England
Popular Attractions
England has so much attractions of popular interest that a visitor to that country would find it difficult to cover all especially if the visit is for a short duration of a week or less. A tourist on a short tour must not miss the sights that London the capital city offers. The
Tower of London, the historical fort palace which also was used as a prison is the place where the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom have been kept. Queen Anne Boleyn after she was charged with treason was beheaded here in 1536 and the story goes that she is seen around the tower walking with her head. The
Clock Tower built in 1858 is to the world the face of London. Its clock on all four sides of the Tower is the world’s largest chiming clock. The main bell of the Tower is famously called the
Big Ben. The Clock Tower lies to the northeast of another famous landmark of London, the
Westminster’s House of Parliament.
Buckingham Palace is the main residence of England’s Royal Family although in 1703 it was built for the Duke of Buckingham. The Queen and Prince Philip spend their weekdays here. The
Royal Collection of artifacts, paintings and furnishings is displayed for public view at the Buckingham Palace. The Palace also has the
Queen’s Gallery which remains open throughout the year. The items of Royal Collection at display are changed from time to time. Housing artifacts collected from across the globe, the
British Museum set up in 1753 is a must see for tourists visiting England for a short tour. The Museum that first opened to the public in 1759 opens daily and exhibits such famous artifacts as the Easter Island Statue, the oldest image of Christ and the Rosetta Stone.
Trafalgar Square at Central London is another notable tourist attraction which was built in commemoration of Admiral Nelson’s famous victory over Napoleon in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Here stands atop a 151’ high granite column a statue of Nelson 18’ tall. The
London Wheel is the latest tourist attraction.
Culture
England being a very old nation has a rich cultural heritage that has crossed her boundary to influence other parts of the world. Immigration of people to England over the ages has in turn enriched her culture, tradition and values. The country has been the home to such literary giants as
William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, Thomas Hardy and
Jane Austen as also the famous builders and architects like
Paxton, Lutyens and Brunel. This rich literary and creative tradition has been continued in the works of
Julian Barnes, Harold Pinter and
Norman Foster. The culture of England developed over thousands of years gets reflected in the paintings, sculpture, performing arts and literature of this great nation. The landscape paintings by famous English painters like
John Constable have drawn attention of the world. The traditional cuisine of England reflects the rich culinary taste of her people. People of England have a penchant for
tea. As for wine, the country produces
Cedar of high quality. The mouth watering dishes of England include famous cheeses like
Cheddar,
Lancashire,
Cheshire and other delicious foods like
Worcester Sauce, British Curries, Apple Pie, Shepherd’s Pie, Lincolnshire Sausage, Yorkshire Pudding, Lancashire Hotpot, etc. When we think about the folklores of England, what immediately comes to our minds are the legends of
King Arthur and the tales of
Robin Hood. English folk traditions find reflections in
Morris Dancing which shows regional variances in its forms. A visit to England is not complete without seeing
Stonehenge which is almost icon like in England’s culture. The heritage of England as embodied in her churches and cathedrals one cannot give a miss to while visiting the country. The beautiful and glorious landscape that the English countryside offers remains etched in the visitors’ memory. Musicals at the
London’s West End and the performing arts by the R
oyal Shakespeare Company are two great cultural attractions of England.
London Philharmonic Orchestras performing at West End is worth a visit notwithstanding the high cost of entry. The music ranges from rock to folk music and the dance forms include classical ballet as well as club dancing.
Geology
The country rock of England is mostly sedimentary. This dominant rock finds extensive use in the country’s town building and architecture. The famous
Cenotaph Monument at
Whitehall, London was built with Portland limestone. The Northwest rocks are older in age and progressively younger rocks are found in the Southeast England. The country over the geologic period of time has witnessed mountain building, earthquake and volcanic activities and glaciations. The beds of gravels around the river
Thames are actually glacial depositions. The
Lancashire County in the Northwest England displays such glacial deposits in the form of ‘
Drumlins’ as seen in the
Ribble Valley. The cover of glacial till is also seen to the north of the areas lying between London and Bristol. The loose soil (moraine) produced from this glacial till can be seen on a visit to East Anglia where the moraine is displayed by the
Cromer Ridge. The northward retreat of the ice cap during the glaciations left gravel deposits as found in the
Vale of York. The southern coastline areas of
Hornsea and
Mappleton suffer erosions due to loose and soft moraines whereas the northern areas like
Flamborough Head being composed of hard Chalk remain strong. The volcanic activities created islands in the sea and
Central England is made of such islands. The rocks making up the regions of
Dartmoor and
Cornwall are igneous (granite). Granite tors of
Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor form beautiful landscapes worth a visit by the tourists to England. The landscape of England is primarily mountainous. These mountains were formed during the
Cadomian mountain building that happened some six hundred million years ago in the
Proterozoic era. The sea level rose and inundated the land during the early
Cambrian period causing erosion of the mountains and volcanoes of England. The sediment deposits that were left were later metamorphosed to shale. A visitor can see shale outcrops on a visit to the Midlands at
Nuneaton. The Central England rocks have not changed much since the Cambrian period. The beautiful
Lake District of England formed during this period is composed of slates metamorphosed from marine sediments.
History
The oldest or prehistory of England is before the Saxons arrived, a time which saw the erection of
Stonehenge (circa 2500-2000 BC). Up to the early 5th Century AD, England and Wales were ruled by the
Roman Empire. Thereafter England started to be ruled by the
Anglo-Saxons till the greater part of the 11th Century AD. The
Vikings and the
Normans frequently raided England the latter conquering the country in AD 1066. England was ravaged during the Middle Ages by civil wars and battles with other countries. The 16th Century Renaissance during the rule of the
Tudors was a watershed in the history of England. Great Britain was formed during the early 18th Century by unifying Scotland and Wales with England. The
Industrial Revolution from the late 18th Century up to the early 19th Century brought about immense technological and industrial advancement of England. The “
Nation of Shopkeepers” as the country was known when she colonized a large part of the world gradually started to lose dominance especially after
World War II when the USA took over geopolitical reign.
After the Roman rule was over in Britain in the early 5th Century, the Anglo-Saxons, a group of
Germanic people started to settle down in England. They continued to rule till they were defeated by the Britons at 495 AD. However the Anglo-Saxons continued to invade and divide England. From the closing years of the 8th Century, the
Vikings started to invade Britain and their domination of North Britain resulted in creation of the
Kingdom of Alba which later came to be known as Scotland. The 11th and 12th Century Norman Rule of England encouraged development of
Anglo-Norman language that influenced growth of modern English language. England is full of historical structures. One such structure is the
Tower of London built in the 14th Century. Besides the country is scattered with castles and forts which are real treats for the eyes. Among other notable historical sights are the
Royal Observatory at
Greenwich established during the rule of Charles II. The 18th Century
Buckingham Palace is a treasure house of royal memorabilia.
Political
Although not having a written constitution, England has a political system of
constitutional monarchy with the monarch not having any direct or real political power. The monarch or sovereign appoints the leader of the largest party in the
House of Commons as the
Prime Minister who heads the Government. The Prime Minister in turn selects a
Cabinet of Ministers and places it to the monarch for appointment. The sovereign heads both the State and the
Church of England. The sovereign seeks and acts upon the Prime Minister’s advice in the matters of giving consent to Bills, appointment of ministers, dissolution of the
Parliament or perform such duties as are assigned to the sovereign as head of the State. The monarch thus indirectly influences the government. The leading members of the largest opposition party form what is called the Shadow Cabinet of the official opposition party. As the name suggests, these members would be in the Ministry if their party comes to power. If the government cannot pass important legislation on the floor of the House due to lack of adequate support or loses in a vote of confidence, it has to resign and call a general election to form a new House. The United Kingdom being a
unitary state has centralized organization. While
Northern Ireland is ruled directly by the UK government,
Wales and
Scotland have been devolved with certain administrative powers by the UK government. The
British legislature is bicameral. The lower and upper house of the British parliament under this bicameral system are known respectively as the
House of Commons and the
House of Lords. The real power in the parliament is practically vested with the House of Commons as over a period of time, the powers of the sovereign and the House of Lords have been eroded. The House of Commons selects its members through majority voting. Elections are usually conducted every five years with people over 18 as voters. The country is now ruled by
Labour Party. Lack of a written constitution has prevented the UK from becoming a federal state like the USA or Germany.
Infrastructure/Getting Around
When on a short tour to England, you must make it a point to travel to the three main destinations-
London,
Liverpool and
Manchester. England is connected by air with big cities of the world.
Heathrow airport of London is one of the best airports and there are hotels near the airports to accommodate the tourists visiting England. The infrastructure surrounding any airport in England is good enough to take care of the convenience and comfort of large number of tourists. There are express bus services to and from the London airports. The running time of these services is strictly as per the timetable. Cruising to England is also enjoyable provided the weather is good for a
sea travel. Touring England by
train is a wonderful option. The different tourist destinations in England are well connected by
railroads from London. The
rail network from London spreads far and wide across the entire length of the country. The train journey through the countryside exposes the tourist to the breathtaking landscape of England. There are rail passes and good travel packages on offer for the tourists. The rail system in England is extremely professional and getting tickets and timetables is no problem. Then there are choices galore for traveling by
car within the country. The infrastructure of car as a mode of travel developed very early in England and the car hiring charges are quite fair. The well serviced cars though usually small in size provide enough room for the comfort of the tourists. The transportation in London offers a
wide range of choices for traveling to other parts of England by air, rail, buses and rental cars. A map of the country comes handy for the tourist to plan his or her travel in a systematic way. The
Network Rail and
Docklands Light Railway of London run intra-country trains to many destinations. A tourist can also travel to Paris from London by
Eurostar. The London
Tube is well networked covering a large part of the city. There are underground train services like the
Metropolitan Line and the
Hammersmith and
City Line.
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