1154-1189 – Reign of Henry II. Henry II, first of the Royal House of Angevin kings, was one of the most effective England’s monarchs, who reformed the country’s financial, judicial and administrative systems. Henry also reduced the privileges of the clergy, but entered into a conflict with his close friend Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury. He refused to allow the clergy to be judged under royal law and was murdered in his cathedral in 1162.

1199-1216 – Reign of King John. Under King John taxes were enormous; his administration of justice was unfair. So the barons demanded a charter of liberties to secure people from king’s arbitrary behaviour. In May 1215 they rose up in arms against John and conquered London. In June the parties held negotiations and reached the agreements, known as the Magna Carta (Great Charter), which is believed to be the foundation of liberty and main defence against unjust rule in England. It first established a significant principle, which meant the king’s power was no longer absolute, and he was no longer above the law.

1455-1485 – The Wars of the Roses. The name refers to the heraldic symbols associated with two opposing branches of the same royal house, the White Rose of York and the Red Rose of Lancaster. They fought a series of dynastic wars for the throne of England, which eventually came to an end after the succession of Henry Tudor VII, who united the two warring roses into one Tudor Rose – the national emblem of England.

1509-1547 – Reign of Henry VIII. Henry VIII was a tyrannical ruler, who alone ordered tens of thousands political executions, including a couple of his six wives. However, the king enjoyed great popularity with his subjects and during his long reign established an efficient centralized state. Henry is best known for his break with Rome, when in 1534 with the Act of Supremacy he gained total control over the Anglican Church and appointed himself its supreme head. He dissolved all the Catholic convents and monasteries in England and declared the Church of England as the official religion of the nation.

1558-1603 – Reign of Elizabeth I. Elizabeth I was Henry VIII’s daughter and the most significant ruler of the Tudor dynasty. Historians depict her reign as the “golden age” in English history. It was the time of exploration, international expansion, naval triumph over the hated enemy, the Spanish Armada. This was a great era of the English Renaissance, most famous for the theatre of William Shakespeare. Elizabeth I was committed to preserving peace and stability above all else; her genuine love for her subjects was legendary.

1642-1689 – The English Civil War. King Charles I believed in the Divine right of kings, but when Parliament tried to limit his power, the king dissolved the assembly and managed to rule his kingdom without calling it for eleven years. The Personal Rule of Charles I, also named the period of government without parliaments, caused instability, panic and rebellions among people in England. The disagreements between King and Parliament called conflict between their supporters, namely royalists and parliamentarians, who eventually broke out Civil War.

“New Model Army”, led by Oliver Cromwell, defeated the royalists; King Charles I was sent to trial and executed. As the result, monarchy was abolished and the Commonwealth of England was the name chosen for a new republic formed in 1649. But it only lasted until 1660, when Charles II restored the monarchy again. The conflict in the government was settled with the “Glorious Revolution” and the concept of the “Divine right of kings” was brought to an end by the Bill of Rights Act. It limited the monarch’s right to raise money through taxation and guaranteed fair elections of members of Parliament. The two basic principles of Britain’s democracy, the supremacy of Parliament and the rule of law, had been established.

human / powerless / fake / corrupted / lawful / separated / democratic / limited / rootless / unrelated / constitutional

1) A document constituting a fundamental guarantee of rights and privileges.

2) A document that left the Pope with no power in England.

3) The rule of a monarch characterized by a lack of consultation with the parliamentary body.

4) A political community founded for the common good.

5) A statement of the basic laws to protect the rights of a country’s citizens to have justice and fairness.

6) Doctrine, which asserted that kings derived their authority from God and could not be held accountable for their actions by any earthly authority such as a Parliament.

6. What do you think these everyday foods have to do with British history? Listen to the recording and check your ideas.

7. Complete the sentences using the appropriate countries. There is one you don’t need to use. Listen to the recording again and check your answers.

Africa / Jamaica / Hong Kong / India / Ireland / Singapore / America / China

2) _____ became a British colony as a result of the sugar trade in the 18th century.

3) _____ became a British colony as a result of the spice trade in the 18th century.

4) _____ was a British colony from medieval times until 1922.

5) _____ was a British colony from the 16th century until 1776.

6) _____ was never a British colony.

SEQUENCE OF TENSES

Tenses are verbs that describe when an event, action, or condition has occurred. There are three types of tenses based on time: PAST TENSE, PRESENT TENSE, FUTURE TENSE. Each of these has 4 aspects which indicate the continuation of the tenses. So, there are in total 12 tenses that are regularly used in English Grammar. In the SEQUENCE OF TENSES, there are some basic rules: 

1) A past tense in the principal clause is always followed by a past tense in the subordinate clause.

E.g.: She said that she would come. I realized that I had made a mistake. I worked hard that I might succeed.

NOTE! When the principal clause is in the past tense, the subordinate clause can be in the present tense if it is citing a universal truth.

E.g.: The children were taught that honesty is the best policy. Galileo maintained that the earth moves around the sun.

2) If the tense used with the principal clause is in the present or future tense, the tense of the subordinate clause can be in any tense based on the needs to be conveyed.

E.g.: He says that she was at the club. He says that she is at the club. He says that she will be at the club. He will say that she was at the club. He will say that she is at the club. He will say that she will be at the club.

3) When we use the principal clause in the future tense, we do not use subordinating clauses in the future tense and use the subordinating clause beginning with when, until, before, after etc.

E.g.: I will call you when dinner is ready. I shall wait until you return.

4) When some phrases such as If only, Wish that, What if, It is time are used, the clauses that follow are always in the past tense.

E.g.: I wish I could eat another ice cream.

1) Alice said that she _____ hard for the past few weeks and was very tired.

2) Monika begged me not to tell her mother what _____ earlier that day.

3) Ann answered she _____ stories and poems all her life, as long as she could remember.

4) The woman standing near the box-office inquired if I knew how much the tickets _____.

5) Mark was worried if _____ enough time to finish his report for the conference.

6) Stella said that she _____ the office earlier that day to get to the station in time.

7) Peter said that by the end of the year he _____ in his new house for five years.

8) Mrs. Fox told me that it had not been raining when lightning _____ the tree in her garden.

9) Ann said that she usually bought her clothes on a fashion website, and as a result she _____ any modest things to wear.

10) Sally told me she _____ in Kyiv all that year, and she had no wish to leave the city.

12) Ann told me that while she had been eating her cake at the station cafe two strangers _____.

13) During the interview I asked Kelly Mann why _____ another romantic novel.

14)I knew Ann _____ around Europe for six months already.

Tom 1) _____ (to be) born in a village and 2) _____ (to spend) his childhood there. He 3) _____ (to move) to Leeds when he 4) _____ (to be) fifteen years old and he 5) _____ (to live) there since his sister 6) _____ (to get) married. At present, he 7) _____ (to work) in an office but he 8) _____ (to use) to work at a bank before. Next year, he 9) _____ (to go) to London to study at the University, but only after he 10) _____ (to finish) writing the novel he 11) _____ (to work) at now. I 12) _____ (to write) a long letter to him several days ago and 13) _____ (to ask) him how many chapters he already 14)_______ (to write).

10. Work in pairs. Write four sentences about the political history of your country. Share your ideas with the class, discuss and compile a composite Ukrainian historical fact sheet.