Inhoudsopgave
UK................................................................................................................................................................. 2
Geography.............................................................................................................................................................2
UK – Demographics...............................................................................................................................................3
HISTORY........................................................................................................................................................ 9
1. Britons and invaders - up to 1066...................................................................................................................10
2. Medieval Britain 1066 – 1485.........................................................................................................................14
3. Tudors and Stuarts (1485-1688).....................................................................................................................17
4. Rise of Power (1688-1815)..............................................................................................................................23
5. Industry and Empire (1815-1914)...................................................................................................................26
6. Modern Times (1914 – present)......................................................................................................................30
POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS.............................................................................................................................. 39
UK Political institutions - The basics....................................................................................................................39
Constitution?.......................................................................................................................................................40
Parliament...........................................................................................................................................................40
The Government..................................................................................................................................................44
Education (England & Wales) (Higher education: UK)........................................................................................46
THE MEDIA.................................................................................................................................................. 50
The press.............................................................................................................................................................50
Radio...................................................................................................................................................................52
TV........................................................................................................................................................................53
US................................................................................................................................................................ 53
Geography...........................................................................................................................................................54
Demographics.....................................................................................................................................................58
HISTORY...................................................................................................................................................... 61
1. From the New World to the Revolutionary War.............................................................................................61
2. From Revolutionary War to Civil War (1776-1860)........................................................................................66
3. Civil War to WWI.............................................................................................................................................70
4. Post WWI to WWII..........................................................................................................................................74
5. Post-WWII to 9/11..........................................................................................................................................79
6. 9/11 AND after................................................................................................................................................84
POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS.............................................................................................................................. 87
, US Education.......................................................................................................................................................96
UK
GEOGRAPHY
Great Britain = England, Scotland and Wales (since 1707)
United Kingdom = Great Britain + Northern Ireland (since 1801)
Great Britain
= 9th largest island in world, largest island in Europe
surface:
209,331 km2 (cf. Belgium: 30,528 km2) (Belgium fits 7 times in there)
location:
North Channel, Irish Sea, St George's Channel and Celtic Sea separate island from Ireland to the west, the
North Sea separates island from mainland EU + physically connected with continental EU across the
English Channel via the Channel Tunnel = longest undersea rail tunnel in world (50.5km;
completed in 1993)
landscape:
low, rolling countryside in east and south; hills and mountains in north and west
greatest distance between two points:
= 1,407km (between Land's End, Cornwall and John o'Groats, Scotland) (In Belgium: 280km)
Capital cities:
England – London • Scotland – Edinburgh
Wales – Cardiff • Northern Ireland – Belfast
Other large cities:
Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, and Sheffield
__________________________________________________________________________________
The English landscape: ‘green and pleasant’
2
, most of countryside consists of green
and rolling hills
in north:
o the Pennines (= chain of mountains dividing east and west)
o the Lake District + the North York Moors + the Peak District
In south:
o the Cotswolds: quintessentially and stereotypical English rural area
o Exmoor and Dartmoor: moorlands in Devon
o the ‘almost Mediterranean’ Cornwall coast
Kent = the ‘Garden of England’, etc...
Wales:
has over 1,200 km of coastline
largely mountainous, with its highest peaks in the north and central areas, including
Mount Snowdon, its highest summit (1,085m)
own language, Welsh (Cymraeg), spoken by 19% of the population (2011) (one of thriving
languages)
______________________________________________________________________________________
Scotland:
consists of mainland + more than 790 islands
Islands categorized into 4 groups:
o Shetland, Orkney, and the Inner Hebrides and Outer Hebrides
the Highlands and Islands (North-West) generally mountainous, including the
highest peak, the Ben Nevis (1,344m)
Central Lowlands: relatively low-lying, where the coal and iron-bearing rocks that
fuelled Scotland's industrial revolution are to be found
Southern uplands: range of hills almost 200km long, interspersed with low valleys.
UK – DEMOGRAPHICS
Population: 2021 figures (estimations)
UK: 68.3m
England: 56.6m (84% of UK) ( England makes a large chunk of the British population)
o Greater London: 8.7m (up 16% from 2001)
Wales: 3.2m (4.7% of UK)
3
, Scotland: 5.5m (8.2% of UK)
Northern Ireland: 1.9m (2.8% of UK)
Population grew by 0.4% 2019-2020, slower than any year since 2004 (the
growth is slowing down)
Relatively low birth rates offset by net migration of ca. 250,000
______________________________________________________________________________________
Population density England (2011)
82.3% of population lives in urban areas (2021 est.)
Great Britain tends to have an urban population.
1/3 of Brits live in the south-west. This is also the most economically thriving part of the country.
Ethnicity & migration in the 2011 census (England & Wales)
Self-identified “white British” group down five points to 80,5%; in London ‘white British’ figure is
45%, down from 58% in 2001 in top 3 of ‘superdiverse’ cities in world
Other ethnic groups: Asian, African/Caribbean, Chinese, Arabic, others
13% of people living in England and Wales born outside the UK
census= volkstelling
every decade the government organizes and carries out a census where every single person living in the country
is asked about their age, their ethnic background, where they live, etc. but this is only a sample of the
population’s representation
______________________________________________________________________________________
2001 2019
In the last twenty years, Britain has become younger, but it also has become more diverse.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Religion in the 2011 census (in the American census, people are not asked about their religion)
Anglicans/Christians: 33.2m (59% of population, − 4m since 2001)
The official (established) church of UK is the Church of England (CofE)
o created in 16th C as a protestant church by the Act of Supremacy
4
UK................................................................................................................................................................. 2
Geography.............................................................................................................................................................2
UK – Demographics...............................................................................................................................................3
HISTORY........................................................................................................................................................ 9
1. Britons and invaders - up to 1066...................................................................................................................10
2. Medieval Britain 1066 – 1485.........................................................................................................................14
3. Tudors and Stuarts (1485-1688).....................................................................................................................17
4. Rise of Power (1688-1815)..............................................................................................................................23
5. Industry and Empire (1815-1914)...................................................................................................................26
6. Modern Times (1914 – present)......................................................................................................................30
POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS.............................................................................................................................. 39
UK Political institutions - The basics....................................................................................................................39
Constitution?.......................................................................................................................................................40
Parliament...........................................................................................................................................................40
The Government..................................................................................................................................................44
Education (England & Wales) (Higher education: UK)........................................................................................46
THE MEDIA.................................................................................................................................................. 50
The press.............................................................................................................................................................50
Radio...................................................................................................................................................................52
TV........................................................................................................................................................................53
US................................................................................................................................................................ 53
Geography...........................................................................................................................................................54
Demographics.....................................................................................................................................................58
HISTORY...................................................................................................................................................... 61
1. From the New World to the Revolutionary War.............................................................................................61
2. From Revolutionary War to Civil War (1776-1860)........................................................................................66
3. Civil War to WWI.............................................................................................................................................70
4. Post WWI to WWII..........................................................................................................................................74
5. Post-WWII to 9/11..........................................................................................................................................79
6. 9/11 AND after................................................................................................................................................84
POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS.............................................................................................................................. 87
, US Education.......................................................................................................................................................96
UK
GEOGRAPHY
Great Britain = England, Scotland and Wales (since 1707)
United Kingdom = Great Britain + Northern Ireland (since 1801)
Great Britain
= 9th largest island in world, largest island in Europe
surface:
209,331 km2 (cf. Belgium: 30,528 km2) (Belgium fits 7 times in there)
location:
North Channel, Irish Sea, St George's Channel and Celtic Sea separate island from Ireland to the west, the
North Sea separates island from mainland EU + physically connected with continental EU across the
English Channel via the Channel Tunnel = longest undersea rail tunnel in world (50.5km;
completed in 1993)
landscape:
low, rolling countryside in east and south; hills and mountains in north and west
greatest distance between two points:
= 1,407km (between Land's End, Cornwall and John o'Groats, Scotland) (In Belgium: 280km)
Capital cities:
England – London • Scotland – Edinburgh
Wales – Cardiff • Northern Ireland – Belfast
Other large cities:
Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, and Sheffield
__________________________________________________________________________________
The English landscape: ‘green and pleasant’
2
, most of countryside consists of green
and rolling hills
in north:
o the Pennines (= chain of mountains dividing east and west)
o the Lake District + the North York Moors + the Peak District
In south:
o the Cotswolds: quintessentially and stereotypical English rural area
o Exmoor and Dartmoor: moorlands in Devon
o the ‘almost Mediterranean’ Cornwall coast
Kent = the ‘Garden of England’, etc...
Wales:
has over 1,200 km of coastline
largely mountainous, with its highest peaks in the north and central areas, including
Mount Snowdon, its highest summit (1,085m)
own language, Welsh (Cymraeg), spoken by 19% of the population (2011) (one of thriving
languages)
______________________________________________________________________________________
Scotland:
consists of mainland + more than 790 islands
Islands categorized into 4 groups:
o Shetland, Orkney, and the Inner Hebrides and Outer Hebrides
the Highlands and Islands (North-West) generally mountainous, including the
highest peak, the Ben Nevis (1,344m)
Central Lowlands: relatively low-lying, where the coal and iron-bearing rocks that
fuelled Scotland's industrial revolution are to be found
Southern uplands: range of hills almost 200km long, interspersed with low valleys.
UK – DEMOGRAPHICS
Population: 2021 figures (estimations)
UK: 68.3m
England: 56.6m (84% of UK) ( England makes a large chunk of the British population)
o Greater London: 8.7m (up 16% from 2001)
Wales: 3.2m (4.7% of UK)
3
, Scotland: 5.5m (8.2% of UK)
Northern Ireland: 1.9m (2.8% of UK)
Population grew by 0.4% 2019-2020, slower than any year since 2004 (the
growth is slowing down)
Relatively low birth rates offset by net migration of ca. 250,000
______________________________________________________________________________________
Population density England (2011)
82.3% of population lives in urban areas (2021 est.)
Great Britain tends to have an urban population.
1/3 of Brits live in the south-west. This is also the most economically thriving part of the country.
Ethnicity & migration in the 2011 census (England & Wales)
Self-identified “white British” group down five points to 80,5%; in London ‘white British’ figure is
45%, down from 58% in 2001 in top 3 of ‘superdiverse’ cities in world
Other ethnic groups: Asian, African/Caribbean, Chinese, Arabic, others
13% of people living in England and Wales born outside the UK
census= volkstelling
every decade the government organizes and carries out a census where every single person living in the country
is asked about their age, their ethnic background, where they live, etc. but this is only a sample of the
population’s representation
______________________________________________________________________________________
2001 2019
In the last twenty years, Britain has become younger, but it also has become more diverse.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Religion in the 2011 census (in the American census, people are not asked about their religion)
Anglicans/Christians: 33.2m (59% of population, − 4m since 2001)
The official (established) church of UK is the Church of England (CofE)
o created in 16th C as a protestant church by the Act of Supremacy
4
