial warfare of sorts which caused the UK to bring in newer technology and more machinery, thus getting rid of the English traditional smokestack factories. Still, manufactured goods and machinery are among England’s top exports.

Most of the UK’s residents work in the service industries- banks, healthcare, commercial industry, communications and insurance. London is actually regarded as one of the most important financial headquarters in the world. The United Kingdom is also part of the European Union, a union that’s main goal is to make inner-country trading easier.

Because of this, most of England’s brother and sister countries have adopted the euro as a common currency. However, the United Kingdom has not and continues to use the British pound as their currency; though this may change in the near future.

 Agriculture

The farmers in England are very efficient workers. They use machinery to help them with harvests, planting and care of the crops, thus resulting in a much larger harvest. Even with these large harvests, the UK still needs to import over a third of its food resources from other countries. The reason for this is that there is not enough room for more farming fields and the crops that DO get harvested are not enough to feed and supply the UK’s large and ever-growing population.

Government

When you cast your first vote at an US election, you’re actually copying a British tradition. Framers of the US Constitution copied many parts of the British form of government. The UK is a parliamentary democracy, meaning a form of government in which voters elect representatives to a lawmaking body called the Parliament. It has two houses- the House of Commons, which chooses the government’s leader, the prime minister; AND THE House of Lords.

Voters elect 651 member for the House of Commons- the political party that has the largest number of members in the House of Commons chooses the government’s leader. The secondary house, the House of Lords, has very little power whatsoever. Most members of this house are nobles who have inherited the title. This house cannot block any laws that the other house wants to pass, but it can help in REVISING laws.