A Peninsula of Peninsulas

1
A Peninsula of Peninsulas

• European Geography

2
Four Major Landforms

• Northwest Highlands
• Northern European Plain
• Central Uplands
• Alpine Mountain System

3
Northwest Highlands

• Make up Northwestern part of France some of the
  Iberian peninsula hills of England and Ireland
  Scottish highlands and mountains of Scandinavia
• Glaciers scoured through Scandinavia and British
  Isles carving fjords on Norways coast

4
Northwest Highlands Continued

• Fjords are narrow inlets of the sea set between
  high rocky cliffs
• The glaciers left behind thin soils and thousands
  of lakes

5
Northern European Plain

• Ranges from the Atlantic Coast to the Ural
  Mountains
• Made up of numerous rivers where many river towns
  and port cities have developed
• Contains large cities like Paris and Berlin
• Due to its physical geography, human contact has
  been relatively easy it has many rivers, short
  distances, and smooth terrain

6
Northern European Plain Continued

• Such a geography has promoted trade between
  culture groups, and traveling and migrating have
  not been difficult
• It is Europes most important farming and
  industrial area

7
Central Uplands

• Massif Central of France and the Jura Mountains
  on the French-Swiss border
• Moves northeastward across southern Germany to
  the Bohemian highlands

8
Central Uplands Continued

• Composed of hills, small plateaus, forested
  slopes, and fertile valleys
• Has productive coal fields which have nearby
  industrial towns and cities

9
Alpine Mountain System

• Ranges from Frances Mediterranean Coast to the
  Balkan Peninsula
• Alps Europes major mountain range
• The high mountains of this system have not
  deterred human interaction not a serious barrier

10
Alpine Mountain System Continued

• The Alpine mountain system also includes the
  Carpathian mountains in Eastern Europe, the
  Apennines in Italy, and the Pyrenees of France
  and Spain
• This system was formed by tectonic plates pushing
  against each other

11
Water

• Europe is a peninsula so it is surrounded by
  water on 3 sides
• The Mediterranean is in the South the Arctic
  Ocean, North Sea, and Baltic Sea are around
  Northern Europe and the North Atlantic Ocean is
  off of Western Europe

12
Water

• The North Sea has been an important hub for
  fishing and trading
• The North Atlantic Ocean has transported
  explorers, fishers, and merchants for centuries

13
Europes Coastline

• Europes coastline creates many natural harbors
  which are usually located at the mouths of
  navigable rivers
• Navigable rivers are deep enough and wide enough
  for shipping
• They have made trading by sea ideal

14
Europes Coastline Continued

• Such a coastline has influenced Europes history
• Harbors have offered protection for ships
• Water offered opportunities to explore, fish,
  trade, and it promoted political and military
  power
• The Phoenicians, Greeks, and Vikings sailed and
  explored Europes coastline
• Helped Rome establish a vast empire

15
Europes Coastline Continued

• The sea also provided global colonial and
  economic power
• Spanish and Portuguese sailed around the world in
  the 1500s setting up trading posts and colonies
• 1700s and 1800s Great Britain was the worlds
  dominant colonial and sea power
• How did the ability to travel the sea help
  establish empires?

16
Rivers

• The Rhine and Danube are Europes most important
  rivers
• Numerous cities and industrial areas are located
  long the banks and both have barges constantly
  transporting goods
• The Rhine starts in the Swiss Alps it flows
  northwestward through Germany and the Netherlands
  to the North Sea
• The Danube starts in the uplands of southern
  Germany and flows eastward through 9 countries in
  central and eastern Europe and ends in the Black
  Sea

17
Climates and Biomes

• 3 major climate types
• Marine west coast
• Humid continental
• Mediterranean

18
Marine West Coast

• Consists of more of northern and western Europe
  which includes southern Iceland, the British
  Isles, and it stretches from northern Spain to
  Poland and Slovakia
• It has frequent rainfall because of storms coming
  off of the Atlantic
• Mild temperatures
• Cloudy, drizzly, or foggy days are common

19
Humid Continental

• Includes the interior of Norway and Sweden to the
  Black Sea
• Four distinct season, from severe winters to
  summer droughts in Hungary and Romania

20
Mediterranean

• Makes up most of southern Europe
• Usually has mild, rainy winters because of North
  Atlantic Drift and sunny summers
• North Atlantic Drift is a warm ocean current from
  the gulf stream in North America that warms the
  air above it which is carried by winds to Europe,
  brining mild temperatures and rain

21
Smaller Climate Regions

• Subarctic climate is across northern Norway,
  Sweden, and Finland
• The extreme northern part of these countries have
  a tundra climate
• Most of Spain has a semiarid climate

22
Four Major Biomes

• Temperate forest
• Mediterranean scrub forest
• Boreal forest
• Tundra

23
Temperate Forest

• Most of Europe lies within this biome
• Trees are common
• Covered in fields and towns
• Once covered in dense forests but now there are
  only remnants
• Badgers, deer, and a variety of birds still live
  here

24
Mediterranean Scrub Forest

• Composes the drier areas of southern Europe
• Small trees, shrubs, and drought resistant plants
• Still has roaming wild boars and wild sheep

25
Boreal Forest

• Large parts of northern and central Europe
• Finland, Norway, and Sweden have Europes
  remaining woodlands
• Provides much of Europes timber for building and
  papermaking

26
Tundra

• In the far parts of northern Europe like Iceland
  and northern Scandinavia
• Land is frozen most of the time
• Treeless but does sustain migratory birds during
  the summer and reindeer and foxes

27
Natural Resources

• Europes resources consist of forests, soils,
  fisheries, energy, and minerals
• Much of the original forests have been cleared
  through the centuries and pollution has destroyed
  a lot that is left
• Much of Europe has to import timber

28
Natural Resources Continued

• Soil has been a critical asset to Europe more
  than half of Europe is used for farming
• Northern European Plain has the best soil, some
  of which is developed from loess fine-grained,
  windblown soil very fertile
• Southern Europe benefits from alluvial soil that
  can produce a wide range of crops areas like
  Italys Po Valley and Spains Guadalquivir are
  major farming centers

29
Natural Resources Continued

• Some major crops include grapes, olives,
  potatoes, and wheat
• Europe has the highest crop yields in the world
  because of modern technology
• Chemical fertilizers
• Crop rotations
• Modern machinary

30
Natural Resources Continued

• Polders
• Land reclaimed by the sea
• The Dutch built earthen walls called dikes along
  the shoreline
• Windmills pumped out the seawater
• Reeds are planted to draw out more water
• Reeds are burned and plowed so its ready for
  farming
• Allowed Dutch to increase amount of available
  farm land

31
Natural Resources Continued

• Fishing as historically been a part of Europes
  economy
• Fishing villages dot Europes long coastline and
  the water is covered in fishing boats
• The North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans and the
  North Sea have the best fishing
• Some of Europes major fishing countries include
  Iceland, Norway, Spain, and Denmark
• The industry is being threatened by overfishing
  and pollution

32
Natural Resources Continued

• Energy and Minerals
• Europes advanced technology requires resources
  of oil, iron, and other metals that it does not
  have so it must import
• Does have a natural abundance of coal but oil has
  since replaced coal as the main energy source
• Beneath the North Sea there are oil and natural
  gas deposits which benefit Norway and Britain
• Hydroelectricity is an energy source produced in
  the mountains of Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland

33
Natural Resources Continued

• Ocean Tidal power and solar power are produced in
  France
• Iceland uses geothermal energy
• Nuclear power is also an energy source for some
  Europeans but it is considered too dangerous
• Some other mineral resources include iron ore,
  uranium, lead, and zinc which can be found in
  Sweden, France, and Spain
• Southern Europe mines marble for building and art