r/europe • u/MarktpLatz Lower Saxony (Germany) • Feb 21 '17

What do you know about... the UK?

This is the sixth part of our ongoing weekly series about the countries of Europe. You can find an overview here.

Todays country:

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

The UK is the second most populous state in the EU. Famous for once being the worlds leading power, reigning over a large empire, it has recently taken the decision to exit the EU.

So, what do you know about the UK?

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u/kervinjacque French American Feb 22 '17

  • What I know about UK is that it was a great naval power back then and the world went by "Pax Britannica" .

  • Thanks to France, America defeated Great Britain and gave all of us such pleasure.

  • Great Britain is a great country to reside in.

  • I like British accents.

  • British women are pretty hot imo.

  • They built a very beautiful palace called "Crystal Palace" I wish I was alive to see such a beautiful palace finished.

  • The UK has a respectable professional army

  • The UK has a remarkable history and anyone would never get bored learning about what went on in the UK

  • They have the BBC and I LOVE BBC so much!

  • The UK are very into politics and it can get a bit messy and may look like it from an outsiders perspective.

  • The UK is an admirable kingdom and are great at governing colonies. It's why a lot there ex colonies are doing so well, (South Africa , India , America, etc.)

  • The United Kingdom's Empire is something any British citizen should be proud of imo.

  • Also, One direction came from the UK.

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u/AbstractLemgth United Nation Feb 23 '17

The UK is an admirable kingdom and are great at governing colonies

bengal, ireland, kenya, south africa, australia disagree

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u/WeighWord Britannia Feb 23 '17

What's your opinion on Rome? Were they merely tyrannical, genocidal oppressors who contributed nothing to the world?

Read a book, lad. There are multiple facets to history.

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u/AbstractLemgth United Nation Feb 23 '17

Funnily enough, I don't idealise the Roman Empire either. At least the Romans didn't asset strip the countries they invaded.

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u/TheHonourableJoJo Great Britain Feb 24 '17

The Romans most definitely did asset strip the countries they invaded. The reason they occupied Britain was to take tin, Egypt was occupied for the grain harvest etc. That's all without even considering the mass enslavement of foreign peoples.

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u/AbstractLemgth United Nation Feb 24 '17

That's true, I remember some of this now. I guess that was a dumb comment to make.

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u/TheHonourableJoJo Great Britain Feb 24 '17

+1 For being far more civil than I've come to expect from the Internet.

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u/WeighWord Britannia Feb 23 '17

Again, it seems as though you've not listened to other people's responses properly.

Nobody is holding up the British Empire as a champion of morality. Especially not by today's standards. What people are saying is that whilst you have atrocities, you also have benefits. It isn't black and white, so stop treating it as such. Appreciating the historical complexity of these things and their influence on forming the world we know today is important.

At least the Romans didn't asset strip the countries they invaded

Wrong.

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u/AbstractLemgth United Nation Feb 23 '17

Were they merely tyrannical, genocidal oppressors who contributed nothing to the world?

Again, like I said in another comment, i'm specifically saying that the 'benefits' of the Empire to the countries it colonised are meaningless (if at all existent!) compared to the countless dead at the hands of the British. I have no interest in precisely quantifying the 'good' that was done, because as far as i'm aware, there is no good which will have outweighed a crime against humanity and the intentional stagnation of an entire country.