英美概况名词解释、简答题Word格式.docx

1、2. the Highlanders（1）They are the Scots who live in the mountains regions of the Highlands in Northern Scotland. （2）They are a proud, independent and hardy people who maintain their strong cultural identity. （3）They mainly live by farming sheep in mountain areas or fishing on the coasts and islands.

2、3. The Westminster Parliament（1）It refers to the British Parliament. （2）Westminster Palace in London was built between 1840 and 1860, and became the meeting place for Parliament.4. National Eisteddfod（1）Eisteddfod is the Welsh word for “sitting”. National Eisteddfod is the most famous festival of mu

3、sic and verse in Wales.（2）it takes place each August and lasts for about a week.（3）the highlight of the Eisteddfod is a competition for the best epic poem about Wales written and read in Welsh.（4）the winner is crowed Bard, considered the supreme honor in Wales.5. The Protestant Reformation（1）It was

4、a religious reform movement that started in 1517, when the German monk Martin Luther posted for debate a series of these that challenged Roman Catholic teaching. （2）those who separated themselves from Catholic Church were called Protestants.（3）most of the Protestants stress the Bible as the source a

5、nd their norm of teaching instead of the Pope as the source of authority.6. The Ulster Unionists（1）The Ulster Unionists refer to the ruling Protestant party in Northern Ireland.（2）They are also called Loyalists.（3）They remain loyal to the UK.7. King HaroldThe Saxon king who was defeated and killed a

6、t the Battle of Hastings in 1066, when the French- speaking Normans under William the Conqueror invaded England from France.8. Alfred the GreatHe was a fine Saxon king who successfully defeated the invading Danes. 9.The Magna Carta（1）The Magna Carta （or Great Charter） was a document signed in 1215 b

7、y King John under compulsion by the powerful barons. （2）The purpose of the Charter was to make King John to recognize the rights to the barons. （3）The Magna Carta is now in the British Museum, London.10. The Hundred Years War（1）A war between England and France which lasted, on and off, for a hundred

8、 years from 1337 to 1453. （2）it was fought entirely in France, and the whole of France very nearly fell into English hands in the famous battles of Crecy and Agincourt. （3）eventually, partly through the inspiration of the brave girl Joan of Arc, and partly through the effective use of guns, the Fren

9、ch drove the English from their land for food.11. The Wars of the Roses（1）It is the name given to the struggle for throne of England between two branches of the English royal family（2）the houses of Lancaster, whose badge was a red rose, and York, whose badge was a white rose.（3）the wars weakened bot

10、h the nobility and the monarch.12. Bloody Mary（1）It was the nickname given to Mary I, Henry IIIs elder daughter. （2）She was a devout Catholic, and had so many Protestants burnt to death that she is remembered less by her official title Mary I than by her nickname Bloody Mary. （3）She was succeeded by

11、 Elizabeth I.13. The Elizabeth Age（1）It refers to the period during the reign of Elizabeth I in British history. （2）it was an age of real literary achievement, especially that of Shakespeare（3）it was an age of adventure on the sea.14. The Gunpowder Plot（1）It refers to the most famous of a number of

12、Catholic conspiracies in English history which occurred in the reign of James I. （2）It was the plot to blow up the King and Parliament, in which a man called Guy Fawkes was caught in the cellars of the House of Commons in the very act of preparing the explosives. （3）Guy Fawkes night is still celebra

13、ted on November 5th each year.15. the Provisional IRA（1）IRA, the Irish Republican Army, is a nationalist organization dedicated to the unification of Ireland. （2）It was organized in1919. （3）The IRA refused to accept a separate Northern Ireland under British rule. （4）In 1969 it split into an official

14、 majority, which disclaimed violence, and a terrorist pro-visional wing, whose attacks on British troops in Northern Ire-land, random bombings, and others acts of terror in England kept tensions high.16. the peace people（1）In the summer of 1976 Betty Williams, a protestant house-wife, was so horrifi

15、ed at the killing of two children by a running IRA car that she decided to organize the women of Ulster, both protestant and Catholic, into a pressure group. （2）It is a pres-sure group working for peace and reconciliation in Ireland. （3）Williams and her catholic partner, Corrigan, soon gathered thousands of followers despite threats and intimidation from both sides. （4）They continued to pursue their aims and at the end of1976 the two leaders were awarded the Nobel Prize for peace.17. the Norman conquest（1）In AD1066, William of Normandy landed his