) there should be the same weights and measures throughout the country. (significance) Although The Great Charter has long been popularly regarded as the ① foundation of English liberties, it was a ②statement of the feudal and legal relationships between the Crown and the barons, ③a guarantee of the freedom of the Church and a ④ limitation of the powers of the king. The spirit of the Great Charter was the limitation of the powers of the king, keeping them within the bounds of the feudal law of the land.
《大宪章》是约翰国王1215年在封建贵族压力下签定的。《大宪章》总共63条，其中最重要的内容是：(1) 未经大议会同意，不得征税；(2) 只有根据国家有关法律才能逮捕、监禁自由人以及剥夺他们的财产；(3)教会应享受其所有权利且有选举自由；（4） 伦敦和其它城镇应保留其贵族的传统权力和特权；(5) 全国要统一度量衡。尽管人们普遍认为《大宪章》为英国的自由奠定了基础，但该宪章只是规定国王和贵族之间封建关系和法律关系的声明书，保证了教会的自由，限制了国王权利。《大宪章》的精神实质就是把国王的权利限制在英国封建法律允许的范围之内。
III.The origins of the English Parliament
英国议会的起源
The Great Council is known to be the prototype (原型) of the current British Parliament. In 1265, Simon de Montfort summoned （召集） the Great Council, together with two knights from each county and two citizens from each town. It later developed into the House of Lords and the House of Commons. Its main role was to offer advice，not to make decisions. There were no elections or parties. And the most important part of Parliament was the House of Lords.
大议会是当今英国议会的原型。1265年，西门德孟福尔召开大议会，各县有两名骑士，各镇有两名市民参加。大议会发展到后来演变成议会，分为上议院和下议院。其作用是咨询而非决定；也没有选举和政党。议会的最重要的部分是上议院。
英语国家概况精讲系列（六）
IV．The Hundred Years' War and its consequences.
百年战争及其结果
The Hundred Years’ War refers to the war between England and France that lasted intermittently from 1337 to 1453. The causes of the war were partly territorial and partly economic. ①The territorial causes were related with the possession by the English kings of the large duchy of Aquitaine in France, as the French kings grew stronger,they increasingly coveted this large slice. ②The economic causes were connected with cloth manufacturing towns in Flanders, which were the importer of English wool, but they were loyal to the French king politically. Besides, England's desire to ③stop France from giving aid to Scots and ④ a growing sense of nationalism were the other causes.
The English's being driven out of France is ① regarded as a blessing for both countries. If the English had remained in France, the superior size and wealth of France would have ②hindered the development of a separate English national identity, ③ while France was hindered so long as a foreign power occupied so much French territory.
百年战争指1337年到1453年英法之间一场断断续续的战争，战争的起因既有领土因素又有经济因素。领土起因尤其是英国国 |
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