VOA新闻杂志2022--英国女王伊丽莎白二世去世,享年96岁

Queen Elizabeth, Britain’s Longest Serving Monarch¹, Dies at 96

British officials in London announced that Elizabeth II, Queen of England, has died at the age of 96.

Elizabeth reigned³ for more than 70 years and became Britain's longest-serving monarch.

Officials at the headquarters of the British royal family said Elizabeth died at her summer home of Balmoral Castle in Scotland. Members of the royal family had hurried to be with her after her health appeared to worsen.

Her son, 73-year-old Prince Charles, will now become king. It is unclear whether he will reign² as King Charles III or under another name.

The effects of her death may not be fully⁴ known for years. She helped strengthen the British monarchy⁵ and was respected by the British public and world leaders. Most Britons have never known another monarch.

Elizabeth became queen on February 6, 1952. During her reign, her country rebuilt after the destruction of World War II.

Elizabeth served with 15 British prime ministers, starting with Winston Churchill, Britain's famous wartime leader. That line extended all the way to September 6, when she accepted the resignation of Boris Johnson and welcomed Liz Truss as the country's new prime minister.

In Britain's constitutional monarchy, the prime minister serves as the head of government while the monarch serves as head of state.

‘Devoted⁶ to your service'

Five years before she became queen, a 21-year-old Elizabeth promised the people of Britain: "My whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service."

For most of her life, Elizabeth served as the public face of the British monarchy and of the British people. She represented Britain's last link to the World War II generation and its many sacrifices.

She was born Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor in London on April 21, 1926. She was the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York and was not expected to be queen. But her father's older brother, who became King Edward VIII, abdicated⁸ the throne in 1936 and Elizabeth's father became George VI.

She was a teenager when Britain went to war with Germany. She spent much of the war living near London at Windsor Castle. When the war in Europe ended, she said she celebrated⁹ with the crowds in London. She described the day as "one of the most memorable¹⁰ nights of my life."

In 1947, she married Royal Navy officer Philip Mountbatten, a prince of Greece and Denmark. The first of their four children, Prince Charles, was born in 1948, followed by Princess Anne in 1950, Prince Andrew in 1960, and Prince Edward in 1964.

While visiting Kenya in 1952, Elizabeth was told that her father had died and that she was queen.

Over the long years of her reign, she led the royal family through good times and bad.

The marriage of son Charles to Lady Diana Spencer in 1981 was televised around the world. But the queen called 1992 a terrible year when her daughter divorced, Charles separated from Diana and Andrew separated from his wife, too. In 1997, Diana was killed in a car accident in France. Elizabeth's reaction to the tragedy left her somewhat less popular worldwide.

But the queen, from her earlier years to old age, continued to present a public image of bravery and common sense.

Elizabeth spoke¹¹ to her nation in April 2020 as people were being kept apart by COVID-19 health restrictions¹². She offered hope of better times ahead.

"We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days shall return...We will meet again," she said.

The marriage of Philip and Elizabeth lasted 73 years until his death in 2021 at the age of 99. She is survived by her four children, eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

Words in This Story

reign –v. to rule a country as king, queen or emperor

monarch –n. a person who rules a kingdom or empire usually through heredity

abdicate⁷ –v. to leave the position of being a king or queen

throne –n. the special chair of a king or queen

divorced –v. to end a marriage by a legal process

endure –v. to experience pain or suffering for a long time

1 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

2 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

3 reigned   

vi.当政，统治（reign的过去式形式）

参考例句：

• Silence reigned in the hall. 全场肃静。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Night was deep and dead silence reigned everywhere. 夜深人静，一片死寂。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

5 monarchy   

n.君主，最高统治者；君主政体，君主国

参考例句：

• The monarchy in England plays an important role in British culture.英格兰的君主政体在英国文化中起重要作用。
• The power of the monarchy in Britain today is more symbolical than real.今日英国君主的权力多为象徵性的，无甚实际意义。

6 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

7 abdicate   

v.让位，辞职，放弃

参考例句：

• The reason I wnat to abdicate is to try something different.我辞职是因为我想尝试些不一样的东西。
• Yuan Shikai forced emperor to abdicate and hand over power to him.袁世凯逼迫皇帝逊位，把政权交给了他。

8 abdicated   

放弃（职责、权力等）( abdicate的过去式和过去分词 )； 退位，逊位

参考例句：

• He abdicated in favour of his son. 他把王位让给了儿子。
• King Edward Ⅷ abdicated in 1936 to marry a commoner. 国王爱德华八世于1936年退位与一个平民结婚。

9 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

10 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。

11 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

12 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制