Country name

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (English: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland). The United Kingdom or Britain for short.

national flag

The British flag is a horizontal rectangle with an aspect ratio of 2: 1. This is a "meter" flag, which consists of a dark blue background and red and white "meters". The red cross with a white border in the national flag represents St George, the patron saint of England, St Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland and St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. This flag was made in 180 1, and it was formed by overlapping the original English white red plus ten flags, the Scottish blue and white cross flag and the Irish white red cross flag.

national emblem

The national emblem of Britain is the symbol of the king. The central pattern is a coat of arms, and the upper left corner and lower right corner of the shield are three golden lions with a red background, symbolizing England; In the upper right corner is a red lion standing on the golden ground, symbolizing Scotland; In the lower left corner is the golden harp on the blue ground, symbolizing Northern Ireland. On both sides of the coat of arms are a lion wearing a crown representing England and a unicorn representing Scotland. There is a motto written in French around the coat of arms, which means "evil is rewarded with evil, and evil with evil"; There is a guardian medal hanging at the bottom, and the ribbon says "God has God, I have rights". At the top of the coat of arms is a gold and silver helmet inlaid with jewels, an imperial crown and a crowned lion.

maxim

Dieu et mon droit (French: God exists, I have rights)

national anthem

God save the queen. If the incumbent is a male monarch, the national anthem will be changed to "God Save the King". God Save the Queen is the national anthem and royal ode of the Commonwealth countries.

capital

London is the largest city and port in Britain, one of the largest metropolitan areas in Europe and one of the three largest financial centers in the world. Population 75 12400, area 1577.3 square kilometers.

language

The official language is English (illegal). In addition, Welsh, Irish, Ulster Scottish, Scottish, Scottish Gaelic and Celtic are the official languages in all regions of Britain.

zone

244,820 square kilometers (79th in the world). The water area accounts for 1.34%.

Human population

60943912 (statistics in 2008), with a population density of 246 persons /km2 (48th in the world). The ratio of male to female is 0.98: 1.

race

Of the British population, 85.67% are British whites, 6.47% are whites from other regions, 4.00% are South Asians, 2.00% are blacks, 1.20% are hybrids, and 0.80% are East Asians and other races (2006,5438+0).

political system

Parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy.

State dignitaries

Head of State, Queen Elizabeth II. /kloc-0 acceded to the throne on February 6, 952, and was crowned on June 2, 953; Prime Minister Gordon Brown (British Labour Party). Officially took office on June 27, 2007.

history

1 707 may1day, England and Scotland merged;

180 1 year 1 month 1 day, merged with Ireland;

1April 922 12, the Treaty of Great Britain and Ireland came into effect, and southern Ireland broke away from its rule and established an independent country;

1973 65438+ 10/month 1, join the European homology.

administrative division

Britain is divided into four parts: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. England is divided into 43 counties, Scotland has 29 districts and 3 special administrative regions, Northern Ireland has 26 districts and Wales has 22 districts. The parliaments of Scotland and Wales and their administrative bodies are fully responsible for local affairs, while foreign affairs, national defense, overall economic and monetary policies, employment policies and social security are still controlled by the central government. In addition, Britain has 12 overseas territory.

Gross domestic product (purchasing power parity)

2.270 trillion US dollars (ranked 6th in the world in 2007). Per capita GDP is 37,328 USD (world ranking 13).

Gross domestic product (nominal)

2.772 trillion US dollars (ranked fifth in the world in 2007). The per capita GDP is $45,845 (the ninth in the world).

Gini coefficient

0.34(2005)

Human development index

0.946 (high, ranking of countries and regions in the world in 2005 16)

money

Pound. Currency code pound.

time

Greenwich mean time (GMT). UTC+0 .

Daylight saving time is British daylight saving time (BST). UTC+ 1 .

national flower

rose

national bird

Luzon's bleeding heart

National stone

diamond

International domain abbreviation

. Britain

Long distance telephone code

+44

Britain is a United Kingdom composed of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which is unified by a central government and a head of state. This country has stable social life, low crime rate and few violent incidents. Britain has a mild climate, with no cold or heat, and four seasons like spring. The transportation here is convenient, the highway and railway systems are safe and efficient, and the telecommunications industry is one of the most developed in the world. Big cities have not risen rapidly with the passage of time, which makes many historical buildings and relics preserved and ensures that a large number of parks and green spaces are not occupied. As the largest and most international city in Europe, London is the political and cultural center of Britain, an out-and-out international metropolis and the headquarters of many international organizations and enterprises.

Britain is a multicultural and open-minded society. British art, music, culture and diet have always been influenced by people and national habits from different countries in the world, and have a long and close relationship with many countries. Up to now, it has maintained a solid relationship with English-speaking countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Britain is a member of the European Union. Over the past 25 years, it has been unswervingly and actively supporting the maintenance and development of relations between the EU and China. Britain is the largest investor of EU countries in China.

Britain is the first industrialized country in the world, with many scientific discoveries and inventions, such as penicillin, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), the first computer and jet engine. The British economy ranks fifth in the world and is the largest financial center in Europe. London's financial market attracts many companies from all over the world to take advantage of British business opportunities. In the past 200 years, various schools and universities in Britain have developed with the world-famous technological, industrial and financial revolution in the country. But its first-class education has a longer history, dating back to the establishment of Oxford University and Cambridge University more than 500 years ago.

I. Geography

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geography

Britain, located in Europe, consists of the islands of Great Britain (including England, Scotland and Wales), Northern Ireland in the northeast of Ireland and some small islands (overseas territories). Britain is located in the British Isles in the northwest of continental Europe, surrounded by the North Sea, the English Channel, celtic sea, the Irish Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. 243,600 square kilometers (including inland waters), England130,400 square kilometers, Scotland 78,800 square kilometers, Wales 20,800 square kilometers, and Northern Ireland 136 square kilometers. An island country in western Europe. It consists of Great Britain (including England, Scotland and Wales), northeastern Ireland and some small islands. It faces the European continent across the North Sea, the Dover Strait and the English Channel. Its land borders Ireland and the United States. Total length of coastline11450km. The whole territory is divided into four parts: the plains in southeast England, the mountains in the middle and west, the mountains in Scotland, the highlands in Northern Ireland and the mountains.

hydrology

Severn River (354 km) and Thames River (346 km). Lough neagh in Northern Ireland, with an area of 396 square kilometers, ranks first in the country.

climate

It has a maritime temperate broad-leaved forest climate, which is mild and humid all year round. Generally, the highest temperature does not exceed 32℃, the lowest temperature is not lower than-10℃, and the average temperature 10 is 65438+4 ~ 7℃ in October and 13 ~ 17℃ in July. It is rainy and foggy, especially in autumn and winter. Therefore, London is called the foggy city. The average annual precipitation is about 1000 mm. The annual precipitation in the northern and western mountainous areas exceeds 2000 mm, and that in the central and eastern areas is less than 800 mm. February to March is the driest, and 10 to 1 month is the wettest. The national climate type is temperate maritime climate.

resources

The main mineral resources in Britain are coal, iron, oil and natural gas. The total reserve of hard coal is1.700 million tons. The reserves of iron are about 3.8 billion tons. There are tin mines in Cornwall Peninsula in the southwest. There are many stone salts in Cheshire and Durham. Staffordshire has good clay. White clay is produced in Cornwall Peninsula. Dolomite can be mined in the east slope of pennines. The timely mine is located near Hill Hildry in the southwest of Lancashire. The oil reserves on the continental shelf of Britain's North Sea are about10 ~ 4 billion tons. Natural gas reserves are about 860 ~ 2585 billion cubic meters.

Second, the environment

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historic site

A large number of castles and country houses bear witness to history, which shows that land and real estate in Britain have long been owned by aristocratic families. A large number of precious ancient buildings are well preserved, including Brenim Palace of Duke of Marlborough, Chatsworth Palace of Duke of Devonshire, and Rongsu House of Dragon Park of Marquis of Bath, which are still in use today. These private manors and mansions built by princes and nobles in historical periods such as George Dynasty, Tudor Dynasty and Elizabeth Dynasty are typical representatives of British historical buildings. Many private manors and mansions scattered in towns and villages, as well as ancient city walls, ancient pagodas, unique buildings and other unforgettable buildings, have been actively protected as British historical heritage. Historic buildings under protection include ancient mining towers, mills and factories during the Industrial Revolution, iron bridges and other bridges built by Thomas telford, Voss Bridge, a masterpiece of steel structure construction, and Clifton Suspension Bridge with exquisite carving.

garden

The British National Trust and the Scottish National Trust manage about 240 gardens in Britain and develop them for the public. The British Heritage Conservation Organization is also the guardian of some of the most important scenic spots in Britain. The gardens it takes care of include Charles Darwin Garden in Donhaus, Kent,18th century landscape garden in Audley Manor, Essex, Vorm Castle in Kent, Queen Elizabeth Garden designed by Penelope hobhouse and so on. In addition, there are the south moat garden designed by Isabel von Geronini Niegen for the Eltam Palace in south London, the walled flower and fruit garden designed by Rupert Galby at Osborne Manor, and the family garden of Queen Victoria on the Isle of Wight.

Major cities in Britain, especially London, are famous for their beautiful and well-protected parks. The royal gardens in London, including Hyde Park, St James Park and Green Park, represent the highest level of garden art in Europe. Moreover, in Greater London, beautiful and well-cared gardens can be seen everywhere for public entertainment and leisure. The Royal Botanical Garden in southwest London has collected a large number of existing and protected trees, seeds and plants. Botanical garden itself is an encyclopedia of the plant world, and it has also become a scientific center of global botanical research. In Cornwall, the Millennium Committee provided 40 million pounds to transform an abandoned clay pit into a brand-new garden unique in the world, which is known as the Eden Project. In addition, there are 7 national parks in England and 3 national parks in Wales. Every national park has a large area of natural beauty, most of which are privately owned. Scotland will build a national park in Loch Lomond and Chase, Trossat, and plans to build another national park in Kahn Gomez.

traffic

Since the14th century, the prosperity and development of the British Isles have increasingly depended on the ability of its people to fight, explore and develop abroad, vigorously develop colonies and expand trade. The hegemony of the British Isles at sea has largely given its citizens the above capabilities. Britain's large-scale and systematic shipbuilding industry began in the period of King John, who established the Royal Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth at the beginning of13rd century. After that, Britain established the East India Company in 1600, and then explored and inspected the Far East, Southeast Asia, America and Australia. However, compared with the shipbuilding capacity, the invention of navigation technology and navigation instruments contributed more to the British maritime hegemony, including the sextant successfully invented in the magnificent Belfast Clyde Shipyard, Tyne Shipyard and Weir Shipyard in the second half of the 9th century.

The invention of the steam engine triggered the revolution of the British transportation industry and opened the era of railways and steam engines. 1825, the world's first railway service with steam locomotive heads was opened between stockton and Darlington. Because a large number of land surfaces are not suitable for the operation of steam locomotives, the achievements of steam locomotives on land are limited, but at sea, steam engines are a great success. /kloc-In the early 9th century, British engineer Isambard Kinton brunell designed three trans-generational steamboats, which changed the previous design of steamboats and made ocean voyage possible. In the history of road construction, Macadam was the first engineer to introduce wear-resistant hard-faced roads, and he used compacted gravel; Thomas telford and brunell participated in the construction of many classic bridges in Britain, including the big iron bridge in Shropshire and Clifton suspension bridge in Bristol. They also participated in the construction of culverts and tunnels with high engineering level. At this point, a mode of transportation that can meet the needs of the industrial revolution was born.

Third, history.

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Iberians, cyclists and Celts from the Mediterranean came to England in BC. 1-In the 5th century, the southeast of Great Britain was ruled by the Roman Empire. After the Romans retreated, the Angles, Saxons and Jutes in Northern Europe invaded and settled in succession. The feudal system began to form in the 7th century, and many small countries merged into seven kingdoms, contending for hegemony for 200 years, which is known as the "Anglo-Saxon era". In 829, King Egbert of Wessex unified England. It was invaded by the Danes at the end of the 8th century, and from 10 16 to 1042, it was a part of the Danish pirate empire. The Duke of Normandy crossed the sea to conquer England in 1066 after the short-term rule of the English king. 12 15 King John was forced to sign the Magna Carta and his kingship was suppressed. From 1338 to 1453, Britain and France fought a "hundred-year war", and Britain won first and then lost. 1536 Wales was incorporated into England. 1588 defeated the Spanish "Armada" and established maritime hegemony. 1640, Britain was the first bourgeois revolution in the world and became the pioneer of bourgeois revolution. 1May 649 19, the Republic of China was proclaimed. 1660 restored the dynasty, 1668 witnessed a "glorious revolution" and established a constitutional monarchy. England 1707 merged with Scotland, 180 1 merged with Ireland. /kloc-from the second half of the 8th century to the first half of the 9th century, it became the first country in the world to complete the industrial revolution. /kloc-the 0/9th century was the heyday of the British Empire. 19 14 years, the occupied colony was11times larger than the mainland, and it was the first colonial power, claiming to be "imperial". It began to decline after the First World War. Britain established Northern Ireland in 1920, and allowed South Ireland to break away from the rule of 192 1 922 and establish an independent country. 193 1 year promulgated the Westminster act, which forced the autonomous territories to be independent in internal affairs and diplomacy, and the colonial system of the British empire was shaken. During World War II, Britain's economic strength was greatly weakened and its political status declined. With the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947, the British colonial system collapsed in the 1960s. 1973 65438+ Britain joined Europe in October. Historically, England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland are four countries. Later, England and Wales merged through marriage, and then Elizabeth I, the last king of Tudor dynasty, passed it on to her nephew James, king of Scotland, and Scotland and England merged. James' son Charles was overthrown by Cromwell's revolutionary army. During Cromwell's reign, Ireland was conquered by force. 1923, the British Parliament decided to split Ireland in two. Twenty-three counties in the south became independent countries of Ireland, and four counties in the north remained in Britain as Northern Ireland. Great Britain is an island, which consists of England, Scotland and Wales. The so-called UK is the abbreviation of Unit kingdom, which means the United Kingdom.

Monarchy

Monarchy is the oldest government system in the world today. Queen Elizabeth II has been the head of the United Kingdom since she ascended the throne in 1952. She is also a direct descendant of King egbert. During his reign, King egbert unified England in 829 AD. Before the birth of the parliamentary system, the monarchy had existed in Britain for hundreds of years, and it was interrupted only once, from 1649 to 1660, when Britain adopted the * * * system and implemented a republic. For centuries, the absolute power of the monarch has been eroded and weakened. Nevertheless, as the constitutional head of state, the monarch still retains important symbolic significance.

In the past few hundred years, the personality characteristics of the reigning king have had an important impact on state affairs. At the end of the 9th century, Alfred, king of the West Saxon, defeated the invaders led by King Goudron of Denmark, and transformed the Danish king into a Christian, which greatly changed the political map of Britain and laid the foundation for the unification of Anglo-Saxon races in Britain.

Many years later, the rule of King Henry VIII triggered a major social change. In order to establish a dynasty, Henry VIII reformed the church, which paved the way for the differences between Protestantism and Catholicism in the future and strengthened the power of parliament. During the reign of Henry VIII, the economic strength of the nobles was strengthened, which laid the economic foundation for their internal struggle in Tudor dynasty. /kloc-In the second half of the 6th century, facing multiple crises at home and abroad, the ruling Elizabeth I proved to the world that she was a shrewd and courageous political leader. /kloc-in the 9th century, during the reign of Queen Victoria, Britain once again entered a period of great social and political changes, and established and developed the position and influence of the British Empire in the world. At the same time, Prince Elbert, the husband of Queen Victoria, actively encouraged the development of art, science and industry during the long reign of Queen Victoria (from 1837 to 190 1), which also had a far-reaching impact on the development of British society.

In 2002, Britain celebrated the 50th anniversary of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. During this period, although great social and technological changes have taken place in Britain and even the whole world, Queen Elizabeth II has always been an unshakable helm of British society and a sacred representative of traditional values such as public service and public responsibility.

Fourth, politics.

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The political system is constitutional monarchy. The king is the head of state, the highest judicial officer, the commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the "supreme leader" of the Anglican Church. Formally, he has the right to appoint and dismiss prime ministers, ministers, senior judges, military officers, governors of various territories, diplomats, bishops and senior clergy of the Anglican Church. He also has the power to convene, stop and dissolve parliament, approve laws, declare war and make peace, but the real power lies in the cabinet. Parliament is the highest judicial and legislative body, consisting of the king, the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The upper house (the House of Lords) is composed of royal descendants, hereditary nobles, newly appointed nobles, judges of the Court of Appeal, archbishops and church bishops. 1999 1 1 In June, the House of Lords reform bill was passed. In addition to the 92 remaining members, more than 600 hereditary nobles lost their qualifications as members of the House of Lords. Non-politically appointed members of the House of Lords will be recommended by a special royal committee. The House of Commons is also called the House of Commons. Members are elected by universal suffrage, and the electoral system of small constituencies with the most votes is adopted. The term of office is five years. But the government can decide to hold an election in advance. The government implements the cabinet system, and the leader of the political party who won the majority of seats in the parliamentary elections is appointed by the Queen as the prime minister and forms a cabinet, which is responsible to the parliament. The history of the British jury can be traced back to the Middle Ages, and it has always been a deeply rooted part of its criminal legal system. From the perspective of value choice, it is not difficult to find that this is actually an institutional design that artificially combines jurisprudence with rationality. Although law is the regulator of social relations, the internal contradiction of "law is limited and love is infinite" has always been indelible; Although judges are proficient in law, there is the possibility of mechanically enforcing the law and ignoring reason. Jurors from society know social common sense, although they don't know the law. It is difficult for a person to represent complex social psychology, but all aspects 12 people should be said to be almost enough. The combination of a reasonable jury and a judge proficient in jurisprudence is a clever combination. This does not mean criticizing the litigation mode without jury, nor does it mean that there will be conflicts between emotion and law without jury system. There are no juries in so many civil law countries, so there must be other ways to combine them, such as system level and operation level. The forms can be varied, but the ideas should be similar, that is, we should give consideration to both rigid methods and flexible principles. It should also be noted that rationality is flexible, not concrete, but the way and scope of absorbing rationality should be rigid and concrete to prevent emotions from eroding the law at will.

political party

(1) Labour Party: the ruling party. Founded in 1900, formerly known as the Labor Representative Committee, it was renamed as its current name in 1906. The parties are established in 1924, 1929~ 193 1, 1945~ 195 1,1964 ~. He won the general election in 1997 and came to power again after the general election in June 2006. In recent years, the Labour Party has been more inclined to the interests of the middle class and alienated from the trade unions. After Blair was elected as the leader of the Labor Party, he put forward the slogan of "New Labor Party, New Britain" politically, canceled the fourth clause on public ownership in party constitution, and advocated reducing government intervention, strictly controlling public expenditure, maintaining stable macroeconomic growth and establishing a modern welfare system economically. It advocates actively participating in international cooperation, taking a positive attitude towards European integration, joining the euro and maintaining special relations with the United States. Party member, with nearly 400,000 people, is the largest party in Britain.

(2) Conservative Party: the main opposition party. Formerly known as the Tory Party founded in 1679, it was renamed in 1833. The party was in power for four consecutive times from 1979 to 1997, and became the dominant political party in Britain in the 20th century. /kloc-0 was defeated by the Labour Party in May 1997 and June 2000/kloc-0. The supporters of the Conservative Party generally come from the business and wealthy classes and advocate a free market economy. By strictly controlling money supply and reducing public expenditure, we can reduce inflation. Advocate restricting trade union rights and strengthening "law" and "order". In recent years, he put forward "compassionate conservatism" and paid attention to social problems such as education, medical care and poverty. Emphasis is placed on safeguarding British sovereignty, opposing "federal Europe" and joining the euro, advocating the establishment of "Atlantic identity" and strengthening the special relationship between Britain and the United States. Emphasize that NATO remains the cornerstone of British security and defense. There are more than 300,000 people in party member.

(3) Liberal Democratic Party:1March 1988 was composed of the majority of the former Liberal Party and the Social Democratic Party that supported the merger with the Liberal Party. It advocates continuing to maintain the cooperative relationship with the Labor Party, pushing the Labor Party to implement the proportional representation system in local elections and lower house elections, and adopting a more "progressive" policy than the Labor Party on issues such as public services, social justice and environmental protection. At present, party member Party has about 654.38 million+party member, making it the third largest party in Britain.

In addition, other political parties in Britain include Scottish National Party, Plaid Party and some political parties in Northern Ireland, such as Ulster United Party, democratic unionist party, Social Democracy and Labour Party and Sinn Fein Party.

parliament

Parliament is the central stage of British politics and the highest legislative body in Britain. The government comes from the parliament and is responsible to it. Congress is bicameral, consisting of upper house and lower house. Since the establishment of Parliament, meetings have usually been held in the Palace of Westminster (Parliament Building), an ancient building in London. Meetings are held twice a year. The first session starts at the end of March and ends at the beginning of August, and the second session starts at the end of 10 and ends before Christmas in 12.

form

Unlike the constitutions of most countries, the British Constitution is not an independent document. It consists of written law, customary law and convention. There are magna carta (12 15), habeas corpus (1679), bill of rights (1689), and parliamentary law (191,etc. The monarch is the head of state, the highest judicial officer, the commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the "supreme leader" of the Anglican Church. Formally, he has the right to appoint and remove the Prime Minister, ministers, senior judges, military officers, governors of various territories, diplomats, bishops and senior clergy of the Anglican Church, and has the right to convene, stop and dissolve parliament, approve laws and declare peace, but the real power lies in the cabinet. Scotland has its own independent legal system.

Article 65 of the Magna Carta is divided into three parts: the first part is about the relationship between the king and the Lord; The second part is the king's policies and procedures; The third part is about the provisions of dispute settlement between kings and lords. According to the Magna Carta, the king should protect the feudal inheritance rights of nobles and knights, and should not illegally collect high taxes from feudal owners, arbitrarily arrest, imprison, exile or confiscate their property, or recognize the autonomy of cities such as London. In order to ensure that the charter did not expire, a Committee of 25 barons supervised the king. If the charter was broken, the feudal lords had the right to force the king to implement it by military means. British constitutionalism comes from Magna Carta, and its basic spirit is limited kingship and individual freedom. Some scholars, such as Stobbs, think that the whole British constitutional history is actually the annotated history of Magna Carta.

Referee

There are three different legal systems: England and Wales are common law systems, Scotland is civil law systems, and the legal system in Northern Ireland is similar to that in England. The judicial system is divided into two systems: civil courts and criminal courts. In England and Wales, civil courts are divided into county courts, high courts, civil courts of appeal and houses of lords. Criminal trial institutions are divided into local courts, criminal courts, criminal divisions of appeal courts and the House of Lords. The highest judicial organ in Britain is the House of Lords, which is the final appellate body for civil and criminal cases. 1986 set up the royal prosecutor's office, which is subordinate to the national government agency and is responsible for accepting all criminal cases submitted by the police authorities in England and Wales. The Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General are the main legal advisers of the British government, representing the royal family in some domestic and international cases.