Christophe Tournu

Professeur, LSHA
© Université de Strasbourg, 2011
Outline of the course

This course will fall into 6 parts:

1 A physical geography of the British Isles,
together with some political elements

2 A Short History of Britain

3 The Constitution, the UK Parliament,
and the Government

4 A Survey of the British People

5 UK Economy, Welfare and Social Evils

6 British Life and Culture
Course #7 – 22 March 2010
Introduction

Introduction

 - 700,000:

Can you imagine -- no, I am sure you can’t -- 700,000
years ago, the British Isles were not separated from
continental Europe. Shocking! Consequently, they were
home to hippos, elephants, rhinos and hyenas. That is
not a joke. Stone tools discovered in cliffs at Pakefield,
Suffolk, show humans lived in northern Europe some
700,000 years ago, according to researchers. That is,
humans journeyed into Britain 200,000 years earlier than
experts had suspected. (>>)
Introduction (ctd.) Source
Introduction (ctd.)

 - 35,000: Modern humans (homo sapiens) arrived

35,000 years ago.

 - 500-600: The Celts arrived in Britain in the 6th
century BC.

 1st century BC: The Romans arrived

 5th century AD: With the fall of the Roman Empire,
Anglo-Saxons migrated to Britain

 8th century AD: Vikings migrated to Britain.

 In 1066, the Normans conquered England, and, in
subsequent years, there was some migration from
France.
Introduction (ctd.)

 In the 19th century, immigration by people outside

Europe began on a small scale as people arrived from the
British colonies.

 This increased during the 20th century.

Yet, in contrast with the US, Britain is not commonly
described as a land of immigrants. That does not prevent
us from picturing Britain as a multicultural
society.

Let us consider a short history of Britain.
1. The UK: from the
very beginnings to
the Commonwealth of
Britain
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 1. From prehistory to the post-2nd world war period

(1960)

1. 1. Earliest Times

Little is known about people inhabiting the British Isles in the pre-
Celtic period (before 800 BC). Some monuments built by them have
been preserved, e.g. Stonehenge, erected some time before 1000
BC.

The first Celtic tribes, the Goidels or Gales, are believed to have
come to the British Isles between 800 and 700 BC. Two centuries
later (i.e. in the course of the 6th century BC), they were followed by
the Brythons or ancient Britons after whom the country was called
Britain.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 2. Roman Britain (- 1st century – 5th century AD)

The first Roman invasion was led by

Julius Caesar in 55 BC. But Britain was not
conquered until some 90 years later, under
Emperor Claudius, in 43 AD. Although the
Roman occupation of Britain lasted nearly 400 years, its
effects were few. The people did not adopt the Latin
language.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 3. The Anglo-Saxon period (Mid-5th century-11th

century)

In the middle of the 5th century,
three Germanic tribes – The Angles,
Saxons and Jutes invaded Britain from the
continent. From the 8th century the Anglo-
Saxons had to face Scandinavian invaders – the
Danes and the Norsemen sometimes
referred to as Vikings.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

Britain about the year 886,

showing the Danish kingdoms in purple,
Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in orange,
and Celtic kingdoms in green
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

The Scandinavian invasions continued till the 11th

century. The Anglo Saxon period can be characterised as
a period of transition from a tribal to a feudal
organisation of society.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 4. The period of feudalism (1066-15th century)

It started around 1066 and lasted to the 15th century.

- In 1066 William the Conqueror, Duke of

Normandy, landed Britain at Hastings.

It was a period of struggle for power between kings and

between powerful nobles, a period of frequent wars,
bloodshed and suffering: for example, there was the
Hundred Years War with France, ending in 1453.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

In 1215 King John Lackland

agreed to the Magna Carta, a
document limiting kingly power in favour of the nobles. It
is widely viewed as one of the most important
documents in the history of democracy.

It was also a period in which the development of the wool

trade and the early decline of feudalism prepared the
way for England’s rise as a world power.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 5. The Tudor period (1485-1603)

The period between 1485 and 1603 is known as the Tudor Period. It
was a turning point in English history. England became one of the
leading powers. The two famous rulers of the House of Tudor were
Henry VIII and Elisabeth I.

Henry VIII wanted to divorce from his wife, Catherine of Aragon,
because she had been unable to give him an heir. The pope opposed
his move, because marriage was held as a sacred institution. Henry
VIII had the Act of Supremacy passed (1534), whereby he was made
“Head of the Church of England”, which allowed the advance of
Protestantism on the island, and not only did he divorce from his
wife, but he had six wives in all, two of whom he had executed for
adultery.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

Elizabeth I, the daughter he had with Anne Boleyn, is

known as the Virgin Queen (1558-1603) because she
never married. She elevated England to the position of a
world power after the
English surprisingly
routed the (Catholic) Spanish
Armada in 1588. The Elizabethan age produced
the world’s greatest playwright, William Shakespeare.

See below: Portrait of Queen Elizabeth, c. 1585

1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

Source
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 6. The century of revolutions (1625-89)

The first 40 years of the 17th century can be characterised
as a period of growing conflict between the King and
parliament, representing the interests of the
bourgeoisie. The conflict led to the civil war in
the 1640 which resulted in the beheading
of King Charles I after he had been
sentenced to death as “a tyrant, murderer,
and traitor” to his kingdom (30 January
1649; YouTube video >>).
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

Monarchy was also abolished and “the

Commonwealth and free State of England”
was established – under the auspices of Oliver
Cromwell. King Charles II was restored in 1660, and the poet and
essayist John Milton was the last Englishman to defend a
republican form of government.

The English revolution was addressed by the French revolutionaries
in 1789 and Milton’s Defence of the People of England was translated
for the occasion as well as his treatise on the freedom of the press.
This period ended in the Glorious Revolution which marked the end
of the English bourgeoise revolution, when William and Mary of
Orange were called to ascend the English throne.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 7. Glorious England (1688-1760)

The Bill of Rights (An Act

Declaring the Rights and Liberties of the
Subject and Settling the Succession of the
Crown) was passed in 1689.

The period of 1688 to 1760 England definitely took the
lead in European commerce created the conditions
necessary for the establishment of an empire and
prepared the way for the industrial revolution. Voltaire
and Montesquieu were admirers of England.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 8. The Industrial Revolution (1760-1850)

During the Industrial Revolution (1760 – 1850), Britain
became the first industrial power in the world, “the
workshop of the world.”

The Industrial Revolution was made up of four sets of
changes: first, the introduction of new technology (cf.
The steam engine); second, the use of new mineral
sources of energy (coal); third, a concentration of
workers in factories; and fourth, new methods of
transportation (cf. The railways).
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

The Anglo-French rivalry for world domination which had

started in the previous period continued and culminated
in the Napoleonic Wars (1803 – 1815).
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 9. The Imperial Century (1815-1914)

The Victorian era which comprised the second half of the
19th century, called after Queen Victoria, was a
period in which Britain became the strongest world
power: besides being the greatest financial and
commercial power, the greatest sea power and the
greatest colonial power. It was the era of the greatest
colonial expansion, especially in Africa.

Between 1815 and 1914, around 10,000,000 square miles
(over 25,000,000 km2) of territory and roughly 400
million people were added to the British Empire.
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain
1. The UK: from the beginnings to the Commonwealth of
Britain

1. 10. The Decline and Rebirth a Nation (20th century)

The 20th century is a period of the decline of Britain as a
world power. Even if Britain emerged as a victor from the
two world wars, its strength was seriously depleted, and
the Irish Republic withdrew from the Union (1922).

The second half witnessed the dismantling of the British
Empire and the UK rebuilding itself into a modern
European nation. Indeed, Britain joined the EU in
1973 (after her bid was rejected twice de Gaulle), but is
not part to the Monetary Union System.
2. The UK from 1960
to 2010
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2. 1. The British Empire 1497-1997

It took Britain 450 years to build its Empire, and another
50 years to destroy her most precious jewel.

As you can see on the above picture, a tiny little country,
Britain, had managed to build an amazing Empire across
the globe. It was said the sun never sets on the British
Empire.

The Empire Britain had built since the end of the 16th
century (John Cabot, Newfoundland, 1497) disintegrated
after World War 2.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

After India, which gained its independence in 1947,

“the wind of change” was blowing through the African continent in
the 1960s; by the end of the decade, Nigeria, Sierra Leone,
Gambia, Somalia, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia,
Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland were all independent or
becoming so. British rule also ended in many parts of Asia, the
Caribbean, the Mediterranean and the Pacific. Many other
„possessions“ of the Crown would follow – including the West Indies.

The process of decolonisation was complete when
Hong Kong was handed over to China in 1997. Prince
Charles attended the handover ceremony, which, for him, marked
„the end of Empire“.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

The UK retains sovereignty

over 14 territories outside
the British Isles, which were
renamed the British
overseas territories in 2002.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

The fourteen territories are Anguilla, the British Antarctic Territory, Bermuda, the British Indian
Ocean Territory, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar,
Montserrat, St Helena and Dependencies (Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha), the Turks and
Caicos Islands, Pitcairn Island, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands, and the Sovereign Base
Areas on Cyprus.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

The territories of Jersey and Guernsey (collectively

known as the Channel Islands), and the Isle of Man, are
Crown Dependencies.

The British overseas territories and Crown Dependencies are distinct

the Commonwealth of
from

Nations , a voluntary association of countries mostly

with historic links to the British Empire.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2. 2. The Commonwealth of Nations

The Commonwealth is an intergovernmental organization of
fifty-three independent member states, all but two of which were
formerly part of the British Empire. It celebrated in 60 years of
existence in 2009.

After the Second World War, many countries sought their
independence, starting with India. Yet, India, though willing to adopt
a republican constitution, wanted to remain in the Commonwealth.

The Commonwealth is not a political entity. The member states
co-operate within a framework of common values and goals as
outlined in the Singapore Declaration, e.g. the promotion of
democracy, human rights, good governance, the rule of law,
individual liberty, egalitarianism, free trade, multilateralism and
world peace.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

As The Queen declared in a Silver Jubilee speech in 1977, the

Commonwealth symbolises "the transformation of the Crown
from an emblem of dominion into a symbol of free and voluntary
association. In all history this has no precedent."

See promotional video *** >>

Member countries span six continents and oceans from Africa (19)
to Asia (8), the Americas (2), the Caribbean (12), Europe (3) and the
South Pacific (10).

There are currently 53 member countries of the Commonwealth.
Theyare working together in the common interests of their citizens
for development, democracy and peace.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

>> The Commonwealth -

on the web (with the profile
of each country)

Or p. 12.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

See World interactive map >>

Rwanda became the 54th member of the
Commonwealth last year.

Since membership of the Commonwealth is entirely
voluntary, any member can withdraw at any time.

The Republic of Ireland did so in 1949, as did Zimbabwe
in 2003.

They can also be suspended – as the Fiji Islands from the
1 September 2009.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

The role of the Queen

As specified on the website of the British monarchy, the Queen plays
an important symbolic and unifying role. “As Head, The Queen
personally reinforces the links by which the Commonwealth joins
people together from around the world” through regular visits,
contacts, and meetings.

There are also Commonwealth Day celebrations (second Monday in
March), during which the Queen delivers a personal message.

Finally, she regularly attends the Commonwealth Games – whose
purpose is “to unite the Commonwealth through sport”. New Delhi
(India) will host the next Commonwealth Games from 3-14 October
2010 (>>).
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

NB: There are 15 Commonwealth Realms in addition to

the UK:

Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica,

Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Papua New
Guinea, St Christopher and Nevis, St
Vincent and the Grenadines, Tuvalu,
Barbados, Grenada, Solomon Islands, St
Lucia and The Bahamas.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

More information

BBC History >>

Commonwealth Tour (Cartoon) >>
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2. 2. A Chronology of key events since 1960

1961 - UK application to join European Economic
Community vetoed by French President Charles de
Gaulle.

1962 - The Beatles have their first Top 20 hit in the UK
with 'Love Me Do'.

1969 - British troops sent to quell unrest in Northern
Ireland.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

1973 - The UK joins the European Economic Community.

Industry is on a three-day week because of strike by
power workers and miners.

1975 - EEC membership is endorsed in a referendum.
North Sea oil begins to be pumped ashore.

Conservatives in power

1979 - The Conservative politician Margaret Thatcher
becomes prime minister. She begins to introduce free-
market policies.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

NORTHERN IRELAND
In the shadow of the gunman

1981 - Thatcher government begins programme of privatisation of state-run industries.

1982 - Argentina invades the Falklands Islands in the South Atlantic. The UK dispatches a task
force, which re-takes them.

1983 - High unemployment, unrest in UK inner cities, continuing violence in Northern Ireland.

Thatcher re-elected.

1984 - The IRA attempts to assassinate Margaret Thatcher in her hotel in Brighton. Several killed
and injured by a bomb blast, but the prime minister escapes unhurt.

1987 - Thatcher re-elected with a slightly reduced majority.

1988 - Flight Pan Am 103 explodes in mid-air over Scotland and plunges onto the town of
Lockerbie. All 259 people on board as well as a further 11 on the ground are killed.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

1990 - Thatcher resigns as prime minister after she fails to defeat a challenge to her leadership of the Conservative party.
John Major becomes prime minister.

1991 - UK takes part in US-led military campaign to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi occupation.

1992 - Major re-elected as prime minister. Labour party chooses John Smith as its leader.

1993 - Downing Street declaration on northern Ireland - a peace proposal issued jointly with the Irish government.

1994 - John Smith dies. Tony Blair becomes Labour leader.

1996 - Government announces that BSE, or 'mad cow disease', can be transmitted to humans. Crisis for beef industry
follows, with mass slaughtering of animals, collapse of markets and export bans. Many beef farmers face financial ruin.

Labour landslide

DEVOLUTION
Wales and Scotland gained more say over their own affairs

1997 May - Labour under Blair wins landslide election victory.

1997 August - Diana, Princess of Wales, is killed in a car crash in Paris.

1997 September - Referendums in Scotland and Wales back the creation of separate assemblies in Edinburgh and Cardiff.

1998 - Good Friday Agreement on a political settlement for Northern Ireland is approved by voters in the Republic of Ireland
and in Northern Ireland.

1999 - UK forces take part in the air war with Yugoslavia and the consequent multinational force in Kosovo.

1999 - Scottish parliament and Welsh assembly inaugurated.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2000 - UK forces intervene in Sierra Leone to protect and evacuate foreign citizens
caught up in the civil war. They subsequently stay on to help train the government
army.

2001 - Libyan intelligence agent Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi is found guilty of
the 1988 Lockerbie bombing and sentenced at a court in the Netherlands to life in
prison which he will serve in Scotland. His co-accused is found not guilty.

2001 April - Blair postpones country-wide municipal elections due in May as an
outbreak of foot and mouth disease amongst cattle, sheep and pigs continues to
spread.

Blair re-elected

2001 June - Blair's Labour party wins a second successive general election victory.

2001 September/November - Following September 11 attacks on targets in the US,
PM Tony Blair offers strong support for US-led campaign against international
terrorism. British forces take part in air strikes on targets in Afghanistan.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2003 March - UK joins US-led military campaign against Iraq after UN-based
diplomatic efforts to ensure Baghdad has no weapons of mass destruction are
perceived to have failed.

2003 August - Prime minister, defence secretary, government officials and aides, BBC
managers and journalists testify at Hutton inquiry into death of government scientist
at centre of row over claims government embellished case for Iraq war.

Iraq inquiries

2004 January - Lord Hutton delivers findings from inquiry into death of government
scientist. His report exonerates government, heavily criticises BBC.

2004 October - Iraq Survey Group concludes that Iraq did not possess weapons of
mass destruction in run-up to US-led invasion. Tony Blair acknowledges flaws in pre-
war intelligence but stands by case for war.

2005 March - Controversial anti-terrorism bill passed after marathon debate, which
includes longest-ever sitting of House of Lords. Bill provides for control orders for
suspects, including placing them under what is effectively house arrest.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2005 May - Labour Party's Tony Blair wins a third successive term, albeit with a much-
reduced majority in parliament.

London bombings

2005 7 July - 52 people are killed and around 700 are injured in four suicide bomb
attacks on London's transport network. Two weeks later, would-be bombers fail to
detonate four devices on London's transport network.

2005 28 July - Irish Republican Army (IRA) announces a formal end to its armed
campaign.

2005 November - Tony Blair suffers his first House of Commons defeat as prime
minister when MPs vote against increasing from 14 to 90 days the length of time
terror suspects can be held without charge. Instead, they back increasing it to 28
days.

2006 August - Police say they have thwarted an alleged plot to bring down as many as
10 planes travelling from the UK to the US.

LITVINENKO POISONING : The death of former KGB officer-turned-dissident
Alexander Litvinenko in London tested relations between Britain and Russia
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2006 November - Former Russian security service officer Aleksandr Litvinenko, an

outspoken critic of the Kremlin living in exile in London, dies there after being
poisoned by a radioactive substance.

2007 February - Tony Blair announces the first large-scale withdrawal of British troops
from Iraq.

2007 May - Leaders of Northern Ireland Assembly sworn in, ending five years of direct
rule from London.

Pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) becomes the largest party in the
Scottish Parliament following elections.

June 2007- May 2010: Gordon Brown succeeds Tony Blair as premier.

May 2010-present: Tory–Lib Dem coalition: David Cameron (PM) and Nick Clegg
(deputy PM)
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2007 July - Diplomatic row between London and Moscow over Britain's bid for the
extradition of Andrei Lugovoi, an ex-KGB agent accused of Mr Litvinenko's murder.

2008 February - The government nationalises the troubled mortgage lender Northern
Rock. Funding problems at the bank in the second half of 2007 triggered the first run
on a British bank in more than a century.

2008 May - Ruling Labour Party suffers its worst local election results in 40 years. In
the contest for Mayor of London it loses to the candidate of the main opposition
Conservative party, Boris Johnson.

2008 July - Church of England votes by 2-1 majority to allow the ordination of women
bishops.

Financial crisis hits

2008 October - The government part-nationalises three leading UK banks with a 37
billion pound rescue package. It also pumps billions into the UK financial system after
record stock market falls precipitated by the global "credit crunch".

2008 December - The FTSE 100 ends closes down by 31.3% since the beginning of
2008, the biggest annual fall in the 24 years since the index was started.
2. The UK from 1960 to 2010

2009 January - The Bank of England cuts interests rates to 1.5%, the lowest level in its
315-year history.

The government announces a second package of measures to help Britain's ailing
banks, amid surging unemployment and deepening economic gloom.

2009 June - European election: Governing Labour Party slumps to its lowest share of
the vote - 15.7% - since World War II, and is beaten into third place. The main
opposition Conservative Party comes first with 27.7%.

2009 October - The UK economy unexpectedly contracted by 0.4% between July and
September, leaving the country still in recession. This is the first time UK gross
domestic product (GDP) has contracted for six consecutive quarters since quarterly
figures were first recorded in 1955.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/country_profiles/1038820.stm

Published: 2009/10/26 15:51:01 GMT

© BBC MMIX