Britain's size, population, capital, major cities and history

On the western edge of the European continent and beyond, there are thousands of islands, which are often called the English Islands. The largest island in the archipelago is called Great Britain. For simplicity, it is called Britain for short, but its official name is still Great Britain. It is nearly 1000 kilometers long from north to south, about 500 kilometers long from east to west, and covers an area of about 230,000 square kilometers. However, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has a total area of just over 240,000 square kilometers and a population of 57.4 million (65,438+0,990).

As far as the island of Great Britain itself is concerned, it is divided into three parts and is also considered as three countries: England in the south, Scotland in the north and Wales in the southeast.

England is the largest and most developed part of the three political entities, with a land area of over 6,543,800 square kilometers, accounting for nearly 60% of the whole island of Great Britain. The population is more than 47 million, accounting for about 85% of the country. England's position in Great Britain is so important that foreigners call the whole of Great Britain "England", and this custom is also used to address people. Most British people are regarded as "British".

The coastline of Britain Island is more than 1000 km from north to south, and 1000 km makes it one of the countries with the longest coastline in Shanghai. Nowhere in this country is the distance from the sea more than120km. Except Ireland, the whole island of Great Britain can be roughly divided into two parts according to the topographic features: the highlands in the west and north, and the flats in the southeast and south. The dividing line is probably from the mouth of Exe River in the southwest to the mouth of Tees River in the northeast of England.

It is said that the British are more reticent and don't like to talk much. Personal problems such as marital status, age, income and religious belief when talking with people. It's not convenient to ask. But British people like to talk about the weather, and sometimes they argue about the development trend of the weather very enthusiastically. Maybe it's just a small habit, but it has something to do with the changeable weather in Britain.

As we all know, the weather in Britain is changeable, and it is difficult for even the most experienced meteorologists to give reliable weather forecasts. Therefore, the British have gradually formed a habit of talking about the weather whenever and wherever possible.

The Origin of England (5000 BC-1066)

Around 700 BC, Celts came to Britain.

Two. Anglo-Saxons (AD 446-87 1)

1 The basis of modern English race: Anglo-Saxons. The Anglo-Saxons brought Germanic religion to England. The Anglo-Saxons established the national foundation of Britain. First, they divided the country into counties, and county courts and county judges or justices of the peace were responsible for law enforcement. Secondly, the narrow-band three-zone rotation system they designed was extended to18th century. In addition, they also established a territorial system. Finally, they set up a witenagemot to advise the king, which became the predecessor of the Privy Council that still exists today.

Three. Norman Conquest (1066).

It is said that King Edward promised to pass the English throne to William, Duke of Normandy, but Wittnagimot chose Harold as king. 1066 10, William defeated Harold's army in a fierce battle near Hastings, and Harold also died in this war. At Christmas, he was crowned king of England and began the Norman conquest. William the Conqueror confiscated almost all the land and distributed it to his Norman followers. He replaced the weak Saxon government with a strong Norman government. As a result, the feudal system was completely established in Britain. The relationship with the European continent was opened, civilization and commerce developed, and Norman-French culture, language, code of conduct and architectural art were introduced. The relationship between the church and Rome is closer, and the church court is separated from the civil court. Britain is a country composed of different nationalities. The ancestors of many English people are ancient Angles and Saxons. Some English people are of Norman descent.

Transition to modern England (1455-1485)

Wars of the roses.

Wars of the roses refers to the general term for the war between house of lancaster, symbolized by red roses, and the York family, symbolized by white roses, from 1455 to 1485. 1485, henry vii, a descendant of house of lancaster, won the battle of Bosvaughn and established the Tudor dynasty. These wars dealt a fatal blow to British feudalism and weakened the aristocratic class.

Elizabeth I (1558-1603)

Elizabeth's Religious Reform and Foreign Policy

Elizabeth's religious reform is a compromise of different views. She broke off Mary's relationship with Rome and restored the independent church in England when her father was in power, that is, maintaining Catholic dogma and customs, but not under the control of the Pope. Her religious conclusions are not accepted by Protestant extremists called Puritans, nor by devout Catholics.

In the past 30 years, Elizabeth has successfully provoked the struggle between France and Spain, two Catholic powers, thus avoiding Britain's involvement in the conflicts of any European powers. Through her marriage that never came true, Elizabeth managed to keep friendly relations with France, so Britain could face the danger from Spain.

The five characteristics of the British Renaissance are: 1) The revival of British culture is not directly influenced by classical works, but the greater influence comes from contemporary Europeans influenced by classical works; 2) As Britain is an island country, its social, political and historical process is far from that of other European countries; 3) Due to the appearance of Chaucer, a great genius poet in14th century, English domestic literature flourished and absorbed the influence of foreign literature.