Text One

London

1． London, with the River Thames flowing through it, has seen a long history and has grown into one vast urban area during the past centuries. It is the political, cultural, and financial centre of Great Britain. And there are world-famous museums and art galleries. Read the following text and you will know more about London.

2． When we think of Paris, Rome, Madrid, Athens and other European capitals, we think of them as "cities". When we think of the whole of modern London, that great area covering several hundred square miles, we do not think of it as "a city", not even as a city and its suburbs. Modern London is not one city that has steadily grown larger through the centuries; it is a number of cities, towns and villages that have, during the past centuries, grown together to make one vast urban area.

3． London today stretches for nearly thirty miles from north to south and for nearly thirty miles from east to west. This is the area known as "Greater London", with a population of nine million. The "City of London" is a very small part of the whole; it is only one square mile in area, and the number of people who live and sleep in "the City" is only about ten thousand.

4． If you could fly low over London in an aeroplane, for example, you would see below you the River Thames, flowing from west to east and dividing London into the two parts known as the north bank and the south bank. The division between "the City" and the "West End" would be less obvious from this bird's-eye view.

5． If, from the air, we pick out a few landmarks, we will find it easier to understand how London has grown. Two landmarks stand out clearly: St. Paul's Cathedral in the City, and, about two miles westwards, the group of buildings near Westminster Bridge, the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey. Linking them we may see a main street called the Strand.

6． These two landmarks are a guide to the growth of London. Round St. Paul's is the original London, the oldest part, with a history of almost two thousand years. Westminster, with its Palace and Abbey, is six hundred years younger.

7． When the Romans came to Britain in the First century AD, London was a small village. Many of the roads built by the Romans met at the place where London Bridge now stands. Parts of the Roman wall, built in the second century, can still be seen.

8． The first Norman King, William the Conqueror, was crowned in 1067 in Westminster Abbey. William built the Tower, still one of the most famous sights of London. For hundreds of years the Tower was used as a prison, and visitors today may see the exact spot where many great nobles were executed. The most popular sight, however, is probably the strongly guarded room in which the Crown jewels are kept and displayed.

9． As, during the Middle Ages, London increased in size and wealth, the old City and the area round the Royal Palace at Westminster became the two chief centres. The nobles, priests, judges, and others who were connected with the Court, lived in or near Westminster. This explains how the part of London that we now call the West End came into being. Because Henry VIII was fond of hunting, we have, today, three parks that form a large area of green: St. James's Park, the Green Park, and Hyde Park.

10． The Court moved to St James's in the eighteenth century, and to Buckingham Palace in the nineteenth century. Both of these are in the City of Westminster. Here, and farther west, are the finest theatres, cinemas and concert halls, the large museums, the most comfortable hotels, the largest department stores, and the most famous shops. The name "West End" came to be associated with wealth, comfort, and goods of high quality. Here most of the streets are narrow, and traffic is often very slow. Many of these narrow streets run down to the Thames, and at the end of many of them warehouses can be seen. The city is concerned with finance, but it is also a market for goods of almost every kind, from all parts of the world.

11． The Port of London is to the east of the "City". Here, today, are miles and miles of docks. This is the East End of London, not beautiful in appearance, but very important to the country's trade.

12． If you walk westwards from St. Paul's you reach Fleet Street, a name familiar to people in many parts of the world. Here, and in the side streets running from it, the most important newspapers and news agencies have their offices. If you are told that someone works in Fleet Street, you know that he is probably a journalist, or in some way or other connected with journalism. At most hours of the day and night there are hundreds of motor vans leaving the newspaper offices with their heavy loads, some for the railway stations and others off to news-agents throughout London.

13． The ancient City of London has always governed itself and has not shared in the government of the rest of London. The city has its own Lord Mayor and its own Corporation. The Lord Mayor's Show celebrates the election of a new Lord Mayor of London. It is held every year on the second Saturday in November, when the new Lord Mayor rides through the streets in his splendid coach, drawn by six horses.

14． In the thirteenth century, after the citizens of London had chosen a new Mayor, they had to go with him to the King's palace in Westminster and ask the King to approve their choice. During the centuries since then, the new Lord Mayor has gone to Westminster by boat, on horseback, or by coach.

15． Today, they start in the City and go past St. Paul's Cathedral as far as the boundary of the City of Westminster. They cross the boundary and stop at the Law Courts, where the Lord Mayor is presented to the Lord Chief Justice. The Mayor makes a solemn promise to carry out his duties faithfully, and the Lord Chief Justice hands the Mayor his sword of office. The procession continues to Westminster, and then returns to the Mansion House, which is the Lord Mayor's official house.

16． The London County Council, established in 1889, was replaced in 1965 by a new system of local government called the Greater London Council. Within its boundaries there are thirty-two London boroughs, each with its own mayor and council. It is the Greater London Council, however, that is responsible for many of the public services. It is responsible for roads, housing, fire services, parks and open spaces, and town planning.

17． Some of the London boroughs are not very well known to people outside Great Britain. Some names are widely known. Chelsea, which is now united with Kensington, is known to many because of the great writers and artists who have lived there. Kensington is well known, partly because of the royal palace and Kensington Gardens, and partly because of the large museums within its boundaries. Greenwich is known because Greenwich time, the time for the meridian of Greenwich, was, until 1968, standard time in Britain.

18． Greater London, with its population of nine million, includes not only the area of the City, but the outer suburbs. It has no definite boundaries, but covers an area of about twenty miles radius from Oxford Circus. Because London has grown so large, the Government has decided that it must spread no farther. It is now surrounded by a "green belt", on which new buildings may be put up only with the permission of the planning authorities.

19． London is famous for its museums and art galleries and they are well worth seeing; admission to most is free. The Natural History Museum, Science Museum and Victoria and Albert Museum are all situated in a small area in South Kensington. The British Museum, one of the world's largest museums, is in Great Russell Street. And the Museum of London illustrates the history of London from prehistoric times to the present day. The Shakespeare Globe Museum at Bankside, Southwark, a museum of Elizabethan theatre history, includes a reconstruction of Shakespeare's first Globe theatre.

20． On the north side of Trafalgar Square, famous for its fountains and its large number of pigeons, there stands a long, low building in classic style. This is the National Gallery, which contains Britain's best-known collection of pictures. The collection was begun in 1824, with the purchase of thirty-eight pictures.

21． Admission to the Gallery is free, as is the case with other British national galleries and museums, which are maintained by money voted by Parliament. Private individuals leave their pictures to the galleries after their death, at times on a generous scale.

22． Just behind the National Gallery stands the National Portrait Gallery, in which the visitor can see portraits of British kings and queens since the reign of Richard II, and of historical people such as Chaucer and Shakespeare. Many of the pictures are by well-known artists.

23． The National Gallery of British Art, better known as the Tate Gallery, was given to the nation by a rich sugar merchant, Sir Henry Tate, who had a taste for the fine arts. It overlooks the Thames, not far from the Houses of Parliament. English artists are naturally well represented here, and the Tate also has a range of modern works, including some sculptures by foreign artists. This, of all the London galleries, is the young people's gallery. It has been stated that three-quarters of its visitors are under twenty-five.

24． The Wallace Collection at Hertford House was formed by Lord Hertford and his half-brother, Sir Richard Wallace. Sir Richard Wallace inherited the collection and, in 1897, his widow gave the collection to the nation. There is here a very fine display of weapons and armor, pottery, miniatures and sculptures. The first floor of the building contains many excellent pictures of famous artists.

课文一

伦敦

1． 座落在泰晤士河畔的伦敦具有悠久的历史。它历经数百年的发展，已然成为一个巨大的城区。伦敦是英国的政治、文化和金融中心，拥有世界闻名的博物馆和艺术展览馆。阅读下面的文字，会使你对伦敦有更深入的了解。

2．提起巴黎、罗马、马德里、雅典和其他欧洲国家首都，我们会把它们都看作是“城市”；而谈到占地几百平方英里的现代伦敦，我们则无法将它视为“一个城市”，甚至无法把它看作是由一个城市及其附属郊区构成的整体。通常一座城市是经过几个世纪的稳步发展壮大而形成的，而现代的伦敦则不是；它是由许许多多城市、乡镇和村庄经过几百年的发展联结在一起而形成的一个巨大的城区。

3．今天的伦敦东西横亘近30英里，南北相距也近30英里。这就是人们所说的拥有九百万人口的“大伦敦(或伦敦地区）”。“伦敦市区”只占整个伦敦地区很小的一部分，面积仅为一平方英里。在这个“市区”居住生活的人口大约只有一万人。

4． 如果你在伦敦上方做低空飞行，就会看到下面的泰晤士河。河水由西向东流淌，将伦敦分成两个部分，即北岸和南岸。鸟瞰伦敦时，“市区”和“伦敦西区”的界限并不是很明显。

5．从空中挑选一些标志性建筑，会更易于我们了解伦敦的发展史。有两个标志性建筑特别醒目：一个是市区里的圣保罗大教堂，另一个是教堂向西两英里左右处、威斯敏斯特大桥附近的建筑群，即威斯敏斯特宫和威斯敏斯特教堂。一条叫做斯特兰德的大街将它们串连起来。

6．这两个标志性建筑是了解伦敦发展进程的向导。圣保罗大教堂周围是最初的伦敦，这里是最古老的地方，拥有近两千年的历史。威斯敏斯特宫和教堂要比它晚六百年。

7．公元一世纪罗马人来到英国时，伦敦还是一个小村庄。罗马人建造的许多公路在如今的伦敦桥的位置交汇。公元二世纪，罗马人建造的城墙仍依稀可见。

8．1067年第一个诺曼底国王——征服者威廉——就是在威斯敏斯特教堂接受加冕的。威廉建造的伦敦塔,仍是今天伦敦最著名的景点之一。几百年中，它一直被用作监狱。如今的参观者仍能看到当年许多显赫贵族被处以死刑的地方。不过，最著名的景点大概是王室珍宝存放陈列室，那儿有重兵把守着。

9．在中世纪时期，随着伦敦土地面积的扩大和财富的不断增加，旧城区和威斯敏斯特宫周边的区域，发展成为两个主要中心。贵族、牧师、法官和其他与宫廷有关的人都住在威斯敏斯特里或附近。这就是我们今天所说的伦敦西区的由来。喜欢打猎的亨利八世给我们留下了今天的圣詹姆士公园、格林公园和海德公园。三座公园连接起来，形成大片绿地。

10．皇宫于18世纪迁往圣詹姆士，又于19世纪迁至白金汉宫。它们都位于威斯敏斯特城内。从这里及至再往西的地带上，最好的剧院、电影院和音乐厅鳞次栉比，大型的博物馆、最舒适的旅馆、最大的百货商场以及最著名的商店也都聚集于此。渐渐地，“伦敦西区”这个名字与财富、舒适和高质量的商品联系在一起。这里的大多数街道都很狭窄，交通往往十分缓慢。许多狭窄的街道都通向泰晤士河，而在街的尽头常常可以看到很多仓库。这是一座金融城市，但同时也是个大市场。这里的商品来自世界各地,品种齐全，应有尽有。

11．伦敦港在“市区”的东边。如今，这儿的码头绵延几英里。这里就是伦敦的东区，它的外表看上去并不美丽，但它对全国的贸易极为重要。

12．从圣保罗漫步西行，就到了舰队街。这个名字对世界各地的人来讲都不会陌生。世界上最重要的报社和通讯社都在这条街或与之相连的小街上设有办事处。如果有人告诉你某人在舰队街工作，你便可知道他很可能是个记者，或者多少与新闻业有关。不管白天黑夜，每天大部分时间里总有几百辆货车载着沉重的货物驶离报社办事处。有的驶往火车站，有的驶往伦敦的报刊经销商。

13．古伦敦市一直是自治管理，不参与其他城区的管理。它拥有自己的市长和自己的市政委员会。每年11月第二个星期六，会举行市长就职彩车游，庆祝又一任市长的诞生。届时，新当选的市长会坐在豪华的六驾马车上穿过大街。

14．在13世纪，伦敦公民选好一个新市长后，必须随同他一起前往位于威斯敏斯特的王宫，请求国王恩准他们的选择。自那时起的几个世纪里，新市长都要去威斯敏斯特。他们或乘船，或骑马，或者驾着马车前往。

15．今天，他们从古城区出发，经由圣保罗教堂直至威斯敏斯特市的边界。越过边界，队伍在法院门前停下。在这里市长拜见大法官，并庄严宣誓将尽忠职守，然后大法官将象征其职位的宝剑交给市长。游行队伍继续在威斯敏斯特行进，最后返回市长官邸。

16．成立于1889年的伦敦郡议会，在1965年被名为“大伦敦市政会”的新型地方行政制度所取代。大伦敦境内有32个享有自治权的市镇，每个市镇都有自己的市长和议会。但是大多数的公共事业需由大伦敦市政会负责。它掌管交通、住房、消防、公园及露天场地和城镇规划。

17．外国人对伦敦的一些自治市镇并不了解，而另一些市镇的名字却广为人知。很多人知道已与肯辛顿合并的切尔西，因为许多伟大的作家和艺术家曾经居住在那儿。肯辛顿出名，部分原因是那里有皇家宫殿和肯辛顿花园，还有一个原因是那里有许多大型博物馆。格林威治因格林威治时间而闻名。直到1968年，格林威治子午线时间是全英国的标准时间。

18．拥有九百万人口的大伦敦地区由市区和周边郊区构成。它的边界并不明确，但它占有着以牛津广场为中心、半径为20英里左右范围内的大片土地。由于伦敦已经发展得规模过大，市政府决定不再向外扩张。现在伦敦市由一圈“绿林带”环抱，只有经过有关规划当局的允许，才能在这上面建造新的建筑物。

19．伦敦以其博物馆和艺术馆而闻名，而且它们也确实值得一看。大多数此类场所都可以免费参观。自然历史博物馆、科学博物馆以及维多利亚和艾伯特博物馆都座落在南肯辛顿的一小块土地上。世界上最大的博物馆之一——大英博物馆——就座落在大罗素街上。伦敦博物馆讲述了伦敦从史前直至今日的历史变迁。莎士比亚环球博物馆位于南沃克的河岸街上。它向公众介绍伊丽莎白一世时代的剧院历史。重建的莎士比亚的第一个环球剧院，也是博物馆的一部分。

20．特拉法尔加广场以喷泉和成群的鸽子闻名。它的北面座落着一个狭长低矮的古典风格建筑，这便是国家艺术馆，里面藏有英国最著名的绘画艺术品。这些收藏缘始于1824年收购得来的38幅绘画作品。

21．与其他国家展览馆和博物馆一样，国家艺术馆对公众免费开放。这是因为它们都是由英国议会拨款维持的。也会有个人在过世后将自己的画品收藏遗赠给艺术馆，有时这种捐赠十分慷慨。

22．　　就在国家艺术馆后面座落着国家肖像艺术馆。在那里，参观者可以看到理查德二世以来所有英国国王和皇后的肖像。这里还陈列着乔叟和莎士比亚等知名历史人物的肖像。很多肖像都出自著名艺术家之笔。

23． 英国国家艺术展览馆（人们通常称之为泰特美术馆）是由一个富有的糖商亨利•泰特爵士捐献给国家的。泰特爵士在美术鉴赏方面具有非常高的品味。展览馆俯瞰泰晤士河，又离议会大厦不远。英国本土艺术家的作品在这里自然得到了很好的展示。此外，泰特美术馆还收藏了一些现代作品，其中包括一些外国艺术家的雕刻作品。在伦敦所有的艺术馆中，这里堪称是年轻人的艺术馆。据说，四分之三的游客都是二十五岁以下的年轻人。

24．赫特福德院的华莱士收藏馆，是由赫特福德勋爵和他的同母异父兄弟理查德•华莱士爵士共同兴创的。理查德•华莱士爵士继承了这些收藏，1897年，他的遗孀把这些收藏品捐献给了国家。这里展品丰富，陈列着多种兵器、盔甲、陶器、模型和雕塑。藏馆的一楼还收藏着许多著名美术家的杰出作品。