BRITISH MONARCHY AND ITS INFLUENCE UPON GOVERNMENTAL INSTITUTIONS - Иностранные языки - Скачать бесплатно
The Institute of Ecology, Linguistics and Low
Degree work
«BRITISH MONARCHY
AND ITS INFLUENCE
UPON GOVERNMENTAL INSTITUTIONS»
Dunaeva Nina
Moscow, 2003
Contents
Part One
INTRODUCTION
The United kingdom of Great Britain and Nothern Ireland 4
Direct meaning of the word «monarchy» 6
The British constitutional monarchy 7
Part Two
HISTORY OF THE MONARCHY
Kings and Queens of England 9
The Anglo-Saxon Kings 9
The Normans 23
The Angevins 30
The Plantagenets 33
The Lancastrians 42
The Yorkists 46
The Tudors 48
The Stuarts 58
The Commonwealth Interregnum 63
The Hanoverians 75
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha 85
The House of Windsor 87
Part Three
THE MONARCHY TODAY
The Queen’s role 91
Queen’s role in the modern State 91
Queen and Commonwealth 91
Royal visits 92
The Queen’s working day 92
Ceremonies and pageantry 92
The Queen’s ceremonial duties 93
Royal pageantry and traditions 93
Royal succession 93
The Royal Household 93
Royal Household departments 94
Recruitment 94
Anniversaries 95
Royal finances 95
Head of State expenditure 2000-01 95
Sources of funding 96
Financial arrangements of The Prince of Wales 96
Finances of the other members of the Royal Family 96
Taxation 97
Royal assets 97
Symbols 98
National anthem 98
Royal Warrants 99
Bank notes and coinage 100
Stamps 102
Coats of Arms 103
Great Seal 104
Flags 105
Crowns and jewels 105
Transport 105
Cars 106
Carriages 107
The Royal Train 108
Royal air travel 109
Part Four
THE ROYAL FAMILY
Members of the Royal Family 111
HM The Queen 111
HRH The Duke of Edinburgh 111
HRH The Prince of Wales and family 112
HRH The Duke of York 112
TRH The Earl and Countess of Wessex 112
HRH Princess Royal 112
HRH Princess Alice 113
TRH The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester 113
TRH The Duke and Duchess of Kent 113
TRH Prince and Princess Michael of Kent 114
HRH Princess Alexandra 114
Memorial Plaque
HM Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother 115
HRH The Princess Margaret 115
Diana, Princess of Wales 115
Part Five
ART AND RESIDENCES
The Royal Collection 116
About the Royal Collection 116
The Royal Collection Trust 117
Royal Collection Enterprises 117
Publishing 118
Royal Residences 118
Royal Collection Galleries 118
Loans 119
The Royal Residences 119
About the Royal Residences 119
Buckingham Palace 120
The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace 120
The Royal Mews 121
Windsor Castle 121
Frogmore 122
The Palace of Holyroodhouse 122
Balmoral Castle 123
Sandringham House 123
St James’s Palace 124
Kensington Palace 124
Historic residences 124
Bibliography 126
UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND
[pic]
Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II (1952)
Government: The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and
parliamentary democracy, with a queen and a Parliament that has two houses:
the House of Lords, with 574 life peers, 92 hereditary peers, 26 bishops,
and the House of Commons, which has 651 popularly elected members. Supreme
legislative power is vested in Parliament, which sits for five years unless
sooner dissolved. The House of Lords was stripped of most of its power in
1911, and now its main function is to revise legislation. In Nov. 1999
hundreds of hereditary peers were expelled in an effort to make the body
more democratic. The executive power of the Crown is exercised by the
cabinet, headed by the prime minister.
Prime Minister: Tony Blair (1997)
Area: 94,525 sq mi (244,820 sq km)
Population (2003 est.): 60,094,648 (growth rate: 0.1%); birth rate:
11.0/1000; infant mortality rate: 5.3/1000; density per sq mi: 636
Capital and largest city (2000 est.): London, 11,800,000 (metro. area)
Other large cities: Birmingham, 1,009,100; Leeds, 721,800; Glasgow,
681,470; Liverpool, 479,000; Bradford, 477,500; Edinburgh, 441,620;
Manchester, 434,600; Bristol, 396,600
Monetary unit: Pound sterling (Ј)
Languages: English, Welsh, Scots Gaelic
Ethnicity/race: English 81.5%; Scottish 9.6%; Irish 2.4%; Welsh 1.9%;
Ulster 1.8%; West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8%
Religions: Church of England (established church), Church of Wales
(disestablished), Church of Scotland (established church—Presbyterian),
Church of Ireland (disestablished), Roman Catholic, Methodist,
Congregational, Baptist, Jewish
Literacy rate: 99% (1978)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2000 est.): $1.36 trillion; per capita $22,800.
Real growth rate: 3%. Inflation: 2.4%. Unemployment: 5.5%. Arable land:
25%. Agriculture: cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep,
poultry; fish. Labor force: 29.2 million (1999); agriculture 1%, industry
19%, services 80% (1996 est.). Industries: machine tools, electric power
equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding,
aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications
equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products,
food processing, textiles, clothing, and other consumer goods. Natural
resources: coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt,
clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land. Exports: $282 billion
(f.o.b., 2000): manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages,
tobacco. Imports: $324 billion (f.o.b., 2000): manufactured goods,
machinery, fuels; foodstuffs. Major trading partners: EU, U.S., Japan.
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 34.878 million (1997);
mobile cellular: 13 million (yearend 1998). Radio broadcast stations: AM
219, FM 431, shortwave 3 (1998). Radios: 84.5 million (1997). Television
broadcast stations: 228 (plus 3,523 repeaters) (1995). Televisions: 30.5
million (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 245 (2000). Internet
users: 19.47 million (2000).
Transportation: Railways: total: 16,878 km (1996). Highways: total: 371,603
km; paved: 371,603 km (including 3,303 km of expressways); unpaved: 0 km
(1998 est.). Waterways: 3,200 km. Ports and harbors: Aberdeen, Belfast,
Bristol, Cardiff, Dover, Falmouth, Felixstowe, Glasgow, Grangemouth, Hull,
Leith, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Peterhead, Plymouth, Portsmouth,
Scapa Flow, Southampton, Sullom Voe, Tees, Tyne. Airports: 489 (2000 est.).
International disputes: Northern Ireland issue with Ireland (historic peace
agreement signed 10 April 1998); Gibraltar issue with Spain; Argentina
claims Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); Argentina claims South Georgia
and the South Sandwich Islands; Mauritius and the Seychelles claim Chagos
Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory); Rockall
continental shelf dispute involving Denmark and Iceland; territorial claim
in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and
partially overlaps Chilean claim; disputes with Iceland, Denmark, and
Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 NM.
DIRECT MEANING OF THE WORD «MONARCHY»
Monarchy, form of government in which sovereignty is vested in a single
person whose right to rule is generally hereditary and who is empowered to
remain in office for life. The power of this sovereign may vary from the
absolute to that strongly limited by custom or constitution. Monarchy has
existed since the earliest history of humankind and was often established
during periods of external threat or internal crisis because it provided a
more efficient focus of power than aristocracy or democracy, which tended
to diffuse power. Most monarchies appear to have been elective originally,
but dynasties early became customary. In primitive times, divine descent of
the monarch was often claimed. Deification was general in ancient Egypt,
the Middle East, and Asia, and it was also practiced during certain periods
in ancient Greece and Rome. A more moderate belief arose in Christian
Europe in the Middle Ages; it stated that the monarch was the appointed
agent of divine will. This was symbolized by the coronation of the king by
a bishop or the pope, as in the Holy Roman Empire. Although theoretically
at the apex of feudal power, the medieval monarchs were in fact weak and
dependent upon the nobility for much of their power. During the Renaissance
and after, there emerged “new monarchs” who broke the power of the nobility
and centralized the state under their own rigid rule. Notable examples are
Henry VII and Henry VIII of England and Louis XIV of France. The 16th and
17th cent. mark the height of absolute monarchy, which found its
theoretical justification in the doctrine of divine right. However, even
the powerful monarchs of the 17th cent. were somewhat limited by custom and
constitution as well as by the delegation of powers to strong
bureaucracies. Such limitations were also felt by the “benevolent despots”
of the 18th cent. Changes in intellectual climate, in the demands made upon
government in a secular and commercially expanding society, and in the
social structure, as the bourgeoisie became increasingly powerful,
eventually weakened the institution of monarchy in Europe. The Glorious
Revolution in England (1688) and the French Revolution (1789) were
important landmarks in the decline and limitation of monarchical power.
Throughout the 19th cent. Royal power was increasingly reduced by
constitutional provisions and parliamentary incursions. In the 20th cent.,
monarchs have generally become symbols of national unity, while real power
has been transferred to constitutional assemblies. Over the past 200 years
democratic self-government has been established and extended to such an
extent that a true functioning monarchy is a rare occurrence in both East
and West. Among the few remaining are Brunei, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia.
Notable constitutional monarchies include Belgium, Denmark, Great Britain,
Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Thailand.
Constitutional monarchy: System of government in which a monarch has
agreed to share power with a constitutionally organized government. The
monarch may remain the de facto head of state or may be a purely ceremonial
head. The constitution allocates the rest of the government's power to the
legislature and judiciary. Britain became a constitutional monarchy under
the Whigs; other constitutional monarchies include Belgium, Cambodia,
Jordan, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and Thailand.
THE BRITISH CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY
"The British Constitutional Monarchy was the consequence of the Glorious
Revolution of 1688, and was enshrined in the Bill of Rights of 1689.
Whereby William and Mary in accepting the throne, had to consent to govern
'according to the statutes in parliament on."
A monarch does not have to curry favour for votes from any section of
the community.
A monarch is almost invariably more popular than an Executive President,
who can be elected by less than 50% of the electorate and may therefore
represent less than half the people. In the 1995 French presidential
election the future President Chirac was not the nation's choice in the
first round of voting. In Britain, governments are formed on the basis of
parliamentary seats won. In the 1992 General Election the Conservative
Prime Minister took the office with only 43% of votes cast in England,
Scotland and Wales. The Queen however, as hereditary Head of State, remains
the representative of the whole nation.
Elected presidents are concerned more with their own political futures
and power, and as we have seen (in Brazil for example), may use their
temporary tenure to enrich themselves. Monarchs are not subject to the
influences which corrupt short-term presidents. A monarch looks back on
centuries of history and forward to the well being of the entire nation
under his/her heir. Elected presidents in their nature devote much energy
to undoing the achievements of their forebears in order to strengthen the
position of their successors.
A long reigning monarch can put enormous experience at the disposal of
transient political leaders. Since succeeding her father in 1952 Queen
Elizabeth has had a number of Prime Ministers, the latest of whom were not
even in Parliament at the time of her accession. An experienced monarch can
act as a brake on over ambitious or misguided politicians, and encorage
others who are less confident. The reality is often the converse of the
theory: the monarch is frequently the Prime Minister's best adviser.
Monarchs, particularly those in Europe are part of an extended Royal
Family, facilitating links between their nations. As Burke observed,
nations touch at their summits. A recent example of this was the attendance
of so many members of Royal Families at the 50th birthday celebrations for
Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustav. Swedish newspapers reported that this this
was a much better indication of their closeness to the rest of Europe than
any number of treaties, protocols or directives from the European Union.
A monarch is trained from Birth for the position of Head of State and
even where, as after the abdication of Edward VIII, a younger brother
succeeds, he too has enormous experience of his country, its people and its
government. The people know who will succeed, and this certainly gives a
nation invaluable continuity and stability. This also explains why it is
rare for an unsuitable person to become King. There are no expensive
elections as in the US where, as one pro-Monarchist American says, "we have
to elect a new ' Royal Family' every four years." In the French system the
President may be a member of one party, while the Prime Minister is from
another, which only leads to confused governement. In a monarchy there is
no such confusion, for the monarch does not rule in conflict with
government but reigns over the whole nation.
In ceremonial presidencies the Head of State is often a former politician
tainted by, and still in thrall to, his former political life and
loyalties, or an academic or retired diplomat who can never have the same
prestige as a monarch, and who is frequently little known inside the
country, and almost totally unknown outside it. For example, ask a German
why is Britain's Head of State and a high proportion will know it is Queen
Elizabeth II. Ask a Briton, or any Non- German, who is Head of State of
Germany? , and very few will be able to answer correctly.
Aided by his immediate family, a monarch can carry out a range of duties
and public engagements - ceremonial, charitable, environmental etc. which
an Executive President would never have time to do, and to which a
ceremonial President would not add lustre.
A monarch and members of a Royal Family can become involved in a wide
range of issues which are forbidden to politicians. All parties have vested
interests which they cannot ignore. Vernon Bogdanor says in ' The Monarchy
and the Constitution' - «A politician must inevitably be a spokesperson for
only part of the nation, not the whole. A politician's motives will always
be suspected. Members of the Royal Family, by contrast, because of their
symbolic position, are able to speak to a much wider constituency than can
be commanded by even the most popular political leader." In a Republic,
then, who is there to speak out on issues where the 'here today, gone
tomorrow' government is constrained from criticising its backers, even
though such criticism is in the national interest.
All nations are made up of families, and it's natural that a family
should be at a nation's head.
While the question of Divine Right is now obsolescent, the fact that
"there's such divinity doth hedge a King" remains true, and it is
interesting to note that even today Kings are able to play a role in the
spiritual life of a nation which presidents seem unable to fulfil.
It has been demonstrated that, even ignoring the enormous cost of
presidential elections, a monarch as head of state is no more expensive
than a president. In Britain many costs, such as the upkeep of the Royal
residencies, are erroneosly thought to be uniquely attributable to the
monarchy, even though the preservation of our heritage would still be
undertaken if the county were a republic! The US government has criticised
the cost to the Brazilian people of maintaining their president.
Even Royal Families which are not reigning are dedicated to the service
of their people, and continue to be regarded as the symbol of the nation's
continuity. Prominent examples are H.R.H. the Duke of Braganza in Portugal
and H.R.H. the County of Paris in France. Royal Families forced to live in
exile, such as the Yugoslav and Romanian, are often promoters of charities
formed to help their countries.
KINGS AND QUEENS OF ENGLAND
The history of the English Crown up to the Union of the Crowns in 1603 is
long and varied. The concept of a single ruler unifying different tribes
based in England developed in the eighth and ninth centuries in figures
such as Offa and Alfred the Great, who began to create centralised systems
of government. Following the Norman Conquest, the machinery of government
developed further, producing long-lived national institutions including
Parliament.
The Middle Ages saw several fierce contests for the Crown, culminating in
the Wars of the Roses, which lasted for nearly a century. The conflict was
finally ended with the advent of the Tudors, the dynasty which produced
some of England's most successful rulers and a flourishing cultural
Renaissance. The end of the Tudor line with the death of the 'Virgin Queen'
in 1603 brought about the Union of the Crowns with Scotland.
THE ANGLO-SAXON KINGS
In the Dark Ages during the fifth and sixth centuries, communities of
peoples in Britain inhabited homelands with ill-defined borders. Such
communities were organised and led by chieftains or kings. Following the
final withdrawal of the Roman legions from the provinces of Britannia in
around 408 AD these small kingdoms were left to preserve their own order
and to deal with invaders and waves of migrant peoples such as the Picts
from beyond Hadrian's Wall, the Scots from Ireland and Germanic tribes from
the continent. (King Arthur, a larger-than-life figure, has often been
cited as a leader of one or more of these kingdoms during this period,
although his name now tends to be used as a symbol of British resistance
against invasion.)
The invading communities overwhelmed or adapted existing kingdoms and
created new ones - for example, the Angles in Mercia and Northumbria. Some
British kingdoms initially survived the onslaught, such as Strathclyde,
which was wedged in the north between Pictland and the new Anglo-Saxon
kingdom of Northumbria.
By 650 AD, the British Isles were a patchwork of many kingdoms founded
from native or immigrant communities and led by powerful chieftains or
kings. In their personal feuds and struggles between communities for
control and supremacy, a small number of kingdoms became dominant: Bernicia
and Deira (which merged to form Northumbria in 651 AD), Lindsey, East
Anglia, Mercia, Wessex and Kent. Until the late seventh century, a series
of warrior-kings in turn established their own personal authority over
other kings, usually won by force or through alliances and often cemented
by dynastic marriages.
According to the later chronicler Bede, the most famous of these kings
was Ethelberht, king of Kent (reigned c.560-616), who married Bertha, the
Christian daughter of the king of Paris, and who became the first English
king to be converted to Christianity (St Augustine's mission from the Pope
to Britain in 597 during Ethelberht's reign prompted thousands of such
conversions). Ethelberht's law code was the first to be written in any
Germanic language and included 90 laws. His influence extended both north
and south of the river Humber: his nephew became king of the East Saxons
and his daughter married king Edwin of Northumbria (died 633).
In the eighth century, smaller kingdoms in the British Isles continued to
fall to more powerful kingdoms, which claimed rights over whole areas and
established temporary primacies: Dalriada in Scotland, Munster and Ulster
in Ireland. In England, Mercia and later Wessex came to dominate, giving
rise to the start of the monarchy.
Throughout the Anglo-Saxon period the succession was frequently
contested, by both the Anglo-Saxon aristocracy and leaders of the settling
Scandinavian communities. The Scandinavian influence was to prove strong in
the early years. It was the threat of invading Vikings which galvanised
English leaders into unifying their forces, and, centuries later, the
Normans who successfully invaded in 1066 were themselves the descendants of
Scandinavian 'Northmen'.
HOUSE OF WESSEX AND ENGLAND
802 – 1066
EGBERT = Redburga
(802–839)
ETHELWULF = Osburga dau. of Oslac of Isle of
Wight
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