Western Europe Europe is a giant peninsula of peninsulas …… It juts out from the huge landmass of Eurasia• Europe consist of 5 major peninsulas, • 3 major islands, and many rivers.

• 5 Peninsulas: 3 Major Islands:1. Scandinavian Pen. (Norway) 1. Iceland2. Iberian Pen. (Spain) 2. Ireland3. Jutland Pen. (Denmark) 3. United Kingdom4. Apennine Pen. (Italy)5. Balkan Pen. (Greece)

Western EuropeModern Ingenuity: In the 1700’s was a place of new technological advances.

Many of which resulted in machines powered by water, steam, and fuel.

Languages: The two major languages of Western Europe are :

Romance and Germanic.

EU (European Union) – #1 CURRENCY SUPERPOWER w the Fall of Communist RussiaAll share common currencyPeople move freely across bordersNo tariffsNOT ALL COUNTRIES ARE MEMBERS Not lilke NAFTA because : NAFTA only economic union

Most of the natural forests in Western Europe have been cleared to make way for farms and to provide timber for building materials.

Scan

dina

vian

Iberian

Jutland

Apennine MntsBalkan

Alps - Mnts

Pyrenees - MntsMeseta

Massif Central

Pindus - Mnts

Physical Europe

Marine West Coast ClimateDue to :North Atlantic DriftWarm ocean currents

Italian

Iceland

Ireland

Northern Ireland

England

Norway SwedenFinland

Denmark

Germany

France

SpainPortugal

Italy

Netherlands

Belgium

LuxembourgSwitzerland

GREECE

Countries of Western Europe

W. European NationsGet most raw materialFrom underdevelopedCountries

Arctic ocean

Norwegian Sea

North Sea

Baltic Sea

Gulf of Finland

Gulf of B

othnia

Atlantic ocean

Bay of Biscay

English Channel

Strait of GibraltarMediterranean Sea

Adriatic Sea

Aegean SeaIonian Sea

Mediterranean Sea

Tyrrhenian Sea

Bodies of Water-Western Europe

The British Isles and Nordic Nations

Scotland and Wales

The Two Irelands

The Nordic Nations

1

England

England is divided into three different areas:

Highlands, Midlands, Lowlands

England

The Highlands along the west coast are rocky and rise up to 3,000 feet, making the land difficult to farm.

The Midlands are to the southeast, and the thick veins of coal that were there fueled England’s Industrial Revolution, which built up the population density in the area.

In the south and east are the Lowlands, which have fertile soil that produces abundant crops.

Rise of London as a Trade Center

Economic Activities

In the late 1400s, improvements in ships and navigational devices allowed Europeans to cross the Atlantic Ocean.

Britain has a strategic, central location for Atlantic trade, and as trade across the Atlantic increased, Britain’s relative location improved.

London lies only 70 miles from the continent of Europe. London is located on the Thames River estuary.

By the 1500s, London had become a bustling sea port.

In the 1500s, Britain shipped mostly agricultural products. Some of the earliest technological advances of the Industrial Revolution Used

in the textile industry, using first water and then coal to power machines. Britain possessed large amounts of coal and iron ore, or rocky material

containing a valuable mineral. The Industrial Revolution brought wealth, also changed the English landscape.

Much of the region’s coal supply has been used up, and since the 1970s Britain began using oil and natural gas taken from under the North Sea as sources of fuel.

To offset the loss of heavy industry, the government has fostered the growth of tertiary economic activities such as finance and tourism.

England

Without coal, INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTI)ON would not have started in Britain!!!!

Scotland’s Physical CharacteristicsThe Highlands• The Highlands region is a large, high plateau with many lochs, or lakes.• Moors, or broad, treeless rolling plains, cover much of the Highlands and are dotted with

Bogs areas of wet, spongy ground.• The Highlands are well suited to fishing and sheep herding.

The Central Lowlands• The long Central Lowlands region, stretching from

Edinburgh to Glasgow, is home to 75 percent of Scotland’s people.

• Glasgow was a huge shipbuilding center in the 1800s and early 1900s.

• Heavy industry in the Lowlands hit hard times in the mid-1900s.

The Southern Uplands The Southern Uplands is primarily a sheep-raising region,

and it is near the English border. The Cheviot Hills give way to rolling plateaus that have

been worn down by glaciers.

• New industries are slowly taking the place of mining, steel making, and shipbuilding.• Oil extraction in the North Sea has helped the economies of some cities.• Computer and electronics businesses developed along the Tweed and Clyde rivers

have given the Clyde Valley the nickname “Silicon Glen.”• Scotland and England have been politically united, but Scotland has retained its own culture.• English and Scottish parliaments were united by the Act of Union in 1707, but

Scotland retained many trading and political rights.• In 1997, Scottish voters approved the creation of a new Scottish parliament, and

some Scots want Scotland to become independent.

Scottish Culture

Wales Wales possesses a distinct culture, but it has been strongly influenced since being conquered by England in 1284.

• The landscape of Wales is similar to that of Scotland, and it receives more rain than England.

• About 20 percent of the Welsh population speaks Welsh as their first language, and Welsh patriots have won the right to broadcast television programs entirely in Welsh.

• Industry and coal mining have changed the landscape and economy of southern Wales, but by the 1980s most of the coal mines had closed.

• In the 1990s, high-tech industries provided new jobs in Wales.

The Two Irelands

Ireland is shaped like a huge bowl, with hills ringing most of the coastline. Moist climate keeps vegetation a brilliant green, making its nickname “The Emerald Isle.” 1/6th of the island is covered by peat. Spongy material containing waterlogged mosses and plants that can be used as fuel. Ireland recently developed a method of using peat in power plants, Now : almost one quarter of the nation’s electricity comes from PEAT

“The Emerald Isle”

A stable Government

100% Literacy rate

Great location – close to England

Excellent area for Film industry

Ireland’s history has been shaped by invasions and wars.

Religious Conflicts• In the early 1500s, Protestants broke from

the Catholic Church in the Reformation.• The Protestant minority controlled much of

the wealth, and Irish Catholics were poor.

• Conflict between Irish Protestants and Irish Catholics led to cultural divergence, or deliberate efforts to keep the cultures separate.

• 1 mil poor Irish died in the Potato Famine of the 1840s, inflaming anti-British feelings and causing many Irish to emigrate to the USA.

Government and Citizenship• Irish rebellions in 1916 and 1921 led to free

state status under British supervision, with the exception of six counties in the northeast that remained part of the U.K.

• The free state declared total independence in

1949 as the Republic of Ireland.• Catholics in Northern Ireland favor

reunification, while Protestants oppose it.• Protestant and Catholic extremists in Northern

Ireland have used violence to try to win control of Northern Ireland.

• In the 1990s, the Republic of Ireland invested in education and modern telecommunications.• Foreign high-tech companies located administrative offices in Ireland.• Irish economic growth became the highest in Europe in the late 1990s, Per capita income increased dramatically as unemployment fell.• New economic climate pulled immigrants to Ireland and lured back many emigrants in the United States.

Economic Activities

The Nordic Nations

A Varied Landscape The region is a collection of islands

and peninsulas separated by water, and the landscape varies from very flat to very mountainous.

Natural Resources Icelanders have learned to

produce geothermal energy from the heat of the earth’s interior.

The Ocean and the ClimateDespite the long winter, the climate is very mild due to warm ocean currents.

Long Winters, Short Summers

The aurora borealis shine most brightly in the Nordic regions in winter.

In midsummer, the sun never really sets for several weeks.

Environmental Change The landscape of the Scandinavian

Peninsula is the product of the last Ice Age.

The fjords of Scandinavia were carved out by glaciers and

later filled with water.

Dutch reclaimed landBy building dams to Protect from seas, and lakes

The Nordic countries possess strong cultural ties.

Understanding the Past• Between A.D. 800 and A.D. 1050,

Vikings from Scandinavia raided and later colonizedparts of Western Europe.

• The Nordic nations were united at times.

• Most Nordic peoples belong to the Lutheran Church, established during the Reformation.

• Nordic languages, except Finnish, have common roots, and students are required to learn English as well..

Economic Systems• Nordic countries share certain

political and economic beliefs.• All Nordic countries practice a

mixture of free enterprise and socialism in mixed economies, or systems combining different degrees of government regulation.

• Nordic countries guarantee certain goods and services to everyone and operate some industries that are private in the United States.

• Nordic countries tend to be politically neutral in foreign affairs.

Denmark and Sweden : Flat land and a climate suitable for agriculture.

Fishing is important to the Nordic countries, particularly Norway.

The region profits from oil and gas production, high-grade ores, and expanses of forest.

Dutch reclaimed landBy building dams to Protect from seas, and lakes

Central Western Europe

FranceGermany

The Benelux Countries

Switzerland and Austria

France• North, Paris is the political, economic, and

cultural capital, and it is a center of industry.• Southwestern France is known for its wine

production.• The Alps hindered movement between Italy and

France until a tunnel was built under Mont Blanc.

• The French Riviera is renowned for its beaches and international film festival.

• The Rhine Valley provinces in the east are rich in natural resources.

Gaul was conquered by the Romans and adopted the Latin language and later the Christian religion. Charlemagne, the greatest Frankish ruler, set up an efficient administration, but his empire fell apart after his death.

Hugh Capet became the ruler of Paris and its surrounding lands in A.D. 987 Under his heirs the monarchy grew strong and expanded the country until its borders were almost the same as those of

modern France.

1789, the monarchy came to a bloody and violent end in the French Revolution.

Since --- France has had several different forms of government, including republics, empires, and a constitutional monarchy.

Germany Divided German States Once part of Charlemagne’s

empire, Germany broke up into many small states after his death.

The Protestant Reformation divided Germany further.

Prussia merged many German states into a confederation, and after defeating France in war, the new German Empire was forged.

United Germany’s Defeats Defeated in World War I,

Germany was forced to pay reparations:n which caused inflation and economic collapse.

Adolph Hitler and the Nazis rose to power during the 1930s, promising to restore German glory.

Germany was defeated again in World War II by Allied countries.

One People, Two Countries Germany was divided during the Cold War into : West and East Germany In 1989, a wave of protests overturned the Communist East German government,

opening the borders and leading to a reunited Germany.

Germany’s land can be divided into three bands.

Northern Germany is covered by the North German Plain, with important industries, Germany’s largest cities, and access to the North Sea and the Baltic Sea.

Central Germany is one of the most important industrial areas in the world, and it is also home to Germany’s banking center at Frankfurt.

Southern Germany borders the Bavarian Alps, and its largest city, Munich, became Germany’s cultural center after World War II.

Germany is Western Europe’s leading industrial power and 3rd most technologically powerful economy after the United States and Japan.Germany retains strong economic ties with Eastern Europe and Northern Eurasia, and it is a leading member in the European Union.

An aging population has pushed social security outlays to exceed contributions from workers.

$100 billion every year-- to upgrade the economy of the eastern lands once under Communist control.

Unemployment: Violence against foreign workers, and environmental pollution are other problems Germany faces.

Benelux Countries

Netherlands Belgium Luxemburg

When the Romans conquered the area, they built dikes, or embankments of rock and earth, to hold back the sea water.

The Dutch became more skillful at creating new land, building dikes, pumping out water, and creating :

Polders, land reclaimed from the sea. Beginning in the 1200s, Dutch used windmills to power the pumps. Almost one third of the country is below sea level. The Netherlands has an extremely high population density, and

almost half of the land is used for agriculture. The Dutch government devotes special attention to preserving rural

land and preventing the densely populated area from expanding into it.

Situated at the mouth of the Rhine, Rotterdam serves as a link between much of Europe and the world.

The Netherlands

human-environment interaction

Belgium 30 percent of Belgians speak French and call themselves Walloons 55 percent speak a dialect of Dutch called Flemish.

After Belgium gained independence from the Netherlands, relations between Walloons and Flemings grew more tense, as the only official language was French.

To resolve the conflict, the national government made Flemish an official language. The Belgian Parliament has recently passed laws to decentralize

its government, or transfer power to smaller regions.

Luxembourg Luxembourg covers only 990 square miles (2,564 sq km). Luxembourg maintains cultural ties with Belgium, Germany, and

France, and three languages are spoken there.

Luxembourg has one of the highest standards of living in Europe. The economy has diversified from steel-making into high-tech firms + service industries. Luxembourg is a member of the European Union.

Switzerland and Austria

Switzerland Switzerland has three official languages and various cultural groups

that have maintained their distinct identities and political autonomy.

Understanding the Past The Swiss Confederation was formed in

1291 to fight against Austria. Switzerland has been recognized as a

neutral country since the 1800s.

Cultures and Citizenship Twenty-six cantons, or states,

make up Switzerland today. The cantons have a great deal of

control over their own affairs.

A Prosperous Market Economy Switzerland enjoys a very high

standard of living. Dairy farming is the most

important form of agriculture to Switzerland.

Specializing for Global Trade With few natural resources,

Switzerland specializes in banking, tourism, and making products that require skilled labor.

Austria Austria was once the seat of an empire that controlled much

of Eastern Europe, but after World War I it collapsed and was broken into several new countries.

Because Austria is so mountainous, most people live in the eastern lowlands.

Austria, using Switzerland as a model for economic renewal, has created specialized industries, but it also has mineral resources that are sometimes extracted through strip mining.

Vienna, the country’s capital, was the political and cultural center of the Austrian Empire. It has declined in population, but it still draws tourists to its many : cultural and historical attractions.

Mediterranean Europe Spain

Italy

Portugal

Greece

Spain

Geographically, Spain is separated from Europe by the Pyrenees Mountains, and steep cliffs line much of the coastline.

High plateaus rise from the narrow coastal plains, and only one of Spain’s many rivers is navigable. Most of Spain has a Mediterranean climate, but it is also fairly dry. Spain’s economy has shifted from agriculture to new industries in recent years. With its central location : Madrid became the hub, or central point of activity and influence. Local regions retain their strong, independent identities, and they seek greater local control.

Portugal

• Abundant rainfall favors agriculture. Portugal exports port wine, olive oil, and cork products.• In the fifteenth century, Portugal explored new sea routes to Asia around Africa and established

many trading colonies.

• Spain and Portugal signed a treaty giving PORTUGAL control of Brazil and most of Africa to Portugal Spain claimed the rest of Latin America.

• Portuguese and Spanish colonial empires shrank in the early 1800s, • and only in 1975 did Portugal grant its African colonies independence.• Nearly one million people from the former African colonies have • immigrated to Portugal seeking greater opportunities.• Portugal is expanding an economy once based heavily on agriculture.

Italy The Apennine Mountains, a young mountain range that experiences seismic activity, runs the length of Italy.

Italy has a Mediterranean climate. Through overgrazing, much of the soil has eroded. Populated areas are very crowded. Many Italians from the poor south have migrated to the industrial north to find jobs.

Italy helped form the European Union, and access to wider markets helped transform the nation’s economy from agricultural to industrial.

Northern Italy• The Po River valley is the heartland

of this region, and is an important agricultural and industrial center.

• Rivers in the Alps provide hydroelectricity,

• Alps are also home to ski resorts.• Venice suffers from pollution and

subsidence, but remains popular with tourists.

Central Italy• Central Italy consists of Rome

and the surrounding regions.• Rome was chosen as the capital

of a unified Italy because of its central location and historic ties to the Roman Empire.

• Florence is a cultural center made famous by artists during the Renaissance.

Southern Italy This region, which includes Sardinia and Sicily, is known as the Mezzogiorno. Many southern Italians migrate to northern Italy to find jobs or to Naples, which is very poor and has a high unemployment rate.

Greece

• The Aegean Sea occupies a graben, an area of land that dropped down between faults.

• Despite poor soil and little rainfall, agriculture is • important to Greece. 1/3 of the Greek population lives in the crowded city of Athens.• Greece has one of the world’s largest commercial • shipping fleets, and shipbuilding is an important industry.• Greece has many islands, but fewer than 200 are inhabitable, or able to support permanent residents.

can be considered a Western country, because : much of Western culture has so many roots in ancient Greece.

• Some Western ideas about democratic government are based on Greek ideals.• As the Roman Empire declined, Greece became an important part of the Byzantine Empire.• Greece suffered invasion from many groups over the next ----- 1,000 years.• 1453, Turks conquered the city of Constantinople, • now called Istanbul, and ruled Greece for almost four centuries.• After a ten-year rebellion, Greece achieved independence from Turkey in 1829.

Greece