Task 2. Answer the following questions using the key words and phrases in brackets

· What was the origin of the Angevin dynasty on the English throne?

(named after the French province Anjou; had their roots in the civil war between two cousins, Stephen and Matilda; Stephen seized (захватил) the crown; Matilda married Jeffrey of Anjou, nicknamed Plantagenet; the son, Henry)

· What can you say about the early years of Henry II?

(inherited steely single-mindedness, physical courage and foul (скверный) temper (характер); charm and military intelligence; a perfect candidate became available; Aquitaine was the greatest prize; grandeur, territory, wealth and glamour; a deal was struck; heir; crowned in Westminster Abby; colossal inheritance)

· What were Henry’s main steps in strengthening the royal power and administration in England? (monasteries were founded at a record pace; shire courts; sheriffs; judge and war lord; protect the church, preserve intact the lands of your ancestors, do justice, suppress evil laws and customs; professional courts; Law now had its own kind of majesty)

· Describe the development of relations and conflict between Henry II and Thomas Becket (spiritual civil war; the strongest pillar (оплот) of Henry’s administration; the first commoner; a merchant’s son; he enjoyed good food and drink; Chancellor*; the match of opposites; the Archbishop of Canterbury; directly anointed by God; subordinate relation of Church to King; “No traitor to the King, the priest of God”)

government in exile – правительство в изгнании;

sense of self-righteousness - уверенность в своей правоте;

traitor archbishop – архиепископ - предатель;

reconcile -помириться;

excommunicate – отлучить от церкви;

arrogance -высокомерие;

· What events marked the last years of Henry II reign?

(pilgrimage to Canterbury; barefoot; confessed his sins; whipped by the monks; crowned criminals; a thriving (процветающая) network of courts; humiliation (унижение) of a string of mistresses; betrayed and alienated Eleanor turned her formidable energy and intellect to get her justice through her children; rebelled only to die of dysentery; trampled to death (затоптан насмерть) by a horse; chivalrous (рыцарственный), brutally ambitious; vindictive (мстительный); pinned her hopes; faced defeat;)

· What were the main features of Henry’s sons Richard and John’s reigns?

(the darling (любимец) of popular folklore and legend; mercenary army(армия наемников); plight (несчастье); ransom (выкуп); wretched failure; blackmail and extortion; loss of Normandy;)

· In what way was Magna Charta important for the development of the political system of England?

(from defeat sprang rebellion; the liberties boil down(права сводятся к) to tax relief; the death certificate of despotism; accountable to the sovereignty of law)

• Chancellor -When the king wished to issue legally binding orders, it was the clerks of Chancery who wrote them. Charters, letters, were written, sealed with the Great Seal of England, and copied on to rolls of sheepskin. The head of Chancery was the Chancellor. Almost all Chancellors during the Middle Ages were bishops.

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