1. Geography
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland, or UK, is a sovereign state
located off the northwestern coast of
continental Europe. It comprises the island of
Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales)
and the northeastern one-sixth of the island of
Ireland (Northern Ireland), together with many
smaller islands. The mainland areas lie
between latitudes 49 N and 59 N (the
Shetland Islands reach to nearly 61 N), and
longitudes 8 W to 2 E. The Royal Greenwich
Observatory, in South East London, is the
defining point of the Prime Meridian.
the UK with France.
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2. The UK
• It lies between the North Atlantic Ocean
and the North Sea, coming within
35 kilometres (22 mi) of the northwest
coast of France, from which it is separated
by the English Channel
• Northern Ireland shares a 360 km
international land boundary with the
Republic of Ireland. The Channel Tunnel
("Chunnel") bored beneath the English
Channel, now links the UK with France.
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3. 3

4. The area of the countries of the United
Kingdom
Rank
1.
2.
3.
4.
Name
England
Scotland
Wales
Northern Ireland
Area
130,427 km2
78,772km2
20,778km2
13,843
United Kingdom 243,820km2
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5. UK’s topography
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6. Physical geography
• The oldest rocks in the UK are gneisses which
date from at least 2,700 Ma ("Ma" means "millions
of years ago") in the Archaean Period, which are
found in the far north west of Scotland and in the
Hebrides, with a few small outcrops elsewhere.
• The remains of ancient volcanic islands underlie
much of central England with small outcrops
visible in many places. Around 600 Ma, the
Cadomian Orogeny (mountain building period)
caused the English and Welsh landscape to be
transformed into a mountainous region, along with
much of north west Europe.
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7. Physical geography
• The physical geography of the UK varies
greatly. The Geography of England
consists of lowland terrain, with
mountainous terrain north-west of the
Tees-Exe line including the Cumbrian
Mountains of the Lake District, the
Pennines and limestone hills of the Peak
District, Exmoor and Dartmoor.
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8. Mountains and hills
At 1,344 metres, Ben Nevis is the highest peak in the
UK.
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9. Mountains and hills
• The ten tallest mountains in the UK are all
found in Scotland. The highest peaks in each
part of the UK are:
• Scotland: Ben Nevis (Aonach
Mòr, 1,344 metres)
• Wales: Snowdon (Snowdonia, 1,085 metres)
• England: Scafell Pike (Cumbrian
Mountains, 977 metres)
• Northern Ireland: Slieve Donard (Mourne
Mountains, 852 metres)
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10. Rivers and lakes
• The longest river in the UK is the River Severn
(220 mi, 354 km) which flows through both Wales and
England.
• The longest rivers in the UK by country are:
• England: River Thames (215 mi, 346 km)
• Scotland: River Tay (117 mi, 188 km)
• N. Ireland: River Bann (76 mi, 122 km)
• Wales: River Tywi (64 mi, 103 km)
• The largest lakes in the UK by country are:
• N. Ireland: Lough Neagh (147.39 sq mi, 381.74 km²)
• Scotland: Loch Lomond (27.46 sq mi, 71.12 km²)
• England: Windermere (5.69 sq mi, 14.74 km²)
• Wales: Lake Vyrnwy (3.18 sq mi, 8.24 km²)
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11. Climate
• The climate of the UK varies, but is generally
temperate, though significantly warmer than
some other locations at similar latitude, such
as central Poland, due to the warming
influence of the Gulf Stream. In general, the
south is warmer and drier than the north.
• The prevailing winds are southwesterly, from
the North Atlantic Current. More than 50% of
the days are overcast. There are few natural
hazards, although there can be strong winds
and floods, especially in winter.
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12. Climate
• The highest temperature recorded in the UK
was 38.5 °C (101.3 °F) at Brogdale, near
Faversham, in the county of Kent, on 10
August 2003. The lowest was −27.2 °C (−17 °F)
recorded at Braemar in the Grampian
Mountains, Scotland, on 11 February 1895
and 10 January 1982 and Altnaharra, also in
Scotland, on 30 December 1995.
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13. Human geography
• The United Kingdom is composed of four parts:
England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
• The United Kingdom's cities, other large
centers, and selected smaller places
• The UK is governed as a whole by the Parliament
of the United Kingdom.
• Of the four countries that make the
UK, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have
devolved administrations and
parliaments/assembly:
• Northern Ireland - Northern Ireland Assembly
• Scotland - Scottish Parliament
• Wales - Welsh Assembly
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14. Economic geography
• The economic geography of the UK reflects
not only its current position in the global
economy, but its long history both as a trading
nation and an imperial power.
• The UK led the industrial revolution and its
highly urban character is a legacy of this, with
all its major cities being current or former
centres of all forms of manufacturing.
However, this in turn was built on its
exploitation of natural resources, especially
coal and iron ore.
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15. Natural resources
• Historically, much of the United Kingdom
was forested. Since prehistoric times, man
has deforested much of the United
Kingdom.
• Agriculture is intensive, highly
mechanised, and efficient by European
standards, producing about 60% of food
needs with only 1% of the labour force. It
contributes around 2% of GDP. Around
two thirds of production is devoted to
livestock, one third to arable crops.
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16. Natural resources
• In 1993, it was estimated that land use
was:
• Arable land: 25 %
• Permanent crops: 0 %
• Permanent pastures: 46 %
• Forests and Woodland: 10 %
• Other: 19 %
• Irrigated: 1,080 km²
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17. Environment
• The United Kingdom is reducing
greenhouse gas emissions. It has met
Kyoto Protocol target of a 12.5 %
reduction from 1990 levels and intends to
meet the legally binding target of a 20 %
cut in emissions by 2010. By 2015, to
recycle or compost at least 33 % of
household waste. Between 1998-99 and
1999-2000, household recycling increased
from 8.8 % to 10.3 % respectively.
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18. International agreements
• The United Kingdom is a party to many international
agreements, including: Air Pollution, Air PollutionNitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air
Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, AntarcticEnvironmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living
Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic
Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate ChangeKyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life
Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands and Whaling.
• The UK has signed, but not ratified, the international
agreement on Air Pollution-Persistent Organic
Pollutants.
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