第一节 英国国家概况考点

一、地理知识（Geography）

1. The full name of the United Kingdom is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Great Britain consists of England, Scotland and Wales. The capital of Scotland is Edinburgh, the capital of Wales is Cardiff and the capital of the Northern Ireland is Belfast.

2. The longest river is the Severn River. The second and most important river is the Thames River. River Clyde is the most important river in Scotland. The Lake District in northwest England is one of the most popular tourist attractions and also the home of the Lake Poets. The largest lake in Britain is the Lough Neagh（内伊湖）in Northern Ireland. The Pennines in England are the most important mountain chain in Britain. The English Channel between England and France is quite narrow and the narrowest part is the Strait of Dover（多佛海峡）. In May 1994, the “Chunnel” that joins England and France was open to traffic.

3. Britain enjoys a maritime（海洋性的）climate.

二、历史知识（History）

1. The first known settlers of Britain were the Iberians（伊比利亚人）. The earliest settlers of Britain were the Celts who were ancestors of the Scots, the Irish and the Welsh. Anglo-Saxons were the forefathers of the English people (England). The Welsh are emotional and cheerful people. They love music and are proud of their past. The Scots are hospitable and generous. Irish is the official language of the Republic of Ireland.

2. Julius Caesar invaded Britain for the first time in 55 BC. Christianity was introduced into Britain by the Romans.

3. The Norman Conquest took place in 1066 AD. William the Conqueror defeated Harold the Great at the battle of Hastings. He built the London Tower. His conquest changed the tribal England into a feudalist country. Anglo-Saxon (Old English) and French (official language) prevailed in England. This phenomenon is called bilingualism（双语现象）.

4. The Magna Carta (or The Great Charter) was a document signed in 1215 by King John under compulsion by the powerful barons.

5. The Hundred Years' War（英法百年战争）: A war between England and France which lasted, on and off, for a hundred years from 1337 to 1453. Black Death（黑死病）prevailed during this period. Finally, England was completely defeated by France, and Calais（加来，法国北部一港口城市）was the only part of France that was still in the hands of the English.

6. The Wars of the Roses（玫瑰战争）is the name given to the struggle (1455-1485) for the throne of England between two branches of the English royal family: the Houses of Lancaster, whose badge was a red rose and York, whose badge was a white rose. In the battle Richard Ⅲ lost his crown, and Henry Tudor (Henry Ⅶ) won. Thus, the Tudor Dynasty was established in England.

7. Henry Ⅷ was responsible for the Reformation（宗教改革）because he broke from the Roman Pope (Roman Catholicism), and this Reformation made England convert to Protestant theology（新教神学）.

8. Under the influence of the Reformation came the Renaissance (1350-1650), and the essence of Renaissance was humanism whose spirit was fully revealed in Shakespeare's dramas.

9. The Civil War (1642-1646) is called the Puritan Revolution or the Bourgeois Revolution or the English Revolution. Oliver Cromwell was the leader of the English Revolution, and King CharlesⅠwas beheaded.

10. The Glorious Revolution（光荣革命）took place in 1688, and after the Bill of Rights in 1689 Constitutional Monarchy（君主立宪制）was established. Two political parties arose: Whigs（辉格党）and Tories（托利党）. The former later developed into the Liberal Party, and the latter developed into the Conservative Party.

11. During the 18th century Britain defeated Napoleon's fleet at the Battle of Waterloo.

12. The invention of the steam engine was the most important invention during the Industrial Revolution.

13. The Chartist Movement（1836-1848）（宪章运动）was the first nationwide working class movement and drew attention to serious problems.

14. Charles Darwin wrote The Origin of Species（《物种起源》）which contributed to the decay of Victorianism（维多利亚思想）.

三、政治体制（Politics）

1. Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ is the present monarch（君主）. Her power is only symbolic.

2. The monarchy is the oldest institution of government. Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ is the current Queen and Head of the Commonwealth（英联邦国家）. The Commonwealth is a voluntary, free association of 50 independent sovereign states that were once colonies of Britain. Every two years the Commonwealth Conference is held, when the Heads of States meet. It has no special powers.

3. The British Parliament consists of the Sovereign, the House of Lords whose head is the Lord Chancellor（上议院院长 /大法官）and the House of Commons. It is the Speaker（议长）who presides over the meeting in the House of Commons and sees that parlia-mentary procedure is followed.

4. There are two major parties in Britain: the Labor Party（工党）and the Conservative Party（保守党）.

5. The Prime Minister serves on five-year term, and he forms the Cabinet（内阁）. Tony Blair is the youngest Labor Party leader and the youngest Prime Minister till now.

6. Britain has no written Constitution. The foundations of the British state are laid out in statute laws, which are laws passed by Parliament; the common laws, which are laws established through common practice in the courts and conventions.

7. Scotland Yard/New Scotland Yard（伦敦苏格兰警场）is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of the British capital, London.

四、宗教（Religion）

1. The Bible consists of the Old Testament and New Testament.

2. Trinity（三位一体）in Christianity is the union of God, Jesus and Holy Spirit. They are three aspects of the same God.

3. The Church of England（英国国教）is Britain's established Church.

五、媒体（Mass Media）

1. Middle English began in 1066; Modern English started from about 1500 AD.

2. BBC stands for the British Broadcasting Corporation; VOA stands for the Voice of America.

3. RP English means Standard English. RP means Received Pronunciation.

4. Famous newspapers include: Financial Times（《金融时报》），The Guardian（《卫报》）(the world's oldest national newspaper)，The Times（《泰晤士报》）(the oldest daily national newspaper)，The Observer（《观察家报》）(the world's first Sunday newspaper) and The Economist（《经济学家》）(magazine).

六、教育（Education）

1. Compulsory education in the UK extends from 5 to 16 years old. Some famous “public schools” include Eton（伊顿公学），Harrow（哈罗公学）and Westminster（威斯敏斯特公学）.

2. Among the most prestigious universities are the University of Oxford（牛津大学）founded in 1185 and the University of Cambridge（剑桥大学）founded in early 13th century.

七、节日、体育和音乐（Festivals, Sports and Music）

1. Christmas, December 25th, celebrates the birth of Christ. Easter（复活节）is the celebration of the Resurrection of Christ, and Guy Fawkes Day（盖伊·福克斯之夜）, November 5th, is a national festival, which originated from the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 when the plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament on November 5 was discovered and the thief conspirator, Guy Fawkes, was hanged.

2. Cricket（板球）is the most typical English sport. The main tournament for tennis is the annual Wimbledon（国际温网比赛）. Scotland is the home of golf.

3. In the 1960s, a new pop culture emerged in Britain. Four Liverpool boys joined a group and called themselves the Beatles（甲壳虫乐队）.

4. Wales is famous for its Eisteddfod（威尔士艺术节）.

八、其他

1. The qualities of the British are reserve, modesty, sense of humor, and sportsmanship.

2. The National Health Service (NHS)（国民健康保险制度）was established in the UK in 1948.