one of the big cat predators. |
一种大型猫科食肉动物 |
Perhaps he will rightly be called a leopard, |
或许猎豹是对他最贴切的称谓 |
leo-brave, proud and fierce, the powered, |
如猎豹般勇敢傲慢而残忍大权在握 |
wily, devious and treacherous. |
狡猾刁钻而阴险 |
The leopard prince was born to splendid, |
猎豹王子生来就被寄予宏伟 |
impossible expectations. |
近乎不切实际的厚望 |
His father, Henry III, |
他的父亲亨利三世 |
had named his son for England Royal Saint |
以英格兰皇室圣贤 |
Edward the Confessor - the paragon, |
忏悔者爱德华为其命名 |
so it was then thought, of kingly perfection. |
在当时人民的心中他是帝王的完美代表 |
Though the Confessor had been dead for almost 200 years, |
尽管忏悔者已离世近二百年 |
Henry ate, drank and worshipped him, |
亨利无时无刻不把他奉若神灵 |
and finally created for the long-dead king |
并最终为这位早已作古的国王 |
a shrine of unparalleled magnificence. |
建造了一座富丽堂皇无与伦比的神龛 |
Of course, such a shrine would need a |
当然此等华贵的神龛需要一个 |
home that equalled a splender- |
与其相称的处所来安放 |
the new Westminster Abbey. |
全新的威斯敏斯特教堂 |
Henry demolished the old basilica at Westminster |
亨利拆除了威斯敏斯特的旧教堂 |
and replaced it with an immense gothic abbey, |
在原址建造了一座宏伟的哥特式教堂 |
a building that now fitted his vision |
这个新建筑终于与他心中 |
of an awe-inspiring English monarch. |
英格兰君王令人敬畏的形象相称 |
From now on, Westminster would be |
从那以后威斯敏斯特教堂就成了 |
the symbolic heart of the Kingdom, |
王权身份的象征 |
the place where all English monarchs |
所有英国君主都将在此加冕 |
would be crowned and buried. |
死后也将长眠于此 |
His father, King Henry III, reigned for 56 years. |
他的父亲亨利三世国王在位56年 |
He's not remembered for any stirring achievement or bloodsoak conquest, |
他一生既无赫赫功勋也未曾暴虐征讨 |
but Henry's time on the throne |
但亨利在位期间 |
was driven by a magnificent of session. |
也曾试图励精图治 |
He wanted to turn the monarchy |
他想要将君主制 |
into England's dominant power. |
发展成英格兰的主导统治力量 |
Henry's great gift to the nation was |
亨利对国家的贡献 |
more than just fine new church. |
不仅仅是全新的大教堂 |
Across the way, its secular counterpart |
教堂对面是其世俗的对等物 |
was the great hall of the Palace of Westminster. |
威斯敏斯特宫的大厅 |
The Palace was both |
这座宫殿同时充当着 |
the seat of government and a residence for King Henry, |
政府办公厅与亨利王的住所 |
who, unlike his Angevin ancestors, |
与金雀花王朝的先王们不同 |
didn't much like being in the settle. |
亨利王不嗜安逸 |
And the hall was a court in both the senses the word suggests, |
这座大厅的功能恰如其称谓 |
a place of judgement and a theatre of ceremony. |
既是审判庭又是礼堂 |
At Westminster, the king had to be seen to be magnificent, |
在威斯敏斯特国王的形象必须威严雄伟 |
but the king had also to be seen to be just. |
同时还必须正义凛然 |
Westminster may have been the creation of the monarchy, |
威斯敏斯特算得上是君主制的产物 |
but it also belonged to England - a nation of laws, |
但它同时属于英格兰一个法治国家 |
完整版请点击 |
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the nation of Magna Carta. |
《大宪章》之国 |
Henry had grown up with the Charter, |
亨利在《大宪章》的影响下成长 |
signed by his father king John in 1215, |
这是由他父亲约翰王于1215年签署通过的 |
which put real limits on the power of the king. |
该法律是用来限制英国国王权力 |
A bit of a blow for a king who wanted absolute authority. |
这对渴望绝对权力的统治者如当头棒喝 |
Kings could no longer ignore the complaints of their subjects. |
国王再也不能无视子民们的怨言 |
They could be forced to submit to a council of the barons. |
他们必须向男爵理事会述政 |
That council thought of itself as the voice |
该理事会自诩为 |
of the community of the realm, |
王国的发言机构 |
and even now began to be called "parliament". |
时至今日他们被称作议会 |
Its role would be to hold the king to his contract. |
它的作用就是保证国王规行矩步 |
Since Henry had become king as a boy of nine, |
由于亨利即位时只有九岁 |
he'd had no choice but to swallow this bitter pill. |
他无从选择有苦只能往肚里咽 |
However, as he grew older, Henry burned with frustration |
然而随着年龄的增长亨利越发沮丧 |
and became determined to get free of its shackles |
终于下定决心要挣脱束缚 |
to restore the unchallenged authority of the crown. |
复辟君主至高无上的权利 |
Knowing that this couldn't happen without a fight, |
亨利深知此举必将引发政治斗争 |
Henry accepted a compromise position for many years, |
因此多年来他一直妥协忍让 |
that the king was not free to govern through pure royal will. |
保证国王不会凭个人意愿独断政事 |
But Henry III was also a Plantagenet, |
但亨利三世也是金雀花家族的一员 |
and plantagenets dreamed dangerous dreams |
金雀花家族历来野心勃勃 |
expensive dreams of campaigns far abroad |
不惜代价地想扩张领土 |
which no one in York or Canterbury |
而约克家族或坎特伯雷家族 |
could quite see the points of. |
始终无法明白他们这样做意义何在 |
When Plantagenets thought they might get unwelcome advice, |
金雀花王朝一旦遇到逆耳的建议 |
they stopped listening - until, that is, they were made to. |
就拒绝听取直到非听不可的地步 |
In 1258, in the very hall that defined his majesty, Westminster, |
1258年就在亨利加冕的威斯敏斯特教堂里 |
seven of the most powerful barons confronted the king. |
七位位高权重的男爵挑战了国王的权威 |
Fully armed, they paused only to leave their swords outside. |
他们全副武装只有卸剑的时候稍事停顿 |
They demanded that Henry meet them at a parliament in Oxford |
他们要求亨利前往牛津参与议会 |
and stop trying to turn his European dreams into reality. |
并且放弃统一欧洲的梦想 |
The barons were led, in all but name, |
实际上男爵们的首领 |
by the most improbable revolutionary, in all of British history |
发动了不列颠史上最离奇的革命 |
Simon De Montfort. |
他就是西蒙·德·蒙德福特 |
Here at Kenilworth, he presided |
在凯尼尔沃思他曾创办过 |
over a little empire of culture. |
一个小小的文化帝国 |
A French aristocrat who inherited the earldom of Leicester, |
这个世袭了莱斯特伯爵爵位的法国贵族 |
Simon became convinced that he was more English than the English. |
坚信自己比真正的英国人更像英国人 |
What was good for De Montfort was good for the nation. |
德·蒙德福特的利益就是这个国家的利益 |
Love him or hate him, |
无论爱戴还是憎恶 |
everyone knew that Simon De Montfort |
人人都知道西蒙·德·蒙德福特 |
was a man with a mission. |
肩负着重大的历史使命 |
That mission, embarked on with his fellow barons, |
这一历史使命得到了他男爵同僚的支持 |
was to bring the wayward, self-glorifying monarchy to book, |
就是要求任意妄为狂妄自大的君主制 |
to make it the servant, not the master of the realm. |
为民服务而不是独揽大权 |
At Oxford, amidst wildfire rumours, a camp of soldiers, |
在牛津城谣言四起军备森严 |
and the growling hunger of a famine, |
哀鸿遍野 |
Henry III was treated to the emasculation of his sovereignty. |
亨利三世不得不削弱自己的王权 |
A document was drawn up for the king to sign |
他的面前呈上了一份文件等待签署 |
not discuss, just to accept. |
不容讨论只能接受 |
What it said was so startling, so genuinely revolutionary, |
文件内容骇人听闻革命的意愿尽现 |
that 1258 ought to be one of those |
1258年应像其他重大的日子一样 |
dates engraved on the national memory. |
永载史书被国人铭记 |
The provisions of Oxford were at |
牛津条款的重要性 |
least as important as Magna Carta. |
至少能与《大宪章》相媲美 |
In effect, the crown had been replaced |
实际上君主的权力已经移交给 |