IX Международная студенческая научная конференция Студенческий научный форум - 2017

As any other country Britain has its own history, with periods of prosperity and decay. The first inhabitants of the island were Iberians, who probably form the basis of the present-day population in Western England, Wales, North and Western Scotland and Ireland. They came between 3000 and 2000 ВС. Soon a new race from east of Europe came. The ancient people who gradually merged together, left behind impressive monuments, connected with religious acts at Stonehenge and other places. Stonehenge also served as an ancient observatory.Soon after 700 ВС Britain was invaded by the Celts, who came from Central Europe. Their language developed into the Celtic language of modern Wales. In AD 43 the Romans began an invasion. It resulted in the Roman occupation of Britain. The Romans built many military roads, walls, and towns according to their tradition.In some parts of the country these roads to these days form the basis of road communication. The largest of the towns was called Londinium. It was on the river Thames, where London is today. It became the capital city.In the 5th century Britain was subject to the attacks of the Germanic tribes of the Jutes, the Saxons and the Angles. Eventually the invaders settled down and formed a number of small kingdoms. The Anglo-Saxons and Jutes were close to each other in language and customs, and they gradually became one people. In the 7th — 9th centuries important changes took place among the members of the Anglo-Saxons communities. Land became private property of separate families. It was the beginning of feudal relations. The Danish invasions of the 9th and 10th centuries brought a new wave of the development of feudal relations in England.At the beginning of the 9th century the Danes and Norsemen began to occupy the country. They ruled the country tor several decades till 1042. 24 years later the invasion by the Normans under William the Conqueror began. The social structure of the country was very similar to the rest of Europe. The Norman invaders brought their language with them too. They spoke a Norman dialect and it became the language of administration, the official language of the state. Latin was the language of the Church, law and learning. However, the common people continued to speak English.The economic development of the country during the Middle Ages (11th — 15th centuries) illustrates the exploitation of the peasants by the feudal lords as well as by the church. Trade developed throughout the country. By the 14th century most English towns were becoming free from feudal restrictions. Besides, the country had a strong Monarchy and a Parliament. The 15th century was a period of civil wars, Wars of the Roses (1455—85). In form it was a struggle between two mart powerful feudal families — the House of Lancaster which had the emblem of the Red Rose and the House of York with the emblem of the White Rose. It weakened economically and independently old feudal families.Wars of the Roses could not prevent the economic development of the country. In the 15th — 16th centuries the clothing industry was well developed. The cloth was exported. Cloth industry gave development to capitalistic relations It brought a new wave of cultural and scientific development. The English bourgeois revolution took place in a country where capitalism developed faster than in any other country of Europe. As a result of its development England 100 years later alter the revolution became the first industrial state in the world, a power, which had created the largest colonial empire. The triumph of capitalism in England gave a powerful impulse to the development of capitalism all over the world. The 18th century brought the Industrial Revolution. It caused social changes. English society was breaking up into two basic classes - the proletarians and the capitalists. The working-class began to defend their rights.

Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

Under Queen Victoria's reign, Great Britain experienced unprecedented expansion in industry, building railways, bridges, underground sewers and power distribution networks throughout much of the empire. There were advances in science (Charles Darwin's theory of evolution) and technology (the telegraph and popular press), vast numbers of inventions, tremendous wealth and poverty; growth of great cities like Manchester, Leeds and Birmingham; increased literacy; and great civic works, often funded by industrial philanthropists. During her reign, Britain expanded its imperial reach, doubling in size and encompassing Canada, Australia, India and various possessions in Africa and the South Pacific. The Queen was emblematic of the time: an enthusiastic supporter of the British Empire, which stretched across the globe and earned the adage: “The sun never sets on the British Empire.”At various points in her reign, Queen Victoria exercised some influence over foreign affairs, expressing her preference, but not pressing beyond the bounds of constitutional propriety. During this time, the British Empire experienced only a few small wars, exerting its authority over foreign possessions. One of the major factors that helped Britain avoid European entanglements was the marriage of Victoria's children: either directly or by marriage, she was related to the royal houses of nearly every major European power, with the exceptions of France and Spain. Though the English constitutional arrangement denied her powers in foreign affairs, she ruled her family with an iron hand that helped keep Great Britain away from the intrigues of European politics.During Queen Victoria’s reign, British Parliamentary politics went through a major transition. The Tory Party split, forming the Liberal and Conservative parties, and started a succession of opposing administrations. Victoria played a crucial role as mediator between arriving and departing prime ministers. Though she detested Liberal Prime Minister William Gladstone, she found ways to work with him, even during her mourning period. She was particularly fond of Conservative Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, who linked the Monarchy to the expansion of the empire, which helped restore public opinion following Queen Victoria’s long seclusion after the death of her beloved Albert

Death and Legacy

Life in Britain during the 19th century was known as Victorian England because of Queen Victoria’s long reign and the indelible stamp it and her person placed on the country. Her ethics and personality have become synonymous with the era. Victoria continued in her duties up to her death. In keeping with tradition, she spent Christmas 1900 at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight, where her health quickly declined to the point that she was unable to return to London. She died on January 22, 1901, at age 81. Her son and successor King Edward VII and her eldest grandson Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany were both at her bedside.The Victorian era brought in strong family values for the middle class, but tended to create a larger gap between the middle class and the poor, who could not live up to the middle class ideals of the day.Queen Victoria's reign ushered in the modern monarchy. It is during this reign and onward that the monarchy becomes more of a nostalgic symbolic presence than a royal ruling class.Queen Victoria was recently ranked the 18th most famous person in Britain. She is the most commemorated British Monarch worldwide.Many statues and cities worldwide are named in her honor.

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