Traditions in great britain
In Britain there are thousands of old customs and traditions and many of them seem strange now.
Long
ago the British Kings and Queens were moving from one castle
to another accompanied
by manycourtiers
(царедворец)
and servants. The Queen still rides
in formal state in the historic gilded
(позолоченный)
coach
(карета)
through the streets of London accompanied by the Household Cavalry
.
One can see such a procession when the Queen rides for the State
Opening of Parliament from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of
Westminster. Robed
(облаченная
в
мантию)
and crowned
(с
короной
на
голове)
the Queen enters the Upper House and
delivers
the
address
(произносит
речь)
from the throne
.
The speech is written for her by the Prime Minister.
Probably
the oldest military ceremony in the world is the Ceremony of the Keys
which has taken place every night at the Tower of London for more
that 700 years. At seven minutes to ten, a sergeant of the guards
with the Keys, accompanied by four soldiers in dress uniform and
carrying rifles
(винтовка)
,
appears in turn at the four main towers. The timing of this old
ceremony is so exact that at that very moment the hour of ten
strikes.
Here
is another tradition which was formed quite accidentally
(случайно)
.
Queen Elizabeth the First was knitting
(вязание)
when
the list of new police
appointments was given her. She had to make a check in ink against
the name of each person whom she wanted to appoint. But there was no
pen at hand. So she made a little hole in the paper with one of her
knitting
needles
(спица)
beside each favoured name. That is the reason why today Queen
Elizabeth the Second appoints sheriffs
(судебный
исполнитель)
of England by pricking
(прокалывание)
holes in the list of candidates.
There are lots of domestic customs which go centuries back. There is the English custom of afternoon tea. It is nearly 250 years old. The British drink their afternoon tea round the fire in winter and out in the garden on sunny summer days. Tea even played its part in wars. When George III of England tried to make the American colonists pay import duty on tea, a group of Americans dressed as Indians threw 342 boxes of tea into the sea in Boston Harbour — the famous «Boston Tea Party», which led to the American War of Independence.
Another tradition is sitting at a fireplace which is found in every home. People may like to sit at a window on a summer's day, but for many months of the year they like to sit round the fire and watch the dancing flames. In the Middle Ages the fireplaces in the halls of castles used to be very wide. Such wide fireplaces may still be seen in old inns (гостиницах) , and in some of them there are even seats inside the fireplace. When coal fires became common( в широком употреблении) , fireplaces became much smaller. Above the fireplace there was usually a shelf, on which there was often a clock, and perhaps framed ( в раме) pictures.
These and many other traditions and customs are characteristic of the British scene(современное общество) . Britain is changing together with the rest of the world, but traditions remain.
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