大学英语选修之英国文化与历史作业2

1、Explain the following terms briefly a. the Hundred Years War:A remarkable and engrossing account of medieval England's epic conflict with France. From 1337 to 1453 England repeatedly invaded France on the pretext that her kings had a right to the French throne. Though it was a small, poor countr

2、y, England for most of those "hundred years" won the battles, sacked the towns and castles, and dominated the war. The protagonists of the Hundred Years War are among the most colorful in European history: Edward III, the Black Prince; Henry V, who was later immortalized by Shakespeare; th

3、e splendid but inept John II, who died a prisoner in London; Charles V, who very nearly overcame England; and the enigmatic Charles VII, who at last drove the English out. Desmond Seward's critically-acclaimed account of the Hundred Years War brings to life all of the intrigue, beauty, and royal

4、 to-the-death-fighting of that legendary century-long conflict.This is called the Hundred Years War.b. the Elizabeth Age Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603) The Queen Elizabeth is a great queen in British history.The time of Elizabeth saw great achievements in many areas:exploration, battle, literature an

5、d arts.As the saying goes.,it is the Golden Age of Britain.She was a protestant ,and before succeeding her sister queen mary,the 20-year old Elizabeth was once put into the London Tower because Mary didnt want Protestantism to become the national religion instead of Catholicism.The young Elizabeth s

6、uffered a lot in the prison. Wereas,the hard time also contributed to her strong and determined characters,which helped her overcame numerous difficulties during her reign.After becoming the queen Elizabeth faced the poverty and weakness of the state as well as the problem associated to her personal

7、 life.The virgin queen didnt marry life-long.She preferred to put the offers of marriage by Philip and other lords into political use.She said,I only have one master, that is England.As a woman,Elizabeth longed for the love from lover.As a monarch,she aspired after the love from English People.Final

8、ly,she chose the latter,she loved her people more than herself.Elizabeth had to face diffcult chooses all her life.When it came to the life of her relative and the dignity of throne,again,she chose the latter.But the decision is hard to made.She finally executed her sister,queen of Scots, who had ar

9、ranged with the Spanish king to take the crown from her after much delay and hesitation.As far as I am concerned ,on one hand,Elizabeth is not indifferent.As if she were,she would have killed her sister the first time she tried to overthrow her.On the other hand,she was majestic.The miserable experi

10、ences she had a profound influence on her character.She valued the dignity of crown most in her life.She will sacrifice anything to protect it.Marys death was the fuse of Spain invading.Philipsent his great fleet,Armada,the most powerful fleet in the world at that time.Actually,the power of Fngland

11、is far from enough to defeat Spain.But the British people decided to defend their country with their wise and brave queen.Soldiers were gathered at Tilbing and there the queen made a speech which should be memorized:I know I have nothing but the body of a weak and feeble woman;but I havethe heart of

12、 a king,and of a king of England,too;and I think foul scorn that spain,or any prime of Europe,should dare to invade the borders of my realms.I myself will be your general,and I doubt not we shall shortly have a famous victory over the enemies of my god,of my kingdom,and of my people.The queen Elizab

13、eth was a great woman in history.When she came to the throne,England was poor and weak.When she died,England was rich and powerful.People will not forget her,for her sacirificial spirit,resistance,bravery,wisdom and mercy.c. Glorious RevolutionTitle given to the revolution of 1688-9, which resulted

14、in the abdication of James II and the succession of William III and Mary II. Participants had differing objectives. Tories and Anglican clergy wanted to stop James undermining the church. Whigs aimed to depose James and limit the powers of the crown. Ordinary people detested James for his catholicis

15、m. William needed to remove a potential ally of Louis XIV and lead England into the war against France that had just begun.In June 1688 William instigated an invitation from two Tories, four Whigs, and Bishop Compton to intervene. The birth that month of an infant prince to James had transformed the

16、 political future: he would succeed James in place of Mary (his eldest, protestant daughter, married to William). William's intervention was necessitated by the size of James's professional army. However, William was promised that most of its officers would defect. When this happened soon af

17、ter William landed at Torbay on 5 November James found that he could not fight a battle. Demoralized, James tried to fly the country but was stopped. A second successful escape to France was the direct result of William's pressure. This left a vacuum. The Bill of Rights (1689) followed the Whig

18、formula, construing James's flight as abdication, declaring the throne vacant, and William and Mary as joint sovereigns2. Answer the following questions brieflya. What is considered to be the clearest turning point in British history?The Civil War，This put an end to the Commonwealth1688: joint s

19、overeign of William and Mary1689: Bill of Rights (limited the power of the monarch and guaranteed the authority of Parliament ) removed the ruling monarch and established Constitutional Monarchyb. What is the significance of Industrial Revolution to UK?The industrial revolution is the most profound

20、and influential transformation since the advent of human life agricultural ten thousand years ago. In half a century, it lets Europe most more powerful than other parts of the world, cause global domination of Europec. What does the Victorian Age refer to? And what is its feature?Victoria (1819-1901

21、) was queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 1837-1901 and became one of the most powerful rulers in English history. Her 63-year reign was the longest in British history. Great Britain reached the height of its power during this period. It built a great colonial empire and en

22、joyed tremendous industrial expansion at home. As a result, the time of Victorias reign is often called the Victorian Age. During the Victoria Age, great economic, social, and political changes occurred in Britain. The British Empire reaches its height and covered about a fourth of the worlds land.

23、Industry and trade expanded rapidly, and railroads and lands crisscrossed the country. Science and technology made great advances. The size of the middle-class grew enormously. Bt the 1850s, more and more people were getting an education. In addition. The government introduced democratic reforms. Fo

24、r example, an increasing number of people received the right to vote. In spite of the prosperity of the Victorian Age, factory and farm workers lived in terrible poverty. Rich people lived on poor people with the cover of religion. New scientific theories seemed to challenge many religious beliefs. The most controversial theory appeared in the Origin of Species(1859) by the biologist Charles Darwin in the book other scientists led many people feel tha