The British Isles lie off the north-west coast of continental Europe. They are made up of Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) and Ireland (Northern Ireland and the Independent Irish Republic) and some 5,000 smaller islands. The total area of the British Isles is 121,000 square miles (320,00 square kilometers). The British Isles are surrounded by seas on all sides and are the English Channel. Their strategic position facing both the Old World and New was an economy based on world trade.

The climate of the British Isles is strictly influenced by the warm current of the Gulf Stream following across the board and deep Atlantic Ocean and is very mild. The westerly winds are warm and leaden with moisture. The temperature on the British Isles seldom reaches extremes of hot or cold. The summer is not very hot and winter temperature seldom falls below zero. It is often foggy and rainy. Britain is famous for the rapid changes in the weather, that's why it is one of the favourite subjects for discussion when Englishmen meet.

In Britain the higher lands are found in the north and west. There are no high mountains in Britain. Much of the country consists of generally sloping hills, broad valleys and rivers, which flow out into the sea. The highest mountain is Ben Nevis in Scotland (4,406 feet or 1,340 metres).

The chief rivers are the Severn and the Thames. Scotland's Longest river is the Clyde and Ireland's the Shannon. The largest lake is Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland. Owing to the various bays and inlets no point of the British Isles is more than 75 miles (120 kilometres) from tidal water.

The seven great urban areas, whose centers are the cities of London, Glasgow, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and some others contain 40 per cent of the whole population. The population of Greater London is over 12 million. On the other hand the north-west of Scotland and the Scottish islands are among he most sparsely populated areas in Europe.