1. British Isles “How convenient it would be if physical and political geography coincided!” Two main islands: Great Britain and Ireland · These are the names of the islands Two countries: · 1)United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland · 2) Republic of Ireland

2. William the Conqueror was the last successful invader of the British Isles (1066 C.E.) – why might this be?

3. Even after the American Revolution, Britain’s empire extended to Canada, the Caribbean, India, Australia, and large chunks of Africa

4. The Height of the British Empire A growing empire and the Industrial Revolution turned Britain into the economic engine of the whole world between 1837-1901 (Queen Victoria) · controlled 25% of the world’s

5. The “empire” part of Britain dissolved after World War II when independence movements swept across the globe, but Britain is still an industrial, hi-tech European society · continues to resist integration with the rest of Europe, though it is now a member of the European Union · a majority believes Britain is stronger and would be dragged down by the other European economies

6. Troubles of Northern Ireland Settled by Scottish and English immigrants, the northern 1/6 of the island of Ireland is predominantly Protestant. Republic of Ireland – almost entirely Catholic.

7. The few Catholics in the North feel persecuted by the Protestant government. Violence and terrorism was common until 1997, when they came to cease-fire agreement. (Trouble became more common again last year.)