UK culture
This review article covers the culture of the United Kingdom . Due to the great importance of the English language, it has a far-reaching influence in the rest of the world. The United Kingdom is a political union of formerly independent states. The regional cultures in the four states of England , Scotland , Wales and Northern Ireland show some considerable differences, based on Anglo-Saxon and Celtic traditions. The country's past as a global colonial power has also had an impact on British culture, particularly since the mid-20th century when many people moved here from the former colonies of the Indian subcontinent and the Caribbean .
literature
The earliest literature on the territory of the modern United Kingdom (aside from works in Latin ) was written in the various Celtic languages of the islands. The tradition of Welsh literature goes back to the 6th century; the early medieval Mabinogion is a collection of tales from the Welsh bards. The tradition of Irish poetry can also be traced back to the 6th century , with the Ulster cycle being particularly important in Northern Ireland . The Old English literature performed works such as Beowulf or Cædmons hymns out, but the educated elite preferred Latin. Well-known authors in this language are Beda Venerabilis and Geoffrey von Monmouth .
After the Norman conquest of England , Anglo- Norman literature brought influences from mainland Europe to the British Isles. The English literature in the real sense developed from the late 14th century with the rise and spread of the London dialect of Middle English . Geoffrey Chaucer , the author of the Canterbury Tales, is considered the first author of English-language literature known by name . After William Caxton introduced printing in England in 1476, literature flourished in the Elizabethan era, particularly in the fields of poetry and drama . From this period, William Shakespeare stands out in particular .
The age of the English novel began in the 18th century . Famous authors of the time are Daniel Defoe , Samuel Richardson and Henry Fielding . After a period of decline, the Scot Robert Burns revived interest in literature in the "language of the people," with the Rhyming Weavers of Ulster being influenced by Scottish literature in Scots . The following two centuries produced an unprecedented variety of literature. In the early 19th century, romantic poetry was reminiscent of that of the Renaissance , with authors such as William Blake , William Wordsworth , John Keats, and Lord Byron . The Victorian Age was the golden era of the realistic English novel, represented by Jane Austen , the three Brontë sisters , Charles Dickens , William Thackeray , George Eliot and Thomas Hardy . Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson , among others, specialized in period novels .
The First World War brought forth the British "war poets" such as Wilfred Owen , Siegfried Sassoon , Robert Graves and Rupert Brooke , who wrote (often in a paradoxical style) about their expectations of the war and / or their experiences in the trenches. In the course of the Celtic Revival , there was an increased recognition of traditional Irish literature. Since Ireland's independence in 1922, Irish literature has been seen as a separate direction from British literature. The Scottish Renaissance of the early 20th century modernized English-language Scottish literature and also led to the introduction of new forms in Scots and Gaelic literature .
In the course of the 20th century, the English novel developed a much greater variety, which was further enriched by immigrant writers. The novel has remained the dominant form of literature to this day. Other famous novelists include Arthur Conan Doyle , DH Lawrence , George Orwell , Salman Rushdie , Mary Shelley , JRR Tolkien , Virginia Woolf , Graham Greene , HG Wells, and Joanne K. Rowling . Influential poets include Elizabeth Barrett Browning , Ted Hughes , John Milton , Alfred Tennyson , Alexander Pope and Dylan Thomas .
The following British authors won the Nobel Prize for Literature : Rudyard Kipling (1907), John Galsworthy (1932), TS Eliot (1948), Bertrand Russell (1950), Winston Churchill (1953), William Golding (1983), Harold Pinter (2005) and Doris Lessing (2007).
theatre
The UK also has a long history of theater . It goes back to the time of the Romans , who built theaters across the country. Pantomime had developed by the Middle Ages , with the special English form of mummer play , an early type of street theater. This was related to the Morris Dance and dealt with topics such as Saint George with the dragon or Robin Hood . These were folk tales based on ancient tales. The actors traveled from town to town and performed their performances, in exchange for money and accommodation. The medieval mystery games and morals dealt with Christian themes and were performed as part of religious celebrations.
During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I , the English arts and especially the theater flourished (see Elizabethan Theater ). The most famous playwright of the time, William Shakespeare , wrote about 40 plays that are still performed around the world to this day. These include tragedies such as “ Romeo and Juliet ” (1595), “ Hamlet ” (1603) and “ Othello ” (1604), comedies such as “ A Midsummer Night's Dream ” (1595/96) and “ Much Ado About Nothing ” (1599) as well as period dramas like " Heinrich V. " (1600). The Elizabethan era is sometimes jokingly referred to as the "Age of Shakespeare" because of the enormous influence it had at the time. Other well-known playwrights of the 16th and 17th centuries include Ben Jonson , Christopher Marlowe and John Webster .
During the Interregnum (1642–1660), the Puritans closed all English theaters for religious and ideological reasons. When the London theaters resumed operations with the restoration of the monarchy, they flourished again thanks to the personal interest and support of King Charles II . New attractions such as the first professional actresses drew a broad and socially mixed audience (in Shakespeare's day all female roles were played by boys). New genres were heroic drama, pathetic drama and restorative comedy . The comedies from that time are best remembered, such as B. "The Country Wife" by William Wycherley (1676), "The Rover" by Aphra Behn (1677), "The Relapse" by John Vanbrugh (1696) and "The Way of the World" by William Congreve .
In the 18th century, the provocative restoration comedy lost the favor of the public, which now turned to sentimental comedy, tragedy and Italian opera . The entertainment for broad sections of the population became more important than ever in this era, with the hilarious and farcical burlesque and the predecessors of the vaudeville ("music hall"). These forms of theater flourished at the expense of English drama, which was entering a long period of disintegration. In the early 19th century, dramas were no longer seen on the theater stages at all, with the exception of the "closet drama" (plays that were intended to be performed in a very small setting at home). This changed again in the late 19th century when the works of the Irish George Bernard Shaw and Oscar Wilde as well as the Norwegian Henrik Ibsen were shown on the London stages . All of them had been influenced by the English drama and brought its revival.
Today there are a variety of theaters in London's West End . Andrew Lloyd Webber dominated the West End for many years; his musicals also conquered Broadway and were made into films. The prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company operates out of Shakespeare's hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon and performs primarily, but not exclusively, his works. Important modern playwrights are Alan Ayckbourn , John Osborne , Harold Pinter , Tom Stoppard and Arnold Wesker .
music
British music is characterized by great diversity and has had a decisive influence on numerous musical genres. This has been particularly the case since the 1960s when British musicians helped spread rock 'n' roll around the world. Since then, the country has produced numerous musical genres and musicians, in styles as diverse as heavy metal , Britpop or drum and bass . At the same time, the traditional folk music, experienced folk , a renaissance. In addition, the country has a centuries-old tradition of classical music .
Folk music
Each of the four states (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland) has its own folk music . In addition, the Isle of Man , Cornwall and the Channel Islands have developed their own styles, while the immigrants from the earlier colonies have to a large extent preserved and developed their musical traditions.
Traditional English music is based on instruments such as the lute , dulcimer , harpsichord , crumhorn , hurdy-gurdy, and shawm, and has considerable regional variations. After the industrial revolution, folk music in its original form was limited to the rural areas, while more modern forms of light music found favor in the industrial cities. Musicians like Martin Carthy ushered in something like a rebirth in the form of folk in the second half of the 20th century as part of the “roots revival”.
Scottish folk music includes a wide variety of chants such as ballads and laments (lamentations). These are performed by a single singer who is accompanied by bagpipes , fiddles and harps . Traditional dances are Reel , Strathspey and Jig . The "roots revival" was led here by Cathy-Ann McPhee and Jeannie Robertson , who in turn influenced groups like The Incredible String Band and The Chieftains .
For a long time, Welsh music was subordinate to English culture and was almost lost, which is why it had to be rebuilt in the 20th century. Typical Welsh instruments are the crwth , the harp and the triple harp . Northern Ireland has the liveliest folk music tradition, which is essentially Irish folk . Typical instruments are the fiddle, tin whistle , bodhrán , uilleann pipes and accordion .
Classical music
Music composed on the territory of what is now the United Kingdom can be traced back to the 13th century and exerted some influence on the development of European classical music . The oldest known work is Sumer is icumen in from the second half of the 13th century. Other well-known composers from the early classical period are Simon Tunsted , John Dunstable , John Taverner and Thomas Tallis . The heyday of the English madrigals was from around 1580 to 1620 ; William Byrd , John Dowland , Orlando Gibbons , Thomas Tomkins and Thomas Campion are among the most important representatives of this era .
After the music had lived a shadowy existence during the English Civil War and the rule of the Commonwealth, it flourished again after the reintroduction of the monarchy in 1660, influenced by Pelham Humfrey , John Blow and Henry Purcell , among others . The most influential English composer of the 18th century came from Germany; the operas, orchestral works and chorales by Georg Friedrich Handel shaped British musical tastes for the next two hundred years. At around the same time, John Gay and Thomas Arne also worked . The most important composers of the 19th century were Arthur Sullivan (see Gilbert and Sullivan ), Hubert Parry , Charles Villiers Stanford and Edward Elgar .
The first half of the 20th century was shaped by the composers Frederick Delius , Ralph Vaughan Williams , Gustav Holst , Frank Bridge and John Ireland . Significant composers of modern classical music of the later 20th century include William Walton , Benjamin Britten , Michael Tippett , Robert Simpson , Peter Maxwell Davies , Harrison Birtwistle , John Kenneth Tavener , Mark-Anthony Turnage and Gavin Bryars .
The UK is home to a number of major orchestras such as the BBC Symphony Orchestra , the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra , the Philharmonia Orchestra , the London Symphony Orchestra and the London Philharmonic Orchestra . The London Royal Opera House was one of the world's leading opera houses and the Royal Albert Hall (also in London) is the venue for the Proms .
Popular music and jazz
The first genre of British popular music was the broadside ballads from the early 16th century . These were well-known folk songs, the texts of which were published on sheets of different lengths ( broadsides ), first handwritten, then in printed form. On the sheets of paper there was a note that you should sing the lyrics to a familiar melody. From the 18th century, the broadsides were added to the popular chapbooks ( folk books ). With the proliferation of newspapers and the development of recording techniques, the broadides became obsolete at the beginning of the 20th century.
After the industrial revolution, bars emerged that offered musical entertainment. The target group was the new urban working class, separated from their cultural roots and looking for new forms of music. This increased the demand for light music and professional songwriters. The songs in the Music Halls are characterized by a simple rhythm and a catchy melody that can be quickly picked up by the audience. The most famous stars of the Music Halls were Marie Lloyd , Harry Champion , George Formby and Gracie Fields .
The tour of the Original Dixieland Jass Band in 1919 is considered to be the hour of birth of jazz . But this style of music only became popular during the Second World War, when the many soldiers had to be entertained. The best-known representatives of British jazz are the musicians John Dankworth , Humphrey Lyttelton , Joe Harriott , Dizzy Reece , George Shearing , Evan Parker , John Surman , Barbara Thompson and Courtney Pine as well as the fusion bands Colosseum , Henry Cow , If , Centipede , Ginger Baker's Air Force and Nucleus . Groups such as the Spontaneous Music Ensemble and the musicians Evan Parker and Derek Bailey have played a decisive role in the formation of free improvisational music that is increasingly breaking away from the jazz idiom and radiating across Europe .
Pop and rock
The United Kingdom, along with the United States, was (and is) a world leader in the development of rock and pop music . Shortly after the first rock 'n' roll records were released in the USA , they also came to Great Britain, where an independent style arose which was made up of the skiffle and the British folk tradition. In the 1960s, British rock and pop music began to triumph around the world with the British Invasion , led by the Beatles . In the wake of “ Beatlemania ”, other bands also celebrated great successes, such as B. the Rolling Stones , The Who , The Kinks , The Dave Clark Five , Status Quo , The Searchers or Gerry & the Pacemakers .
At the end of the 1960s, important representatives of folk rock appeared, such as bands such as Fairport Convention or Steeleye Span and singer-songwriters such as Donovan , Bert Jansch , Nick Drake or Cat Stevens . Blues-rock bands like Fleetwood Mac or Free and musicians like John Mayall and Alexis Korner developed into the pioneers of hard rock . Psychedelic Rock , which originated in the USA, also inspired numerous British bands to produce an experimental sound using exotic instruments such as the Indian sitar. The most important bands in this field were Pink Floyd , the Beatles, Cream and the Pretty Things .
Numerous new styles of music emerged in the 1970s. The pioneers of heavy metal were Led Zeppelin , Deep Purple and Black Sabbath , whose hard music was further developed in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal by bands such as Iron Maiden , Motörhead and Judas Priest . Progressive rock was also born in the UK , led by the bands Pink Floyd, Genesis , King Crimson , Jethro Tull , Yes and Emerson, Lake and Palmer . Glam Rock was particularly noticeable through costumes and stage shows with Slade , T. Rex , Gary Glitter and (at least in their early years) Elton John , David Bowie and Queen . The commercial breakthrough of punk music came in 1977 with the Sex Pistols , which was followed by The Clash and Elvis Costello , among others . With disco music celebrating Bee Gees its greatest successes.
The 1980s were also marked by a diversification of musical styles. New wave (with Ultravox and The Human League ) and various forms of indie rock (with The Cure , The Smiths and The Jesus and Mary Chain ) developed out of punk . The genres Madchester and Shoegazing integrated more pop structures into indie rock, which finally resulted in Britpop at the beginning of the 1990s , the best-known representatives of which are Oasis , Blur , Manic Street Preachers and The Verve . British reggae and soul music also became very well known with UB40 , Hot Chocolate , Sade , Billy Ocean , Lisa Stansfield , Eurythmics , Culture Club and Simply Red . The Police and Sting , Rod Stewart , Dire Straits and Depeche Mode are among the world's most successful bands and artists of the 1980s and beyond .
Various forms of electronic dance music also developed in the UK, notably drum and bass and trip hop . Well-known groups from these areas are Underworld , Orbital , Massive Attack , The KLF , The Prodigy , The Chemical Brothers and Portishead . Boy groups and girl groups , which usually disbanded after a few years, were explicitly tailored to suit the masses . The most famous boy groups include Bay City Rollers , Wham! , East 17 , Blue , Take That and One Direction , the best-known girl groups include All Saints , Atomic Kitten , Bananarama , Sugababes and Spice Girls . Only a few members of such groups have achieved a successful solo career, including George Michael , Robbie Williams and Melanie C .
Visual arts
The Late Stone Age bell beaker culture lasted in England and Scotland until around 1800 BC. Chr .; Numerous large stone graves and finely crafted ceramic cups date from this time . The bell beakers followed from around 2000 BC. The early Bronze Age Wessex culture , which is known for its grave goods made of copper, then bronze, but above all for its ornamental ironwork made of gold .
During the Iron Age , the Celts colonized the British Isles and introduced new forms of art. Metalwork, especially gold ornaments, was still important, but stone and wood were increasingly used. This style lasted until Roman times and reappeared in the Middle Ages. He also stayed in the Celtic regions that were not occupied by the Romans. During their reign, the Romans left behind numerous works of art, in particular grave monuments, statues and busts. They also introduced glasswork and mosaics . British Christian art has been traceable since the 4th century, particularly in the form of mosaics with Christian motifs. Roman-British art was much the same as on the continent, but incorporated elements of Celtic art.
The Roman rule was replaced by several kingdoms with different cultural backgrounds. Celtic art was able to expand again over its home countries in the west and north and spread over all of Great Britain. Peoples like the Anglo-Saxons , Jutes and Danes introduced Germanic and Scandinavian art forms. Celtic and Scandinavian art have some things in common such as: B. intricate intricate decoration patterns. A Celtic-Scandinavian mixed culture emerged from the various elements.
Christianity began to spread among the common people from the late 6th century. The Celtic crosses are the best known example of Celtic shapes in Christian art. Scenes from the Bible were depicted, framed by Celtic ornamental patterns. Wall painting was a new art form. Many of the artists were monks from abroad or received their training on the continent. For these reasons, British art came closer and closer to European art. Another art form introduced by the church was stained glass , which was also used for secular representations. In the later Middle Ages, British art was part of the "international" or soft style . Paintings and objets d'art were not that different from those in other northern European countries.
The introduction of the Reformation in 1536 and the ensuing seizure of church property by the state destroyed the English and Welsh artistic traditions that had previously been under the auspices of the Church. In addition, there has been a decade of isolation from trends in Catholic parts of Europe. The iconoclasm held by the end of the 17th century. The English Renaissance from the early 16th century had similarities to the Italian Renaissance, but developed in a different way. It mainly comprised music and literature; the change in art and architecture, however, was less clearly defined than in the rest of Europe.
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The "English School of Painting", which emerged at the beginning of the 18th century, is known for portraits and landscapes and is considered to be the first independent British form of painting. The most influential painters of the period were Joshua Reynolds , George Stubbs and Thomas Gainsborough . The Scots Allan Ramsay and Henry Raeburn , who painted over 1000 pictures in 50 years, were considered great portraitists .
The late 18th and early 19th centuries are considered to be the most radical periods in British art, with painters such as William Blake , John Constable , William Hogarth, and William Turner . Turner in particular, with his almost abstract landscapes, exerted a great influence on the later Impressionists . The image of the Scottish landscape was shaped by Horatio MacCulloch and William MacTaggart , while David Wilkie emerged as a genre painter in Scotland . As a result, Scottish artists oriented themselves more towards French, not English, painting.
From the 1840s onwards, British painting became popular with the Pre-Raphaelites , whose colorful and detailed paintings depicted mostly religious motifs. The designer William Morris , the founder of the Arts and Crafts Movement , was also influenced by this art movement . His wallpaper and tile patterns had a lasting impact on the Victorian era . Well-known illustrators were Beatrix Potter and Aubrey Beardsley . An important art movement of the early 20th century was Vorticism , the best-known representatives of which were Jacob Epstein , Wyndham Lewis and David Bomberg .
From 1875 to 1895, Scotland was dominated by the Glasgow Boys (including James Guthrie , Edward Atkinson Hornel ), who had often studied in France and were based on impressionism. They preferred figurative, narrative painting, while the Scottish Colourists (including the Matisse-influenced John Duncan Fergusson , Stanley Cursiter and John Peploe ) in Edinburgh preferred bright colors and an expressive brush stroke , which shaped Scottish painting until the 1960s. Cecile Walton and Joan Eardley are among the most important Scottish painters.
Henry Moore , Lucian Freud , Frank Auerbach and Francis Bacon are among the most important British artists of the 20th century . As a reaction to abstract expressionism , Pop Art emerged in the 1950s with artists such as Richard Hamilton , Eduardo Paolozzi , Peter Blake , Allen Jones and David Hockney . In Scotland, however, the socially engaged figurative painting experienced a renaissance through the group of the New Glasgow Boys , who u. a. Ken Currie and Peter Howson belong.
The movement of the Young British Artists (represented by Damien Hirst , Sarah Lucas and Tracey Emin , among others ) that emerged in the late 1980s has a decisive influence on conceptual art .
The Turner Prize has been awarded to (mostly controversial) British artists under the age of 50 since 1984 . Major art institutions include the Allied Artists 'Association , the Royal College of Art , the Artists' Rifles , the Royal Society of Arts , the New English Art Club , the Slade School of Fine Art , the Royal Academy, and the Tate Gallery . The underfunding of art institutions outside London is notorious. In Scotland, the National Museum in Edinburgh is the only institution that has government funding.
architecture
See also: UNESCO World Heritage in the UK
The earliest witnesses of architecture in the United Kingdom are Neolithic megalithic monuments such as Stonehenge , Avebury and West Kennet Long Barrow . One of the world's best preserved Neolithic settlements is Skara Brae on the Orkney Islands. Stone round houses and towers ( brochs ) from the Iron Age are mainly known from Scotland. The Celts only built buildings out of wood, so nothing of them has survived. The Romans built the first cities, the most important being Aquae Sulis ( Bath ), Camulodunum ( Colchester ), Deva ( Chester ), Eboracum ( York ), Londinium ( London ) and Verulamium ( St Albans ). Many Roman buildings are still standing today, especially the thermal baths in Bath.
The Anglo-Saxons and other Germanic peoples followed the Romans. Their houses usually consisted of wattle reinforced with clay. The stone-built churches, which often give an indication of how old a settlement is, lasted longer. A typical example of Anglo-Saxon architecture is the parish church of Wing in Buckinghamshire .
In the two centuries following the Norman Conquest in 1066, numerous important castles such as the Tower of London , Caernarfon Castle in Wales and Carrickfergus Castle in Northern Ireland were built to keep the population in check. While the crown mainly promoted the construction of defensive structures, the clergy and the nobility paid homage to God by building numerous cathedrals, first in the Norman , later in the Gothic style. The practice of reinforcing virtually all large buildings with fortifications ended with the advent of the Tudor style and the construction of the first prestigious mansions such as Montacute House and Hatfield House, as well as castles such as Hampton Court Palace .
During the English Civil War (1642–1649) buildings had to survive sieges for the last time in British history. Numerous castles such as Corfe Castle were destroyed in attacks by Oliver Cromwell's army . After the end of this war, buildings were only erected for residential and commercial purposes; The design and appearance pushed the idea of defense completely into the background. Before the war, Inigo Jones became famous as the first British architect of importance and a co-founder of Palladianism . His most important works are the Queen's House and the Banqueting House .
After the reintroduction of the monarchy in 1660 and the Great Fire of London in 1666, an opportunity was missed in London to create a new metropolis using modern architectural styles. Although Christopher Wren , one of the most important British architects of the time, was commissioned to plan and rebuild many of the destroyed churches, his overall plan for the reconstruction of the capital was rejected for reasons of cost. Its most important building is St Paul's Cathedral, built between 1675 and 1708 .
In the early 18th century, the Baroque style, popular in Europe, also reached the British Isles, during which time, for example, Blenheim Palace was built , built by John Vanbrugh and Nicholas Hawksmoor . However, the Baroque was soon replaced by Palladianism. A further development of Palladianism in the second half of the 18th century was Georgian architecture , represented by mansions such as Woburn Abbey and Kedleston Hall . The architects of this architectural style and its successors Neoclassicism and Romanticism include Robert Adam , William Chambers and James Wyatt .
The medieval-style neo - Gothic seems almost a setback in relation to the symmetry of Palladianism ; the best known example of this phase is the new building of the Palace of Westminster , designed by Charles Barry . By the middle of the 19th century, technology was so advanced that steel could be used as a building material. This is how Joseph Paxton built the Crystal Palace , the most famous building of the Victorian era. While many new building methods were introduced in British architecture in this era of progress, leading architects like Augustus Pugin ironically insisted on a backward-looking style.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the design of the Arts and Crafts Movement became popular. The architectural form of this style, which had developed from the work of 19th century architects such as George Devey , found its culmination in the buildings of Edwin Lutyens . Arts and craft in architecture is symbolized by an informal, non-symmetrical shape, the buildings were often decorated with center post and lattice windows, multiple gables and tall chimneys. This style lasted until World War II . After the war, the reconstruction was shaped by modernism and brutalism , especially from the late 1950s to the early 1970s.
Modern building has remained the driving force of British architecture to this day, even if its influence is more noticeable in commercial buildings than in residential buildings. The two trend-setting British contemporary architects are Richard Rogers and Norman Foster . Rogers' most famous buildings are arguably the Lloyd's Building and the Millennium Dome , while Foster created, among other things, the skyscraper 30 St Mary Ax (also known as "The Gherkin") and the City Hall of London .
Film, television and radio
British film history is a diverse and changeable part of international film culture . While filmmakers from the United Kingdom had a decisive influence on the technical and artistic development of the new medium in the early years, the following decades were repeatedly marked by identity crises in the film industry and economic crises in the film industry, which were too dependent on the US film market originate. The productions by British directors Alfred Hitchcock , Michael Powell , Laurence Olivier , David Lean , John Grierson and Peter Greenaway were particularly successful . The main production facilities today are Shepperton Studios and Pinewood Studios . The most important award is the British Academy Film Award .
The television in the UK was for decades the BBC dominates. This first broadcast programs in 1936 and is now the largest television station in the world. The BBC is financed by license fees . Channel 4 is also state-owned, but financed by advertising . The most important commercial competition to the BBC is ITV , a network of several (formerly) independently operating television stations. Five is owned by the RTL Group . Pay TV providers are Sky and Flextech . A large number of regional channels and channels for special interests can also be received.
More than 250 national and local radio stations cover every taste and age group. As with television, the BBC offers dominate here too. BBC Radio 1 specializes in new, current and trendy music, BBC Radio 2 broadcasts music and cultural programs for predominantly adult listeners, BBC Radio 3 broadcasts classical music, BBC Radio 4 predominates voice programs, while BBC Radio 5 Live broadcasts a pure news program. and information sender is. As a fee-financed organization, the BBC also operates programs for minorities and local radio stations. Licenses for private stations are issued by the Office of Communications . The largest private radio stations are Absolute Radio , Classic FM and talkSPORT . By far the most important local radio station is Capital Radio from London.
Science and technology
The United Kingdom has been a leader in advancing science and technology since the “scientific revolution” started in the mid-16th century . The basis for this was provided by William Caxton , who brought printing to England. In 1620, the philosopher Francis Bacon published the so-called “Baconian Method” in his book Novum Organum , which anchored empiricism and induction in scientific research.
The best known and probably most influential of all British scientists is Isaac Newton . According to many historians of science, he crowned the scientific revolution with his Principia Mathematica , published in 1687 . With the Newtonian axioms he described the universal gravitation and the laws of motion ; thus laid the foundation for classical mechanics and modern physics . In addition, Newton (together with Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz ) was one of the founders of the infinitesimal calculus , did research in the field of optics and established a law on heat conduction .
Since Newton's time, the British have contributed to the advancement of almost every area of science. These include Michael Faraday , who combined the electrical and magnetic forces with James Clerk Maxwell , from which the Maxwell equations arose; Robert Hooke , discoverer of plant cells; James Prescott Joule , who did extensive research in the field of thermodynamics and who is credited with the discovery of the law of conservation of energy ; Paul Dirac , one of the pioneers of quantum physics ; Humphry Davy , discoverer of numerous elements, Charles Darwin , discoverer of the principle of evolution through natural selection, and Harold Kroto , discoverer of the fullerenes .
Traditionally, most of the great British scholars taught and researched at Oxford University or Cambridge University . In the last few decades, however, the so-called " Red Brick " universities and the " New Universities " have caught up in many areas. For example, Lancaster University has an excellent reputation worldwide in cryogenic physics . The Royal Society maintains science; it was founded in 1660 and is the oldest scholarly society still in existence .
The UK is also a leader in technological development. From here began the Industrial Revolution , triggered by innovations in textile processing and civil engineering , the steam engine , the mass production of steel and the railroad . Famous engineers and inventors of this era are James Watt , Robert Stephenson , Richard Trevithick , Isambard Kingdom Brunel , Henry Bessemer and Richard Arkwright . Since then, many other British people have achieved worldwide fame: Charles Babbage (his calculating machines are considered the forerunners of computers), Alan Turing (made a decisive contribution to computer science ), Alexander Fleming (discovered penicillin ), Robert Watson-Watt (considered to be the inventor of radar) , John Logie Baird (pioneer of television) and Tim Berners-Lee (inventor of the World Wide Web).
Everyday culture
In addition to the kitchen and the aspects mentioned above, there are other great British peculiarities in everyday culture. So on the wash basin or sink there is not one tap with a mixer tap , as in Central Europe and elsewhere, but two very hot and cold water separated so that warm water is only mixed in the basin. The reason for this is the lower pressure of the hot water.
The windows are usually to be pushed up, and not the inward-swinging casement windows that are common in Central Europe.
literature
- Roy Strong : The Spirit of Britain. A Narrative History of the Arts. Hutchinson, London 1999, ISBN 1-85681-534-X (not evaluated, critical mention ).
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Dafydd Johnston: The literature of Wales . University of Wales Press, Cardiff, 2004, ISBN 0-7083-1265-9 .
- ↑ Anglo-Saxon literature
- ↑ Hans Ulrich Seeber: English literary history. Metzlersche JB Verlagsb., 1993, ISBN 3-476-00911-4 .
- ^ NF Blake: William Caxton and English Literary Culture. Hambledon Press, London 1991, ISBN 1-85285-051-5 .
- ^ The Burns Encyclopedia
- ↑ Herbert F. Tucker: A companion to victorian literature and culture. Blackwell, Malden, Mass. 2004, ISBN 0-631-20463-6 .
- ^ Poets and poetry of the Great War
- ^ List of Nobel Prize Winners in Literature
- ↑ The Origins of British Mummers' Plays ( Memento of the original from July 1, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Biography and works of William Shakespeare
- ^ Robert David Hume: The Development of English Drama in the Late Seventeenth Century . Clarendon Press, 1976, ISBN 0-19-812063-X .
- ↑ London's West End Theaters
- ↑ Website of the Royal Shakespeare Company ( Memento of the original from June 28, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Ailie Munro: The Folk Music Revival in Scotland . Kahn & Averill, London 1984, ISBN 0-900707-78-X .
- ↑ original manuscript of Sumer Is Icumen In
- ^ The English Madrigal
- ↑ Lucie Skeaping: Broadside Ballads - Songs from the Streets, Taverns, Theaters and Countryside of 17th Century England. Faber Music Ltd., 2005, ISBN 0-571-52223-8 .
- ^ Richard Anthony Baker: British Music Hall. An Illustrated History . Sutton Publishing, 2005, ISBN 0-7509-3685-1 .
- ↑ Harry Francis: The History of British Jazz ( Memento of the original from October 29, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ The British Invasion from Encyclopædia Britannica Online
- ↑ Entry on Heavy Metal on laut.de
- ↑ Kevin Holm-Hudson: Progressive Rock Reconsidered. Routledge, New York-London 2002.
- ^ Philip Auslandser, Performing Glam Rock: Gender and Theatricality in Popular Music. Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press, 2006.
- ^ Punk celebrates 30 years of subversion - Malcolm McLaren on the BBC website
- ↑ What is New Wave? A Genre Profile ( Memento of the original from August 18, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on about.com
- ↑ John Harris: Britpop !: Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock. Da Capo Press, 2004.
- ↑ History of Drum 'n' Bass on the BBC website
- ↑ Essay on Trip-Hop at Allmusic (English)
- ^ Lloyd Laing, Jenifer Laing: Art of the Celts . Thames and Hudson, London 1992, ISBN 0-500-20256-7 .
- ^ Martin Henig: The Art of Roman Britain . TF-ROUTL, 1997, ISBN 0-415-15136-8 .
- ^ William Vaughan: British Painting - The Golden Age from Hogarth to Turner . Thames & Hudson, 1999, ISBN 0-500-20319-9 .
- ↑ Elizabeth Prettejohn: The Art of the Pre-Raphaelites . Princeton University Press, Princeton 2000, ISBN 0-691-07057-1 .
- ↑ Steven Adams: Arts and Craft Movement . Grange Books, 1996, ISBN 1-85627-857-3 .
- ↑ www.vorticism.co.uk
- ↑ British and American Pop Art ( Memento of the original from May 30, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ The British Avant-Garde: A Philosophical Analysis
- ↑ Prehistoric Britain - Barrows, stone circles, henges, and such
- ↑ Guy de La Bedoyère: The Buildings of Roman Britain . NPI Media Group, 2001, ISBN 0-7524-1906-4 .
- ^ Anglo-Saxon architecture
- ^ Castles in England and Wales
- ^ Tudor architecture in England 1500–1575
- ^ Elizabethan architecture in England 1550–1625
- ^ Rudolf Wittkower: Palladio and English Palladianism . Thames & Hudson, 1983, ISBN 0-500-27296-4 .
- ↑ Lisa Jardine: On a Grander Scale: The Outstanding Life of Sir Christopher Wren . HarperCollins, New York 2003, ISBN 0-06-019974-1 .
- ^ Georgian architecture
- ^ Gothic revival architecture
- ^ Victorian art and architecture
- ^ Brian McFarlane: The Encyclopedia of British Film. Methuen, London 2003, ISBN 0-413-77301-9 .
- ^ Website of Pinewood and Shepperton Studios ( Memento of the original from July 2, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ History of the BBC ( Memento of the original from June 11, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ ITV website
- ^ Website of Five ( Memento of the original from November 17, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ BBC Radio website
- ↑ Ofcom website
- ^ Entry on Francis Bacon in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- ↑ Jörg Ulrich: NEWTON, Isaac. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 16, Bautz, Herzberg 1999, ISBN 3-88309-079-4 , Sp. 1130-1138.
- ^ Lancaster University - Department of Physics
- ^ Website of the Royal Society ( Memento of the original from May 9, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Christoph Buchheim : Industrial Revolutions. Dtv, Munich 1994, ISBN 3-423-04622-8 .
