英美概况名词解释

英美概况名词解释

英美概况备考资料!---名词解释部分

1. the Hardian’s Wall:

It was one of the two great walls built by the Romans to keep the Picts out of the area they had conqu ered.

2. Alfred the Great

Alfred was a strong king of the wisemen. It was created by the Anglo-Saxons to advise the ki ng. It’s the basis of the Privy

Council which still exists today.

3. William the Conqueror

William was Duke of Normandy. He landed his army in Oct, 1066 and defeated king Harold. Then he was crowned king of

England on Christams Day the same year. He established a strong Norm an government and the feudal system in England.

4. the battle of Hastings

In 1066, King Edward died with no heir, the Witan chose Harold as king. William, Duke of Nor mandy, invaded England. On

October 14, the two armies met near Hasting. After a day’s battl e, Harold was killed and his army completely defeated. So

this battle was very important on the way of the Roman conquest.

5. Domesday Book

Under William, the feudal system was established. William sent officials to compile a proper ty record known as Domesday

Book, which completed in 1086. It was the result of a general su rvey of England made in 1085. It stated the extent, value, the

population, state of cultivat ion, and ownership of the land. It seemed to the English like the Book of doom on Judgement

Day.

6. the Great Charter

King John’s reign caused much discontent among the barons. In 1215, he was forced to sign a document, known as Mangna

Cara, or the Great Charter. It has 63 clauses. Though it has long been regarded as the foundation of English liberities, its

spirit was the limitation of the king’s powers, keeping them within the bounds of the feudal law of the land.

7. the Hundred Years’ War

It referred to the intermittent war between France and England that last from 1337 to 1453. The causes were partly territorial

and partly economic. When Edward III claimed the French C rown but the French refused to recognize, the war broke out. At

first the English were succe ssful, but in the end, they were defeated and lost almost all their possessions in France. T he

expelling of the English was a blessing for both countries.

8. Joan of Arc

She was a national heroine of France during the Hundred Years’ War. She successfully led th e French to drive the English

out of France.

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9. the Black Death

It was the deadly bubonic plague who spread through Europe in the 14th century. It swept thr ough England without warning

and any cure, and sparing no victims. It killed between half an d one-third of the population of England. Thus, much land was

left untended and labour was s hort. It caused far-reaching economic consequences.

10. the Wars of Roses

They referred to the battles between the House of Lancaster and the House of York between 14 55 and 1485. The former

was symbolized by the red rose, and the latter by the white one. Aft er the wars, feudalism received its death blow and the

king’s power became supreme. Thdor m onarchs ruled England and Wales for over two hundred years.

11. Bloody Mary

Henry VIII’s daughter and a devout Catholic. When she became Queen, she persecuted and burn t many Protestants. So she

was given the nickname “Bloody Mary”. Mary is also remembered a s the monarch who lost the French port of Calais.

12. Elizabeth I

One of the greatest monarchs in British history. She reigned England, Wales and Ireland for 45 years and remained single.

Her reign was a time of confident English nationalism and of g reat achievements in literature and other arts, in exploration

and in battle.

13. Oliver Cromwell

The leader during the Civil War who led the New Model Army to defeat the king and condemned him to death. Then he

declared England a Commonwealth and made himself Lord of Protector. He ruled England till the restoration of charles II in

1660.

14. the Bill of Rights

In 1689, William and Mary accepted the Bill of Rights to be crowned jointly. The bill exclud ed any Roman Catholic from the

succession, confirmed the principle of parliamentary supremac y and guaranteed free speech within both the two Houses.

Thus the age of constitutional mona rchy began.

15. Whigs and Tories

It referred to the two party names which originated with the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Th e Whigs were those who

opposed absolute monarchy and supported the right to religious freedo m for Noncomformists. The Tories were those who

supported hereditary monarchy and were reluc

tant to remove kings. The Whigs formed a coalition with dissident Tories and became the Libe ral Party. The Tories were the

forerunners of the Conservative Party.

16. James Watt

The Scottish inventor who produced an efficient steam engine with rotary motion that could b e applied to textile and other

machinery.

17. Winston Churchill

Prime Minister of Britain during the Second World War. He took over Chamberlain in 1940 and received massive popular

support. He led his country to final victory in 1945. He was defeat ed in the general election of 1945, but returned to power in

1951.

18. Agribusiness

It refers to the new farming in Britain, because it’s equipped and managed like an industri al business with a set of inputs into

the farm of processes which occur on the farm, and out puts or products which leave the farm. The emphasis is upon

intensive farming, designes to g ive the maximum output of crops and animals.

19. the British Constitution

There is no written constitution in the United Kingdom. The British Constitution is not set out in any single document, but

made up of statute law, common law and conventions. The Judi ciary determines common law and interpret statues.

20. Queen Elizabeth II

The present Sovereign, born in 1926, came to the throne in 1952 and was crowned in 1953. The Queen is the symbol of the

whole nation, the center of many national ceremonies and the lea der of society.

21. the Opposition

In the General Election, the party which wins the second largest numb er of seats becomes the offcial Opposition, with its

own leader and “shadow cabinet”. The aims of the Opposition are to contribute to t he formulation of policy and legislation, to

oppose government propos als, to seek amendments to government bills, and to put forward its o wn policies in order to win

the next general election.

22. the Privy Council

Formerly the chief source of executive power. It gave the Sovereign p rivate (“privy”) advice on the government of the country.

Today its role is mainly formal, advising the Sovereign to approve certain gove rnment decrees and issuing royal

proclamation. Its membership is abou t 400.

23. common law

A written law gathered from numerous decisions of the courts and othe r sources.

24. the jury

A legal system established in England since king Henry II. The jury c onsists of ordinary, independent citizens summoned by

the court: 12 p ersons in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and 15 persons in Scot land. In criminal trials by jury, the

judge passes sentence but the j ury decide the issue of guilt or innocence.

25. the NHS

The National Health Service was established in the UK in 1948 and bas ed first on Acts of Parliament. This Service provides

for every resid ent a full range of medical services. It is based upon the principle that there should be full range of publicly

provided services designe d to help the individual stay healthy. It is now a largely free servi ce.

26. comprehensive schools

State secondary schools which take pupils without reference to abilit y and provide a wide-ranging secondary education for

all or most of t he children in a district. About 90 per cent of the state secondary s chool population in GB attend

comprehensive school.

27. public schools

Fee-paying secondary schools which are longestablished and have gaine d a reputation for their high academic standards,

as well as their ex clusiveness and snobbery. The boys’ public schools include such well -known schools as Eton and

Harrow, and girls’ famous schools include Roedean. Most of the members of the British Establishment were educat ed at a

public school.

28. the Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are the most important lakes in the United States. They are Lake Superior, w hich is the largest fresh water

lake in the world, Lake Michigan——the only one entirely in the U.S.——Lake Huron, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. They are

all located between Cana da and the United States except Lake Michigan.

29. New England

New England is made up of six states of the North-East. They are Main e, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode

Island, and Connectic ut. It is sometimes called the birthplace of America.

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30. baby boom

“baby boom” refers to the great increase of birth rate between 1946 and 1964. People born in this period are called baby

bammers

31. the Chinese Exclusion Act

It was passed by the U.S. Congress in may, 1882. It stopped Chinese i mmigration for ten years.

32. the Bill of Rights

In 1789, James Madison introduced in the House of Representations a series of amendments whi ch later were drafted into

twelve proposed amendments and sent to the states for ratificatio n. Ten of them were ratified in 1791 and became the first

ten amendments to the Constitution ——the Bill of Rights.

33. the Emancipation Proclamation

During the Civil war, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation to get more support for the Union at home and abroad. It

granted freedo m to all slaves.

34. the Constitutional Convention

In 1787, a conference was held in Philadelphia to consider what shoul d be done to make the Articles of Confederation

adequate. All the del egates agreed to revise the Articles of Confederation and draw up a n ew plan of government. After

struggle, the Constitution was ratified at last. This conference is called the Constitutional Convertion.

35. the Progressive Movement

The Progressive Movement is a movement demanding government regulatio n of the economy and social conditions. It

spread quickly with the su pport of large numbers of people across the country. It was not an or ganized campaign with

clearly defined goals.

36. the Peace Conference

The Peace Conference or the Paris Conference, began on January 18, 19 19. The conference was actually a conference of

division of colonies of Germany, Austro-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire and the grabbing of as much as possible from the

defeated nations. It was dominated by t he Big Four (the United States, Britain. France, and Italy)

37. the Truman Doctrine:

On March 12, 1949, President Truman put forward the Truman Doctrine i n a speech to the joint session of Congress. The

Truman Doctrine mean t to say that the U.S. government would support any country which sai d it was fighting against

Communism.

38. the Marshall Plan

On June 5, 1947, the Secretary of State George Marshall announced the Marshall Plan, which meant that in order to protect

Western Europe f rom possible Soviet expansion, the United States decided to offer Wes tern European countries economic

aid.

39. the New Frontier

It was the President Kennedy’s program which promised civil rights f or blacks, federal aid to farmers and to education,

medical care for all and the abolition of poverty.

40. checks and balances:

The government is divided into three branches, the legislative, the e xecutive and the judicial, each has part of the powers

but not all th e power. And each branch of government can check, or block, the actio ns of the other branches. The three

branches are thus in balance. Thi s called “checks and balances”