Special Sub-Topic: Britain's Islands Click Here To Play: Britain's Islands

Where is the town of Rothesay?

Isle of Bute. This elegant, if faded town, has been a resort ever since steamboats were introduced on the Clyde in the XIX century.

How many Cumbrae Islands are there?

two & 2. The Great and the Little, they lie between Bute and the mainland.

The Irish saint Molais lived in a cave in:

the Holy Island. He was an apostle of peace. In the XII century, Sumerled, Lord of the Isles, established a monastery to honour the holy man.

The population of the Isle of Gigha is about 200.

t. Its population is mainly engaged in agriculture. The colourful exotic gardens of Achamore House are among the finest in the British Isles.

The Lords of the Isles called an island the "Jewel of the Hebrides". Which island is this?

Isle of Islay. It was called so, because of its greenness and fertility. Most of its population is engaged in agriculture, but even more important for the island economy is the malt whisky, appreciated by connoisseurs all over the world.

The Isle of Gigha and "the Jewel of the Hebrides" are part of the large group of islands Inner Hebrides. Which of the following does not belong to this group?

they are all in this group. Other big islands of the Inner Hebrides are the Islands of Colonsay and Oronsay, the Isle of Mull, the Isle of Iona, the Isle of Jura.

The Fingal's Cave is situated in the Isle of...?

Staffa. At the entrance of the cave are marvellous columns of black basalt that inspired many poets and artists like Sir Walter Scott, Jules Verne, Wordsworth, Keats, Tennyson and Mendelssohn. The cave is named "Fingal's" after the name of Gaelic hero, who led the defence of the Isles against the Norse invaders.

Soay, Rona and Raasay are small islands, that surround the which island off the coast of Scotland.

Skye. The Isle of Skye is 97km long and 40km wide - one of the largest of the Scottish Islands. It is widely thought to be the most romantic of all the islands.

The Isle of Lewis of the Outer Hebrides is famous for:

the stones at Callanish. The 5,000 year-old stones were erected at the time of the middle period in ancient Egyptian history.

Egilsay is part of the Shetland Isles.

f. It is part of the Orkney Islands. These islands are an archeologist's paradise with megaliths, duns, brochs and Viking long houses.

Where has Britain's biggest oil port been established?

Shetland Isles. The port is Sullom Voe. Oil is an important element in the Shetland economy, but resources, of course, diminish, so the traditional industries like fish production, knitwear and tourism are encouraged.

The Isle of May is situated on the east coast of England.

f. It is situated on the east coast of Scotland. According to the legend, St Adrian set out there to convert the people of Fife.

The main industry of this island is tourism. It is Britain's most populous and economically most significant island. It is diamond shaped. What is its name?

Isle of Wight. In 1845 Queen Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert, chose to make the Isle of Wight their summer home and Osborne, a fine Italianate house, was built there. The Queen returned to Osborne to die in 1901.

The two main islands of the Channel Islands are Guernsey and...

Jersey. The Channel Islands became legal dependencies of the Crown at the time of the Norman invasion in 1066, when William seized the throne of England.

Guernsey has less population than the other main island of the Channel Islands, but it is more densely populated.

t. Guernsey has about 60,000 people living on 63 sq km (952 people per sq km) while Jersey has about 85,000 people on 116 sq km (732 people per sq km).

Which is not part of the Isles of Scilly?

Skipper's Island. It is an island on the east coast of England. The Isles of Scilly are situated southwest of England.

Ynys Mon (the Isle of Mon or Anglesey) is famous for which of these?

Menai Suspension Bridge. In fact there are two famous XIX century bridges - the Menai Suspension Bridge (300m long), built by Telford in 1826 and the tubular railway bridge (335m long), by Stephenson in 1850.

Which of these is situated in the sea between Ireland, Scotland and England?

Isle of Man. The Isle of Man lies in the Irish Sea. It was brought under Crown administration in 1765. It is a self-governing Crown dependency with its own parliamentary, legal and administrative systems. All islanders are entitled to full British citizenship.

Rathlin is the largest island, lying ___ of Ireland.

north. Rathlen's main historical site is a cave where Robert the Bruce is reputed to have watched a determined spider repeatedly attempt to suspend its thread across the entrance. Inspired by the spider's resolution, Robert the Bruce returned to his native Scotland, where he defeated the English at the Battle of Bannockburn 1314.

Which is further south the Isle of Wight or the Isle of Man?

Isle of Wight. The Isle of Wight lies off the south coast of England. The Isle of Man is located in the Irish Sea between northwest England and Ireland. A Scots saying: "If you can keep a sheep on it, it is an island; if not, it is a rock."