- •1. Early Britain. Ancient population.
- •2. The Roman invasion.
- •4. The raids of the Danes and their role in the unification of the country.
- •5. The Norman invasion. The main principles of feudalism.
- •6. Early British education. The first universities. A medieval town.
- •7. England in the 14-15th centuries (the 100 Years’ War, the Peasants’ Revolt, the War of the Roses).
- •8. The policy of the new monarchs: Henry VII, Henry VIII, Elizabeth I.
- •9. Gaining power and expansion during the Tudor period.
- •10. British government and society in the 16th century.
- •11. British economy and the problems of the poor in the 16th century.
- •12. The Crown and Parliament during the Stuart period.
- •13. Republican and restoration Britain.
- •14. The 17th century British society.
- •15. Changes in political life in Britain in the 18th century.
- •16. Life of the British in town and in the country in the 18th century.
- •17. Industrial revolution in Britain and the war with Napoleon.
- •18. Reforms in Britain in the first half of the 19th century.
- •19. Britain’s international and home policy in the first half of the 19th century.
- •20. The years of self-confidence in Britain: industrial power, towns and the rise of the middle class.
- •22. Social and economic changes in Britain between 1876 and 1914.
- •21. The years of self-confidence: population, politics, the British Empire and life in Ireland.
- •23. Britain the World War I.
- •24. The after-effects of World War I for Britain.
- •25. Great Britain in World War II.
- •26. Britain after World War II. The Suez Canal conflict.
- •27. Attitude to the British towards the monarchy in the 20th century and Thatcher’s government.
- •32. Seas and coastline of the uk. Climate.
- •33. Britain in 1957-1979. Harold Macmillan.
- •Harold Wilson and Edward Heath
- •34. Tony Blair. Brown as Prime Minister.
- •Foreign policy. Brown remains committed to the Iraq War, but said in a speech in May 2007 that he would "learn the lessons" from the mistakes made in Iraq.
- •36. Legislative branch of government. Constitution. Passing a bill. Function of the monarch in the Parliament.
- •39. Migration in the uk.
- •37. Elections and parties. Local government. European Union.
- •38. Population of the uk. Population density and distribution.
- •40. Ethnic and geographic identity. Being British. Family and class.
- •41. The place of Britain in the world economy. Chief industries.
- •42. Agriculture. Transport and communication. Overseas trade.
- •43.Compulsory schooling. Educational reforms. Exams.
- •44. Post 16 education. Higher education.
- •45.British culture. Arts.
- •46. British culture. Science and technology. Religion. Religious, political, social and everyday contacts.
- •47. British culture. Sport. Food. National costume. Naming conventions.
- •48.British press.
- •Magazines
- •49. British radio and television. Television
- •50. Places to see in London.
2. The Roman invasion.
In the 1’st century B.C. when the inhabitants of the British Isles were still living under the primitive communal system, the Roman Empire became the strongest slave-owning state in the Mediterranean. It was the last and the greatest of the civilizations of the ancient world. The Romans ruled the entire civilized world and in the 1’st century A. D. they conquered Britain. Britain was a province of the Roman Empire for about 4 centuries. Not all of Briton was firmly in the hands of the Romans. In the south and south-eastern parts Roman influence was the greatest, while in the north and west the country remained untouched.
Julius Caesar was the first to carry the Roman banner to the British Isles in the year 55 B. C. He was the best ancient Roman leader as well as the greatest general and politician. Caesar was the first who wrote about the Britons of that dark period of the history. The Greeks called the island Albion and the Romans said that this meant white land, because the first view of Britain for most visitors was the white cliffs near Dover.
Having stayed in Britain some time, the Romans left again and did not appear on the British shore for about hundred years. And only in the year 43 AD the roman Emperor Claudius conquered Britain. They conquered the South-East. Other parts of the country were taken from time to time during the next 40 years.
The Romans ruled for about 400 years. As a result of the conquest signs of roman civilization spread over Britain.
Many towns were built by Romans, which were connected by good roads. Some of these roads exist to this very day. So Britain became the country of roads and towns. The largest of the towns was called Londinium. It began life as a roman fort at a place where it was possible to cross the river Thames. And now it is called London. So a constant trade was carried with other parts of empire. The chief exports were corn, lead, tin, and building tiles. Romans also built many walls to defend the country from the attacks of the barbarians living in the north and west. The most outstanding wall was Hadrian wall in the north near Scotland. This wall has its own history. Before 122 there had been a serious rebellion in the north of Britain. Tribes of the Picts, the people who lived in the north and south of Scotland, had risen in revolt and killed the whole population which was stationed at York. The rebellion was crushed, but the Roman Emperor Hadrian decided to build a great wall to defend the country.
Romans also discovered the hot mineral springs that could be used for curing all kinds of illnesses.
3. The Anglo-Saxon invasion.
Early in the 5’th century the Roman legions were recalled from Britain to defend the central provinces of Roman Empire from the attacks of the barbarian tribes. They did not return to Britain.
After the departure of the Romans the Celts retained their independence for a short period of time. From the middle of the 5’th century they were subjected to the attacks of the Germanic tribes: Angles, Saxons, and Jutes. These wild tribes burst into the land and took most of it for their own. The Britons were driven from their homes and were made to build little villages in the forests to live in.
The Saxons came from the territory lying between the Rhine and Elbe rivers which were later on called Saxony. The Jutes and Angles came from the Jutland Peninsula. For a long time the tribes of Angles, Saxons and Jutes fought with one another for Supreme Power. So Britain split up into 7 kingdoms. The Angles made kingdoms called Northumbria, Mercia and East Anglia. The Saxons settled in south, south-west and made kingdoms Wessex, Sussex, Essex. The Anglo-Saxons settled in small villages. Saxon villages consisted of about 20 or 30 families, all faithful to their leader. Local rules were made by the moot, which was a small meeting held on a grassy hill or under a tree. Sometimes it judged cases between the people of the village.
The Saxon kingdoms fought one against the other, at times one kingdom would become stronger, then another, but at the beginning of the 9’th century Wessex became the leading kingdom and united the rest of England in the fight against the Danes.
An important event which contributed to the unification of the country was the development of Christianity in England in 664. At this time the monasteries were established. They became the places of learning and education. Increased literacy helped to develop trade and England became a well-known state in Europe.
The new conquerors brought changes different from those that had followed the conquest of the country by the Romans. They destroyed Roman towns. All the beautiful buildings and roads were ruined.
As a result of the conquest the Anglo-Saxons made up the majority of the population in Britain and their customs, religion and languages became predominant. The Anglo-Saxons were pagans and worshipped different gods. Their names are reflected in the names of the days of week.
The Anglo-Saxon period gave the beginning of a class system, made up of King, lords, soldiers and workers on the land.