Lesson Two. The Tourist London

 

I. Read the text paying attention to comments following each paragraph.

II. Tell the class about one or two major sights of London that impressed you most. Use some additional information of your own if necessary including pictures and photos.

Westminster

The Palace of Westminster is among the world’s most famous buildings.

The first palace was built for Edward the Confessor, who came to the throne in 1042. It was the royal residence and the country's main court of law. Forty-five years later William Rufus, son of William the Conqueror, had Westminster Hall added to the apartments. Henry III added the Painted Chamber in the 13^th century and in his reign Parliament had its origins. The Palace of Westminster was engulfed in a fire in 1834. Sir Charles Barry received the commission to build anew.

The Westminster Hall survived in the Second World War.

British citizens have the right to ask to see his or her MP, and they meet in the highly decorative Central Lobby. When Parliament is sitting, it is possible to hear debates from the Strangers Galleries. Even the Queen is subject to restrictions. For the State Opening of Parliament she has to sit enthroned in the Lords while Prime Minister and the Cabinet are summoned from the Commons – a custom which goes back to the era of Charles I.

The wonders of Westminster Abbey owe much to a succession of kings and queens beginning with Edward the Confessor. Until the 11th century it was a sacred place. King Edward the Confes­sor decided to build a great abbey church here. It was conse­crated in 1065, but a week later the King died and was bur­ied in the abbey. His tomb became a popular place of pilgrim­age. It can still be found at the heart of the present Westminster Abbey. William the Conqueror was crowned in the Abbey and since then all the Coronations have taken place here. The Abbey contains many royal graves, memorials to eminent men and women. But the most popular ones are those to writers, actors and musicians in Poet's Corner.

Comments

to engulf – поглощать

to summon – собирать; призывать

sacred – священный, святой

to consecrate - освящать

pilgrimage – паломничество

grave – могила; захоронение

eminent – выдающийся; знаменитый

Around Whitehall

Downing Street, the official residence of Prime Ministers for more than 250 years, was built on land where an Abbey brewhouse had been sited. During restoration remnants of Roman pottery, Saxon wood and fragments of Whitehall Palace were unearthed. Whitehall Palace was once the main royal residence in London, home for the monarch from the time of Henry VIII until it was destroyed by fire in 1698. The famous cul-de-sac of Downing Street was created by Sir George Downing, MP, around 1680. Number 10 is one of the original Downing Street houses to survive.

Acquired by the Crown in 1732, it was offered as a gift to Sir Robert Walpole, First Lord of Treasury (a title which eventually became “Prime Minister”).

No. 10 has seen the most significant comings and goings of each era from riots to suffragettes chaining themselves to the railings. In recent years it has witnessed the arrival of the first female Prime Minister, Mrs. Margaret Thatcher. No. 11 is the residence of the Chancellor of the Exchequer and No. 12 is the office of the Chief Whip, whose job is to ensure MPs toe the party line.

Downing Street leads into Whitehall, home of government ministries and the setting for state processions, and for the annual memorial services at the Cenotaph. This was designed to remember the dead of the First World War, with an inscription added after the Second World War. Nearby, Charles I was executed in 1649. The offices of the Ministry of Defence, the Treasury and the Foreign Office are situated nearby.

Comments

brewhouse - пивоварня

remnant – след, пережиток

pottery –керамика; гончарные изделия

cul-de-sac – тупик; глухой переулок

riot – бунт; мятеж

suffragette – суфражистка; борец за избирательные права женщин

to chain – приковывать цепями

railings – ограда, перила

Chancellor of the Exchequer – министр финансов

Chief Whip – «главный кнут», главный организатор парламентской фракции, следящий за соблюдением партийной дисциплины и обеспечивающий поддержку политики своей партии и присутствие членов фракции на заседании парламента

to toe – переносн. строго придерживаться правил; подчиняться требованиям

state processions – зд. место проведения государственных мероприятий

Cenotaph ['senouta:f] - Сенотаф, Кенотаф (обелиск, воздвигнутый в 1920 в честь погибших во время первой мировой войны). Здесь раз в год проходит официальная церемония возложения венков (от лат. пустая могила).

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace is the Queen's official London residence. Built in 1702-1705 for the Duke of Buckingham, it was sold in 1761 to George III. King George IV insisted that the architect for his stately new home must be John Nash. The Palace was little used by royalty until Victoria's accession to the throne in 1837.

Today the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have private suites in the North Wing, overlooking the Green Park. In summer their home is open to guests, attending garden parties. The State Apartments, which contain generations of royal treasures, are now open to the public in August and September. Buckingham palace, facing the Mall and the white marble and gilded Queen Victoria Memorial, flies the royal standard when the Queen is in residence.

The gardens have a lake, cascading water and the wild life includes flamingoes. Buckingham Palace is a working setting for the monarchy – with a large staff involved in tasks from running the household to organizing banquets for visiting heads of state, arrangements for ambassadors to present their credentials and subjects to receive awards. From here the Queen leaves on ceremonial duties such as the State Opening of Parliament in early winter and Trooping the Colour to mark her official birthday in June.

The Queen’s Gallery houses changing exhibitions taken from the Royal Collections. This is open to the public. So are the Royal Mews with the Queen’s horses, their trappings, the breathtaking State Coach and more modern royal carriages and cars.

Lon­don's most popular spectacle is Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. It takes place in the forecourt and lasts about 30 minutes.

Comments

stately home – величественный дом или замок

Duke of Edinburgh – герцог Эдинбургский (с 1947 г. титул супруга королевы Елизаветы II принца Филипа)

suite [swi:t] – апартаменты

State Apartments – официальная резиденция

Mall – Малл, Мэлл (улица в центральной части Лондона, ведущая от Трафальгарской площади к Букингемскому дворцу)

staff – штат служащих

credentials – вверительные грамоты

subject – подданный

State opening of Parliament – официальное открытие сессии парламента

Trooping the Colour – вынос знамени, торжественный развод караулов с выносом знамени, когда навстречу монарху выносят знамя гвардейского полка, несущего караульную службу во дворце в текущем году (проводится ежегодно в официальный день рождения монарха). Официальный день рождения монарха – это национальный праздник в первой половине июня, не совпадающий с его/ее фактическим днем рождения; он отмечается не только церемонией выноса знамени, но и награждением орденами и медалями и присвоением титулов.

Royal Mews – «Ройал мьюз», Королевские конюшни (где помещаются королевские кареты и лошади, используемые во время торжественных церемоний)

trappings - конская сбруя, попона

State Coach – карета Ее Величества

forecourt - внешний двор (перед домом)

 

St. Paul’s Cathedral

There are some famous ancient buildings within the City. Perhaps the most striking of them is St. Paul's Cathedral, the great­est of English churches and the seat of the Bishop of London. It is Sir Christopher Wren's masterpiece. It stands at the top of Ludgate Hill on a site where a Christian church has stood since the 7th century. The construction of the Cathedral started in 1675 and was not finished until 1709. It replaced Old St. Paul’s which was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. The magnificent classical structure is crowned by the dome. Inside the dome there are scenes from the life of St. Paul. Here too is the famous Whispering Gallery from which many famous painting can be seen. There are many monuments to many celebrated men and women in the Cathedral including those to heroes such as the Duke of Wellington and Admiral Lord Nelson.

The old churchyard is a public garden.

Comments:

Whispering Gallery – Галерея Шепота

Duke of Wellington – герцог Веллингтон

Admiral Lord Nelson – Адмирал Нельсон (famous for defeating Napoleon at the Battle of Trafalgar)

The Tower of London

The Tower of London is also situated in the City. It has been closely associated with many important events in English history. It has served fortress, palace, home of the Crown Jewels and national treasures, arsenal, mint, prison, observatory, zoo and tourist attraction”, wrote the Duke of Edinburgh. The White Tower was built in 1078 by William the Conqueror to protect the city. During the earliest days royalty lived in this secure tower. Many il­lustrious prisoners, such as Sir Thomas More and Guy Fawkes arrived by boat and entered the Tower through the infamous Traitor’s Gate. Many notable people lost their heads on the executioner's block.

The royal menagerie departed to the Zoo in 1834, leaving only ravens behind. Tradition says that if the ravens leave, the Tower and the country will fall. Today, neither palace nor prison, the Tower maintains elements of tradition, from the uniform of Beefeater to the nightly Ceremony of the Keys acted out by the Chief Yeoman Warder in long red cloak and Tudor bonnet, and carrying a lantern on his approach to the Bloody Tower.