英美概况简答题1

1.What were the consequences of the Norman Conquest?

The Norman Conquest of 1066 is one of the best known events in English history. It brought about many consequences. William confiscated almost all the land and gave it to his Norman followers. He replaced the weak Saxon rule with a strong Norman government. So the feudal system was completely established in England. Relations with the Continent were opened, and civilization and commerce were extended.

Norman-French culture, language, manners, and architecture were been introduced. The church was brought into closer connection with Rome, and the church courts were separated from the civil courts.

2.Explain the Glorious Revolution in English.

In 1685 Charles II died and was succeeded by his brother James II. James was brought up in exile in Europe, was a Catholic. He hoped to rule without giving up his personal religious vies. But England was no more tolerant of a Catholic king in 1688 than 40 years ago. So the English politicians rejected James II, and appealed to a Protestant king, William of Orange, to invade and take the English throne. William landed in England in 1688. The takeover was relatively smooth, with no bloodshed, nor any execution of the king. This was known as the Glorious Revolution.

3.What is the basis of British government? Explain it in English.

The basis of British government is the Constitutional Monarchy. It is a political system that has been practised in Britain since the Glorious revolution of 1688. According to this system, the Constitution is superior to the Monarch. In law, the Monarch has many supreme powers, but in practice, the real power of monarchy has been greatly reduced and today the Queen acts solely on the advice of her ministers. She reigns but does not rule. The real power lies in the Parliament, or to be exact, in the House of Commons.

4.How did the English Industrial Revolution proceed?

The Industrial Revolution began with the textile industry. It’s characterized by a series of inventions and improvements of machines, such as flying shuttle, spinning Jenny. James Watt produced a efficient steam engine in 1765, which could be applied to textile and other machinery. The most important element in speeding industrialization was the breakthrough in smelting iron with coke instead of charcoal. Similar developments occurred in the forging side of the iron industry which enabled iron to replace wool and stone in many sectors of the economy. As a result of the industrial revolution, Britain was by 1830 the “workshop of the world”, no other country could compete with her in industrial production.

5.What were the contents and the significance of the Great Charter?

The Great Charter, or the Magna Carta, was document signed in 1215 between the barons and king John. It had altogether 63 clauses. The Great Charter was a statement of the feudal and legal relationship between the Crown and the barons, a guarantee of the freedom of the Church and a limitation of the powers of the king.

The spirit of the Great Charter was the limitation of the powers of the king, but it has long been regarded as the foundation of English liberties.

6.Why did the Restoration take place?

When Oliver Cormwell died in 1658 and was succeeded by his son, Richard, the regime began to collapse.

One of Cromwell’s generals occupied London and arranged for new parliamentary elections. The Parliament thus was elected in 1660, and to resolve the crisis, it asked the late king’s son to return from his exile in France as king Charles II. It was called the Restoration.

7.What is a constitutional monarchy? When did it begin in Britain?

A constitutional monarchy is a governmental system in which the head of State is a king or a queen who

reigns but does not rule. The country is namely reigned by the Sovereign, but virtually by His or Her Majesty’s Government —— a body of Ministers who are the leading members of whichever political party the electorate has voted into office, and who are responsible to Parliament. The Constitutional Monarchy in Britain began in 1689, when king William and Queen Mary jointly accepted the Bill of Rights, and constitutional monarchy, of a monarchy with power limited by Parliament began.

8.What is the role of the Monarchy in the British government?

The sovereign is the symbol of the whole nation. In law, he/she is head of the executive, an integral part of the legislature, head of the judiciary, the commander-in-chief of all the armed forces of the crown and the “supreme governor” of the established church of England.

9.What are the main functions of Parliament?

The main functions of Parliament are: (1) to pass laws; (2) to provide the means of carrying on the work of government by voting for taxation; (3) to examine government policy and administration, including proposals for expenditure; (4) to debate the major issues of the day.

10.Why is the United States regarded as a “melting pot” or a “salad bowl”?

The United States “is not merely a nation but a nation of nations”. The immigrants came in waves, including the Europeans, the Africans and the Asians. Therefore, America was described as a “melting pot”where various racial and ethnic groups were combined into one culture. Recently, Americans have been called a “salad bowl” in that people of different races and ethnic groups mix harmoniously but at the same time keep their distinct culture and custom.

11.What were the causes of the War of Independence?

The economy in the thirteen colonies developed very fast and people wanted more power to detemine their own business. But the policy of the British government was to bring the development under control and to collect more taxes from the colonies. On April 19, 1775, on their way to Concord to seize the military supplies of the militia there, the British soldiers met armed militiamen. The shots were fired, the War of Independence began.

12.Why did the U.S. Civil War break out? How did the war end?

In the early 1800s, the Northern states turned from farming to manufacturing. Black slavery soon disappeared in the North. But things were different in the South. The South expanded both its agriculture and its slavery.

The problem of slavery became a serious political issue. When Abraham Lincoln was elected President, the Southern states broke away and formed a new nation. Then Lincoln was determined to maintain the Union and the war broke out on April 12, 1861, Lincoln issued Emancipation Proclamation. Thus England and France stood by the Union’s side. Many black slaves joined the Union Army. After a series of battles, the South surrendered on April 9, 1865. The Civil War ended.

13.What’s the system of checks and balances?

The U.S. government is divided into three branches, the legislative, the executive and the judicial, each has part of the powers but not all the power. And each branch of government can check, or block, the actions of the other branches. The three branches are thus in balance. This called “checks and balances”.

14.What are the functions of the Congress?

The Congress has many functions, but the most central is the passage of law. One of the most important non-legislative functions of the Congress is the power to investigate. A second important power is to compel testimony from unwilling witness and to cite for contempt of Congress witness who refuse to testify, and for perjury those who give false testimony.

15.What’s the United States Bill of Rights?

In 1789, James Madison introduced in the House of Representations a series of amendments. Ten of them were ratified in 1791 and became the first ten amendments to the Constitution ——the Bill of Rights, confirming the fundamental rights of American citizens. The First Amendment guarantees freedom of religion, speech, and the press, the rights of peaceful assembly and petition.

Land & People (UK, USA)

? 1.What is the full name of the United Kingdom? What are the other names?

? 2. What are the two large islands that make up the British Isles?

? 3. What are the four political divisions of the United Kingdom?

? 4. What’s its respective capital（首府）?

? 5. What’s the national anthem?

? 6. What’s its national flower?

?7. What’s its national flag?

?8. What’s its nickname?

?9. What kind of country is Britain in terms of its geographical feature?

?10. Which river is important in Britain?

?11. Can you tell me something about the location of Britain?

?12. What’s the climate like in Britain? Why do British people talk about weather very often?

?13. What are the symbols of England?

?14. Can you list some landmarks of London?

?15. What are the symbols of Scotland?

?16. Tell some symbols of Wales?

?17. Tell some symbols of Northern Ireland?

? 1. How do you know about the different names of USA?

? 2. What’s its national flag?

? 3.How do you know the meaning of its national flag?

? 4. What’s the nickname of American people?

? 5. What’s its national anthem(国歌)?

? 6.There are many things that symbolize American culture, could you say some of them? No less than 10

items

1.Where is the US? Could you tell me its boundary ?

2.How large is it?

3.What’s its rank respectively all over the world concerning to its area and population?

4.How many states are there in the mainland of the United States?

5.And which two states are geographically separated from the other?

6.What is the capital of the US? Can you say some of its

tourist attractions? 4 or more

7. 2 of the most important mountains of the US are__________ and ________.

8.“Father of Waters” refers to the ________River.

9.The ______River has been called the American Ruhr .

10._________forms a natural boundary between Mexico and the United States.

11.The 5 Great Lakes are Lake_____, Lake_______, Lake______, Lake ______and Lake________.

1.Talk about some famous people in different parts of UK.

2. Describe the character of the British people briefly.

3. Who are the ancestors of the English and who are the ancestors of Scots, Welsh and Irish?

4. The earliest known settlers on the British Isles were ________.

1. The first immigrants in American history came from ____ and ____.

2. Uncle Tom’s Cabin and Roots are two novels which give a vivid description of the miserable life of the _____.

3. According to American historians and specialists in demography人口学, there are _____ great population movements in the history of the United States.

4. In ______, the Pilgrims sailed to the New World in a ship called ______.

5. Traditionally, the mainstream Americans were called WASPs, that is, ______

6. What’s the climate like in USA?

7. Why is USA called a melting pot?

8. Why is USA called a nation on wheels?

9. What are American people like in terms of the character?

10. Name who’s who 名人录in America (presidents, writers, scientists, actors or actress and so on. )

History ( UK, USA)

1. The earliest known settlers on the British Isles were ________.

2. Christianity was first brought to England by ________.

3. Who were the invaders after 410 AD?

4. Do you know the conqueror’s name (Norman Conquest)?

5. The Parliament became a regular agency of the government under ________. (Model Parliament)

6. Why was the War of Roses so called?

7. What was “Glorious Revolution”?

8. Who was the first prime minister in English history?

1. The inhabitants prior to the arrival of the Europeans are now called____________.

2.Who is commonly regarded as the discoverer of America?

3. The first successful English settlement in America was _________ in 1607.

4.On ______, in the Second Continental congress, _______ was declared, which was primarily written by ___________.

5. The first president of the United States was _______ under the new US Constitution.

6. In 1803, the United States paid $15 million to buy 828,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi from France, this is called _____________.

7. In the year _______, after _________ was elected President, the South seceded to establish a rebel government, ___________.

8. The __________ was the beginning of the ____________ in the late 1920s and 1930s. President Roosevelt’s (FDR) _______ measures was to ________________________.

9. The United States declared war against Japan after its surprise attack on ________ on December 7,1941.

10. The United States dropped two atomic bombs on ________ and Nagasaki in August 1945, thus hastened the unconditional surrender of Japan.

11. After WWII, the United States became one of the two dominant ________, and the ________ began.

Politics ( UK, USA)

1. What is the basis of the British government?

2. Who is the head of the country?

3. Who is the present sovereign of the UK?

4. How many parts make the British Parliament? And what are they?

5.What is the president of the House of Lords called?

6. What are the two major parties?

7. Who presides the cabinet?

8. Who has the real power in the country?

9. Who is the present Prime Minister of the UK?

10. Where does the Prime Minister live and work?

1. What is called federalism?

2. What is Separation of Powers?

3. Can you tell the two houses that make up the American Congress? How many members in each house?

4. Tell the two major parties in the U.S. and their symbols.

5. What is an electoral college?

6. Which president abolished slavery in his tenure?

7.Who is the only president serving more than two terms in American history?

8. Who is the first black American president?