An Introduction to Britain

Where is Britain?

Britain is part of an island lying off the western coast of Europe, comprising the main territory of the United Kingdom.

The name Britain goes back to Roman times when they called England and Wales "Britannia" (or "Britannia Major"). The Roman province of Britannia only covered the areas of modern England and Wales. The area of modern Scotland was never finally conquered.

Great Britain is the official name given to the two kingdoms of England and Scotland, and the principality of Wales. Great Britain is made up of: England - The capital is London. Scotland - The capital is Edinburgh . Wales - The capital is Cardiff. Great Britain is divided into small regions called counties.

The term Great Britain was first used during the reign of King James I of England (James VI of Scotland) in 1603, to refer to the separate kingdoms of England and Scotland. on the same landmass, that were ruled over by the same monarch. Despite having the same monarch, both kingdoms kept their own parliaments.

Is Great Britain the same as the UK?

No, Great Britain and the United Kingdom refer to different areas.
Great Britain is very often, but incorrectly, used as a synonym for the sovereign state properly known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or the UK for short.
If you look at the full name of the UK, you will see that the UK includes "Great Britain AND Northern Ireland".

Great Britain	United Kingdom

Great Britain is a political term which describes the combination of England, Scotland , and Wales , the three nations which together include all the land on the island. It is also a geographical term referring to the island on which the greater parts of England, Wales and Scotland are situated.

Why and how does England dominate the UK?

England is the biggest country in the UK. It occupies most of the southern two thirds of Great Britain. The total area of England is 130,410 sq km (50, 352 sq mi). England contains about 84% of the UK population.

The capital, seat of government, and the largest city in the United Kingdom is London.
London is also is the capital of England.
All of Great Britain has been ruled by the UK government in London since 1707. (In 1999 the first elections to the newly created Scottish Parliament and National Assembly for Wales took place leaving England as the only part of the Great Britain with no devolved assembly or parliament.)

The English language comes from England.

As its name suggests, the English language, today spoken by hundreds of millions of people around the world, originated as the language from England, where it remains the principal tongue today.
English is the official language of the UK and the first language of the vast majority of the population. Both Wales and Scotland have their own languages but English is spoken in both countries more.
Most of the world assumes that British people are "English" unless specified otherwise.
This of course is wrong. British people can be Scottish, Welsh, Irish (living in Northern Ireland) or English. The Scots and the Welsh are proud of their separate identities and tend to be more forward about referring to themselves as Scottish or Welsh.

 Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland lies in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km²), about a sixth of the island's total area.

Northern Ireland is the second most sparsely populated part of the UK after Scotland, with 317 people per square mile (122 per square kilometer).

History of  Northern Ireland

In 1801 the whole of Ireland became part of the United Kingdom, with the adoption of the name the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

After years of civil war, Ireland became a republic in 1921. At this time, Britain negotiated with Ireland to keep the six counties in the north-east of Ireland. These six counties now make up what is known as Northern Ireland. The southern part of the island is the Republic of Ireland, or Eire.

1927 - The current name of the UK, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, was adopted.

History of the conflict in Northern Ireland

A Centuries-old Conflict

The history of Northern Ireland can be traced back to the 17th century, when the English finally succeeded in subduing the island after successfully putting down a number of rebellions.  Much land, especially in the north, was subsequently colonized by Scottish and English Protestants, setting Ulster somewhat apart from the rest of Ireland, which was predominantly Catholic.

The Nineteenth Century

During the 1800s the north and south grew further apart due to economic differences. In the north the standard of living rose as industry and manufacturing flourished, while in the south the unequal distribution of land and resources—Anglican Protestants owned most of the land—resulted in a low standard of living for the large Catholic population.

The Twentieth Century

Political separation of Northern Ireland from the rest of Ireland did not come until the early 20th century, when Protestants and Catholics divided into two warring camps over the issue of Irish home rule. Most Irish Catholics desired complete independence from Britain, but Irish Protestants feared living in a country ruled by a Catholic majority.

Government of Ireland Act

In an attempt to pacify both factions, the British passed in 1920 the Government of Ireland Act, which divided Ireland into two separate political entities, each with some powers of self-government. The Act was accepted by Ulster Protestants and rejected by southern Catholics, who continued to demand total independence for a unified Ireland.

The Irish Free State and Northern Ireland

Following a period of guerrilla warfare between the nationalist Irish Republican Army (IRA) and British forces, a treaty was signed in 1921 creating the Irish Free State from 23 southern counties and 3 counties in Ulster. The other 6 counties of Ulster made up Northern Ireland, which remained part of the United Kingdom. In 1949 the Irish Free State became an independent republic.

"The Troubles"

Although armed hostilities between Catholics and Protestants largely subsided after the 1921 agreement, violence erupted again in the late 1960s; bloody riots broke out in Londonderry in 1968 and in Belfast in 1969. British troops were brought in to restore order, but the conflict intensified as the IRA and Protestant paramilitary groups carried out bombings and other acts of terrorism. This continuing conflict, which lingered into the 1990s, became known as "the Troubles."
Despite efforts to bring about a resolution to the conflict during the 1970s and 80s, terrorist violence was still a problem in the early 90s and British troops remained in full force. More than 3,000 people have died as a result of the strife in Northern Ireland.

the slides of the course can be viewed here:

http://fr.slideshare.net/elhemchniti/british-institutions